JimmyCsays: At the juncture of journalism and daily life in KC

Although the Brian Platt “why-can’t-we-just-lie-to-the-media” story seems to have faded almost as quickly as it arose, there’s one voice in this community that will not let it slip away: mine.

I think the story did not take hold for two reasons: first, the police board’s fumbling and controversial selection of a new chief overshadowed it, and, second, since the 2016 Triumph of Trumpism, many people assume public officials mostly lie and that honest dealing is an outdated concept.

Lying has essentially lost its shock value. But there’s at least one group that does not swallow it easily — reporters and editors and former reporters and editors. Endorsement of lying as a policy crosses a line that I and others in that group will always denounce, no matter how far society descends.

But surprisingly, even my former employer, The Kansas City Star, could muster little more than a finger wag at the Platt expose. A Dec. 8 editorial said…

“We’ll want to keep a careful eye on this case. (Chris) Hernandez had critics during his time as communications director, and lawsuits from allegedly disgruntled employees must be considered carefully. On the other hand, if these allegations are proven, it could suggest Platt needs to find work somewhere else.”

“Could suggest…”? Well, how’s that for going out on a limb?

On that particular editorial, however, I’m giving The Star some forbearance, mainly because its editorial page editor, Michael Lindenberger, was dying when the Platt story broke (he died on Sunday, the 10th, from an unknown illness), and the remaining three editorial writers probably were preoccupied and adrift.

But let’s take a closer look at Platt, who burst on the Kansas City scene two years ago after a seven-year stint in upper management in Jersey City, NJ.

He was selected by Mayor Quinton Lucas, who probably saw something of Platt in himself, insofar as youthful ascendance. (Lucas is 38; Platt, 37.)

Lucas was able to secure eight other votes for Platt, but he was rebuffed by the four other Black City Council members, who thought the majority was sticking Platt down their throats.

The fact that Platt was not a unanimous or near-unanimous choice — along with at least the Hernandez allegations — probably will spell trouble for him down the road. A Council with at least six new members will be taking office in August 2023.

After the rush of publicity about the Hernandez lawsuit, I started hearing more talk about Platt, and I began looking more closely at his background. One thing that stands out as particularly worrisome, retrospectively, is that for two years, from when he was about 22 to 24 — he worked for McKinsey & Co., a giant consulting firm that boasts of having offices in more than 130 cities in more than 65 countries.

The firm, founded in 1926, focuses mainly on client finances and operations. Wikipedia says, “Many of McKinsey’s alumni become CEOs of major corporations or hold important government positions.”

Two of the most notorious companies that McKinsey has represented were Enron and Purdue Pharma.

Enron was a Houston-based energy and commodities giant that imploded amid scandal in 2001. Several of its executives ended up in prison.

Purdue Pharma was the company that created and fueled the OxyContin scourge, which killed hundreds of thousands of Americans. In November 2020, the company, pleaded guilty to three criminal felonies and agreed to a settlement potentially worth $8.3 billion. The company admitted that it “knowingly and intentionally conspired…to aid and abet” doctors dispensing medication “without a legitimate medical purpose.”

McKinsey represented Purdue Pharma for more than a decade, and at one point made a series of recommendations to the Sackler family, which owned the company, about how the company could “turbocharge” sales of OxyContin.

In his book “Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty,” Patrick Radden Keefe wrote, “It was important, the consultants suggested, to convince physicians that opioids provide ‘freedom’ for patients and ‘the best possible chance to live a full and active life.’ “

In November 2021, McKinsey agreed to pay nearly $573 million to settle investigations into its role in the case.

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McKinsey & Co. has been a stopping point on the managerial ladder for many up and comers, including Pete Buttigieg, U.S. Secretary of Transportation, and Sheryl Sandberg, former chief operating officer at Facebook. For his part, Platt worked for McKinsey from June 2011 to July 2013.

I don’t know if Platt got anywhere near the Purdue Pharma account, but trouble had been on the horizon long before he went to work at the company. In 2007, for example, Purdue Pharma’s holding company, Purdue Frederick, and three of its executives pleaded guilty to criminal charges of misbranding OxyContin by claiming it was less addictive and less subject to abuse and diversion than other opioids.

Fast forward to November 2020 when, in a Kansas City Star story, Platt depicted himself as a person who brought a unique approach to solving problems. The Star story said, “He sharpened those skills at McKinsey & Co…”

…I have no doubt he sharpened all sorts of skills at McKinsey, including how to twist facts and even dismiss them.

At a party at our house last week, I was talking to a lawyer friend about this, and I said, “You know, it’s a short jump from working for McKinsey & Co. to saying that lying is an acceptable media strategy.”

My friend looked at me and said, “It’s no jump at all.”