Collaboration with toxic techno-billionaire Elon Musk and misuse of artificial intelligence are among the biggest reputational threats to companies' brands.
Collaboration with toxic techno-billionaire Elon Musk and misuse of artificial intelligence are among the biggest reputational threats to companies' brands.
According to The Guardian, this is evidenced by the results of a survey of more than 100 international leaders working in the field of public relations.
Thus, according to the survey, almost 30% of respondents in a group of 117 people from 17 countries representing 58 industries, including former heads of state and US officials, indicated that cooperation with Musk creates the greatest likelihood of coming under increased negative attention.
«The impact of associations with a deeply polarized leader like Musk cannot be underestimated,» said Isabel Guzman, former head of the U.S. Small Business Administration.
In a statement, Brett Bruen of Global Situation Room, the Washington-based public relations firm that commissioned the survey, said the «reputational risk index» contained «a clear warning.»
The Guardian recalls that this survey is consistent with other public opinion surveys that have shown sharp disapproval of Musk’s work within the Trump Administration.
Additionally, the survey found that stories that contain «deep fakes, misinformation, examples of biased decision-making, or unethical programs that harm or manipulate public perception» pose an even greater threat to brands.
According to the survey results, this was seen as «the most likely to attract negative attention in online news.»
According to one of the survey participants, quoted by the publication, «artificial intelligence, if not understood or used unsuccessfully in companies, can have an irreversible negative effect.» Therefore, according to one of the group’s experts, today organizations absolutely need to have their own standardized policy for using artificial intelligence.
«These data are not just numbers, they point to the complex communication challenges that organizations constantly face,» said Isabel Guzman.
As dev.ua recently wrote, Elon Musk’s DOGE department was accused of leaking American databases that could have been used by the Russians.
