In a world where consumers are increasingly demanding social responsibility from their chosen brands, it’s imperative that said brands refrain from turning social movements into tropes to be exploited. The consequences, as Pepsi found out last week, can be severe. On Tuesday, the soda brand attempted to capitalize on the perceived Social Justice Warrior generation with an ad disarming a police blockade using a can of… Read more »
We often counsel our PR clients in times of crisis. With the rate at which news travels, it’s imperative to quickly respond and take control of a negative situation – before it takes control of the narrative. This hyper-aware and “always-on” mindset is not just important for companies reacting to their own bad news, but also for responding to a competitor’s PR nightmare. Recently we’ve seen… Read more »
A good chunk of a PR pro’s day consists of finding creative ways to get a client’s story out there. Obtaining killer press coverage without a steady stream of company news is one of the biggest – and most exciting – challenges we face. But every-so-often, things just happen. All of a sudden you’re not creating the news, you’re typing and dialing like a mad-person reacting… Read more »
An important disclosure: I’m a fan of Brian Williams. I like his reporting style, his humor on late night talk shows and dashing good looks. I like that he reports the tough news of the day with gravitas and a baritone voice. All the while, I thought that he didn’t take his celebrity too seriously and therefore could mock it. That wasn’t a problem, until now…. Read more »
How would you like to be Stacey James these days? For the uninitiated, James is the Vice President of Media Relations for the New England Patriots, a position he’s held for twenty years. He’s been here through the really bad times, through three Super Bowls wins and two heartbreaking losses, through the very public and very messy Bill Parcells-Robert Kraft divorce, through Spygate and more. He’d… Read more »
Anyone who has turned on a television, radio, or computer in the last few weeks is painfully aware of the tragedy that occurred at this year’s Boston Marathon. Those of us who spend significant amounts of our days trolling the web, checking social media, and are rarely found without a screen in our face, have been inundated with news stories since the minute the attack happened…on… Read more »
Here at the Matter Chatter blog, we talk about all things public relations, marketing, and communications, so I’m going to talk about baby ducks and apple pie. I grew up on a farm in Vermont. As any farmer will tell you, it’s a place of great wonder and great tragedy — and of course, the realities of what you do as a farmer. (Let’s just say… Read more »
I was in the checkout line at the grocery store last night and, as I was throwing my purchases onto the conveyor belt, I noticed that almost every tabloid and entertainment magazine had a cover story about Jesse James’ marital affair and the word “monster” somehow worked into the headline. My first thought was, “How sad.” My second thought was, “What’s his PR team doing about… Read more »
So…did anyone watch Tiger Woods’ press conference today? Reactions are all over the place – The Philadelphia Inquirer called it a “self-serving sham.” Sports Illustrated‘s Michael Rosenberg had the opposite opinion, saying Tiger showed some emotional vulnerability and finally “introduced himself” to the world for the first time in 14 years. Gloria Allred (predictably) used the opportunity for her own benefit and labeled it “a disgrace”… Read more »
The Toyota recall has caused even the most unflappable owners to question their love affair with the brand. From the Woz’s Prius to Mary Chin’s 2006 Avalon, every Toyota model, even those not initially included in the recall, are in the hot seat because of the ambiguity of the situation and growing amounts of questions. Every “check engine” light or electrical glitch now will be scrutinized,… Read more »
