Category: General

PR there’s only winners and losers. Ross Irvine writes that PR is war and that as a result there are always winners and losers.  He makes specific mention of PR for NGO’s.  Whatever about activism, I’m afraid I don’t believe PR battles are as clear cut as that.  I share his belief that PR people should be competitive, but simple winners and losers? Nah. 

Press Releases by Robots.  The twenty first century has arrived.  PR|Pro automates the process of brainstorming and writing press releases and PR programs. Well that’s what the literature says. all for only $99. If anyone has tried it let me know.  I have my sceptical hat on.

PR Newswire Founder Herbert Muschel, has passed away.  He was 85.

The PR challenge of being Hacked.  PR Fuel points to an article on ZDNet which looks at the issue facing organizations who have been hacked.  It points out that many companies don’t report the electronic break-in because of the possible adverse PR. It reminded me of a post earlier in the year when the UK’s National High Tech Crime Unit launched a media relations program to help companies with that very issue.

Further to the discussion last month on Industry analysts, Information Week have a story that questions whether companies should be worried that Silver Lake Partners has taken a 38% stake in Gartner.

The story questions whether Gartner’s independence will be affected by the fact that Silver Lake’s backers include over 150 executives from large technology firms.

Gartner deny that investors have any influence over research and given the importance of Gartner’s objectivity I doubt this investment will affect future reports in any way.

Interesting read though.

The prolific Elizabeth Albrycht  tackles the question of a PR person’s role in a media interview.

She concludes that the PR person’s role is as a facilitator.

I agree and I find that most journalists and analysts have no issue with a PR presence in an interview.  There are rare moments where you may have to interject to correct a misunderstanding but as Elizabeth writes we’re there to track the conversation, note actions, points of follow up etc.

Of course there are a number of journalists who object to the presence of PR people in a meeting. But in many cases I have found executives are more comfortable with a PR representative present.  That’s a good thing. It also should ensure that action items are followed up – which won’t always be the case if the harrassed executive is on their own and of course that the executive will turn up in the right place at the right time….

I sympathize with journalists who complain when PR people try and drive an agenda in a meeting. It’s not our role. Back off and let your spokespeople speak.

OK, I have covered this topic to death, but our Entertainment brethren are at it again.  It seems that actors (or their studio reps) are continuing to selectively ban journalists from press events because of perceived slights. I’m not going to deign to tackle this issue again, you can consult my earlier rants.  Read a very interesting piece from Mark Glaser over at the ever-excellent Online Journalism Review.

Previous rants on this subject here, here, here etc.

Mark also has a really really interesting piece on the dilemma facing reporters with the abuse of e-mail.

Thanks to everyone for their kind words and e-mails.  I am back, not refreshed, as by the time you get through the e-mail and voicemails you missed in your absence you might as well not have been gone at all… OK enough self pity.

Given the volume of information being written about blogs, there’s bound to be loads of rubbish.  But we are beginning to see some interesting and useful applications of the blog. 

One case in point is the specific or ad hoc coverage of events.  How soon will organizers have to add “professional blogger” to their list of activities around a show or event?  Personally speaking I’m often interested in what happened at an event I’ve missed and a blog is a powerful tool which at the very least can provide an insightful summary of what went on.  Organizers could always charge for more in-depth blogs of an event. Now there’s a new business idea….

This idea was prompted by a story in this week’s Media section of the Guardian which reports how Western and Middle Eastern journalists will be blogging live from the first World Summit on the Information Society.

Now there’s a really useful blog application.

Spam watch: Over 2,000 spams awaited me upon my return to the office.. a new record.

 

I’m sure there will be much weeping of tears and gnashing of teeth at the news that I am on vacation until November 4, 2003 and won’t be posting to PR Opinions… well maybe not.

I’ll be back refreshed and ready to post. 

In the meantime, visit the excellent PR blogs on the right hand menu for your daily dose of PR news….

 

e21 Corp. has published a new article on avoiding e-mail crisis which looks at recent e-mail-related PR snafus and offers some basic tips to try and avoid similar issues.

The single best ways to avoid e-mail hell is to update your virus checker, seperate your contacts from your e-mail client and always delay the delivery of e-mail.  Instant delivery is the number one cause of e-mail embarrasment – I know this from personal experience.

On a related note.  As I mentioned previously, spam continues to thrive.  Most of my delete decisions are based on the subject line. It’s made me think a lot more about how I use subject lines.

The best means of avoiding instant delete is obviously to create a compelling line but also include some sort of identification. If you regularly write creative subject lines such as: “Hi” or “I thought you might be interested”, the likelihood is the recipient never even seen it.

 

The Tennessee Department of Transportation has been lauded by The Tullahoma News for its good public relations.

I think we should all bookmark that story 🙂

“Of the many horrifically destructive technologies of the 20th century, arguably the most dangerous of all is public relations. So when you hear this new stealth story coming at you, you’ll know you’re being framed. You’ll know someone is trying to have public relations with you.”

From a story on Alternet.org, link courtesy of PR Fuel.

A new association has been formed called the International Association of Online Communicators.

Its mission is:

“The International Association of Online Communicators (IAOC) is dedicated to promoting and preserving the open and free communication that has been the foundation of the Internet community. Its purpose is to provide a network through which practitioners and educators can share knowledge and ideas. The Association is a place where Internet content creators and publicists can join together to define and advance their roles in this emerging professional arena.“

It’s in its formative stages but is an interesting project.

My biggest question is what will this organization provide that isn’t already provided by well-established groups such as PRSA, IABC etc.

Online communication is increasingly important, of that there is no question, however the IAOC will have to define and demonstrate their value to succeed.  Having said that, a quick glance at people who have expressed an interest in joining the group makes for impressive reading.

Thanks to Phil for the link.