Karen Miller Russell (of Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia) very kindly interviewed me for her Meet the Teacher feature. She asked about my reasons for blogging and how I incorporate new media into my educational activities. It was an interesting opportunity to reflect on this - and also think about what I’d like to develop more in the future. Thanks Karen.
Mark Borkowski recently shared tales of stupid PR practices - which are further evidenced in the INQ guide to the baleful side of PR bunnies - although I should warn you that the view of someone who ”was a PR for a year in 1976″ ought to make you cry. [thanks to Judy Gombita for the link]
Neither of these examples reflect the way that I have ever worked in public relations, nor the understanding of those I meet who are commitment to best practice by signing up for the CIPR Advanced Certificate or Diploma.
The young undergraduates starting several years’ of study on PR degree courses aren’t looking to become experts in sloppy practices - and this sort of behaviour isn’t what they’ll learn in Universities. Unfortunately, it is how they are made to behave in the press release factories that are masquerading as PR consultancies in many cases.
Poor practices are unacceptable when there is plenty of information about the value of solid, professional public relations.
It depresses me to know there are those out there who insult clients, journalists and themselves in this way. Seriously, if you aren’t committed to doing a better job - please go and find something else to do with your life. Public relations doesn’t need you.
Here is a real internal relations challenge - last year a DVLA worker joked as she opened a parcel that it could be a letter bomb. This turned out to be the case and she and her colleagues were injured. Colleagues have apparently refused to work with the woman blaming her for the incident.
Given that there had already been several instances of letter bombs being targeted at motoring organisations, one wonders if there hadn’t been any internal communications regarding what action to take if a suspicious parcel was received. After all this was a crisis that should have been anticipated.
Obviously the person who sent the bomb is ultimately responsible, but to what extent does the organisation have culpability, or the unfortunate woman who opened the package?
And, how is the DVLA managing this post-crisis situation - can the sense of a lack of trust between colleagues ever be repaired?
A year ago I met a newly enrolled CIPR Diploma student who blogged - Ellee Seymour who has just been named as a top blogger - an accolade that is much deserved.
I’m not a follower of political blogs - but find Ellee’s personal touch so engaging. In the past year, she has campaigned on so many important issues. In particular, her posts relating to the Ipswich murders and attitudes towards their profession as prostitutes stands out. And, of course, her continuing efforts to highlight the missing, particularly those who fail to generate media attention is ongoing and genuine.
Ellee brings something of herself to her blog, which is the essence of social media. She attracts readers from across the world, and, I hope, the political sphere. Long may she continue to blog, campaign and generally reflect on life.
Once upon a time concept cars of the future were the sexiest things on the planet and a great opportunity for public relations to generate huge interest in their brand, as well as confirming the auto industry as forward looking.
Today, we covert computers - check out the (unofficial) Vaio Zoom Concept. I’m a Sony Vaio fan (both laptop and PC), but even if I wasn’t, this is just so cool.
Now why can’t car designers be that imaginative? Most of the concept cars today seems to be chunky and little more than derivatives of what we have today.
Maybe it’s the focus on meeting all the necessary road safety and environmental legislation, but something has stopped real visionary car design.
Is it any wonder then that Microsoft can generate mega hype around its Halo 3 computer game that even has the BBC reporting the launch, but the unveiling of a new car gets little attention outside the specialist auto media.
Matt Wardman provides a clear summary of the actions of Alisher Usmanov, the Uzbek billionaire who is seeking to purchase Arsenal football club, in responding to criticism by getting the lawyers to close down websites and blogs.
The law firm, Schillings, employed by Mr Usmanov claims on its website to be:
The leading law firm protecting the reputations of high-profile individuals, corporates and brands.
This presents an interesting challenge to public relations - as according to the CIPR definition:
Public relations is about reputation - the result of what you do, what you say and what others say about you.
Public relations is the discipline which looks after reputation, with the aim of earning understanding and support and influencing opinion and behaviour. It is the planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain goodwill and mutual understanding between an organisation and its publics.
But Schillings claims to protect “brand reputation” against “external events” by the use of “legal tools” as”part of your communications and risk strategy”.
It cites examples such as the media seeking to report fraud or extra marital executive affairs, attacks on the Internet and a disgruntled ex-exployee:
styling himself as a whistleblower, has got his story in the press. The next day your share-price drops 14%. You’re called to an emergency meeting – what will you suggest?
The answer according to Schillings is, of course, to use “legal pressures” and be proactive in “managing” treatment by the media.
So no need for public relations professionals to build positive relationships or counsel management against behaviour that is likely to lead to negative headlines - simply use the might of money and legal means to silence those who oppose you.
Schillings clearly knows that reputation management is the remit of public relations as its senior partner was a chair and the company the champagne reception sponsor, at the PR Week PRGlobal: International Reputation Management Summit last week.
The PRCA is similarly keen to promote legal approaches to protecting clients, working with Magnus Boyd who qualified at Schillings.
I wonder how both these organisations will respond to Schillings’ role in censoring online comment now that the story has been picked up by mainstream media. The Guardian reports Boris Johnson whose blog was a collateral victim of Schillings’ reputation management strategy:
Mr Johnson hit out at the closure of his website, calling it “a serious erosion of free speech”.
