Thomas J. McFeeley Communications

From the moment my Aunt Ginny called me the morning of Oct. 9, 2009, the story of the death of my cousin, Kirby Brown, has been surreal. But within an hour of receiving that call and doing a couple of Google searches on the deaths and James Ray, I knew it would quickly become a media circus.

I won’t claim to have x-ray vision 15 months into the future, but within days we had to prepare for an arrest, and a prolonged legal battle. So when March 1, 2011 finally rolled around – the beginning of the James Ray criminal trial for the death of Kirby and two others – it was a moment we had been anticipating.

As difficult as it was to face Mr. Ray in court during that first week – as myself, Kirby’s parents and members of the two other families did – we had somewhat prepared for that. When Beverley Bunn took the stand on Friday, it was a moment that shook me somewhat, for many reasons.

Beverley, an orthodontist from Texas, was the only participant of the Spiritual Warrior event who attended Kirby’s funeral. I remember when she was introduced to me in the parking lot outside of the church. Because I had been the spokesperson for Kirby’s immediate family, I was the recognizable face for her. When she was introduced to me by a friend of hers, I immediately hugged her, thanked her for coming and asked how she was. I will always admire her courage, her devotion to my cousin, and her strength for standing up and doing what was right.

So watching her on the stand, on live television from my couch at home I felt proud, scared, anxious, helpless, and protective. But as her testimony unfolded, I realized she needed no protection. She was strong, brave, and – most importantly for the case – had tremendous memory of the details of the sweat lodge and the entire event.

Because of her recall and memory she was able to offer evidence such as:
• Ray was harsh and callous to his students: When she told him on the fourth day of the six day event that she would cut her hair he said. “I don’t give a fuck what you do. Shave your head, don’t shave your head.”
• Despite the defense claim that participants had freedom of choice, Beverley made it clear that “things were not optional” and that you didn’t take on Mr. Ray.
• There was no medical staff on site, nor were there proper first aid kits (Tupperware container with Band-Aids and gauze)
• In addition to the deaths, serious injuries did occur
• A man who needed to use the bathroom was told by Mr. Ray to relieve himself inside the tent, where people were also vomiting and passing out.
• Following the sweat lodge, Mr. Ray and two of his top staffers – Josh and Megan Fredrickson – stood around, never assisting anyone.
• The events of the week, particularly the sweat lodge, were kept secret to participants, unless they haven’t to read the small print of the waivers.
• Where several people were sitting in the lodge and their positions outside in the chaotic aftermath.
• That she was prevented from attempting CPR on Kirby and James Shore.
• A clear, chronological timeline of the entire week’s events.

Beverley also helped change the face of the Spiritual Warrior participants. Here is a smart, savvy, successful woman, with multiple educational degrees, and who has owned her own orthodontics practice. The TV pundits have said after her testimony that this was not a “James Jones” situation, a classic cult/death incident in our history.

Hopefully that leaves the door open for people to ask about a leader’s influence, mind control and what behaviors, words and actions allow for smart, reasonable people to follow another into danger. A larger view of the week’s events, and the extreme use of Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), will be necessary in this trial to convince the jury – and perhaps the public at large – that these adults were stripped of their ability to make rational choices.

It has been notable to me that Beverley, as was Kirby, was allowed to participate in Spiritual Warrior when typically attendees had to “graduate” to this pinnacle event. Many of those who attended – and many of those still firmly in James Ray’s camp – had attended several events, often across several years.  So, to me, the influence that Ray had over his followers began long before they ever arrived in Sedona. Those who were not fully conditioned through all of his events, were more cynical of his role in this tragedy when two people died that day (Liz Neuman died more than a week later).

I’m grateful that Beverley got to know Kirby; I’m grateful that she came forward almost immediately, first to be with my family, and then to tell the truth in the media; I’m grateful she remembers  important details; and I’m grateful for her strength and courage.

Her testimony continues tomorrow and my thoughts will continue to be with her and, as always, with our beloved Kirby.

Proving he was not only the heart and soul of his beloved Yankees, but also Derek Jeter’s Sugar Daddy, George M. Steinbrenner was laid to rest today and, in the process, bankrupted his beloved franchise. Steinbrenner secretly cashed in all his wealth and buried it with him following closed casket services.

The first sign came hours after the baseball All-Star Game, when Jeter attempted to pay a $5,000 tab at “Ana Hyman’s” a popular Southern California strip club. Jeter’s debit card, in the name “Roger Clemens” was not accepted. Jeter first blamed the problem on technology because, well he’s Derek Jeter. But when his assistant’s assistant phoned the 24-hour customer service line, she was informed that his bi-weekly funds were not deposited on Monday morning.

Jeter escaped harm when, after a team of bouncers threatened to “mess up his pretty little east coast face,” their supervisor turned out to be Danny Tartabull, a former Yankees “can’t miss prospect” who turned out to just be another $20 million mistake by the visionary Steinbrenner. Jeter promised Tartabull a couple of his “West Coast Groupies” who turned out to be Sharon Stone and Dana Delaney.

Sources confirmed that Steinbrenner’s family learned of the ploy early on Wednesday at the reading of The Boss’s will.

