There’s an adage in aviation that safety begins at the top. If so, how does the chief executive of Boeing still have a job? For months Dennis Muilenberg insisted that the 737 Max 8 aircraft was not to blame for a pair of crashes that killed hundreds of people? There are many questions here. Did the company put profits above safety? Did Muilenberg refuse to accept the possibility that Boeing was at fault? Where was Boeing’s board during the past few months? Or was it a cover-up?
Latest Posts
What Facebook’s Federally-Imposed Privacy Committee Means For PR
July 25th, 2019 by Nicole SchumanThe New York Times reported Facebook receiving a record $5 billion fine from the Federal Trade Commission in regards to “deceiving users about their ability to control the privacy of their personal data.” Facebook also received a $100 million penalty from the Securities and Exchange Commission for neglecting to inform investors about the risks of utilizing private data. To top it all off? The FTC ordered Facebook to hold themselves accountable and increase transparency surrounding data practices by creating a privacy committee.
Don’t Ignore Cyber Risk in Your Comprehensive Crisis Planning
July 25th, 2019 by Eileen Simonson HieblerThe massive growth in businesses shifting functions, products and processes online means cyber risk is growing too. Hopefully you and your clients already have top-notch crisis plans in place—but do you have a specific plan to address a cyber attack? If not, the time to tackle that is now. Don’t wait to strategize until you face a hacking or breach scenario that could potentially destroy you or your client’s brand.
3 Things PR Pros Need to Know About Brand Safety
July 24th, 2019 by Nicole SchumanBecause reputation lies at the heart of public relations, organizations have come to determine their own definitions of brand safety as digital marketing evolves. Brand safety is no longer solely about ad placements, but has grown to include associations with malevolent sentiment, influencers’ stodgy backgrounds and unfortunate algorithmic decisions.
Lessons Earned: When Believing the Client’s Promise Goes Wrong
July 24th, 2019 by Steve CodyThere is a proverb that says, “Failure is the mother of success.” And we, as business professionals, know this to be true. So why do we only discuss our triumphs? In this PRNEWS series, in partnership with the Institute for Public Relations, some of the most successful leaders in the industry will share the lessons they have learned from failure.
Is Amazon’s Accelerator Hurting Homegrown PR?
July 24th, 2019 by Meredith KlenkelAmazon’s Accelerator program, launched in spring 2018, provides select manufacturers with prioritized exposure in exchange for commitment to marketing on the platform. Amazon offers placement at the top of search results in addition to feedback and shipping logistics assistance, on the condition that businesses meet sales quotas and dedicate branding to the conglomerate platform. The deal may sound like a no-brainer for struggling enterprises and start-ups in need of publicity, but coming under the protection of the tech giant’s umbrella could mean signing away native audiences and the potential for independent PR.
6 Steps to Improve the Brand-PR Agency Relationship
July 23rd, 2019 by Seth ArensteinStrong relationships are founded, in part, on good communication. If that’s so, then why aren’t more relationships between brands and their PR agencies described in glowing terms? After all, professional communicators should be adept at communicating with each other, right? In the case of brand-PR agency relationships, there’s a bit more to it than communications. Here are five tips that will enhance this sometimes volatile partnership.
Pinterest’s ‘Compassionate Search’ Reminds Us What Customer Care Really Means
July 23rd, 2019 by Justin JoffeDigital platforms are constantly rolling out new products and services to improve the user experience, but seldom do those new features consider the user’s experience off the platform. That’s where Pinterest, a social platform that organizes images on a digital corkboard, has broken new ground. Yesterday, its product team announced “an entirely new experience centered around emotional wellbeing,” reports Wired. “When you type in an anxiety-related query—something like ‘work anxiety,’ or ‘dealing with stress’—Pinterest will now display a box above the stream of pins.”
Why YouTube Can Be More Profitable For Farmers Than Agriculture
July 22nd, 2019 by Justin JoffeYesterday, Bloomberg cited a 2018 Pew Research Center study that found YouTube to be the most popular online platform among those in rural America—at 59 percent—drawing more eyes than Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and more. This trend comes bundled with some strong takeaways for communicators about why how-to, service-oriented content always does well and why YouTube is a more powerful platform for engagement than many PR Pros realize.
First Person: Andrew Bowins, SVP of Comms at the Entertainment Software Association
July 22nd, 2019 by Melissa HoffmannIn this regular feature, PR News asks movers and shakers in the industry to share a little bit of their personal history and personality through answering a series of 12 questions.