B. Jay Cooper experienced late 20th-century history from a unique vantage
point -- a small office in the White House.
Cooper served as a deputy press secretary to former presidents Ronald Reagan
and George Bush from 1987 to 1989. And during those years, he had to help
answer questions about events and people that are now part of the history
books. But his job also had its surreal and bizarre moments.
A former top White House aide revealed in 1988 that the then-first lady
Nancy Reagan had hired an astrologer by the name of Joan Quigley to help Reagan
win the presidency over Democrat Jimmy Carter.
The First Lady also asked Quigley to help schedule the president's
public appearances following an assassination attempt in 1981 that nearly
succeeded. The revelation created a media frenzy that painted the already
scandal-ridden White House as a madhouse.
Cooper found himself right in the middle of the controversy.
"Once the press got hold of that, the briefings were unbelievable," he
says. "Crazy questions were asked and you had to go back to the transcripts.
One day we had, I think, 147 questions on astrology, and this is the White
House. I'm not saying that wasn't a story, but there were other
things going on in the world at the time."
Yes. There were other stories. But the media was mainly interested in that
story. So Cooper and his boss Marvin Fitzwater had to make sure it caused
the least possible damage.
And here lies the essence of the public relations industry. Its goal is
to help shape public images and perceptions.
Like many PR officers, Cooper worked as a journalist before he went into
public relations. For 10 years, he was a reporter and later an editor of the
Waterbury Republican-American, a daily in Connecticut.
A career in local state politics followed. In 1981, he went to Washington,
where he was director of public affairs in the Commerce Department. He held
this job until 1987, when he moved to the White House. He has also been the
head of PR for the Republican National Committee and Yale University.
He is now a senior vice-president and director of strategic communications
for a public affairs and public relations firm with 20 offices around the
world. Its client list includes large corporations, individuals, politicians
and political groups of nearly every stripe.
It also does PR for a number of large charitable organizations, including
the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Cooper says when he first arrived in Washington, he only had to worry about
the wire services -- nothing like the instant media of today.
"Literally anybody can put something on the internet and you have to deal
with it," says Cooper.
While technology has changed the nature and the speed of public relations,
it has not changed the general rules of the industry.
Good writing skills are still a must. Always return calls and always give
honest answers, Cooper says. "And sometimes an honest answer is 'I don't
know.' The worst thing you can do in press relations is leave a reporter
with the feeling that you didn't call back or that you didn't care."
He says ignoring the needs of reporters can create bad relationships. That
makes it more difficult for everybody to do their jobs.
Cooper says he actually enjoyed being around the Washington press corps.
"They were a bunch of wonderful reporters," he says.