Is PR creating junk science in the news?

Sometimes I wonder about the usefulness of PR people. These often-glib practitioners of public relations occasionally dabble in the research labs and scientific journals around the world to create junk science.

Say what?

Robert McHenry’s wonderful post Science vs PR in The American says it best:

” One of the major reasons that science is held in low repute among portions of the citizenry is that it has too often allowed itself to become entangled with public relations. The PR connection has nothing to do with peer review, that essential element in the scientific method. The PR connection has to do with institutional politics, funding, and personal ambition.”

Here are two examples of the fuzzy logic used by PR in two bad media pitches reported by Gawker:  PR Dummies: Dead Parents Are Good for a Chuckle and PR Dummies: Survey Says, ‘Nobody Gives a Shit’?

Pitching unscientific or silly surveys works just as badly.

McHenry’s description of how PR creates mad science is humorously but painfully and accurately depicted:

1. Some scientists publish a report of their work.

2. An alert PR guy who works for the university or institute notices some potentially hype-able words in the report.

3. He writes up a release, under the impression that he is Arthur C. Clarke.

4. J-school grads at a number of media outlets, whose science education ended in 8th grade, pick up the release, change three words to make it their own, and it is published to an unsuspecting public.

5. The unsuspecting public, which is not as dumb as the PR guy believes, dismisses the story as bushwah and blames the scientists.”

Hasn’t every PR pro been there at least once in his or her career?

Struggling with finding a way to promote the latest discoveries in pancreatic cancer research or DNA nanotubes. Huddled with your technology client and the product development team trying to simply and meaningfully describe the benefits of the latest, greatest silicon chip since Pringles.

Of course there’s rarely “news” that real people can use in most scientific breakthroughs and technology advances.

Thank God for market research and surveys. There’s nothing like a mad science story or research study. Built to feed the world of fast food journalism, real-time radio and soundbite TV. And of course, they allow PR people to produce a ton of media coverage.

The problem, as McHenry aptly describes, is that “peer review”, context and scientific rigor are usually lost in the translation. We go from the science lab to the news release written by PR people who quite likely never graduated from grade 10 biology.

The news release is then mass e-mailed, pushed and pitched mercilessly to media who face real-time pressure to be first with the story and still entertain their dwindling audiences. And with rare exceptions, reporters who also struggled with high school physics and chemistry, try to make news judgments and a story from thin gruel.

If the savvy junior PR account executive also provides photos, visuals, B-roll, video or an infographic, look out! This story could go viral. In the meantime, science and credibility both suffer.

Amazon’s Junk Science News Gains Big Coverage

Here’s a great example by none other than Amazon in a news release issued May 15^th on Business Wire. It shouts Amazon.com Announces the Most Well-Read Cities in America.

Amazon identifies the top 20 most “well-read” cities including Alexandria, Cambridge, Berkeley, Ann Arbor and Boulder. Big university towns. Other top 20s inexplicably include Gainesville, Miami, Orlando and Knoxville.

Not surprisingly, these “research” results are breathlessly reported across the nation. Highlighted with a sense of pride. Strong evidence of renewed American literacy report news readers with gravitas. Encouragement for Kinsmen clubs, classrooms and colleges alike. At least in the top 20 cities. Stirring up resentment in those cities that failed to make the list.

The headlines speak for themselves:

• Alexandria named most well-read city [OC Register]
• Amazon Reveals Most Well-Read Cities in the US [ABC News]
• Ann Arbor makes Amazon.com’s ‘Most Well-Read Cities in America’ list [ClickonDetroit]
• Boulder named 5th most well-read city in America by Amazon.com [Denver Post]
• Cambridge Among Nation’s Most Well-Read Cities; Boston Apparently Is Not  [About.com Boston]
• New Yorkers don’t read, says Amazon: NYC left off list of most bookish cities [NY Daily News]
• Seattle is nation’s 13th most well-read city, says Amazon [KING 5 TV]
• St. Louis ranks No. 18 in Amazon’s Most Well-Read Cities [St Louis Business Journal]
• The most well-read cities in the US [CBS News]
• What Are The Most Well-Read Cities In America? [Huffington Post]

With 121 Google New stories in the first nine hours, it’s a public relations coup. It’s also a reminder you need to read or view the news with a healthy dose of skepticism.

Remember this ranking is based on Amazon’s “sales data of all book, magazine and newspaper sales in both print and Kindle format since June 1, 2011, on a per capita basis in cities with more than 100,000 residents.”

From there, the news release leaps to the conclusion, unsubstantiated, that this somehow is a measure of the well-read. Some media imply it’s even an indicator of literacy.

The real story in Amazon’s release may be why Orlando, Gainesville, Knoxville and Pittsburgh made the list. Interesting to contemplate. Disney books? Elvis anthologies?

There’s a bit of a science paradox of its own in all this. They unstoppable force of public relations meets the immovable object called the media. There is only one winner and it’s neither accuracy nor the truth in the news.

I enjoy trivia and a little fun in the news as much or more than anyone. The problem is these stories leave the impression that this “research” and its conclusions are reliable and accurate.

As it gets retold and reworked, its plausibility gets stretched to the breaking point. The original premise long-forgotten. Psychologists and psychiatrists in New York are booked solid with residents, publishing employees and the NY literati anguished. Wondering how and why they failed to make the list.

With that cautionary note on PR and junk science, another science story caught my eye today – Scientists Have the Technology to Recreate 170-Year-Old Beer. A very worthy scientific endeavor and definitely news we can use!

What do you think? Should PR be more rigorous or is all fair in PR and media relations? We’d love to hear your hypothesis!

