New Aussie film Surviving Georgia is, sadly, a true blue howler, says Luke Buckmaster. So why does The Guardian give it four stars? Actually, it was a reader on the Guardian’s website, not the publication itself…
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Tracking the PR embarrassment
Here’s a note of PR advice from Tim Burrowes: don’t send out your company press releases with the “track changes” function still enabled on the Microsoft Word document. Otherwise the whole internet gets to witness your embarrassing marketing lingo.
Come in Spinner: On the road to Canberra
Ah, lobbyists. Ringing mates to get something fixed still has some relevance in NSW but elsewhere in Australia it is nearing its use-by-date, writes Noel Turnbull.
Come in Spinner: Sixth time lucky for aged-care communications
The Productivity Commission is starting what will be the sixth major inquiry into aged-care funding — a policy area that has become a no-go area because of poor initial communications, writes Noel Turnbull.
Come in Spinner: Rudd, Abbott searching for PR’s holy grail
While there are many big policy things going wrong for Kevin Rudd and Tony Abbott, one of their current elementary mistakes is not “framing” them properly, writes Noel Turnbull.
Come in Spinner: PR goes social media
Despite technological innovations, PR hasn’t actually changed much over the past few hundred years, writes Noel Turnbull: it’s all still about changing the way people think and behave.
Spinning the Media: Pre-packaged journalism: just download!
PR companies are now delivering sound bites, interviews and footage straight to the journalist’s desk — and TV and radio news often run them unfiltered and unedited, writes Biwa Kwan.
Who else has researched ‘Spinning the Media’?
Maria Strumendo and Wendy Bacon look at previous Australian and international academic work into PR influence in the media.
Spinning the Media: Spin doctors have plenty to say in health reporting
When it comes to health reporting, the relationship between journalists and public relations people could be in need of a check-up, writes Flint Duxfield.
Come in Spinner: Exclusive! Shock! Horror! Probe reveals PR influence
When will journalists realise that PR influence is insignificant compared to other factors impacting on the media? asks Noel Turnbull.
Spinning the Media: Key findings in a week in the life of the media
2203 separate stories were analysed across 10 Australian newspapers between September 7 and 11, 2009, to see whether they were initiated by public relations or promotions. Here’s what came out in the wash.
Selling Goldman Sachs: the hardest job on Wall St?
Meet Lucas Van Praag, the PR guru tasked with reshaping Goldman Sachs’ image from “evil empire” to “friendly neighbourhood multinational banking conglomerate”. He’s paid over $1m a year for the job, but… he can keep it.
All those journalism graduates … all these jobs
It might seem that a journalism degree is a sure-fire path to a life of blogging about your experiences at Centrelink, says Chris Scanlon, yet enrolments in the country’s journalism courses have been rising steadily.
When one man’s disaster is another’s PR coup
American PR firm Imperial PR has been honoured with an industry award for its “achievement” in protecting the image of a major US sugar producer after one of its refineries exploded, killing 14 people and injuring over 40.
Talking the Town: Talking the Town: Harry M, superstar
Not everyone in this town is wild about Harry M Miller, but he can really pull a crowd, with Lindy Chamberlain, Stuart Diver, Michael Kirby, Marcia Hines, Stuart Wagstaff and many more turning up to a Kings Cross nightclub for the launch of his autobiography last night.
Everything you need to know about big-P politics in four simple charts
Barely 10 years ago, the dynamics of the government/public relationship was such that the Prime Minister neither lifted nor depressed the party vote very much, says Possum Comitatus. But with the rise of PR-driven politics, just check out the charts now…
Whales are overrated
Whales, schmales, says Tom Arup: the time and energy spent on the issue of whaling is completely disproportionate to its importance. There are plenty of other fish in the sea.
Berlusconi’s Ministry of Truth
Silvio Berlusconi’s ongoing war against newspapers saying nasty things about him continues, with the Italian PM assembling a crack team of journos and PR hacks to monitor the world’s media for mean comments and “bombard those newsrooms with truthful and positive news.”
Why Kraft gives Vegemite a bad name
Australians can’t stop talking about how bad the name “Vegemite iSnack 2.0” is. And that’s exactly what Kraft wants, says Willem Reyners Tay.
PODCAST: The rise and rise of Levi Johnston
NPR looks at how a monosyllabic 19-year-old from nowhere Alaska has become one of the most in-demand interview subjects in the US media, and the people working behind-the-scenes to shape and promote his public image.
ROI journalism: pragmatism vs. the public interest
Despite ideals of hard-nosed investigating and serving the public interest, for many journalists, it’s only pragmatic to chase stories they’re sure will end up in print, says Tim Burrowes. But are journalists being lazy, or just efficient?
Journalists cross over to the dark side: PR
As jobs are destroyed in the carnage of the media downturn, countries in need of an image makeover, like Russia and Georgia, are salvaging the spoils, scoring some of the sharpest media minds around to spin their dirty laundry for the Western media.
BUSTED: Microsoft’s secret war on Google
Microsoft has been employing PR firms to work full-time on “Google-bashing” and hosts secret strategy sessions known as “screw Google” meetings, as part of a broader campaign to discredit the search giant, inside sources tell Daily Finance.
