More Transparency? (and Other PR Blog Jots)
Is PR Becoming Too Transparent?
Common Sense PR
In further reaction to Bryan Person's criticism of Topaz Partners for ghost-writing a client’s blog without disclosing it, Eric Eggerston questions if any behind-the-scenes maneuvering in the world of public relations is still acceptable. While the blogosphere certainly demands a higher level of transparency than the mainstream media, Eric argues that Topaz’ work on this particular blog was more “newsy” in nature, and he doesn’t believe they were necessarily required to disclose their authorship. He further wonders how social media will continue to impact transparency in public relations, and if it will spread to other areas of the practice. “Could there be more transparency generally? I’d say yes, but with serious reservations. I don’t want a long credits list attached to every document, web page or e-mail. This isn’t the film business, where even the interns who deliver script changes to the actors get a credit.”
ABC News Site Promoting Citizen Journalism
Micropersuasion
Following in the footsteps of USA Today (which turned its online content into a social networking site), ABC News has embraced social media with its recent website redesign, according to Steve Rubel. The site has been updated to include more video, and will now be accepting submissions from citizen journalists. Rubel praises the move as a step towards integration of social media into mainstream news sources. “ABC isn't going as far as the BBC, which allows remixing, or USA Today, which turned its site into a social network. However, it's certainly a step in the right direction. The comments that are streaming in (118 as of this writing) are mixed and mostly focus on the design, not the ability to contribute.”
Media Guerilla
Mike Manuel responds to a post from Tom Foremski regarding the importance of using a public relations agency that “gets” social media and digital communications. Mike and Tom agree that knowledge of Web 2.0 tools and advances in new media is essential to running a PR campaign in this new era, but Mike also underscores the importance of more traditional skills and knowledge. Over emphasis of only using new tricks of the trade can be just as dangerous as ignoring those tricks. “In very much the same way you don't want to play golf with *that guy* who walks the course using every conceivable golfing gadget, you should probably exercise the same degree of care and caution when evaluating a firm that shows similar tendencies with new media. Knowing how to use all the new tools, gizmos and gadgets is helpful, but ultimately, at some point, you just have to know how to play the game...”
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