Our public relations labs contain no junk science and the PR Library is  always open for your research and reading. Delivering PR tips and resources just when you need them. Including ideas on how to measure PR, audit your communications or do some crafty content analysis.

The PR Coach blog also has weekly PR insight and perspectives. Just sign up here or get your posts delivered in your favorite RSS feed.

Author: Jeff Domansky

Photo credit: Marxchivist via Flickr

Why has trust in media dropped so much?

According to Gallup, public trust in mass media dropped from 70% during the 1970′s Watergate era to 44% today.

Jay Rosen recently wrote a must-read post about this drop in confidence in the press. He poses some difficult questions and tries to answer why this trust has fallen so far.

He asks how this is possible:

“So the puzzle is: how do these things fit together?  More of a profession, more educated people going into journalism, a more desirable career, greater cultural standing (although never great pay) bigger staffs, more people to do the work … and the result of all that is less trust.”

He provides some thoughtful possibilities but admits he doesn’t have the definitive answer.

Rosen notes that confidence in most institutions has plummeted:

“The Church. In 1973, 66 percent had a great deal or a fair amount of trust. In 2010: 48 percent.

Banks. 1979: 60 percent, 2010: 23 percent.

Public schools. 1973: 58 percent, 2010: 34 percent

The Presidency: 1973: 52 percent, 2010: 36 percent.”

(Source: Gallup)

You can add business and PR into that same orbit of lost trust. Some, like the Economist, in its article “Slime-slinging“,  would argue the pond scum of public relations has nowhere further to fall but I digress.

The thing that’s fascinating is the close parallel of journalism with public relations.

Our profession has grown in size and influence. We’re better educated and more “professional” too. We have national and international PR associations, accreditation and higher standards, though some beg to differ.

Numerous trade publications, blogs and websites cover every industry development. We often have a seat at the boardroom table. We’re fairly well paid with an average US  annual salary of $51,280. Jobs are expected to grow 24% by 2018. We’ve even redefined PR. Haven’t we? (Cough.)

Public relations is an essential cog in the establishment. We develop and communicate its messages. We publicize successes, guard reputations and handle crises. Now we also monitor and direct vital social media channels.

We’re a success in the past two decades. But our trust figures are even lower than media.  Perhaps because we’re part of the power structure too?

When trying to answer why trust in PR is so low, it’s useful to consider several of Rosen’s reasons.

He’s already established that most institutions are less trusted in the past two decades. And PR is part of this establishment.

Bad actors in the profession? Guilty on that count. Liberal bias? Not so much with PR, I suspect.

Rosen thinks “professionalization” of media may have contributed to loss of trust. He suggests “truthtelling” may somehow need to be reintroduced. Ouch! That one resonates for PR.

Unlike Rosen, I think I have an answer to the PR trust issue. It has to do with advocacy. Like lawyers, CEOs and marketers, we are advocates for our organizations. Unless shown otherwise, media, the public and many others expect a built-in bias. Our job in many cases is to enhance or protect the reputation of our organization and that is PR’s biggest challenge.

Somehow, we need to find a way to work as trusted, honest communicators despite the built-in challenge and bias of advocacy.

“Integrity also means avoiding any communication that is deceptive, full of guile, or beneath the dignity of people,” according to The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. “One of the most important ways to manifest integrity is to be loyal to those who are not present. In doing so, we build the trust of those who are present.”

In other words, caring about our organization and its impact on its many “publics.”

Can we ever build greater public trust in PR? Are there solutions?

Here are a few possible solutions that come to mind:

• speak out against the “bad actors” in PR
• operate transparently in your communications
• be known as a valuable resource and a problem-solver to media, your own organization and the public
• mentor your young staff on ethical communications
• get active in professional organizations that have regulations and ethical guidelines such as PRSA and IABC.

Maybe it’s a generation thing? The curse of the baby boomers? They’re all still mad as hell at the “establishment” and their children are not going to take it anymore either. The internet has made it easy for anyone to complain, criticize, find fault and shift the blame everywhere but where it belongs — on the individual.

While we might hate to admit it, maybe journalists and PR pros have been too busy being consumers, advancing our careers and going for the almighty dollar at the expense of our principles?

Maybe a return to Rosen’s principled “professionalism” would help restore the public’s trust in journalism? That’s why we revered Walter Cronkite, Dan Rather and Woodward and Bernstein. Same solution for PR.

The question is who will be the icons of our PR profession 20 years from now? Is it remotely possible that public relations could become one of the most trusted professions in the future? Not without a lot of thought. Certainly not without showing by our actions why the public should trust PR professionals.

For now, the puzzle remains.

We’ve got lots of PR profession resources in our virtual PR Library. You don’t even need a library card. Remember, you can also get weekly tips, tactics and insight by signing up for The PR Coach blog by e-mail or getting it in your favorite RSS reader. Let’s start a conversation!

Author: Jeff Domansky, Editor, The PR Coach

Photo credits: Chart – Gallup via Jay Rosen; Spinning Gears - Brent 2.0 via Flickr 

Sponsored by:

Marcia’s Makeovers: 24 Press Releases Transformed from So-So to Sizzling
Get Marcia Yudkin’s popular self-study news release writing course. Learn how to transform your news releases from ho-hum to hot!

PRWeek Magazine Subscribe to the leading PR news journal.

PR job hunting is competitive

I was just drafting my own best PR Job Boards post when I got scooped by Amanda DiSilvestro over at the terrific PR Breakfast Club blog. You can see her Top 10 PR job boards list, a useful resource for PR jobs.

It’s tough keeping up with smart new public relations grads isn’t it?

So, I’ve revised my approach to… drum roll please… an analysis of monster job boards and 15 [More] Primo PR Job Boards & Resources.

