Author Bill Zehme once asked Frank Sinatra, “What should a man never do in the presence of a woman?” Sinatra’s reply: “Yawn.” It doesn’t matter if you’re a man or a woman, actually. Having someone yawn in your …
Archive:
Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes and 2 Broken Rules of PR
July 2nd, 2012 by Diane SchwartzInteresting, wasn’t it, that news of the TomKat divorce hit on a Friday? Maybe not: There are two often used sayings that fit nicely into this celebrity “shocker” news: Any publicity is good publicity. And: Release bad news on a Friday afternoon….
The Culture of Internal Memos and Bad-Smelling Pleas for Help
June 28th, 2012 by Diane SchwartzA lesson we learn early in our careers is that what you write to your colleagues or verbally declare to them is rarely confidential. Just because you stamp a “Confidential” note on the top of the memo does not make it confidential no matter how m…
Looking for the Next Trends in Communications? Watch the Obama & Romney Show
June 27th, 2012 by Steve GoldsteinWant to know where to spot the next trends in communications? Look no further than the current presidential campaigns. Four years ago social media came of age when it helped pave the way to the White House for Barack Obama. Its power to form communitie…
Is the Print Media Upheaval a ‘Transition’ or the End?
June 25th, 2012 by Scott Van CampThe other day I caught an excellent blog post by Earl Wilkinson, executive director and CEO of INMA (International Newsmedia Marketing Association), which offered an informative take on the rapid change that is occurring in the newspaper industry—jus…
Adidas’ Lesson-Know Your Brand and Avoid Cluelessness
June 20th, 2012 by Scott Van CampI often think that people are much too politically correct these days. But in the case of the sneaker snafu by Adidas, I’m drawing a line in the PC sand. News broke on June 19, 2012 that because of widespread social-media criticism after advertis…
Road to Redemption for the Rocket
June 18th, 2012 by Steve GoldsteinFormer Major League Baseball pitcher Roger Clemens was acquitted on June 18 of charges that he lied to Congress about using performance-enhancing drugs, and now the personal brand rehabilitation begins. The trial may be over for Clemens, but the associ…
Why is this Man Smiling? How Not to Let Scandal Get in the Way of Good Media Coverage
June 14th, 2012 by Diane SchwartzHis firm saddled with explaining the loss of at least $3 billion by his reckless investment unit on the other side of the pond, Jamie Dimon, head of JPMorgan Chase, seemed no worse for wear. Testifying before the Senate Banking Committee on Wedne…
Flirting App Skout Backtracks in Rape Crisis
June 13th, 2012 by Scott Van CampCommonly known as “the flirting app” amongst the digerati, the social networking platform Skout—which lets users message and chat with nearby strangers—is now flirting with disaster. After a Tuesday, June 12 story in The New York Times Bits blo…
A Magic Word That Can Defuse the Most Irate Customer
June 11th, 2012 by Steve GoldsteinAttention Apple MobileMe subscribers: Your service is getting shut down on June 30, so you’d better make the transition to iCloud right away. Oh, you never heard of MobileMe? Or, if you had, you never saw the value in paying for Apple’s ear…