With a person to front the message, it emphasises the importance of accountability, he stressed.

“No one likes a corporate statement anymore. When a crisis happens, a faceless press statement isn’t going to rebuild trust,” he told a plenary talk at the Global Public Relations Conference and Festival Malaysia 2025.

“It’s only going to erode it (trust). You have to put a face to it,” he added.

Khairy also urged communicators and PR practitioners to always “read the room” and gauge public sentiment before issuing press releases or statements.

“We think that when we are communicating something, and that communication is clear, it’s okay, but the context may be wrong. Think about how your words will be received beyond your immediate audience,” he said.

He added that communication often fails because messages are created within an echo chamber, making statements sound elitist or out of touch.

“The statement often exists within our own bubble. Once it is shared publicly, we realise how out of touch, elitist, or lacking in empathy it sounds.

“It might seem right when you draft it, but horrible when it gets out there,” Khairy said.

Recalling the AstraZeneca opt-in vaccine registration mess in 2021, Khairy said he made it a point to take personal responsibility publicly instead of issuing a generic statement.

He apologised for the chaotic registration process for the second round of appointments and announced an investigation into the technical issues during a live press conference the following day.

FMT is a media partner for the Global Public Relations Conference and Festival Malaysia 2025, which runs from today until Nov 15.