Obama Dumps the Phrase "Global War on Terror" (GWOT)
The Obama Administration is thankfully retiring the term “Global War on Terror” to describe the U.S.’s, uh, what was it used to describe again?
This was always the first problem with this misbegotten phrase — that it sounded all puffy and strong but it was about as strong as a souffle — that is, easily popped. [...]
Great PR Move by the Obamas
According to New York magazine, the Obamas are redecorating their private quarters in the White House using only their own money. They made $4.2 million in 2007, so they can afford the couple hundred thou such a redesign is likely to cost.
The government has an allotment of $100,000 per new prez for redecorating, but they [...]
Which New Media Skills Do PR People Need to Compete?
This post is a follow-up to a great post by PR Pro Sarah Evans called, “Top 4 new skills all PR professionals must have.” You MUST read this post. Evans’ top four skills are: basic HTML coding, SEO for PR, how to use a Social Media Release, and online presence (on Facebook, Twitter, blogging, et [...]
To call or not to call? That is the follow-up question.
When you send an email pitch, do you always follow-up with a call? Or do you never follow-up? This is one of the trickiest questions in PR.
On today’s PR University audio conference with top editors of womens’ magazines, there was a definite split among the panelists regarding their receptivity to follow-up calls.
“Please don’t call me,” [...]
New Name for AIG is Putting Lipstick on a Pig
Last week, a Senator helpfully suggested to the CEO of AIG that the company consider changing its name, and the CEO said that was in the works. Sure enough, this week the company took down the AIG nameplate from its lower Manhattan office, replacing it with the name “American International.” The company would also like [...]
GM's Wagoner Uses the B-word and Gets Burned
Being a spokesperson is hard — seriously. And being the spokesperson when you are also the CEO of General Motors in 2009 must be close to impossible. But hey, that’s why they get paid the big bucks, right?
GM’s CEO inadvertently used the phrase “bankruptcy…could work,” at a media breakfast with the Wall Street Journal in [...]
Don't Waste Precious Real Estate With Bloated Email Pitches
Be concise. Tell the journalist how your pitch will help them do their job, in the crucial first words of an email pitch. Customize your outgoing email address, if you have to, to make it more recognizable and user-friendly. Bottom-line: every character counts, and you have zero to waste.
That is the key-takeaway from today’s Bulldog [...]
The Online-Only SeattlePI.com Will Be a Media Relations Challenge
Take a moment and note that this is a landmark day in American journalism, and by extension, American public relations. A major American metropolitan newspaper, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, has completely dropped its print edition and gone online only.
It’s hard to imagine this not being the first of a trend, and perhaps even the beginning of [...]
When in Doubt, Say "How Dare You!"
A spokesperson has to have a lot of tricks up his or her sleeve — you never know what the interviewer is going to say or ask, but you’ve always got to have some sort of answer ready.
Faux indignation is a good one to have, though hopefully it’s not something you have to use a [...]