I remember this day 25 years ago vividly….there was so much excitement about the Challenger, and the first civilian trip into space. TVs were rolled into our classrooms, and there was serious discussion about the significance of sending a teacher on the first civilian mission (by the teachers, of course.) Then the unthinkable happened.

Today, in a post 9-11 world, watching horror unfold on live TV seems ordinary. In a Whatever, Whenever, Wherever You Want It news environment, we can listen, view, engage and interact with our news with a whole host of devices, in real time. Like NASA, people and companies who suffer reputational implosions do so in the public eye, and can no longer lick their wounds in private.

For the countless companies who’ve suffered catastrophic (or not so catastrophic) setbacks in 2010, there are a number of lessons to be learned from NASA, 25 years after the Challenger:

1. There are no shortcuts – Much has been written about NASA’s errors in rushing this mission, and failing to take safety seriously. Today, the same has been said about BP, Toyota and others who’ve suffered reputational implosions. Communications, even great communications, cannot substitute for good operations.

2. Confidence and trust can be restored over time – The Challenger could have easily been the end of NASA as we know it. Yet they stayed the course, and with a series of successful missions, restored the confidence of America, and the world.

3. After a crisis, what you do is more important than what you say – No amount of conversation about re-upping safety priorities would have corrected the course for NASA. They needed to demonstrate that they could continue their mission, safely. That isn’t to say they haven’t had any other accidents….space exploration is, by design, a dangerous business. Like aviation, mining and others. But they accepted responsibility and learned from it (they didn’t try to minimize it, point the finger at a subcontractor, or blame anyone.). NASA focused on the future and on fixing its own house, restoring confidence along the way (Something that would admittedly be much harder to do in today’s environment.).

Perhaps the most important lesson of all is the power of resilience…a uniquely America quality that enables us to brush ourselves off, move forward and aspire to bigger and better things, even in our darkest moments. When President Obama told America, “We Do Big Things” – that wasn’t arrogance. It wasn’t happy talk. It was his belief in the power of our resilience.

cwinters General Corporate BP, Challenger, NASA, Obama, Toyota

Pundits and newsmakers around the globe are tweeting and re-hashing President Obama’s interview on the Today Show this a.m., giving lots of attention to the comments about knowing whose ass to kick.

But for careful watchers of reputation issues, another very interesting exchange occurred when Lauer asked the President if he’s spoken to BP’s CEO.

President Obama’s response came without hesitation. No, he said, because he is interested in “action, not words.” Moments later, after reviewing the CEO’s many statements attempting to minimize the issues, Obama said, “He wouldn’t be working for me.”

Some simple rules of crisis management: Engage your third party influencers. Keep them informed. Make them part of your solution. Then back those words up with action.

None of us know the outcome of this situation. But having the President of the United States suggests you should lose your job can’t be a good thing.

Lauer later criticized President Obama for not picking up the phone to reach out to the BP CEO, and the balance of power was clear … they’ve been in touch and told BP what to do. If BP hopes to protect and preserve its reputation, which may be impossible at this stage, the responsibility for initiating that dialogue lies with the company, not with the White House.

cwinters Crisis Communications, General Corporate BP, Obama, Today Show