Diksha Sundriyal
In Netflix’s ‘Scoop,’ one wrong PR move on the part of Prince Andrew and his team leads to disastrous consequences for him. The film focuses on the events surrounding the arrest of Jeffrey Epstein and the noose around the Prince’s neck tightening as his friendship with Epstein takes centerstage. To make it all go away, his private secretary suggests he sit down for an interview with the BBC. It feels like a good idea to them, but there is one person on the team who vehemently opposes it, calling it a fatal move, which is what it later turns out to be. The person to have this foresight was Jason Stein, a PR advisor who has earned quite a reputation for himself.
Jason Stein Now Works for a Private Firm
Living in London, Jason Stein currently serves as a managing director at Finsbury Global, which is “a strategic communications firm” whose specialty lies in “creating, sustaining, protecting and rebuilding reputation capital”. Stein’s role is described as “a multi-disciplined communications advisor working across corporate reputation, crisis management, government affairs, and sports communications.”
A graduate of the University of Nottingham, Stein has quite a record in his illustrious career working with everyone from the PM’s office to athletes, CEOs, charitable organizations, and high-profile people. His work has included advising on his clients’ “presentation and speaking skills, advising on complex M&A transactions, and reputation management.” He has also been very active in the field of sports communications.
Before he was hired by Prince Andrew, Stein had worked for former PM of the UK, Liz Truss, who reportedly convinced him to work for her while she was serving as chief secretary of the Treasury and he was working as a Whitehall press officer. In 2022, he was a part of her “Liz for Leader” campaign and has been credited by some for helping Truss develop her presentation skills more effectively. He has also worked for Tory MP David Gauke as his spokesperson, served as a media advisor for Jeremy Hunt, and has also been a special advisor to Amber Rudd. Reportedly, he was called “master of the dark arts” at Westminster for being extremely effective at his job.
It was after Rudd quit her job as the Work and Pensions Secretary that Stein found himself unemployed and was reached out to join Prince Andrew’s team. He was brought in around the time the Epstein scandal was picking pace, and the Prince’s public image was at risk of meeting an all-time low. As expected, Stein immediately came on board, already having a plan laid out for the Prince to slowly but steadily rebuild his image with the public. He had advised the Prince to focus more on charity work and then, in time, give two newspaper interviews, one in Britain and one in America. However, he found himself clashing with the Prince’s private secretary, Amanda Thirsk, who was keen on the Newsnight interview, believing it would do wonders for the Prince’s image. Stein warned her that it would be a PR nightmare if they went forward with it.
A few weeks into his employment and sometime before the interview with Newsnight was finalized, Stein left the Prince’s employment, reportedly without even getting a salary. While some credited the split to be due to disagreements within the staff, it was later revealed to have been a mutual decision. Whatever the reason may have been for him jumping ship, his timing was exceptional as, following the Newsnight interview, things went down exactly as he had predicted. Moving on from the brief job at the Buckingham Palace, Stein joined Finsbury in 2019 and has been there ever since. Sticking to his own advice to not talk too much to the media, he keeps himself away from the spotlight and prefers to lead a private life.
Read More: Amanda Thirsk: Where is Prince Andrew’s Chief of Staff Now?
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