Archive for April, 2008
BlogStrategies.net
I urge you to check out BlogStrategies.net.
So many acquaintances have asked me to assist with developing and launching blogs that I have taken my show online at BlogStrategies.net: step-by-step instructions to create a self-hosted or independent blog that can be customized for a business, online newsroom, organization, or individual. The outside services [...]
Bowling 1, Health Care 0
My gosh … did Elizabeth Edwards get it precisely right about the trivial and clueless nature of today’s mainstream news media in her call-it-like-it-is OpEd in The New York Times.
“If voters want a vibrant, vigorous press, apparently we will have to demand it,” she writes, and then, she challenges all of us to [...]
Shoddy! Tawdry!
“Shoddy! Tawdry! …” is how Frank Rich began his column in yesterday’s New York Times about the absolutely disgraceful behavior of ABC anchorman Charles Gibson and his co-moderator, George Stephanopoulos, during the Obama-Clinton debate last week. It was every bit that and worse, as dozens of columnists and observers have written.
But I [...]
Image Crisis at the Pentagon … again
At a time when America’s infrastructure is suffering from federal budget cutbacks — bridges crumbling, layoffs, subprime scandal, financial pressures on Americans, skyrocketing gas prices — Air Force Major Stephen Goldfein steered $50-million to two of his cronies who hoped to set up a private company to … get this … “jazz up the Air [...]
Ether
Washington, D.C., is conference city. Each day, there are countless conferences and forums held in the city. Seven days a week, year-around. People fly in, attend conferences and fly out. We don’t hear about most, even though many conference organizers hope the spotlight of media attention will shine brightly on their [...]
Death of American’s Brand
I think we may be witnessing the death of American Airlines’ brand reputation, caused largely by self-inflicted poor corporate communications. Yes, the airline was faced with a real problem of fixing the aging wiring in their aging fleet of MD-80 jetliners, some that date back to the ’70s. Yes, the airline could have [...]
Everyone’s Got Something to Sell
I switched on the TV this morning only to see Phil Donahue on a cable news/talk show slamming America’s stance in Iraq. I thought, how odd to hear Donahue, who is no expert on the subject, making such statements. Then, I learned that he is promoting his involvement in a movie that criticizes [...]
Starbucks Flunks “Who Cares?!” Hype Test
It’s a hard lesson for companies and organizations to learn in today’s new world of intelligent communications but … here it is: No one cares ‘about’ you.
When an organization, for example, issues a news release and concludes with a puffy ‘about’ section, no one … and certainly no one in the news [...]
CNN May Prop-Up CBS News
CBS News, once known as the “Tiffany” news operation because of leadership and excellence in the industry, has been self-destructing over the last 20 years through a continuous series of colossal and highly public missteps. CBS News has fallen to sixth place in a three way television network news race for audience ratings simply [...]
04.08.08: What’s Starbucks Up To?
I enjoy the coffee house culture that Starbucks has helped to rekindle around the world, and I respect the company’s integrity and use of meaningful publicity.
So, what is “04.08.08” all about? If you know, please let me know.
20th-Century Analog Arrogance in a Digital Age
I make it a rule not to write about politics, and this posting is no exception. It is, however, about a line from Frank Rich’s column in the New York Times on Sunday, March 30, that’s stuck in my mind — about the tactical thinking style of the advisors who surround Mrs. Clinton. [...]
