Couch communications

Goldman: Should Lloyd sit down with Oprah? Talk shows might help the embattled Wall Street firm, and its boss Lloyd Blankfein, get the message out. But the obvious questions lack easy answers. Goldman is probably better off toughing it out.

The firm’s torture by headlines following the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s accusations of fraud in April was cut short by BP’s oil well disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. But Goldman’s legal and image problems haven’t gone away.

The firm doesn’t “do” retail nor does it want to. As a bankers’ bank, Goldman has grown accustomed to confronting thorny issues - perceived conflicts of interest, for instance – directly with its customers or in the corridors of power, which are liberally sprinkled with the firm’s alumni.

Widespread public criticism since the financial crisis has changed that, and left Goldman looking off the pace in the public relations game. Congressional appearances by its executives haven’t helped. Blankfein’s credibility and likeability rise in long-form high-minded settings such as Charlie Rose’s program. But a trial run at the mass market on “Good Morning America” was no blowout success.

That’s partly because anyone can understand the idea that Goldman appears to have sold to clients securities that its own people thought were toxic. But the explanation - that as a market-maker, the firm is there to buy and sell pretty much anything clients want to sell or buy - can quickly lose an audience. Throw in the fact that Goldman mixes in trading on its own account, and it can easily sound cagey.

Oprah Winfrey’s habit of doling out gifts to her studio audience could make for some entertaining ideas. Everyone gets a collateralized debt obligation! Still, it’s questionable whether Goldman should be struggling to win over Main Street.

It’s potentially damaging, of course, to face public and political opprobrium. But barring the odd government job, Goldman doesn’t yet seem to be losing much business. Thanks to BP, it’s largely off the front pages. And time conquers a lot. Banking on that, while staying out of the limelight, may be Goldman’s best bet.