Most Monster Job Boards Not Worth Your Time

If you’re a PR job hunter, I’ll save you a lot of time. Most monster job sites aren’t worth it. They simply give too many unrelated or irrelevant jobs when searching for public relations job openings.

In my new book PRoactive: The Public Relations Job Hunter’s Guide (available on Amazon, pardon the plug), my analysis shows that only three of the major monster sites deliver targeted results for PR job hunters.

What I did was search for “public relations” (in quotes) and noted the total number of listings (see chart above). Then, I evaluated the percentage of listings to decide the actual number of “real” PR jobs.

LinkUP delivered 3,102 “real” PR jobs or 100% of the listings when searching for “public relations” jobs. No barista, sales, call center, restaurant, pizza delivery or other off-topic openings. Simply Hired was the best of the monster job boards with 21,649 listings of which 92% or 19,917 “real” PR opportunities while BestJobsUSA offered 90. That gives you an accurate fix on which job boards deliver real results.

After these top three, the results drop quickly, showing that you’re better off spending time on custom PR job sites like those following.

15 Best PR Job Boards & Resources

After Amanda’s list (above) and my own PR Coach Job Board, here are my 15 recommended PR job boards:

• #PRJobs – a busy Twitter channel constantly updating with new openings, tips and suggestions
• #HAPPO – another nicely targeted Twitter channel with new openings and tips
• AdWeek Media Job Market
• Bulldog Reporter’s PR JobMart
• Council of Public Relations Firms Career Center 
• DC Public Affairs + Communications Jobs – DC-area focused
• Eluta.ca - Canadian jobs; other countries too
• International Association of Business Communicators Job Center - some of IABC’s listings are available to non-members
• LinkedIn – find hundreds of PR job openings in dozens of public relations “Groups”
• Marketing Sherpa Job Listings
• MediaBistro PR Job Listings 
• PR Job Watch | Facebook 
• PR Week Jobs (US) - check other country editions too
• Ragan Career Center 
• TalentZoo – Media Jobs

 What to Look for on PR Job Boards? 

Watch for features like job alerts, RSS feeds and other job hunting tips and resources. Alerts and RSS feeds deliver results directly to your inbox. A terrific time saver.

When you search, put terms in quotations for better targeted results. Search by city or state.  Take advantage of job tips and resume suggestions.

Anything you can do to automate your search without losing quality will leave you more time to polish your resume and pump up your portfolio.

No excuses. It’s time to get proactive in your PR or communications job search.

Looking for more help? Try the PR Library’s Best Places to Find PR Jobs, Public Relations Job Tips & Resources and Job Board.

Here are two of my most popular posts on the topic and a quick video worth viewing:

• 11 Tips to Take Your PR Resume from Lame to Game 
• 51 PR Experts Share Tips for PR Job Hunters
• What’s New With PR Jobs? [Video]

Author: Jeff Domansky, Editor

Yes Men activists launch sophisticated PR campaign parody against B of A

Activists launched a creative, ironic and sophisticated but phony “Your Bank of America” PR campaign against the North Carolina-headquartered financial institution yesterday.

This comes just a week after my recent post Perils of Online Crisis Public Relations.

Andy Bichlbaum worked with The Yes Men and stepped forward to take credit for the high-profile public relations campaign. The Yes Lab later posted a video with Bichlbaum explaining the campaign. The initiative has support from Rainforest Action Network, New Bottom Line and Occupy Wall Street.

The campaign is clearly the work of skilled PR people turned activist.

Elements in the bogus campaign to date include:

• a phony news release claimed to be issued on BusinessWire and later denied by BW
• a bogus “personal” letter signed by CEO Brian Moynihan
• an impressive and very creative spoof website that is going viral in social media and on the internet
• a second fake BofA news release responding to the attack.

Phony News Release Carried on Dow Jones

The activists released a first bogus news release Wednesday, April 18^th at 9 AM with a Charlotte, NC BusinessWire dateline. BusinessWire denied transmitting the release.

Various financial news media in New York received copies of the release which read in part:

Bank of America Announces “Your Bank of America” Campaign, Partnership with Taxpayers to Revamp U.S. Banking Date(s): 18-Apr-2012 9:00 AM

As future clouds, opportunities arise for public synergy

CHARLOTTE, N.C.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Apr. 18, 2012– Bank of America today announced the launch of an unprecedented campaign to reach out to the American public for guidelines on how banking should happen. The campaign, Your Bank of America (www.yourbofa.com), leverages the American public’s disaffection with today’s banking practices into a full suite of real banking solutions.

“We may not have all the answers, but we’re confident that those answers exist,” said Brian Moynihan, Chief Executive Officer of Bank of America. “We want to make sure the American people are well positioned to assert control and implement changes in the direction of banking, in the eventuality that such control becomes feasible.”

“Bringing in the public sector is a good strategy for earning buy-in at a difficult time for our industry,” said Moynihan. “But this is not just a PR campaign: as the public uses our new website to share ideas of how banks should be run, we will see many ideas that are quite far ahead of the market norm. Running a bank in a sane and common-sense way isn’t rocket science—and that’s something the customer knows best.”…

Read carefully, there’s no way savvy editors should have let this run without fact-checking. That didn’t stop Dow Jones. In a reflection of what’s wrong with media these days, sloppy editorial work let this phony release get on their wire service. It took more than 90 minutes for DJ to issue this correction and remove the release from its archive.

The funny thing is, this release is so believable because it’s written in familiar, stilted corporate-speak. I sympathize with editors dealing with this kind of “news” daily.

In just one day, there are already more than 470 stories on Google News. [Update: 570+ by second day.]

Fake Bank of America Website Believable

The Wall Street Journal reported on the Dow Jones gaffe in a blog post and outlined details of the phony PR campaign and website.