“This is London, not Uzbekistan,” the former Spectator editor and MP for Henley-on-Thames said.
“It is unbelievable that a website can be wiped out on the say-so of some tycoon.
“We live in a world where internet communication is increasingly vital, and this is a serious erosion of free speech.”
So the question is, does PR stand for free speech or legal might in reputation management?
I was born in Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, which has been a seaside holiday town since the 1800s, when Baths were built for people to enjoy medicinal seawater and jetties offered for fresh air promenades.
Ever since, enterprising business people offered amusements for visitors. Most family albums probably contain of relatives snapped whilst promenading along the seafront on day trips or annual week away from walk. All very warmly wrapped up against the British climate and thrilled at being captured on camera.
My brother continued this tradition into the 1980s when he was employed during the school holidays to take snapshots of punters posing with squirrel monkeys which were dressed in little knitted outfits. Quite rightly, this is no longer acceptable as it isn’t right to exploit animals in this way.
Another tradition that seems to have disappeared is weighing yourself in public. I remember there used to be a man with large balance scales on the seafront. People used to sit in a swing whilst he put weights on the other side. I think he would make a joke of guessing their weight and then calculate to the ounce using tiny gold weights before giving the sitter a piece of paper with a record of their weight.
I have not been able to find any references to this type of weighing machine on the Internet, but it was very different to the “speak your weight” funfair type of device.
Of course today bathroom scales are common, but I wonder if we’ve not all become so weight obsessed that we would find this old-fashioned entertainment deeply offensive.
Wherever we look there is evidence of the impact of social change on towns, businesses and individuals. This reminds those of us working in public relations of the importance of research and understanding social trends.
Today we take photographs using mobile phones which are uploaded in public to Flickr sites. They will never be found in old biscuit tins (which is where our family pics are kept).
I was wondering where the current concern about obesity and other weight issues is taking us and envisaged a return to public weighing with records kept online of who weights what. Will what was once fun have moved from the public to the bathroom back to public again?
Then I found this cartoon - which aptly produces a press release direct from the “publish your weight machine.”
This is my 365th blogging day and as I’m attending a CIPR tutor’s meeting in Leeds tomorrow, so thought I’d mark my 1st anniversary moment now.
At the end of my teaching sessions, we review the day using a happy/sad face card and providing a ”take away” thought.
My happy face note is that in the last year, I’ve learned a lot about online media and its impact on public relations, “met” some really great people and realised some new opportunities - not least, joining the collaborative PR Conversations blog.
So thanks to everyone for reading, commenting, linking and doing interesting things that have stimulated posts and made me think.
My sad face note is that there is so much great stuff in the blogosphere that I don’t have time to find, read or engage with.
For my “take away” thought, I’ve looked back to my first post, where I remarked that without personal responsibility and enthusiasm, the world is a poorer place.
Given all the discussions on public relations that have connected to and through the Greenbanana blog in the past year - I think that observation remains my “one year on thought” as well.
Firstname, lastname, candidate number, job title, organisation, postcode, telephone, email, date of birth - that’s all I know about this year’s CIPR Advanced Certificate and Diploma students.
That’s a lot more than they know about me - but over the next few weeks and months we will get to know each other as people, working towards the common goal of their successful achievement of a professional public relations qualification.
I’m currently entering the students’ data into my Greenbanana educational site to enable the guys to learn more about what is involved in their studies, begin their recommended reading and download the first workbook and notes for Session 1.
At present, I have no faces to go with the names - although I could imagine what someone will look like on the basis of a few facts. But, that would mean drawing on stereotypes, prejudging rather than being open minded.
I heard from a group at Cambridge the other year, that before they met me, they thought I would have long nails and wear bright red lipstick. Was it my name, my address or something in my emails that gave that impression.
We increasingly make connections only by email, online or telephone rather than coming face to face. Undoubtedly that means making assumptions from limited information. We look for things we have in common - do we like the sound of their voice, the way they express themselves in writing? Do they seem friendly or fierce?
Perhaps I should undertake some online research into this year’s students - see what I can find via Google, Myspace, Facebook etc. As we are looking at the impact of new media on PR in our first sessions - that would be an interesting exercise.
If you only know someone from a mailing list, how can you build a relationship? In PR, the least you should do is to read a journalist’s work. But there is nothing quite like being able to meet face to face.
I always found relationships with journalists developed much better when you’d had a chance to meet at a launch, a Motorshow or other event.
Once you meet someone, I find the communication via virtual means improves. I’ve never had the reverse experience - of liking someone online and feeling disappointed when you meet.
I believe we really do need to meet people face to face in PR - that’s why it’s called public relations, not press release distribution - or marketing.
A press release from the PR team at Sheilas’ Wheels (yes, I know I’m obsessed by them) rather than their “creative” agency informs us that:
The three Sheilas - from the Sheilas’ Wheels car insurance adverts - have teamed up with legendary producers Stock, Aitken and Waterman and will release their debut single on Monday 24 September 2007: (I’m So) Happy Happy (You’re Mine).
At least it is a straight factual release - I just hope I never hear the single.
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