The Streisand Effect in Action: How Belichick’s Interview Dodge Became the Whole Story

There’s nothing like a bad interview to get public relations pros buzzing, and last week, the industry was aflutter after former Patriots Head Coach Bill Belicheck granted an interview to CBS Sunday Morning to promote his new book.

While there were several moments that would spike your average PR person’s blood pressure, one question stole the spotlight from the entire interview. When asked how he and his 24-year-old girlfriend Jordan Hudson met, the camera pans to her shutting down the question with a terse, “We’re not talking about that.”

The coverage on the moment exploded. Memes were created. That single moment, paired with a little bit of commentary about Belichek’s tattered sweatshirt, dominated stories and public discourse.

Public relations professionals call this spinout the Streisand effect. Britannica gives this nice, concise definition:

“Streisand effect, phenomenon in which an attempt to censor, hide, or otherwise draw attention away from something only serves to attract more attention to it. The name derives from American singer and actress Barbra Streisand’s lawsuit against a photographer in 2003, which drew attention to the photo she was suing to have taken off the Internet.” 

It's human nature. The second we’re told not to do something, we have the urge to do just that. When someone says, “Don’t look,” you immediately turn your head.

The Daily Mail reports on the damage control steps Belichick is taking.

“Now, in the wake of the crisis, Belichick is said to be scrambling to salvage his image in an attempt to boost his book tour. The New England Patriots legend has been in talks with former Bears V.P. of communications Brandon Faber, according to Pro Football Talk. 

The move could risk the wrath of his younger girlfriend, who reportedly has been acting as his 'de facto agent' over the past few months. “

Here’s another example.

In 2022, Elon Musk reached out to a college freshman with a $5,000 offer to shut down a Twitter account he had created in 2020 that tracked Musk’s jet’s whereabouts (which is publicly available information).

After trying to barter for a higher amount, the freshman — Jack Sweeney —refused to comply with Musk, instead sending screenshots of their conversation to The New York Times, which published the information. Several other outlets picked up the story, and Sweeney’s Twitter account ballooned to over 500,000 followers.

Musk’s next action was to suspend the account, citing doxing concerns. The action spurred yet another round of media stories, from which Reddit groups were spun up, additional accounts were created on platforms that Musk didn’t control (such as Mastadon), and the conversation escalated far beyond the original audience from Sweeney’s Twitter account.

Musk then decided to take legal action against Sweeney, spurring yet another round of media stories.

In short, far more people knew how to access information about Musk’s jet than they would have had he just let well enough alone.  

What Can We Learn Here?

Listen. We all have things that we don’t want printed on the front page of a newspaper or blasted online, but taking an aggressive approach to have something removed or omitted is a recipe for becoming a victim of the Streisand effect. Instead:

Evaluate the Actual Impact

Is the content really harmful, or just annoying or a little embarrassing? If it’s obscure, not going viral, or unlikely to damage your reputation, it's often best to let it fade out naturally.

Use Transparency

The trick here is doing your homework well in advance. Think through any hard questions coming your way and craft concise (and hopefully uninteresting) responses.

After the media blowup, Belichick released a statement saying he and Hudson had met on a plane to Palm Springs and that the deflection was to keep the interview focused on the book – not to obscure the facts of their relationship. But, had he answered the question that way in the initial interview, it’s unlikely to have created a viral sensation.

Monitor Before You Move

Musk miscalculated in our example above. Instead of quietly allowing a few hundred thousand followers review publicly available information on Sweeney’s Twitter account, he ensured that millions had information about how to track his whereabouts.

If the audience is niche, or if no one is really paying attention, doing nothing might be the best move.

Have a Crisis Plan Ready

Prepare a response plan in advance for potential PR issues. This helps you act with strategy instead of panic.

Blast from the Past … 21 years ago this month!

The Belichick/Hudson situation reminds The EO Report of another famous time when an interview was interrupted and the camera swung off the interviewee … Secretary of State Colin Powell. Tim Russert was finishing up an interview with Sec. Powell on Meet the Press when Powell’s Press Secretary, Emily Miller, directed the camera to move off of Powell DURING THE INTERVIEW. She thought it had gone on long enough and took matters into her own hands. It’s an oldie but a goodie, and The EO Report has first-hand knowledge from a seat in the NBC News control room watching the entire ordeal live. Two favorite quotes from this incident:

• “Emily, get out of the way.”

• Betsy Fischer, Executive Director of MTP, said Miller called her right after the taping to “express her displeasure” that the interview ran long. 

Fischer also said Powell called Russert a few hours later to apologize. For weeks, this was about the only thing people talked about in Washington.