The fake website yourbofa.com is a work of art. It’s cleverly designed, brilliantly written and hard to distinguish from the real Bank of America website.

Notable features in the fake website included:

• the letter from CEO Brian Moynihan
• An “It’s Your Story” page questions funding of dirty industries like coal, questions BofA’s financial stability and exhorts the public to take over the bank.
• The “Lessons Learned” page identifies 15 supposed serious liabilities faced by the Bank .
• Another page “Your Ideas” cleverly suggests new ideas like startup business loans for poor people; honesty and fairness; no more rollover fees for IRAs; no fees for withdrawals; and “reasonable” not exorbitant pay for bankers. After just one day there were 255 “ideas.”
• A fourth page “Get Creative” encourages the public to create ads to tell the world about the bank, complete with fonts, logos, Photoshop files, templates and a “gallery” of more than 450 submissions after just one day. Many feel staged.

Bank of America has not responded yet in its newsroom to the phony PR campaign and has commented only to a few major media pressing hard for reaction.

The Yes Lab displayed another phony news release masquerading as a BofA response to the campaign. At first glance it feels legitimate until you read more carefully to see the parody.

Here’s where you get into very interesting strategic PR territory. BofA believes it can weather this fake PR storm by not acknowledging it. Activists are filling the information gap.

With all the negative PR the bank has had in the past two years, it may have been smarter to acknowledge it with a sense of humor and a reassurance BofA is financially solid and working hard to serve its customers. A simple on-the-record response would eliminate a comment vacuum and reinforce the bank’s message.

I suspect the beleaguered bank was preoccupied with releasing its Q1 2012 financial results which had some positive news. The activists’ timing was deliberate and impeccable.

Any PR pro would be hard-pressed to create a more credible-looking, impactful and creative campaign. I don’t agree with the activists but I admire their audacity.

At the very least, this one will be a strategic PR, crisis management and social media case study in PR textbooks and classrooms for years.

How do you think BofA should respond? Can they win with an “ignore them” strategy? Will the anti-BofA campaign have legs? How would you rate the activist campaign?

We’ve got lots more crisis management and online crisis PR resources in The PR Library. If you’re looking for regular PR tips and PR 2.0 insight, subscribe to our newsletter or get it delivered in your favorite RSS reader.

Author: Jeff Domansky, Editor, The PR Coach

More Phony Bank of America PR Campaign Reading

Bank of America is subject of phony news release, website [Charlotte Observer]
Bank of America Now Target of Fake Press Release [The Wall Street Journal]
Bank of America Sees Real Profits Following Fake Campaign [The Atlantic Wire]
Dow Jones Carries Phony Bank of America Release [O'Dwyer's]
Fake Bank Of America Website, YourBofA, Asks People How They Would Run BofA [Huffington Post]
How OWS Plans to Take Down Bank of America [truthdig]
The Fake Press Release [Forbes]
The OccupyUSA Blog for Thursday (April 19), With Frequent Updates [The Nation]
The Yes Lab claims credit for fake Bank of America website [Charlotte Business Journal]
Whose bank? Our bank! The Yes Men explain their prank on BofA [RT]

Sponsored by:

Marcia’s Makeovers: 24 Press Releases Transformed from So-So to Sizzling
Get Marcia Yudkin’s popular self-study news release writing course. Learn how to transform your news releases from ho-hum to hot!

PRWeek Magazine Subscribe to the leading PR news journal.

Another day, another trial by Twitter. This time for South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley when a blogger falsely reported she was under investigation by the IRS for tax fraud.

The New York Times traced how the unsubstantiated rumor, posted on March 29^th by 25-year old blogger Logan Smith, caught fire on Twitter. Smith who blogs at the Palmetto Public Record, failed to verify facts with the Governor and the IRS. In minutes, other mainstream and political media and bloggers repeated and retweeted the allegations, again without verification.

Another black eye for journalists and bloggers racing to break a story first, without fact checking or editorial oversight. Media offenders included The Washington Post, CBS News, The Huffington Post, BuzzFeed, The Daily Beast, The Daily Caller and The Hill among many. Many issued updates or corrections, while a few apologized.

Haley and her team stayed in damage control for days with mixed success. The Governor said she expects similar attacks to continue.

According to the Times, blogger Smith remains unrepentant. He says in an email: “I reported that credible sources said they believed the governor would be indicted — not that I knew she would be indicted, or even whether or not I personally believed she would be indicted.” [My italics added]

Welcome to sleazy southern politics and questionable blogging standards.

A big headache for an elected official, a sad reflection on lazy media under pressure to break stories in real-time and a timely warning for reputation managers near and far.

How to Manage an Online Reputation Crisis

So how can you manage a future online reputation crisis? Here are eleven tips to help you survive the next one:

1. Have a crisis communications plan in place in advance. Prepare scenarios and possible key messages ahead of time.
2. Build allies in advance and keep your databases current.
3. Maintain a current media contact list with direct phone numbers and emails for reporters and key editors.
4. Actively monitor mainstream media and social media channels.
5. Respond quickly with prepared statements tailored to each media or social media channel. Use all channels possible if warranted.
6. Return media calls as soon as possible.
7. Secure third-party support or validation quickly. The IRS provided a letter saying she was not under investigation.
8. Try to become the primary source for accurate information. Don’t surrender control to critics by hiding.
9. Update as new facts become available.
10. Remember the social media fundamentals: listening, openness, honesty, transparency, timeliness and engagement.
11. There comes a point when it’s time to move on. Know when to shut up.

Have you any other online crisis PR tips to suggest? We’d enjoy hearing your reaction to this post in the comments below too.

