Media Relations

We don’t emotionally trust facts; we trust people – or we don’t.  As we process facts emotionally, we trust leaders who move beyond facts to speak in a voice that echoes how we feel, right now. At a time when the public is worried, communicating with the heart can help. Facts alone will not drive people to action, writes Gil Bashe, managing partner, global health, Finn Partners.

Coronavirus has resulted in remaking the media and social media worlds into one-subject universes, at least for now. As a result, PR pros pitching stories to content creators need to adjust. And before you do anything, make sure your pre-scheduled messages won’t offend during this unsettling moment. After that, adjust expectations and pitch with the content creator’s needs in mind.

So far, no country is able to control coronavirus. Arguably, South Korea is managing it, despite taking a very heavy hit. A communicator representing the Embassy of South Korea argues the country’s daily and transparent government communications protocol is playing a large role in the nation’s successful coronavirus management.

Joe Biden’s campaign was all but dead just weeks ago. Today he’s the frontrunner for a chance to unseat the president. Working with few resources and little infrastructure in Super Tuesday states, Biden communicators honed their messages and turned to garden-variety earned media and social media. It worked.

PR pros continue to consider earned media a valuable tool, according to a snap survey of 150 communicators. On the other hand, a majority say gaining media coverage is harder than ever. Perhaps as a result, 90 percent of those surveyed told us they spend very little time pitching and developing relationships with media.

Here’s a brief guide to what communicators should be doing and thinking about as the virus begins to make its way across the country.

In a wide-ranging address during day 2 of PRNEWS’ Crisis and Measurement Summit in Miami, political strategist Ana Navarro had positive and negative things to say about social media. In the end, though, she believes PR pros have a difficult but important mission to promote truth in messaging. “Don’t give up on the facts,” she said.

The Super Bowl can be a benchmark in a communicator’s career. An experience at the big game can make or break a brand, as well as bring out the best (or worst) in any professional. The hours are long, but the payoffs can be great. So what can we learn from Super Bowl PR veterans on how to handle what seems to be a larger-than-life media event?

Technology has made the world much smaller. Still, in many ways, humans remain very insular. What’s in front of us often receives most of our attention. As a result, where a news story occurs can… Continued

Away continues to experience a public failure that undermines its stated values as a community-focused global travel brand. It’s painfully clear that the luggage company’s senior leadership, especially its co-chief executive Steph Korey, needs a lesson in reputation management.