Archive for category Media
What the Kell?
Posted by Kristin in Media, Social Media on March 9, 2010
So, I’m sure many of you do not religiously watch Bravo like I do… but stay with me on this one. Bravo’s newest TV show “Kell on Earth” follows Kelly Cutrone and her minions at People’s Revolution in the fast-paced world of fashion public relations.
Cutrone is cut-throat and intimidating as hell, and infamous for the line, “If you have to cry, go outside.” (Note: I would never work at a place where employees bursting into tears happened enough times for that rule to be in place). Yikes.
A recent episode, however, let loose another strange rule at People’s Revolution: employees are not allowed to use social media.
**Update: I was informed by Katy Smith that, in fact, employees of People’s Revolution are using social media. However, given the recent episode where a new hire was terminated for tweeting about being hired, I am leaving up this post. I’m still interested to hear your thoughts about social media policies.
Conan vs. Leno vs. NBC – Everyone Loses
I have about had it with the entire late-night fiasco unfolding on NBC. While this will prove to be a learning opportunity for public relations professionals and teachers, my goal is to make some sense of this muddled situation.
Conan and Leno have made the most of the feud during their monologues and interviews, too frequently bordering on “too far,” especially in Conan’s case.
Unfortunately for NBC, one of the first official responses from NBC executive Dick Ebersol definitely did not go through his PR team:
The executive, Dick Ebersol, chairman of NBC Universal Sports, said the reason for Mr. Leno’s return to NBC’s late-night roster after a short stint in prime time this season was a simple one: disappointing ratings for Conan O’Brien’s “Tonight Show.”
Referring to the pointed jokes made this week by Mr. O’Brien and David Letterman of CBS, Mr. Ebersol said it was “chicken-hearted and gutless to blame a guy you couldn’t beat in the ratings.”
He added that “what this is really all about is an astounding failure by Conan.”
So, my question is: Where do these three parties go from here? Is there a solution that will pacify the Conan-loyalists, NBC executives and Leno’s influential team?
The public nature of Conan’s show cancellation and options for a continued relationship with NBC, combined with the nature of late-night monologues and NBC failing in the ratings across the late-night line up, have made for a volatile situation. And I’m sure ABC, CBS and FOX are loving every minute of it.
Breaking News: Eggo Shortage?
If you aren’t familiar with EggoGate09, you clearly haven’t been watching TV or using any form of social media. Search for “Eggos” in Google and you’ll get pages of news stories and blog posts mentioning the shortage (that is apparently the first sign of the end of days). Typing “Eggos” into Twitter Search pulls more pages of Tweets than I would ever attempt to count for this post.
However, prior to the worst thing to ever happen to frozen breakfast, when was the last time you heard Eggos mentioned on the news? Or saw someone tweet about the waffles (other than updates on what they were eating)?
I have to admit. This potential crisis for Kellogg’s is turning out to be the best word-of-mouth marketing for their brand of frozen waffles. Ever.
To be honest, it’s working on me. I heard about the Eggo shortage, how I can’t find them at Target and those nutters selling them on eBay for outrageous prices – and it made me want Eggos. It brought me back to the days when I would put one tiny drop of syrup in each little square (yep, Type-A even at age 7). Back to nights when I convinced my mom that I wanted breakfast for dinner.
As a professional who occasionally deals with client crises, I am impressed that what should have been stories about warehouses with equipment problems and flooding, has turned into consumers and news media lamenting the loss of the Eggo waffle. And, let’s be honest, when was the last time any of these individuals purchased Eggos? My bet, it’s been quite a long time, but they’ll definitely be buying them now – if they can find them.
Photo credit: jefito.com
Journalism AND Social Media
If anyone is keeping track, this is BY FAR the fastest blog post I have ever put together – so please keep that in mind as you read.
After returning to my desk from a delicious lunch, which included Davanni’s pizza, it was pointed out to me by @ellejam that I was quoted in a tech story on CNN in a tweet that included a link. To be honest, my first thought was spam – but curiosity got the best of me. So I checked and it was true! Sort of…
In case you didn’t see the story, here is a link and a screen capture:
As you can see by my stellar editing, my tweet was used in a CNN story – sans my name.
To provide the proper evidence, I give you – my tweet:
My feeling of complete surprise and excitement from being on CNN.com (I mean, how cool is that?) is slightly diminished with the absence of my name. I know it’s my tweet, my followers know it’s my tweet, so why couldn’t CNN properly quote me?
So my question is this: What are the journalistic standards for attribution when referencing a quote/update/post from a user on social media? I am sure I am not the first social media user to experience this, so what are the expectations? Should journalists be including user names into stories when they quote a source, even if that source was found on Twitter?
Thoughts?
What about my Friends
A few weeks ago, I traveled to New York City to visit a good friend from high school who had recently moved. I used the time in transit to catch up on my favorite magazines, including Cosmopolitan and Glamour. Flipping through the articles, quizzes and photos, I was reminded of a conversation I had months ago with a co-worker: why don’t the leading women’s magazines feature any content on friendships?
In the past six years, I have said tearful goodbyes to my best friends since middle school as we moved on to college, and then watched reluctantly as my sorority sisters slowly spread across the country following college graduation. Visits are becoming more and more infrequent, scheduling phone calls is increasingly difficult.
So, where are the articles on maintaining friendships over long-distances and many years? A scan of the women’s magazines in my apartment shows the content largely falls into the following categories:
- Men
- Sex
- Career
- Fitness
- Beauty
- Fashion
I don’t think I’m alone in wanting advice on how to maintain and continue to grow my friendships. Here’s my call for Cosmopolitan, Glamour and all other women’s interest magazines to recognize the importance of friendship with other women… that is, when they are finished with “Mind Tricks that Melt Pounds” and “The Silent Clue Men give off when they’re in Love.”
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About Me
Public relations and communications professional. Passionate about sports, photography, travel, friends and family. Minnesota native, looking for where life will take me next."In the right light, at the right time, everything is extraordinary." --aaron rose