We’ve got lots more crisis PR resources at The PR Coach website. For regular PR and social media tips, strategies and insight, sign up for our blog or get posts delivered to your favorite RSS reader.

Further Online Crisis Management Reading

Here are a few excellent articles on online crisis management drawn from our PR Library:

7 Best Practices for Crisis Management in Social Media [Alexandra Cojocaru]
Best Practices for Crisis Communications Over Social Media[David Spark]
Crisis Communications in Social Media: Are You Ready? [Valeria Maltoni]
Crisis PR Plans Incomplete Without Social Media Component [Richard Nicolazzo]
Five Rules for Managing Twitter When a Crisis Strikes [Brad Phillips]
Five Social Media Crisis Communications Tips [Bill Salvin]
Six Steps To Fighting Internet Rumors [Christopher Barger]
Turning Lemons into Lemonade: 11 Components of a Social Media Crisis PR Plan  [Paula Berg]

Author: Jeff Domansky, Editor, The PR Coach

Photo credit: Maistora 

Sponsored by:

Marcia’s Makeovers: 24 Press Releases Transformed from So-So to Sizzling
Get Marcia Yudkin’s popular self-study news release writing course. Learn how to transform your news releases from ho-hum to hot!

PRWeek Magazine Subscribe to the leading PR news journal.

Pinterest has growing PR resources

Want a great recipe for Yorkshire Pudding? There’s a Pinterest for that. Searching for a cure for the common cold? It’s on Pinterest. Got a yen for yoga? It’s there as well.

Looking for public relations? Not so much! Pinterest has it too but my search for “public relations” on Pinterest delivered mixed results.

It delivered a microcosm of what’s on the Internet. Some of the 240+ hits or “pins” were relevant, useful and right on target. A couple were brilliant or evocative. Many were random, off-topic, sometimes silly but often entertaining.

I decided to do a closer analysis.

Analysis of PR on Pinterest

Let me highlight a few “pins” from the 240 PR search results to illustrate my findings:

• PR-related; somewhat to very relevant – 85 pins (35.4%)
• Infographics; mostly social media – 43 (16.7%)
• Agency or PR service provider promos with no content value –  34 (14.2%)
• Links to posts; some duplicates – 34 (14.2%)
• Individual PR pro profiles – 26 (10.8%)
• Brand/product marketing; mostly blatant service or product pitches; not PR-relevant – 20 (8.3%)
• Book covers and book pitches – 18 (7.5%)
• Irrelevant; no relevance to PR – 23 (9.6%).

The data shows clearly that only 35.4% of the “pins” in my survey were somewhat to very relevant to public relations. Many of the posts such as infographics (16.7%) and books (7.5%) were somewhat useful for PR and were included in the “pins” that I deemed relevant.

Nearly 10% were totally irrelevant to public relations and more than 40% above were promotional or of no true content value. Clearly, I didn’t find enough real PR value on Pinterest.

My PR Take on Pinterest?

I won’t bother to do a “how-to-use” Pinterest post because it’s dead simple to use. See Danny Brown’s post below.

My assessment of Pinterest at this time:

• useful for niche marketing and branding projects, especially if visual
• potential for creative and innovative PR and marketing applications
• contains much “fluff”
• potential for research, listening and monitoring
• tough to measure specific ROI
• fun to play with
• staggering growth, so important to follow closely for future PR applications.

Based on my initial analysis, I’m not finding enough value to spend a lot of my time on it. Like any new social media channel though, you need to be familiar with it and watch for new developments.

I’ve pulled together a useful reading list of 30 Pinterest resources I know will help you make your own assessment of this shiny, new social channel. For me, it’s got potential but it’s not yet ready for prime time PR.

Are you using Pinterest successfully? Are you getting results? I’d enjoy hearing your take in the comments below.

You’ll also find other useful social media resources in The PR Library including content marketing, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and much more. Don’t forget to subscribe to The PR Coach blog for weekly PR tips and social media insights or get it in your favorite RSS reader.

Author: Jeff Domansky

Pinterest Resources for PR Pros

6 Ways Brands Can Rock Pinterest  [Social Times]
Useful tips on using Pinterest for PR and marketing .

12 Ways to Use Pinterest for Your Nonprofit  [John Haydon]
Nonprofits can have success with Pinterest too.

18 compelling stats to help sell your boss on Pinterest  [Communication Conversations]
Arik Hanson shares powerful Pinterest stats and useful tactics.

Beyond the Like: Don’t Measure Pins Because You Won’t Find Them Useful [C&M]
So how do you measure ROI?

How Educators Are Using Pinterest for Showcasing, Curation [MediaShift]
Mark Glaser looks at how educators are innovating.

How The Wall Street Journal Uses Pinterest
Editors are pinning memorable quotes and seeing traffic to articles as a result.  W 

How To Optimize Your Pinterest Images  [The Content Strategist]
This Infographic has practical Pinterest tips.

How to Use Pinterest for Marketing Research [The Steveology Blog]
Smart marketing research tips from Steve Farnsworth.

How to Use Pinterest for Public Relations [SMedio]
Seven ways you can use Pinterest for PR.

Is Pinterest the next Facebook? [CNNMoney]
Great look inside the Pinterest business and its founders.

Is Pinterest the Next Big Social Network in Europe? [comScore Data Mine]
The new network is spreading fast in EU too.

Online Pinboards – Is this the new way to Facebook?  [comScore]
Exploring where and why Pinterest is hot.

Pinning for Gold  [Jeff Turner]
Pinterest: Early adopter guide.

Pinterest Hits 11 Million UMVs (and 8 Tips for Brands)  [Ogilvy 360]
Worth exploring.

Pinterest: The newest ‘pin thing’ in social media?  [Tressa Robbins]
Several smart ways to use this new social media tool.

