The Daily Beast today reports on the remarkable box office success of the Sandra Bullock-starrer “The Blind Side.” The film to date has grossed more that $200 million on a paltry budget (by Hollywood’s standards) of $29 million. It usurped “Twilight: New Moon” in its third week atop the weekly rankings. Could it be that […]
Christian Constituents and The Blind Side Read More »
The FTC’s focus on editorially compromised bloggers by opportunistic, if not nefarious marketers, (i.e., freebie-givers) is finally getting the mainstream media treatment. The Times yesterday tackled the thorny issue of the commercial courting of influential bloggers [The Flack, April 15]: “Marketing companies are keen to get their products into the hands of so-called influencers who
Mommies Call for PR Blackout Read More »
The explosion in the number of syndicated content producers (i.e., bloggers) has created havoc in the regulatory environment, and specifically at the FTC, which oversees truth in advertising. So much so that the Commission is now weighing new regulations that would restrict what bloggers say about the products and services they receive as (quid pro
As a politically progressive person, I often spend my free time perusing the gamut of like-minded blogs, thought-leading news sites and one especially dominant microblog. In so doing, I’ve gained a better understanding of how news and views gain currency in today’s changed media ecosystem. (In PR, this is probably a very good thing to
Global Brand + Famous Athlete + Luxury Car + Photo Shop = 2.5 Million Views The June 1980 issue of Esquire magazine had a famous cover showing a chimpanzee and a typewriter (remember those?) with the caption: “Is Anyone in America Not Writing a Screenplay?” Today, that headline could read: “Is Anyone in America Not
Kobe Bryant: Jackass Read More »
“Ogilvy PR and its 360 Degree Digital Influence group led by Bell, is a leader in the social media and comprehensive digital marketing arena and helps clients navigate an increasingly complex and rapidly changing digital environment.” Hmmm. Sounds like a typical press release. Hey, it is! When I think of the PR firms that are
We all know about monitoring and mining the online “conversation.” All the big agencies, many of the digital-minded boutiques and quite a few PR vendors offer products that purport to keep real-time tabs on how a company’s product, service or reputation fares in the true court of public opinion. The real skill, however, lies less
I told my sister to take me off her friends e-mail distribution list. The reason: I have too many e-mails to wade through as it is, and frankly, what she typically sends has more to do with self-discovery, the key to longevity, good parenting and the usual breathless, but fictitious conspiracies, e.g. “urban legends,” that
