Archive for November, 2007
Bogus News Video … Again
MediaLink, a company that produces and distributes video news releases on behalf of clients hoping to get on TV, apparently is slow to learn from its mistakes. A couple of years ago, MediaLink was involved with Ketchum PR in producing several fake video news releases that were nothing more than promotion of an education-related political agenda by [...]
The Costly Slogan
So many organizations still believe they need a slogan — a hopefully clever or impressive catch phrase — and they are often willing to pay a significant fee even though slogans are becoming … well, becoming out of fashion and effectiveness. Today’s trend is toward more genuine and transparent-sounding positioning messages. Positioning messages are statements [...]
Google Maps: Around the Mulberry Bush
Google maps, like Google itself, has grown into a dominant force on the Internet … but have you tried using it to get from point A to point B? Here’s what I’ve found — if there are two ways to get someplace — simple, easy and quick versus complicated and overly out-of-the-way — Google maps [...]
Creating a WOM Airline
Here is a terrific story on how one pilot at United Airlines is creating outstanding word-of-mouth support among passengers. Now, if only the leaders of United would get on the program. Thanks to word-of-mouth experts Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba for the story.
Pre-WWII America in Color
If you enjoy old photos of life in America years ago — particularly Washington, D.C. — as I do, then I recommend “Bound for Glory: America in Color, 1939-1943.” The site is a Library of Congress exhibition.
Lack of Straight Answers: The Source
Last night, there was yet another so-called debate of presidential contenders. This one by the Democrats. These staged television events are so common these days and contrived that I wonder whether they might replace all those mindless reality TV shows. When I have watched these “debates,” what I see is a consistent lack of straight [...]
Report on Airport Security
As an extension to my blog posting yesterday about airport security … or the holes in the system … is a report today in The New York Times that the Government Accounting Office tested TSA’s screening process at a variety of airports in the U.S. Investigators smuggled liquid explosives and detonators through airport checkpoints, exposing [...]
Airport Security, More or Less
A story written by my old friend Greg Dobbs in today’s Rocky Mountain News out in Denver prompts me to write some personal observations on airport security. I think airport security has gotten lax, and all this business about a permanent “orange” level of terror threat has become somewhat of a joke. The TSA screeners [...]
Networking
Just today, I received yet another Plaxo invitation to exchange online business cards from someone I don’t know. I receive them all the time. Same thing with LinkedIn. I don’t get it — if someone has my email address, what else do they need? I’ve spent some time checking out Plaxo and LinkedIn but find [...]
Blackwater Fights Back
I had missed this story from the The New York Times on November 1 about Blackwater, America’s mercenary army in Iraq, hiring influential people in D.C. to help improve the company’s image. Of special note is the fact that Blackwater has used the PR firm of Burson-Marsteller, headed by Mark Penn, who advises Hillary Clinton. [...]
ooVoo: Free Video Conferencing
A new company called ooVoo is offering a free way to video conference with your friends with your computer’s video camera. Mac users have had a capability like this for a while but ooVoo works with both Mac and Windows machines. I am going to be test driving it and will report back on what [...]
Digital Revolution Began in the ’80s
I love this blog posting by Mark Cuban. It reminded me that in 1980, I was learning to write code for the Apple II+ without having any idea what I was doing, exchanging messages over a dial-up connection at 300 baud and calling the Woz for help. By the way … when I got an [...]
Facebook: More Popular Than Porn
That’s the actual headline from TIME — “Facebook: More Popular Than Porn.” I think that’s a good thing even though a friend emailed to say that he’s going to start reading Newsweek. Certainly for social networking among family, friends, business associates and colleagues, there is nothing quite as popular or user-friendly as Facebook. I was [...]
Getting Very Close
If you have ever flown into Washington National Airport from the north approach — winding down the Potomac river — the tall buildings of Rosslyn seem uncomfortably close off the right hand side as the airliners bank right for final approach. Those skyscrapers are close. Now … as The Washington Post reports … the FAA [...]
CCC for Mac Leopard
As anyone who follows my ramblings on this blog will know, I am an enthusiastic fan of Apple computers. I tolerated Windows for years and years, and even built Windows-powered PCs for my family. There is nothing worse than trying to focus on writing a book or document only to have the plagues endemic to [...]
New Media Becomes News
What a pleasure to participate in a panel, along with Jim Brady, executive editor of The Washington Post-dot-com, before communications leaders at the annual conference of the Association of American Medical Colleges in Washington. The subject — the rising influence of New Media in the news business. I found it to be so interesting that [...]