Pinterest vs Facebook: A Social PR Strategy Smackdown [C&M]
Simple vs cluttered.

Pinterest: What’s in it for you? [ed Social Media]
The basics and how higher education is using Pinterest creatively.

Pinterest: Why What It’s Not Says So Much [MediaShift]
Courtney Lowery Cowgill explores Pinterest from every angle.

Pinterest UK stats  [Drew B]
Drew Benvie looks at UK adoption.

The Only Pinterest Post You’ll Ever Need to Read – EVER!  [Danny Brown]
DannyBrown shares his funny take on the new social media phenom.

Three Things Brands Should Know about Pinterest [H+K Strategies]
Here’s what marketing needs to know.

Top Media Outlets Discuss Pinterest Strategy  [Cision]
Shiny new toy or legit new channel?

Understanding Pinterest and Your Audience  [BurellesLuce]
Five simple Pinterest tips.

Unpinned [Beyond PR]
Good counterpoint on brand and user rights on Pinterest.

US Army Pinterest Page
Even the US Army is into Pinterest.

Using Pinterest Yet? 13 Tips for Gaining Business Exposure for Your Clients [PR News]
Popular pointers for, you guessed it.

Very ‘Pinteresting’ Infograph Shows Rapid Rise of Social Media Site [Simply Zesty]
Still Pinterested?

What is Pinterest and How Can You Use it for Marketing your Business? [Jeff Bullas]
Jeff Bullas looks at the unrealized potential.

Why Pinterest may not be right for your business  [Ragan.com]
This infographic guides you through why Pinterest may not be your best social channel.

Why You Need an Interest in Pinterest [DreamGrow]
More tips and Pinterest insight.

Bob Conrad says they’re biased, error-prone, misleading and, on occasion, devious or even liars. No, he’s not referring to public relations people. He’s talking about the news media.

Conrad is an award-winning public relations and marketing professional with a PhD (University of Nevada) and his APR accreditation. His new book Spin! How the News Media Misinform and Why Consumers Misunderstand (affiliate link) challenges many of our assumptions about the media and its reporting practices and shows how the public often misinterprets the news as a result.

Based on his analysis, he’s not going to win many friends among reporters and editors though Jay Rosen, Robert Niles, Jeff Jarvis  and others share similar worries about the future of journalism.

With academic rigor, Conrad re-examines many high-profile cases where media failed to report accurately and objectively despite the facts. Citing research, he shows how the media failed to act with integrity even when shown the correct facts before publication.

Conrad recounts several glaring examples of reporter transgressions. He also highlights the challenges for both media and PR pros working in this new era of social media, public advocacy and citizen journalism.

He starts with the built-in bias of “he-said/she-said” reporting. Coverage of genetically modified food provides an example. Scientists with valid research and solid data find it difficult to get balanced coverage because of a built-in bias by media. In seeking “balance”, media start with quotes from scientists and researchers. Then reporters turn to advocacy groups for alternate points of view.

Many times, Conrad says advocacy groups use emotion and improper science or faulty facts to support their positions or criticism. Often doing so with colorful stunts designed to play well to TV cameras or soundbites designed to appeal to rip-and-read reporting.

Seven Built-in Media Biases

Conrad notes seven psychological biases at play for both reporters and readers:

1. eyewitness fallacy
2. underutilization of statistics
3. confirmation bias
4. misperception of risk
5. misinterpretation of regression
6. illusory correlation
7. fundamental attribution error.

“Media events can be misinterpreted by audiences because of self-deception, which is a concern because an individual’s perception biases can hold more weight in one’s mind than otherwise verifiable information, such as scientific evidence,” he writes.

Conrad references a “startling” 2002 research study on consumer perceptions of food safety. “Given the choice between information delivered by experts and views offered by activists, consumers overwhelmingly sided with negative information, despite the credibility, or lack thereof, of the source.”

This was exactly the scenario played out in a story on safe drinking water in the New York Times in late 2009. Using faulty data provided by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), the newspaper story created widespread public concern about water quality. Prior to publication, scientists advised the reporter of the faulty data. The story ran regardless.

According to Conrad, the same scenario has played out with EWG’s annual list of “dirty dozen” fruits and vegetables. The advocacy group advised consumers to avoid 12 foods with high pesticide levels despite data showing that with few exceptions the foods met official health standards.

I blogged about the challenges of apple growers and vegetable producers who tried to respond and refute these negative claims, conflicting scientific data and scary headlines.

Toyota’s Reputation Wrongly Suffered from Media Coverage

In another high-profile case, coverage of alleged Toyota vehicle defects dominated headlines for nearly a year.

Convincing evidence now shows car maker Toyota was not at fault for most of the crashes and deaths attributed to it in 2010. “A 10-month study by federal investigators – the NHTSA with assistance from NASA – confirmed Toyota’s own research that sticky accelerators and floor mats were to blame in some instances but that alleged unintended acceleration was all driver error,” Conrad says.

The NHTSA’s own report exonerated Toyota. The accidents were mostly driver error. Unfortunately, media coverage and analysis of that finding pales by comparison to the original media headlines and hysteria.

It’s impossible to measure the negative impact on Toyota’s reputation. Despite its own research, it was unable to prove its innocence in the glare of overwhelmingly negative and ultimately wrong media coverage.

Conrad highlights several other big media hoaxes as well as his own personal examples of poor reporting practices and unethical media behavior. It’s not a pretty picture.

Pity the poor consumer trying to stay accurately informed. Despite the media’s biases and the public’s own preconceived ideas.

Seven Solutions to News Media Credibility Crisis

I like the fact that Conrad holds the media to the same high standards of accountability they expect in PR professionals.

