7 things PR pros can expect following Bin Laden’s death

With news from President Obama Sunday night that Osama Bin Laden was killed, the news cycle for the foreseeable future is unpredictable at best. How will politicians, the media, Americans, and the world digest and spin this story?

Here are seven things PR pros can expect in the coming days:

1. Brace yourself before you patiently explain to your client or boss that the pitch or event you had planned ain’t happening. That is unless it can be directly connected to terrorism, patriotism, 9/11, or anything remotely tied to these themes.

2. Obey the news cycle. News is fluid and always changing. This historic event has to play out in the media all around the world. We may not like the duration or the path it takes, but we have to watch it unfold.

3. Get the hell out of the way. That is unless you can really help. Reporters, producers, assignment desk editors and anyone working in a newsroom will be crankier than usual. They’ll be flooded with breaking news, live feeds, up-to-the minute changes before deadlines, and idiotic phone calls and online messages from novices and the public.