It also should have created a crisis management plan guided by a code of corporate ethics. From the beginning, Dow Corning relied too much on heavy-handed lawyering. Lawyers in product liability crises often take the view that everything revolves around the law and its loopholes. In the pitched battle between perception and reality, perception usually wins. Creating the right perception at the beginning is vital.
Crisis management is a well-traveled path with clear trail markings.
Dow Corning should have been able to follow it.