FEMA

by Katie Delahaye Paine

Crises can have interesting effects on reputations, no matter what the organization or person. Last year's tsunami helped bolster the US's reputation abroad when its military was on the scene providing aid and rescuing victims in a matter of days. When fire destroyed the Malden Mills manufacturing plant, its owner Aaron Feuerstein became a hero to workers and business people alike for keeping all the employees on the payroll even though there was no place for them to work.

Numerous reputations will be made, saved and salvaged in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Wal-Mart cut off pay to the workers who had no job or store to go to after just three days, then turned around and became the largest corporate contributor to the Katrina Relief Fund. Was that enough to save their already spotty reputation? Probably not. Recent studies show that, increasingly, consumers simply expect companies to open their wallets in times of crisis, and that doing so doesn't improve their image, but being stingy can definitely hurt.

Unlike 9/11 and the tsunami, Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath have done more harm than good to the US's reputation. Overseas, audiences watched in disbelief that the scenes of horror playing on CNN could actually happen in the richest nation on earth. Americans from red and blue states alike were united in their disgust at how long it took the Federal government to respond. One died-in-the-wool New Hampshire republican so lost faith in our current administration that he went online, found a bus company in Texas that would rent him a bus, got them to drive to New Orleans (with the requisite security guards) and started ferrying refugees to safety.

Americans may never again have the faith they once had in the power or ability of the federal government to rescue them in a crisis. Can the Federal Emergency Management Authority recover from the missteps and misstatements of the past few weeks? No. While the sacking of its chief Michael Brown and the quick and decisive action of his successor may restore some faith in the organization, ultimately it will be known as the agency that failed during Hurricane Katrina, in much the same way that the CIA and FBI are now blamed for the intelligence gaps that failed to prevent 9/11.

Ironically, the reputation most saved by Katrina was that of the media. Brian Williams and his peers slogged through the streets of New Orleans and got to places that the Feds couldn't, revealing details of the horror that FEMA claimed to be unaware of. Coverage like this boosted the reputation of the media in the public's eye.

So far, the polls seem to show that the public blames the president as much as FEMA or anyone else for the disaster. Whether or not the administration can recover its reputation is the real question.

One reputation, however, that will survive the episode is that of the city of New Orleans. In story after story, the wonders, contributions and character of New Orleans were recounted and remembered. And, if the words of one survivor are any indication, they won't let it be forgotten: "We have a parade in February. It's called Mardi Gras. And if ten people show up, we'll be happy."

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