In my absence there’s been an explosion of content on the PR blogs, I’m not going to be able to get to all of them, but do check on the links on the right.

A couple of quick links to posts that caught my eye:

• Jeremy Pepper has an interview with Julia Hood, Editor of PR Week.
• Mark Borkowski re-publishes a story from the UK Independent newspaper in 2001 where he recounts his experiences as Michael Jackson‘s PR consultant.
• Trevor Cook has been interviewed (free registration required) for an interesting story on blogging the Sydney Morning Herald.

Hopefully normal service will be resumed very soon….

I am sure that every PR blogger has been getting e-mails over the past week from a disgruntled PR practitioner who has been making claims about a certain large global PR agency and their operations in Poland. As I’ve been on the road I haven’t had a chance to look into this in much detail and have chosen at this point not to re-publish these claims – particularly given they are unsubstantiated.

Also the fact that the same e-mail has been sent to all my e-mail addresses, and in some cases multiple times, is creating a number of questions regarding the credibility and validity of these claims.

If anyone has talked with the individual in question or the agency, I’d like to hear from you.

I haven’t been completely quiet on the blog front for the past week, I’ve been contributing posts to Guillaume du Gardier‘s ‘Blogging in Europe’ series which is taking place this week over on the IAOC Blog.

Things have been quiet here lately due to trade shows and meetings in Europe and now travel to the US. Normal service should resume in the next day or so….

• Kelly Papinchak has started a new blog for PR students and newbies entitled ‘Beginning a Career in Public Relations’. [Thanks to John Wagner for the link]
• Eric Tatro has a new blog called Nerve Center covering “high technology, communication and public relations”.
• Ragan Communications have created a blog for their corporate communications conference which takes place in Las Vegas this week.

John Cass has published some preliminary results from his corporate blogging survey and they make for interesting reading.

Of the respondents to date, the top reasons for publishing a corporate blog were:

• Another way to publish content and ideas
• Build a community
• Promote ‘though leadership

The bottom three were:

• Respond to negative comments
• A way to get interview requests from journalsts
• Crisis communications

OK, enough already with the navel gazing on whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of full or partial RSS feeds.

Who cares? Not me.

RSS feeds deliver headlines into my reader. I browser the headlines and for subjects that interest me, I read on. I do it in the newsreader or if I have to click, I click.

If people spent more time evangelizing the benefits of RSS (there are loads) rather than bickering about something that doesn’t matter we’d all be happier.

Furthermore, if people think I’ll be tinkering with my RSS feed settings to cater for the preferred RSS format they are mistaken. Most people configure their RSS at the outset and never venture near it again.

People, let’s focus on the big issues not get stuck in the weeds…. please no more “discussion” on the matter. Make up your own mind and do what you prefer…

No single topic causes as much fear, panic and argument among the PR profession as measurement. From my own experience, discussions with other practitioners and the previous PR Opinions surveys [2005 | 2004] there’s a lot of confusion, and no little denial surrounding the best means of measuring Public Relations.

I’m sure we’ve all heard the argument that you can’t measure the full impact of a PR campaign. Unfortunately in today’s business environment where metrics are central to investment decisions, that just doesn’t cut the mustard.

The UK’s Chartered Institute of Public Relations has released a number of papers over the past year on the subject of measurement. Their latest, a policy document [PDF] on the subject, presents seven statements on measurement. To summarize:

• PR is subject to the same measurement requirements as other business disciplines (whether you like it or not)
• Measurement is difficult across the board not just in PR
  You can simplify the PR measurement issue by paying close attention to planning and objectives from the outset
• PR can be measured
• Available measurement models – if used correctly – provide sufficient measurement for decision making
• There are a wide variety of different areas to measure – be aware of them
• Measurement is essential in the training and education of practitioners

The policy document also includes a wealth of references and resources on measuring PR. It’s a recommended download.

• I’m delighted to report a new Irish PR blogger. Piaras Kelly is writing a blog that specifically looks at Irish issues in relation to Public Relations. Piaras is a working with Drury Communications [website] one of the larger Irish PR firms.
• Mark Rose has kicked off a brand new shiny PR blog called PR Future.

• Jeremy Pepper‘s latest PR Face2Face interview is with Clive Armitage, head honcho over at Bite [website] and home of the Bite blog.

I know Clive from way back in the mists of time when I was a wet-behind-the-ears PR intern. We both worked at Text 100 before he went of to discover fame and fortune with Bite. It’s a great interview with some interesting observations.

Jeremy also has an excellent post on the art and science of PR team building and he reports on John Battelle‘s keynote at the OMMA West Conference.

• Ken Kerrigan has a thoughful post on the importance of effective internal communications.
• Keith Jackson writes on a report by Ronald Hanser of Pinnacle Worldwide on a survey of future PR trends.
• Richard Edelman believes that PR is finally getting some respect…
• I’ve been meaning to link to the New Communications blogzine for ages. It’s mission is to:
  New Communications Blogzine is a bi-monthly online publication is dedicated to exploring new communications tools, technologies and emerging modes of communication, (including blogs, wikis, RSS, podcasts, search marketing, etc.), the growing phenomena of participatory communications and their effect on traditional media, professional communications, business, politics and society at large.
  
  Issue 8 is just out and is focussing on blogging and women. It’s definetely worth a read and there’s some great stuff in the back issues.
• It looks like the 49’ers video snafu is set to run….
• An interesting profile of Pat Corfman who looks after PR and Marketing at Michigan’s Bishop Airport.