Seven Steps to Making News in the Digital Era
I delivered the keynote address at the annual meeting of the Hampton Roads Economic Development Authority in Norfolk, Virginia. The subject was Making News in the Digital Era.
Next-generation online newsrooms bring stories alive
Ever since the dawn of what’s called Web 2.0 around 2004, a wide spectrum of exciting online tools have fueled an explosion in blogs, online sharing, web-based communities, social networks, streaming video and greater user control over online content.
Starving People Need Food, not Money
I am saddened and moved that we are witnessing an entire nation collapsing, one of the most fragile places in the world, and our federal government STILL has not figured out how to respond. People are starving in Haiti. Amid the starvation, they are burying their dead.
It’s Not About You … No One Cares
Here’s a news flash! When you talk about your company, about your organization or about yourself … NO ONE CARES!
In the Digital Era, Make Your Own News
Today’s digitally-driven information revolution is creating a new-world business matrix and model. Organizations large and small are finding they can simply bypass mainstream media to communicate their news, in their way, directly and effectively, to their publics.
Connecting the Dots
We’re hearing a lot of people use the phrase, “Connecting the dots,” these days. President Obama used it to explain the failure of U.S. intelligence to detect the radical Islamic man with ties to Al Qaeda who attempted to bomb a Northwest Airlines plane on Christmas Day.
Neda – Person of the Year
Neda Soltan has been named “Person of the Year” by the Times of London. For many of us, the haunting images of her death in Tehran on June 12, caught on video, may always be with us.
Maybe Coffee Houses Don’t Travel Well
I’d like to ramble a bit about the concept of coffee houses and the need for more independent coffee places. I love coffee houses … or, at least, the atmosphere of coffee houses in Europe. Misha’s – a coffee house in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia – tries to get close to that type of environment.
Shorewood versus Shorecrest
Two competing high schools in the Seattle area – Shorewood and Shorecrest – have been dueling in the area of creative videos. Both schools have outstanding video production classes. Their respective videos are now on YouTube … and below … for you to judge who is the most talented.
For DC, a Massive Snow Storm
By snowfall standards for Washington, DC, it’s been a fairly intense winter storm that began late last night in this area. I would estimate 12-inches-plus of snow on the ground now where I live with more snow falling.
Ultimately … It’s All About Relationships
The popular misconception in the PR world today is that all you need to do to get the media’s attention is to write a press release and click on a computer screen to blast it out the world, using some service like Vocus or Cision. It’s quick, easy and lazy. Here’s a news flash! It doesn’t work.
Fake News Release Makes News
This is an example of how easily and quickly agenda-driven fake news can spin out of control and mislead people around the globe in today’s digital era – a phony press release at the climate talks in Copenhagen announcing that Canada plans bold and ambitious steps to control greenhouse gas emissions.