He ends his book with seven suggestions to help the media emerge from it own credibility crisis:

1. Remove filters. Including the built-in biases that have crept into journalism.
2. Divide news into two sections: news and opinion.
3. Adopt public relations principles. Including transparency, the free flow of information and genuine acknowledgement of errors.
4. Fire the worst offenders. Reward fairness, accuracy and excellence in reporting.
5. Seek credible sources. Apply skepticism and more rigorous fact checking equally to officials as well as advocacy groups.
6. Fix the broken system of accountability. Add more journalism checks and balances and consider strengthening oversight within and outside of the media.
7. Embrace the fifth estate. Don’t exclude bloggers, independent reporters, freelancers, citizen journalists and watchdogs. Just clearly label their contributions as “opinion.”

Downsizing, fewer editors, lack of external oversight and the new pressures of popularity by page views make it harder and harder for media to report accurately and fairly. If left unchallenged, poor reporting practices will continue to play to the preconceived notions of audiences or readers.

At the end of Conrad’s slim 77-page book, readers will recognize the impact of reporter biases, the difficulty of interpreting complex data and the challenge of journalism in a quickly changing world.

He doesn’t claim all reporters are biased but he does paint a convincing picture of concern.

Without changes to journalism, the casualty will be the truth. Not to mention media credibility and diminishing public trust. It’s a wonder there’s still so much excellent news reporting every day.

In my view, advocacy groups play an important role in society. And there’s nothing like superb reporting when it’s done right. Stronger accountability for all, including PR pros, is a  valuable safeguard.

Open-minded journalists, embattled PR pros and students in both disciplines will find Conrad’s book thought-provoking. It also helps explain why it’s a challenging yet exciting time to work in public relations.

What are your thoughts? Do you trust the media more or less than you did two years ago? Which advocacy groups do you believe and which don’t you trust? Does social media make your PR job harder or easier? Just add your thoughts in the comments below.

You can order Conrad’s book through Amazon or browse more than 230 other public relations titles in the PR Coach Bookstore. We hope you’ll also sign up for weekly PR tips and insight in our Blog or get it delivered through your favorite RSS reader.

Author: Jeff Domansky

Photo credit: Bob Conrad/Amazon

Do you lead with PR inspiration first?

For inspiration, I follow a wonderful set of bloggers in public relations and many other fields. John Haydon is one of my favorites. He writes about social media marketing for nonprofits. His advice is always personable, practical and sometimes poignant.

Recently,  he shared a brief video about social media problem-solving for a nonprofit client. His client struggled to get a passionate spokesperson using technology to share their inspiration. Technology intimidated the spokesperson. They didn’t like Twitter, Facebook or most other social media but as Haydon said, they did know how to use e-mail.

Haydon devised a smart solution. He enabled the spokesperson to use e-mail to post to Facebook. A simple “fix” opening the door for valuable communication to support the client’s cause.

While that simple solution alone is worth noting, near the end of the video, Haydon shares some more brilliant PR 2.0 advice worth repeating:

“Don’t let technology be a hurdle. Inspiration comes first. Technology comes last. Inspiration gets in the front seat. Technology gets in the back seat.”

Such great advice for so many PR 2.0 situations! You can see Haydon’s video below:

It’s so easy to get overwhelmed by social media or technology choices. You know the conversations?

“I tried Twitter and I didn’t see the point of it.”
“Facebook is just for family and friends.”
“I heard that all the big retailers are abandoning Facebook for Pinterest.”
“I don’t understand Tumblr, Scoop.it, Paper.li, Storify, Google+, Flickr and all the other new social media. Which one should I choose? How can I use them all?”

My advice to clients or PR pros overwhelmed by social media choices is similar to Haydon. “First, do one or two social media things well. The rest follows.”

Don’t be paralyzed. Be proactive.

What’s your experience? Which channels are working well for you and which ones have you abandoned?

We’ve got lots of PR 2.0 resources in our virtual PR library. You don’t even need a library card. Look for tips on Twitter for PR, Facebook, LinkedIn and content marketing to name just a few of the 31 categories available. Remember, you can also get weekly tips, tactics and insight by signing up for The PR Coach blog by e-mail or getting it in your favorite RSS reader. Let’s start a conversation!

Author: Jeff Domansky

Photo credit: Wolfpix via Flickr

64-year-old, $460,000 Macallan Scotch whiskey

When we last left you, you were chewing over PRSA’s final three choices for the new public relations definition of the millennium.

I have an alternate PR definition you can’t resist!

I know. I know. I just blogged about PRSA and my disappointment. Judging by my inbox, the proposed definitions were giving you indigestion too.

Pass the Milk of Magnesia or better yet a tumbler of 64-year old Macallan Scotch whiskey ($460,000 a bottle) while I give those definitions to you again:

1. Public relations is the management function of researching, communicating and collaborating with publics to build mutually beneficial relationships.
2. Public relations is a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics.
3. Public relations is the strategic process of engagement between organizations and publics to achieve mutual understanding and realize goals.

Passion? Nope. Clarity? Clear as mud. Friendly? Cough! Memorable? Something about functions, process, publics and … oh I forget the rest.

At the risk of saying it again, let me quote my mentor Homer Simpson: “Blechhhhhh!”

It seems we’re now all getting mad as hell and we’re not going to take it any more!

Homer and I have taken it upon ourselves  to serve up a much more palatable, alternative definition of public relations. It’s jargon-free, vegan-friendly, low-calorie, contains bio-proteins, is environmentally neutral and no small children or animals were harmed during its creation.

Drum roll, please.

Public relations is: Stronger relationships, the best communication, in the best channels, at the right time, to the right people…

Short, sweet and to the point. And it’s mother-in-law friendly. The ultimate measure of success!

