I have never met Rinat Akhmetov.
I have had, of course, several Akhmetov sightings while in the lobby of his Donbas Palace hotel in Donetsk, which he owns and where he has a reserved seating area.
There also was a curious nod from him as I paced and practiced for a speech in a public area of the same fine hotel.
However, he appears regularly in our newspaper, and sometimes in a less flattering light than I am sure he and his employees would like. We are writing, of course, about Ukraine’s No. 1 billionaire, industrialist and a longtime backer of President Viktor Yanukovych.
Recently, he was prominently mentioned in an early-August issue in connection with the coal mine disaster at the Sukhodilska-Skhidna mine in Luhansk Oblast, where 28 miners lost their lives.
In my view, the coverage was fair, and I sent the reporter, Vlad Lavrov, a note telling him so.
He strove for balance, including information that mines owned by Metinvest, the steel and mining holding majority owned by Akhmetov, were safer than others due to the owner’s improvements.
Aside from an overly sensational headline, I thought coverage of recent coal-mine deaths was fair, honest
On the other hand, I felt that our headline (“Deadly Greed?”) went beyond the facts presented in the story and fell into the same category as a similar headline (“Killer Kuchma?”) that appeared a while back.
Both were editorial adjudications. Making them questions did not lessen the inference of guilt.
In my role as the Kyiv Post’s CEO and self-appointed ombudsman, I brought the issue up – after the fact – with senior editor Brian Bonner.
About 95 percent of the time, the editor and I are on the same page, usually the same paragraph, often the same line.
I respected him as an editor’s editor even before I came to the newspaper.
We have had a few energetic and healthy discussions, and we had one on this issue.
The same issue carried a statement issued on Akhmetov’s behalf that pledged support for the miners’ families and a commitment to continue mine modernization and employee safety.
A few weeks later, Akhmetov’s company announced that $1.75 million would be spent to upgrade safety at the Luhansk mine.
That news was reported by this newspaper.
I believe the Kyiv Post’s coverage was both fair and honest. However, those being written about tend to be much more sensitive than the reporter doing the story.
Having been on both sides of this fence, I think the issue bears exploration. The best way to do that is openly.
In the interest of full disclosure, the marketing and public relations agency of which I am chairman, Willard, has worked with Akhmetov’s System Capital Management holding and many of its companies, including Metinvest, over the last half dozen years.
I consider them well-run and forward-thinking companies.
Also, when it comes to coal mining disasters, I have an emotional interest.
I come from West Virginia, which, like eastern Ukraine, is coal mining territory. I have had dinner at a coal miner’s table and I have been a kilometer down a mine.
As a reporter, I covered the violent Brookside mine strike against the powerful Duke Power Co. in Harlan County, Kentucky.
Some years ago, I worked to make Independent Trade Union of Miners of Ukraine chief Mykhailo Volynets a better spokesperson, at the request of the U.S. Embassy.
From my perch as a crisis counselor, Akhmetov should be commended for taking the lead in mine safety in Ukraine, and by pouring – by his company’s accounting – all of the operation’s profits for last year, nearly $500 million, into improving conditions.
Coal mining is one of the most hazardous occupations in the world.
Often, people hold to and cherish their jobs as miners because it is the only job in a depressed region. It can be made safer, but it will never be a safe profession.
Some mines are more dangerous than others. To compare one with a cavernous shaft to a dog-tail mine with narrow seams is to compare apples to oranges.
Levels of combustible methane in the mines vary from region to region.
From my perch as a crisis counselor, Akhmetov should be commended for taking the lead in mine safety in Ukraine, and by pouring – by his company’s accounting – all of the operation’s profits for last year, nearly $500 million, into improving conditions.
Having said that, Akhmetov managed to slip on a few banana peels when it came to reacting to a crisis; and, by definition, a mine explosion in which lives are lost is a crisis. In the first place, the boss should have been front and center.
A crisis needs a face, and the higher up the food chain, the better the public (and the media) can understand that the company realizes its obligations, plans to meet expectations, and is sympathetic to victims.
A statement released by the head office is a poor substitute for an on-camera appearance at the scene.
Additionally, while the pledge of money is generous, it should always be accompanied by a concrete strategy to back it up, saying specifically what steps will be taken. It doesn’t hurt if a few innovative ideas are offered as well.
When it comes down to it, reacting to a crisis is not about the press or public relations. It is about compassion and common sense.
Michael Willard is the CEO of the Kyiv Post.
