Stories by Seth Arenstein

It’s hard to argue that the online life is a fad when you see how many Americans are online daily (77%), according to a new survey from Pew Research Center. Want more? 40% of Americans 18-29 say they are online “almost constantly.”

Not long ago, companies were counseled to stay out of politics and social causes. ‘Stick to business and you won’t offend customers or potential customers,’ was thought to be the best route. Things have changed. Radically. In a collaboration with 3BL Media, a CSR news distribution and content marketing firm, PR News convened a roundtable to discuss CSR best practices.

While most marketers put a premium on attracting younger people, the 50+ demographic is coveted for its disposable income and stability. While it is known that this demographic is less comfortable with technology than millennials, the group has taken to social media at a strong rate, a new survey from AARP shows. The devices it doesn’t yet use can be large targets for marketers.

We take another dive into the new PR News Salary Survey to look at where nonprofit communicators and PR firm staffers rank in terms of base salary. We begin by looking at integration of communications and marketing. It turns out that integration of the two units is a bit farther down the road than you might think.

Our weekly roundup of news, trends and personnel announcements in communications and marketing. This week’s stories include U.S. Olympic Committee CEO Scott Blackmun’s dark departure, gymnast Ally Raisman’s lawsuit against her sport’s governing bodies and more trouble for Wells Fargo and Equifax.

It is obvious that who buys what is of critical importance to marketers and communicators. Statista’s newest consumer survey looked at that question from a gender perspective and found plenty of traditional assumptions remain valid. It also found a surprise or two, meaning the quest for knowledge of your audience remains an important challenge.

Is the glass half full for communicators? The just-released PR News Salary Survey of some 900 communicators shows PR pros seem to be a satisfied group in terms of the money they make for the work they do. Base salaries best the average for American professionals and raises are rewarded often, although most are modest. On the other hand, more than a few communicators told us they weren’t completely satisfied with their salary. Finding the right balance of salary, bonuses, soft benefits and intangibles to recruit and retain the most talented staffers is an issue that adept communications leaders will continue to address.

With International Woman’s Day approaching this week and Women’s History Month already here it was heartening to see several PR firms being recognized for progressive policies toward women. Both FleishmanHillard and Edelman were named to the National Association of Female Executives’ (NAFE) list of top companies for women. Still, it’s clear much more progress is warranted.

We continue to look at the most-engaged brands in 2017, per exclusive data provided exclusively by Shareablee to PR News . In the Airline sector, we again see a pattern similar to what’s been observed in other industries: some of the best social brands are posting fewer pieces of content year over year although social engagement with their posts is growing. Video also plays a large role.

Created last week, Burson Cohn & Wolfe (BCW) named its regional leaders as we went to press. For N America, Chris Foster becomes president, N America, BCW. Previously he was EVP, global business.