They aim to resolve it before it causes trouble. At the first sign of a crisis, their senior managers will meet to discuss it and find ways to contain it. A spokesperson can be the CEO, a VP, or an experienced communications specialist. If a spokesperson hides, reporters can always find somebody else to comment on the situation. Which means that a company loses the opportunity to control their message and keep the record straight from the beginning.
Every reporter respects companies that make an honest effort to communicate during difficult times.
Reporters like consistency. Everyone remembers the Quebec Ice Storm, during which some insurers had difficulty communicating a clear, consistent message regarding claim settlements and other issues. Adjusters were disgruntled, and confusion prevailed for weeks after the ice melted. That confusion could have been avoided if insurers had coordinated their communications with their main stakeholders, including adjusters and the public. Reporters are suspicious of complicated charts and graphs, compilations of statistics that appear magically just after all hell has broken loose, and like releases that sound like advertising.