How about if we have a write-in vote and campaign? Let’s crowdsource a better definition of PR before it’s too late.

Just go to Twitter and re-Tweet my suggestion or your own to #PRDefined:

#PRDefined: Homer Simpson and @The PR Coach have a jargon-free #PR definition for #publicrelations http://bit.ly/xh7XHr 

If you insist, you can also vote here for your choice of the three PRSA candidates before Feb 26^th. If you care, do something. Meanwhile, I’d better get back to that episode of Breaking Bad.

By the way, just for the record, here’s my original submission to PRSA just for the heck of it:

“Public relations monitors, creates, manages & leads conversations with key individuals & communities, connecting for mutual understanding and relevance.”

We want you to join our team. Sign up for The PR Coach blog for weekly PR tips, insight and occasional twists and turns in the path to better public relations. Or get the RSS Feed delivered straight to your favorite RSS reader.

Author: Jeff Domansky

Photo credits: Macallan Scotch whiskey, Amsterdamized

Social TV lets viewers watch, share & interact with content

“Social TV” is another game changer for business and public relations. The breakneck pace of change and the convergence of TV, video, social media and mobile have big implications for public relations, marketing and social media.

Everyone is now a potential TV broadcast network. As PR pros know Google, YouTube, Hulu, Netflix, Vimeo and a host of other new video and social TV “channels” and services have turned the media landscape upside down.

It’s now the era of individuals as “broadcasters.” Each of us can produce and transmit our own content from one person to millions easily and inexpensively. And deliver it in high definition quality as far as the internet can reach.

The most exciting part is these new broadcast channels are two-way. That’s why experts call it “social TV.” And because of our inherent skill, training and social media savvy, public relations has proven it can lead when two-way communication is critical.

The new do-it-yourself tools, gear and technology for social TV are both inexpensive and broadcast quality. It’s a convergence of forces that can incite a revolution in the Middle East. Capture the devastating impact and suffering from an earthquake or tsunami. Or share the occupation of Wall Street or a college shooting instantly from a cell phone to network TV, across the city and around the world.

Social TV As Game Changer

New York Times ad columnist Stuart Elliott recently covered the 2012 TV and Everything Video Forum and highlighted some of these TV and video trends brilliantly. He interviewed several thought leaders and forum participants on their predictions.

Highlights of his must-read article:

• social media lets consumers watch TV live and share comments and content instantly
• three times as many consumers now believe TV is more effective than in a previous survey in 2010
• second screens are a breakthrough advance; watching video and interacting while on several screens is booming
• measurement of the “new” social TV is challenging
• many consumers are using multiple screens while watching TV (including computers, tablets and smartphones)
• reminder that “first” screens still have big influence and reach
• fragmented attention is already a reality
• “sociable TV” may replace social TV in the near future, reflecting both the sharing and interactive nature of television.

Industry opinion leaders at the conference sound excited about the future. Public relations should be energized as well.

The new direct-to-consumer and direct-to-business models are a PR and marketing dream if done well. That is, if we don’t allow marketers to use the old “push” model of information sharing and advertising. It’s now a content marketing world!

“Second screens are changing the viewer experience,” said Ralph Santana, senior vice president and chief marketing officer at Samsung Electronics. “We’ve got to continue to be brave and do a lot of experimentation,” he said. “We need to start rethinking content and how we tell stories as marketers.”

Andrew Shipp looks at social TV, who’s doing it well and how brands can get big reach through social TV.

How Does Social TV Impact Public Relations?

Here’s my take on the implications of social TV for PR pros:

• PR can and must produce video and utilize it in social media for its huge reach, impact, influence, control of message, leadership and marketing potential.
• If you’re not already familiar and comfortable with video, you need to go through the learning curve NOW and include video in future social media programs.
• We must work hard to build engagement and sharing into social TV.
• There is an insatiable appetite for high quality information, advice, learning and intelligence.
• Remember that “first screens” are still an important influence
• Pay close attention to the exponential growth of “second screens” such as computers, tablets, mobile used by multimedia savvy millennials in their media mix. Video can be repurposed and extended to these additional screens.

As Adobe Sytems product manager Chris Robison put it, “consumers are adopting digital video faster than we are.”

PR simply shouldn’t be afraid of video and social TV. True, it’s not the same TV we grew up with. We must recognize social TV’s advantages and be creative about how we use its power for all the right reasons. Just as PR embraced and took the lead in social media, we need to do the same with social TV.

I urge you to read Stuart Elliott’s compelling article. If you’re not already convinced social TV is a revolution, you will be after you read it.

As always, our channel is open 24 hours a day. You can get weekly posts from The PR Coach blog or see it directly in your favorite RSS reader. Thanks for tuning in and do drop us a note in the comments below.

Author: Jeff Domansky

Photo Credit: x-ray delta one via Flickr

10 Great Reads on Social TV:

12 predictions for social TV in 2012  [lost remote]
Cable TV’s Erosion is Real, It’s Just Very Slow   [ReadWriteWeb]
How To Use Interactive Video To Effectively Promote Your Brand  [Fast Company]
Social Media Helps Grammys Achieve Huge Ratings in Broadcast and Social TV  [Mashable]
Social TV: Social Marketing Practices That Translate Beyond Television  [B2C]
The day you’ll know social TV has arrived  [lost remote]
The Video Revolution Will Not Be Televised (On Broadcast Or Cable TV)  [Fast Company]
Top Trends of 2011: How TV Grew More Social  [ReadWriteWeb]
What is social TV? Not Google TV or YouTube says NBC rep  [Ecoconsultancy]
YouTube’s Reach Begins to Eclipse Television  [ReadWriteWeb]