The most senior person is not always the best person to face the media. The right spokesperson brings the authority, expertise, availability, and communication skills the situation requires.
The right spokesperson is the person with the most relevant authority for the issue, not necessarily the most senior person in the organization. Technical matters need technical experts. Strategic announcements may require the CEO or another senior executive. Community issues often call for a locally credible voice. During a crisis, the spokesperson must have enough authority to respond quickly and accurately. Choosing the right media spokesperson is therefore a strategic decision. The wrong choice can weaken an otherwise strong message.
The CEO does not always need to speak
The default assumption is often that the chief executive should handle media interviews. Sometimes that is the right choice. Often, it is not. A CEO may have the authority to speak about strategy, major decisions, corporate values, or issues that require an organizational commitment. But that does not automatically make them the best voice for every subject. Spokesperson selection should begin with the issue, the audience, and the type of authority required.
Match the spokesperson to the subject
Different issues require different voices.
Technical and clinical matters need technical expertise. A health organization discussing a medical issue may be better represented by a qualified medical professional. An engineering company responding to a technical failure may need an engineer who can explain what happened. Audiences often judge credibility through relevant expertise, not job title.
Strategic and institutional matters need senior authority. Major announcements, organizational direction, values, acquisitions, and decisions that require commitment should generally come from someone who has the authority to make that commitment.
Community and local issues need local credibility. A head-office executive explaining an issue to a community may not carry the same trust as someone who understands the local context and has an established relationship with the audience. This can be particularly important in markets where institutional trust varies significantly.
Crisis communications require authority, not just seniority
Crisis spokesperson selection requires a different test. When an incident occurs, the organization needs someone who can respond quickly, accurately, and consistently. Waiting for a senior executive to obtain multiple approvals can create delays when the news cycle is already moving. A spokesperson with delegated authority can sometimes be more effective than a more senior executive who cannot make decisions independently. The key question is simple: Can this person speak with authority when the organization is under pressure? If the answer is no, they may not be the right crisis spokesperson.
Four tests for choosing a spokesperson
1. Can they handle difficult questions?
Being knowledgeable is not enough. A spokesperson must be able to stay composed when challenged, answer directly, correct misinformation, and avoid becoming defensive. These skills can be tested through media training and realistic interview simulations.
2. Are they available?
A spokesperson who cannot take a media call when a story is developing creates a serious communications gap. Availability matters, particularly during a live news cycle or crisis. Organizations should have clear expectations about response times and backup arrangements.
3. Can they speak to the right audience?
Language and cultural fluency can influence how a message is received. In multilingual markets, the ability to communicate directly with an audience can be valuable. A spokesperson who understands the audience’s language and context may connect more effectively than a more senior person who does not. For example, communications in Egypt may require strong Arabic-language capability, while media engagement in Francophone West Africa may require French.
4. Is the spokesperson likely to remain with the organization?
Organizations can create unnecessary risk when their entire public profile depends on one individual. If that person leaves, the organization may lose an important source of institutional knowledge, media relationships, and public credibility. A strong spokesperson strategy builds organizational capability, not dependence on one personality.
Build a spokesperson bench
One of the most common weaknesses in media relations is having only one spokesperson. A single spokesperson can become a bottleneck when they are traveling, unavailable, implicated in an issue, or simply not the right person for a particular subject.
For many organizations, a practical spokesperson structure can include:
- A principal spokesperson for strategic and institutional matters
- A technical spokesperson for specialist subjects
- A market or community spokesperson for local issues
Each person should receive media training, understand their authority, and know when to escalate an issue. The goal is not to have more people speaking. It is to have the right person available for the right situation.
Who should not speak to the media?
Some people should generally not be the primary spokesperson for an issue.
Untrained employees: Expertise and confidence do not automatically translate into effective media performance.
People personally involved in the issue: Someone directly implicated in an incident may struggle to provide the objectivity audiences expect.
Legal counsel acting alone: Legal review is often essential. However, having a lawyer deliver every public response can make the communication overly technical or defensive. Legal and communications teams should work together, while the most appropriate trained spokesperson delivers the message.
Choose your spokesperson before the crisis
The worst time to decide who should represent an organization is during an incident.
A strong crisis communications plan should identify primary and backup spokespeople before they are needed. Their roles, approval authority, contact details, and escalation procedures should be documented in the crisis playbook.
They should also be trained before the first interview request arrives. Effective media training should cover difficult questions, bridging techniques, message discipline, hostile interviews, live interviews, crisis scenarios, and communication under pressure. As the best PR agency in Africa, Bloomwit Africa helps organizations build and prepare spokesperson benches across African markets as part of our media training and strategic communications practice. The objective is simple: when the organization needs a voice, the right person should already be ready to speak.
Crisis credibility is built long before the headlines. Contact Bloomwit Africa to assess your spokesperson readiness and equip your leadership team to communicate decisively when it matters most.
