The Juiced Up News Release

This week one of my clients issued a news release on one of the big paid wire services. The Google News Alert showed immediate and impressive results: Dow Jones Marketwatch, Yahoo Finance, and dozens of others including, for whatever reason, Earth Times. Yet, when searching for the story on the Marketwatch site, nothing popped. Huh?…… Continue reading The Juiced Up News Release

A More Social SEC?

Why shouldn’t a publicly traded company be allowed to use its blog to break material news? That was the question Sun Microsystems CEO (and blogger) Jonathan Schwartz posed to the SEC nearly two years ago, a subject on which this blogger posted at the time.Last Wednesday, the SEC finally issued its initial ruling that offered:…… Continue reading A More Social SEC?

SMR: Social Media Redux

Dave Fleet posted an item last week that took PR Web to task for allegedly “taking the social out” of the social media news release (SMR).Apparently, PR Web has changed the submission parameters, something Dave learned after his SMR was kicked back with the following explanation:”Please review the following editorial explanation describing why your press…… Continue reading SMR: Social Media Redux

SMNR Chipped Away

In the “Mixed Signals” blog on ZDNet, writer Rupert Goodwins today turns his critical eye to an IBM-issued press release heralding the latest nanotechnological development on the chip-making front.In his post, titled “IBM’s supercomputer chip breakthrough more PR than IT,” Mr. Goodwins dissects the news with reportorial flair. His conclusion: “It ain’t so. It ain’t…… Continue reading SMNR Chipped Away

A Million Trees

I was pleased to see American Express’s “Members Project” anoint as one of its 50 finalists the virtual-to-actual tree reforestation program developed by my friend, colleague and sometimes client Rob Key of Converseon. (You’ve all seen the Scorsese spot.)For those of you who didn’t catch my post on “Second Chance Trees” around Earth Day, the…… Continue reading A Million Trees

The SMR…Revisited

As much as I like and admire Todd Defren and Steve Rubel, I’ve been a little skeptical about the prospects for wide adoption of the so-called social media news release.It’s not that I believe the traditional press release delivers on the promise. It doesn’t (except perhaps for those who take glee in seeing their releases…… Continue reading The SMR…Revisited

Socially Optimized or Optimally Socialized?

Ahhhh. The news release. That poor, beleaguered PR tool that has died a thousand deaths, only to be reborn — optimally and socially speaking.This morning I was greeted with a text message from media maven Lisa Kovitz who tipped me to our friend and mediabistro.com doyenne Laurel Touby’s answer to the myriad unsolicited (and misguided)…… Continue reading Socially Optimized or Optimally Socialized?