“I have decided to take all the money because I AM the Yankees, and I didn’t want any of you to forget it,” the will read, in part. “Hank and Hal, I don’t want you to think I left you with nothing. You are each entitled to one of my boats which I have renamed ‘Inferiority Complex’ and ‘Boss’s Bitch.’  You guys can argue over which one you each get, but you have to get gas, and they are in a bit of what we call in the trade: disrepair. Good luck.”

Those same sources said Steinbrenner may have timed his death for the morning of the All-Star Game because, well, he wanted the spotlight to himself.

“Heart attack my ass,” said one source, who declined to identify himself, but his name rhymes with Stank Heinbrenner. “That old bastard always had to have the last word. Hey, can I borrow five dollars?”

Steinbrenner reportedly left enough money to pay for longtime Yankees PA announcer Bob Sheppard’s funeral because, well just when you think he’s a total ass, he does something completely generous so you might reconsider his legacy.

Reaction to the suddenly penniless Yankees ranged far and wide. Andy Pettitte, the gentile southern left-hander considered the conscience of the team, was designated the spokesman for the players.

“He’s really dead? We confirmed that,” Pettitte said. “Okay then. George Steinbrenner was a complete asshole. And a whole ass. Sure we said good things about him at last night’s game, but that’s before we got screwed by a fat Jewish corpse. I knew I should have stayed in Texas and roided up with Clemens. Sure it’s cheating but the tail I got when juiced up was worth the constellation of zits on my back. Besides I hired some dumb college girl to pop those.”

Joe Buck, the Fox broadcaster who lauded Steinbrenner’s innovation and character throughout the All-Star game, also commented through a spokesperson.

“I fuckin’ knew it. Daddy always told me not to trust nobody who never milked a cow,  but Daddy also told me I was talented, so who knows where his mind was at,” the spokesperson said. Buck was unavailable after suffering a stroke from saying so many glowing and positive things about someone associated with the Yankees during the All-Star telecast.  “Is it football season yet? Troy, is that you? Will you hold my hand honey?”

Buck’s partner Tim McCarver was asked for comment but repeated the same stories he’s told on baseball broadcasts since 1985.

“Hell, he fired me once and I’m Tim fucking McCarver,” he managed to say between homespun stories. “And he gave Bobby Mercer cancer. I’m just sayin’. Speaking of Mercer, did I ever tell you the story of when we burned a cross on Bob Gibson’s lawn…..God, I miss him.”

In a late development, Yankees General Manager Brian “Lack of” Cashman completed a deal that sent Jeter, Pettitte, Mariano Rivera and Mark Teixeira to the Pittsburgh Pirates for $10 million, a bucket of balls and the team trainer.

“Hey, I need to make at least one payroll before I skip town,” he said. “And I don’t know if you’ve seen our trainer….He’s not exactly buying green bananas if you know what I mean.”

PR Firm sees huge growth in social media platforms

When Tom McFeeley started his public relations firm a year ago he had no idea how important social media would be to his business. Now his company is spending 75 percent of its time on Web sites like Twitter and Linkedin.

“Every business should be concerned about their reputation,” McFeeley said. “You can directly put yourself in front of people you care about and tell them your story.”

This is why the Stamford, Conn., resident’s company, Thomas J. McFeeley Communications, has put so much effort into social media. The results so far have been encouraging. Communication barriers have broken down allowing McFeeley’s clients to better connect with customers directly.

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Sometimes the hardest things for us to do in our own business are the very things we advise our clients they must do. Turning the mirror on yourself, and your business, can be a tricky thing. Take this example.

When I consult small businesses about their social media strategies I insist they create two different Twitter profiles — one for themselves and another for their business. Even if your business has your name attached to it — as does Thomas J. McFeeley Communications — you must keep a (virtual) wall between them. I realized two weeks ago that I merely had one Twitter account, @TomMcFeeley.

Followers of @TomMcFeeley were subject to rants about the Mets, running jokes with friends, trash talking of any fan of a team playing my beloved Jets, my edgy humor blog posts, general crankiness. Only occasionally would I tweet about public relations, social media, or the accomplishments of my clients. Actually, it was more than occasionally, but it was lost in a stream of my personal life. I’ve accumulated 1,200 followers in six months. So I created my business Twitter profile, @PRSocialMedia.

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One of my favorite columnists is Maureen Dowd. Many don’t like her, and I’m not making a statement about my politics, but I do find her really compelling because her columns almost always start a spirited discussion. I don’t always agree with her but I do appreciate that she forces me to think about difficult questions and to look deeper into issues. And she doesn’t take herself too seriously, a good lesson for all of us.

Her column this week raised a question I’ve been wondering for a few weeks now. This vitriol around President Obama, particularly in this health care debate, is astounding to me. I know people whose jobs it is to know the legislation and they don’t fully understand what’s been proposed or written. So how is it that people are so worked up.

Words do matter. But sometimes a cigar is not a cigar. “Socialist” can mean something else entirely and I fear that in many cases in our country, it does. President Carter has weighed in on race question and agrees that such emotion is masked racism. I wish he was wrong, but I do fear he is correct. How can people get so worked up over something they don’t understand? Are they defending the current health care system? Couldn’t be, right?

A journalist friend of mine always says this about controversies that come from outrageous statements by famous people: Usually the person speaking is correct and people don’t want to admit it or face the issue. So prepare yourself for a few days of debate over President Carter’s race statements. But just keep an open mind – maybe he is right. Then what do we do?