Media Relations

We’re guessing the sudden and untimely death of Deadspin (no pun intended) as a purveyor of no-holds-barred sports and social commentary will provide a case study for business students in what not to do with a successful endeavor. This post, from PR pro Dave Dykes and PRNEWS staffer Nicole Schuman, argues that the incident also offers a bevy of PR lessons.

Most companies remain silent when a competitor makes news. An unorthodox approach is to seize the moment to get your company’s views and executives into the conversation. Just as important is to make sure your customers are aware that you have their best interests in mind at a time of unsettling industry news.

On November 4th, Apple announced a massive initiative intended to combat the housing crisis in California. The $2.5 billion plan not only marks a larger investment than Google’s previously announced $1 billion effort to combat the California housing crisis, but goes into much greater detail than Google’s initiative around how, exactly, those funds will be allocated. Apple’s ownership of its role in contributing to—and remedying—this crisis offers lessons for brands hoping to take on a social good program with substance.

It’s not a secret that inboxes are forever overflowing, and journalists’ inboxes are no exception. Breaking through with your pitch to a journalist is a first step to getting coverage. As a prelude to our Dec. 12-13 Media Relations Conference in Washington, DC, we spoke with Laura Brusca, VP, corporate communications, Forbes, about pitching tips she’s learned by working with Forbes journalists.

It’s been an tumultuous week in Menlo Park, California. Facebook once again dominated the news cycle with a widely-maligned public speech from Mark Zuckerberg. Next was a series of new policies intended to curb hostile foreign governments from once again weaponizing the social network to influence our 2020 elections. For communicators, this saga has proved to be many things—a lens into the distrust that engulfs marketing communications, a lesson on the power of self-regulation, and a reminder of what transparency does (and doesn’t) look like in action.

Lauren Lawson-Zilai, Sr. director of PR at Goodwill and Lina Renzina, head of talent partnerships at Ad Council, will discuss why an influencer agreement is key to harnessing your influencers’ reach toward a robust media relations strategy at PRNEWS’ Media Relations Conference, December 12-13 in Washington, D.C. Ahead of their session, let’s look at several things that a thorough influencer agreement must include.

There’s much value in studying PR in college. On the other hand, there are a lot of practical ins and outs about PR that students can miss. This is especially so when it comes to media relations, particularly when your instructors aren’t working media. Veteran PR pro and former journalist Arthur Solomon offers nine insights about PR that you might have missed in college.

The digital era is wonderful in many ways, though social media can sink a brand that runs a tone-deaf ad campaign quicker than you can say, ‘Why didn’t we have a PR pro at the table in the first place?’ Here are seven tips for PR pros to consider that will help brands avoid cultural missteps when they roll out ad campaigns.

Neumann stepped down from his role as CEO on September 24th, and less than a week later, on Monday, September 30th, WeWork’s IPO was halted indefinitely. For PR pros working in a startup environment, WeWork’s very public fall from grace holds many lessons to take back to the open office. Let’s look at a few things that communicators at any startup can take away from WeWork’s problems.

When you look at Huffington Post senior reporter Emily Peck’s career, she’s been deliberately revving up her pace. Peck has gone from the monastic rhythm of a monthly magazine, to a daily newspaper, to an exclusively digital news source. These days, she doesn’t have time for pitches. Or press conferences. You have one chance to catch her with an informative email subject line. Here are some more insights.