The news conference can serve you, the news-maker, very well if it is used sparingly and staged correctly. When you’re at the center of a bad news story.

Your product gets recalled. Your competitor files a multi-million dollar lawsuit against you for copyright infringement. A major explosion in your factory leaves 10 employees dead and 15 others injured. A member of your senior management team has just been arrested for operating a massive cocaine distribution operation out of your company’s warehouse. Your organization did something stupid and you must publicly apologize, then get on with business. If the media all get the same story, they might not give it as much emphasis because it isn’t their story exclusively.

For even more ways the news conference can help your public relations people put out fires, check out The News Conference: When to Hold It and How to Do It Right.