You may have heard that Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevech has hired a publicity firm to help him deal with all the media attention he’s getting, since he was arrested for corruption when he (allegedly) tried to get some kind of compensation to fill  President Barak Obama’s Senate seat.
Hiring good PR counsel when you are facing a major problem is a good idea.
But I am not sure if this firm is really working on Blago’s reputation, or perhaps doing some major spin doctoring.
The public relations agency actually send out  a press release announcing the Governor’s media schedule for today. Huh? Since …read more

Fineman PR just released it’s annual list of the top public relations mistakes of 2008. While I am sure (or at least, I hope) that you aren’t on the list, there are some lessons to be learned.

Accountability is important. No matter if it was the AIG party scandal or McCain dumping Letterman for a ‘better’ gig. Being open and accountable for ones actions is always the way to go. In today’s 24/7, media driven world, it’s too easy to find out the truth when you’re not.
We are always watching. As alluded to above, the spotlight is always on, always waiting …read more

George Bush tried to get some good press when he ’surprised’ the troops with a visit in Iraq. But once again, ‘mission (not)  accomplished… when an Iraqi journalist throw not one, but both his shoes at the outgoing US president.
(The journalist had a pretty good arm, but Bush must be used to ducking, becuase he was just as quick! Sorry. I couldn’t help myself there! *)
I was actually surprised at the quick and humorous response from the President.  “All I can report is a size 10,” he said. “I don’t think you can take one guy throwing shoes and say …read more

So the big conversation in the PR world last week was the question: Is PR dead?
Many who say yes have pointed to how social media has taken over and how it’s important to have personal conversations.
Yup, I agree. But that doesn’t mean PR is dead. Not in the least.
The real issue is that a lot of PR people aren’t adopting social media as part of the public relations toolkit. And some are even shunning it. And I hate to say it, but there are plenty of people out there who think PR stands for press release.
Well, tell that to Motrin, …read more

A decade ago, the Canadian government made a statement of regret about the country’s long-time policy of forcibly removing aboriginal children from their home communities and subjecting them to cultural cleansing in “residential schools.”
That half measure laid the groundwork for a full-fledged apology to be delivered today in Parliament by prime minister Stephen Harper.
The formal apology will detail the verbal, sexual and physical abuse many children suffered in the government-funded schools that were run by churches.
The government is keenly aware that its words will be closely scrutinized for weasel words that fall short of a complete expression of remorse, …read more

What a schmozzle.
The recent uproar after the firing of an employee over her decision to give a free bite-sized snack to the young child of a customer lead the Tim Horton’s chain to unfire her.
The optics of firing a single mother for an act of kindness put the fast food chain in a bind.
Is this likely to set off a chain reaction of protests when some high school student has their hours cut to almost none for not agreeing to take on more shifts while studying for their mid-terms? Will others in McJobs lead a lobbying  campaign to raise …read more

When politicians and business leaders spend all their time worrying about the next election or the next quarterly sales announcement, you have to wonder who’s looking after the whatever lies beyond that time line (ie. our future).
There are a few examples out there.
Steve Jobs, for one, is a corporate Svengali capable of seeing past the next quarter.
British Columbia premier Gordon Campbell surprised just about everyone by mapping out an environmental strategy for the future. Is it the right strategy? Who knows. Is it better than hoping that climate change won’t devastate the world? I hope so.
Has our society developed an …read more

If you use an electronic chainsaw, is that more environmentally friendly than a gas-powered one? What has a smaller carbon footprint, a wooden-handled paintbrush (doesn’t hurt trees) or one with a plastic handle (doesn’t use non-renewable oil)?
These questions and hundreds more faced Home Depot when it decided to create an eco-friendly label for goods sold at the chain.
Is the massive home supplies retailer a saint for drawing attention to the relative impact on the environment of the products it sells? Or is it a devil that is thwarting industry-wide adoption of a common standard by creating its own eco-label?
Probably …read more

Worth reading:
Experience Schulich – Ed Lee ponders going the MBA route, and finds some new ways to focus business thinking. Like marketing strategy that considers segmentation, positioning and targeting of the markets that organizations should be “in.”
Smoldering Controversy – Is Big Tobacco funding research about teen smokers to help drive kids from tobacco, or to find a better way to get them hooked? The Centre for Media and Democracy wants to know why the funding source was kept a secret.
Working Nostalgia in PR – Jeremy Pepper waxes philosophic on the power of appealing to memories in advertising and public …read more

We live in a world of simplistic sound bites.
If you don’t believe that, see the hysterical reaction to the Archbishop of Canterbury’s exploration of whether sharia law, like other methods of extra-judicial arbitration, should be granted more formal recognition, to make sure its use is consistent with British law and quality standards.
He might has well have suggested that we convert corner stores into government-regulated brothels run by pedophiles with crooked teeth. The reaction to his intellectual premise was swift and vitriolic.
(Talk about deja vu. It seems like just yesterday that Pope Benedict was setting off a firestorm by quoting …read more