Categories: Media issues / PR issues

28 February 2012

6 comments

There has been lots of talk in PR circles about value networks and the networked society. Here I take a closer look at what the fuss is all about and issue a note of caution and a call to moderate the hype. Read on ›

Categories: Crisis management / History of PR / PR issues

22 February 2012

6 comments

I have noticed that there’s an increasing interest among PR pros in chaos theory. It might be because we’re in recession, the result of recent earthquakes and tsunamis, or even the new complexity that social media throws up. But whatever motivates them, here’s some insight into why they are misguided. Read on ›

Categories: CSR reality check / Opinion research / Trust and reputations

16 February 2012

7 comments

Here’s a manifesto in favour of decent top-down adult leadership rather than the febrile fashions of the crowd.   Read on ›

Categories: Credit Crunch / Crisis management

5 February 2012

8 comments

Last week there was “outrage” over the bonus awarded to Stephen Hester, chief executive of Royal Bank of Scotland. This week we are set for another moral outburst when Barclays announces expected profits of more than $9 billion, which will result in its CEO Bob Diamond pocketing around $3 million. In the midst of a global crisis that heralds austerity for many, what strategy should be adopted by PRs tasked with defending banks, bankers and bonuses? Read on ›

Categories: Opinion research / Trust and reputations

24 January 2012

4 comments

Edelman’s Trust Barometer is a major highlight of the PR calendar because it provides global and historically comparative data we can mull over. This year there’s a welcome shift in Edelman’s narrative. Gone is the anti-profit, anti-business and all stakeholders are equal tone that I’ve criticised in the past.  Read on ›

Categories: PR issues / Trust and reputations

16 January 2012

3 comments

Why are so many PR pros embarrassed by what they do for a living? This normally hidden angst becomes transparent whenever they attempt to define the essence of our trade. Nothing illustrates this better than the four supposedly modern definitions of PR being discussed by PRSA and CPRS, all of which share one fundamental flaw: evasiveness about what PR is really about. Read on ›

Categories: PR issues

10 January 2012

4 comments

Of course PR is about building relationships. Even more than most, our business is diplomacy and even schmoozing and wooing. But let’s not get too soft about our game – or our clients’. Read on ›

Categories: Holidays

20 December 2011

One comment

Dear Readers, Merry Christmas! Or Seasonal Greetings if you prefer non-religious, holiday wishes. Or Happy Winterval, if you like the full-on, pagan, northern hemisphere, feasting and even dark-side approach (go on, let yourself go). Read on ›

Categories: History of PR / Political spin / PR issues

16 December 2011

2 comments

Here is some more work in progress for my book On Message: Propaganda, persuasion and the PR game. It examines the moment when the manipulation of the message became a game of representation, positioning and managed perception that is recognisably modern. Read on ›

Categories: Media issues

1 November 2011

3 comments

The Occupy Wall Street (OWS) protesters supposedly speak for 99% of us. Some reports in the mainstream media, such as a recent National Journal survey, suggest that the anti-capitalists have the backing of the public. But does the evidence of activity on social media support the claims? It would appear not. Read on ›