{"podcast":{"title":"Communication Breakdown","slug":"communication-breakdown-7019931","podcast_index_feed_id":7019931,"rss_url":"https://www.spreaker.com/show/6301456/episodes/feed","website_url":"https://ocrnetwork.com/podcasts/communication-breakdown","image_url":"https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/bb1654c4c2ff3f77a3c1f292f51b3d52.jpg","author":"Observatory on Corporate Reputation LLC","episode_count":86,"summary":"Communication Breakdown is a postgame show for PR pros. In each episode, hosts Craig Carroll (Founder of the Observatory on Corporate Reputation, Editor of the SAGE Encyclopedia of Corporate Reputation, Lecturer at Rice University’s Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business) and Steve Dowling (former head of communications at OpenAI and Apple) discuss the strategies and tactics companies are using in high-visibility crises and PR initiatives, giving listeners unique insight into how key decisions are made. The podcast offers two unique perspectives on communications theory and practice, drawing on Craig’s research and teaching on reputation at USC Annenberg, UNC Chapel Hill, and universities worldwide, and Steve’s two decades of experience as a comms leader at some of the world’s most influential companies. Whether you’re a PR professional, marketing executive, or just curious about how companies make key communications decisions, you’ll find these discussions insightful and valuable.","last_synced_at":"2026-06-05T04:21:27.467075+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/communication-breakdown-7019931"},"episode":{"title":"Special Deliveries","slug":"special-deliveries","published_at":"2026-04-16T13:00:02+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/communication-breakdown-7019931/special-deliveries","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/communication-breakdown-7019931","url":"https://www.spreaker.com/episode/special-deliveries--71356646","audio_url":"https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/71356646/ep_79_special_deliveries.mp3","summary":"Steve Dowling and Craig Carroll examine two very different communication moments with the same core question underneath them: what happens when credibility gets tested in public. First, they analyze Pope Leo XIV’s unusually direct responses to President Trump, focusing on how language choice, timing, institutional authority, and message discipline gave the Vatican unusual force in a fast-moving media environment. Then they turn to DoorDash’s awkward White House tax-season photo op, where a staged moment involving a politically connected driver created credibility problems the company only made worse by trying to defend it. Across both segments, the episode offers a sharp lesson for communicators: credibility matters most when it can survive scrutiny, and weak setups rarely hold up under a second look. Takeaways Credibility has little strategic value if leaders or institutions refuse to use it when the stakes are high. Pope Leo’s choice to speak in English at key moments showed how language, venue, and timing can amplify a message without abandoning discipline. Institutional authority still carries weight, but it now operates in an environment where every statement gets challenged and reframed in real time. Topics Mentioned institutional credibility, authority under exposure, Vatican communications, media strategy, rapid response, message discipline, moral authority, corporate reputation, White House photo ops, staged events, second-look scrutiny, alignment, defensive communications, narrative control, public affairs, trust, political optics, crisis communications Companies Mentioned DoorDash, McDonald’s, Fox News, NBC News, Daily Beast, Twitter Episode Hashtags #DoorDash #McDonalds #FoxNews #NBCNews #DailyBeast #Twitter #CorporateCommunications #PublicRelations #Corpor…","meta_description":"Steve Dowling and Craig Carroll examine two very different communication moments with the same core question underneath them: what happens when credibilit…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":1915,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/communication-breakdown-7019931/episodes/special-deliveries/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/communication-breakdown-7019931/special-deliveries.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}