Spitzer Prostitution Scandal Reveals Ring of Message Control
Was N.Y. governor Eliot Spitzer “caught in a prostitution ring?” Or did he simply hire a prostitute and get caught? The power of message control was on full display yesterday, with the national media playing along in all its glory. The first word I got of the Spitzer scandal came in a breathless N.Y. Times [...]
Don’t Be Like Nicole Kidman’s Publicist
I know that all publicity is good publicity for Hollywood starlets. The worst thing is to be forgotten. So marriages, divorces, rehab, tantrums — they’re all good. Grist for the mill. BUT — all publicity is not good publicity for Hollywood flacks. Hollywood PR people should be heard and not seen or mentioned by name. [...]
When Too Much Control of the Press Interview is a Bad Thing
Last week, Google CEO Eric Schmidt announced Google Health, a new health information service at a press conference at the HIMSS health care information trade show. Afterward, he granted a one-on-one interview to CNET’s Elinor Mills, who, you may remember, pissed off Google and Schmidt a couple of years ago when she Googled Schmidt and [...]
Was Starbucks’ Closure a Publicity Stunt?
Last week, Starbucks closed its stores for a three-hour training session for its coffee-making baristas, to give them a “refresher course” in making a “perfect” cup of coffee. Was this a publicity stunt or a just a widely reported but real (and necessary) company training program? Starbucks issued a statement on the closure a couple [...]