Dana Whyte - Communications Manager - Michigan State University, Department of Police and Public Safety

The PIO Podcast

In this week's episode, we interview Dana Whyte, the Communications Manager from Michigan State University Department of Police and Public Safety, on the shooting on campus on February 13, 2023.
Dana's Bio
Dana Whyte is the Communications Manager and Spokesperson for the Michigan State University Department of Police and Public Safety, leading all strategic communication initiatives for MSU DPPS. She manages the department's website and social media pages, serves as the spokesperson for media interviews, and is in charge of internal communications, including developing and distributing a monthly employee newsletter.
Dana comes to MSU DPPS from a journalistic background, serving as a television news reporter for four years. She worked for both WOOD-TV8 in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and WLNS-TV in Lansing, Michigan, covering historic events such as the coronavirus pandemic, the Black Lives Matter movement, and the 2020 Presidential Election. She received her bachelor's degree from Central Michigan University in Broadcast & Cinematic Arts and is currently pursuing her master's degree in Strategic Communication from MSU. In her spare time, Dana enjoys reading, traveling, and serving as a fitness instructor at The Barre Code East Lansing.
Dana's LinkedIn
Dana's Email Address

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This episode is sponsored by John Guilfoil Public Relations. From crisis communications to website development; visit our website JGPR.net or call 617.993.0003

Chapters

1. Dana Whyte - Communications Manager - Michigan State University, Department of Police and Public Safety (00:00:00)

2. Introducing Dana Whyte (00:01:56)

3. Dana details what occurred at MSU (00:04:35)

4. Putting out the initial "Run, Hide, Fight" (00:07:06)

5. Thoughts When the Call Came In (00:07:51)

6. Where to set up Media Staging (00:09:08)

7. Telling the Community What to do (00:09:56)

8. Constantly Sending Out Updates (00:10:06)

9. EOC & Media Staging Concerns (00:11:18)

10. First Media Briefing (00:11:42)

11. A Briefing Every Hour (00:12:59)

12. Delayed Briefing #2 (00:13:21)

13. Third and Final Media Briefing of the night (00:14:46)

14. [Ad] This Is Propaganda (00:15:24)

15. (Cont.) Third and Final Media Briefing of the night (00:16:03)

16. Miss-information (00:16:06)

17. Student Notifications System (00:18:13)

18. Leading with Compassion (00:20:23)

19. Where could you have improved? (00:21:37)

20. Lessons Learned (00:22:46)

21. Internal Communications (00:26:22)

22. Rapid Fire Questions (00:29:34)

23. What Key Points to Close (00:30:45)