When PR Stunts Backfire + Why AI Keeps Making Life More Complicated

What do you do when your CEO and Chief People Officer get caught canoodling—sans spouses—on a Coldplay kiss cam? If you’re Astronomer, apparently you hire Gwyneth Paltrow to crack a few jokes and hope everyone forgets. It probably didn’t work. In this episode of PR After Hours, Alex breaks down how a non-oppositional crisis can become an oppositional one overnight—all thanks to a tone-deaf attempt to “ride the zeitgeist.” We’ll talk about what they should’ve done instead, why you can’t Goop your way out of bad leadership, and the simple crisis comms rule they ignored. Then we shift gears into complexity creep—why tech, especially AI, keeps promising simplicity but somehow makes everything harder. If you’ve ever wondered why the “future of work” feels more chaotic than streamlined, this one’s for you. 🔹 PR stunts that make a mess worse 🔹 The difference between non-oppositional and oppositional crises 🔹 The one thing they should have done to end the scandal 🔹 How complexity creep is undermining AI’s big promises Listen now for a double shot of PR lessons and a reality check on tech hype. 📬 Subscribe & Share: If this episode struck a nerve—or made you rethink your last campaign—share it with a colleague. And don’t forget to subscribe to ⁠PR After Hours ⁠and Alex’s newsletter ⁠All the Fits That’s News⁠ for more smart takes on branding, media, and marketing. 📩 We want to hear from you: How has your relationship with sleep changed over time? 🎤 Send a short MP3⁠ voice memo here⁠ — we may feature it on a future episode! CONNECT⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Alex on Substack⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠PR After Hours Site⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Professional Paragraphs on LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Alex's Author Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Office Hours! Email Alex a voice mail -- just send an MP3 (you can probably record it on your smartphone) with your first name, city, and brief questions ⁠⁠here⁠⁠. Alex will play your message on the show and do his best to answer your questions or comments.  Shy? If you would prefer not to record your voice, just email the question with your first name and city ⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠. Subscribe! ⁠⁠Click Here to gain access to ad-free, subscriber-only content for less than the price of a cup of coffee PER MONTH! $1.99 for no advertisements and occasional subscriber-only content!⁠⁠ Announcer: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Mary McKenna⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. PR After Hours Theme: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://filmmusic.io⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ "Bossa Antigua" by Kevin MacLeod Music Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ This episode was recorded and mixed at Green Shebeen Studios in beautiful Kansas City, Missouri. Copyright 2025, all rights reserved. No reproduction, excerpting, or other use without written permission.We are an Amazon Associates seller, and some of our links may earn us a commission.