Archive for May, 2008
Where Have All the iPhones Gone? Be Patient
Consumers and techies, alike, have been atwitter over the lack of availability of Apple iPhones worldwide. Everyone knows that a new, 3G-capable iPhone will be debuted soon. But, suddenly and without warning, iPhones vanished from Apple stores and Apple.com in early May. There’s been all kinds of speculation on Web sites and blogs that follow [...]
Handbook for Bloggers and Cyber-Dissidents
In today’s world of intense message chaos, blogs have provided an effective online channel for expression of voice and words. But, what are the rules, best practices and ethical boundaries in the vast blogosphere? Paris-based Reporters Without Borders has made available online and for free download its “Handbook for bloggers and cyber-dissidents.” It is the [...]
Damaging the Image of PR
Jack O’Dwyer, the respected and long-time voice of reason in the public relations industry, recently wrote about the use of students in communications classes at five universities to post phony profiles and bogus statements on Facebook and MySpace on the evils of counterfeit handbags, clothing, sporting goods and other consumer products. The PR campaign was [...]
Self-Inflicted Damage, New Opportunities
Over years of consulting on strategic marketing communications issues, I have observed that one of the core reasons that organizations, business and governments suffer financial and other hardships and sometimes fail is because of self-inflicted damage. Losing market share or shareholder value or any other benchmark of success, especially revenue, is rarely as a result [...]
Advantage of a Dedicated Domain Name
As the digital revolution has evolved online, blogs are taking more of a role to express freedom of thought and voice. For example, human rights organizations occasionally support independent bloggers who target messages to people living under governments that restrict free flow of information and news. There’s one big problem, however. The ordinary people in [...]
Clueless and Scared
“Today’s news media is clueless and scared.” A friend who was a 30 year veteran of the newspaper business recently made that candid statement about today’s condition of the news media. And, you know what? Even though his statement uses a pretty broad brush, I think he’s mostly correct. Let me provide an example: Have [...]
$11 Billion = “Disappointing”
As I was pumping regular gasoline into my Volvo today that cost $3.65 a gallon – the highest amount I have ever paid – I thought about a news story I had just heard: While Exxon Mobil earned $11 billion during the first quarter of 2008, buoyed by soaring crude oil prices, some oil industry [...]
