Answer to Question 1
b
Answer to Question 2
It is best to be proactive in a situation like this where you are aware of the issues in advance, particularly since you have decide to stay in town. You set a broad goal of communicating your decision to remain in a town within which you have been a good corporate citizen for over 40 years. To accomplish this you can use the following tactics:
Press releases allow the plant to take advantage of free press coverage. They can be used to pursue positive publicity from the news media regarding the decision to stay. The main drawback to press releases is that a firm often doesn't know if or when the item will appear in the media. Also, the news media are free to edit or interpret a news release, which may alter its meaning.
The plant could invite a journalist to do an exclusive feature story on the fact that the rumored move is just that - a rumor. A feature story is different from a press release in that a feature story is more controllable.
A company newsletter could be used to communicate with employees, offering positive, accurate information that the rumored move is not going to happen. This newsletter could also be distributed to important constituents in the community, like government officials, the chamber of commerce, or the tourist bureau.
The plant could also set up a press conference to deal with the rumors. The press conference has an air of importance and credibility because it uses a news format to present important corporate information.
If you want to be especially forward thinking in your public relations initiatives, you can also employ Brand Buzz tactics of getting this same information about your decision to stay by cultivating a network of local homemakers who will spread the word on the official decision to stay just before your more traditional PR approaches kick in. You might use employees to identify and notify these fellow members of the community. This will lend added credibility to the other efforts.
Finally, the firm could use sponsored events to reaffirm its commitment to the local community and take the opportunity to remind the public of your long history of corporate citizen's efforts to give back..