“Journalism is printing what someone else does not want printed: everything else is public relations.” ~George Orwell Ah, the seemingly age-old tension filled, mutually distrustful, relationship between journalists and PR pros – it’s been said that journalists speak the truth and PR pros dazzle and confuse with spin. Where does this relationship stand in today’s [...]
Over the past week, two very different news stories have created a flurry of activity on social media sites – Twitter in particular. Last Friday’s tragic theatre shootings in Aurora, Colorado played out in real-time on Twitter. And then on Tuesday night, the Twitterverse was ablaze with tweets from angry and distraught Twihards reacting to [...]
Stories are the creative conversion of life itself into a more powerful, clearer, more meaningful experience. They are the currency of human contact. ~Robert McKee It’s no accident that a sense of belonging is listed as one of humanity’s basic needs. We’re a social species, interested in shared experiences and united in our love for [...]
The year was 1979 and though I wasn’t born yet, I still recognize this song as a classic (love the outfits!): Well, it’s 33 years later and video still hasn’t killed radio. Personally, on most days I listen to the radio while I’m writing. And here’s a shocking revelation: I don’t own a TV and [...]
In last week’s post I shifted the focus of the digital literacy series to an unavoidable topic: the impact it’s having on traditional media. While there doesn’t seem to be a concrete answer to this oft-debated subject, there’s no ignoring that what’s happening online is forever changing how we see “media”. So what does this [...]
In continuing our series on digital literacy and the impact it’s having on Canada’s economy, this week we focus on the “State of the Digital Publishing Industry”. This was the topic of a panel discussion hosted by Digital Alberta (@DigitalAlberta) on Monday. On the panel were Guy Huntingford (@guyhuntingford), publisher of the Calgary Herald, and [...]
If you’re working in the PR and marketing field, there’s no doubt that you’ve heard of David Meerman Scott. And you’ve probably read his bestselling book “The New Rules of Marketing and PR”. This book was a game changer – kick-starting social media awareness and introducing the industry to the power of these tools to [...]
CALGARY, AB, Oct. 17, 2011/Troy Media Corporate blogs done wrong can be like news releases. News releases have evolved, or maybe devolved, to painful, boring, sanitized affairs. This is why only the hardiest journalist reads more than the opening paragraph. It’s not the medium (newswires are fine disseminators) it’s the writing. News release faux pas [...]
Companies are highly motivated these days to manage their reputations and advocate their positions using social media. Sometimes that goes too far. This week Facebook and public relations giant Burson-Marsteller (B-M) appear to have crossed the line in what is becoming known as “Whisper-Gate.” For the record, if anyone at your company asks you to [...]
Last week I had the privilege of speaking to about 50 IABC Calgary members at a session called “The Digital Discussion”. As promised, the slides are below, and a nice review from Jessica Wilkinson is on her Wildrose PR blog The Digital Discussion IABC Jan 2010 View more presentations from Doug Lacombe.
