Public Relations and 'Peanuts'

The New York Times ran a fascinating article on Peanuts in today's print edition. Charles M. Schulz's famous comic strip is an ageless favorite, partly because of what this story discusses: Authenticity.

An excerpt from the story:

"Accuracy and authenticity are hallmarks of the strips, whether they deal with music, sports or medical conditions, Ms. O’Cain, the museum’s curator, said. 'With figure skating, he [Schulz] would carefully study books to make sure the jumps or spins that he had characters portraying, that they were correct,' she said. He would add subtle twists or inside jokes for readers familiar with skating or surfing or shorthand."

Authenticity and credibility are the backbone of public relations. Public relations practitioners in Charlotte, NC and around the globe for that matter should consider for a moment the research and effort that one man put into a comic. Comics tell stories, albeit hand drawn and humorous ones. PR is storytelling as well.

With any good story, it must engage the audience (relevance), contain factual information (authenticity), and be told through a believable person (the PR pro).

Pubic relations should not be an email blast and random direct mailings, or poorly researched media lists and off-target pitches. PR requires attention to detail, an understanding of the messages, knowledge of the audience(s), and an authentic story and storyteller through which the messages are disseminated.

Otherwise, the story will consist of inaccuate characters, a seedy plot and - you guessed it - a sad ending. What kind of story are you telling?

Public Relations Blunders - 2008 Edition

As we ring in 2009, rest assure that the best, er, worst, public relations projects of 2008 continue to resonate loud and clear. Here are some of my favorites from the annual Fineman PR list:

1. After the $85 billion federal bailout package was approved, AIG partied like college students when they receive their financial aid checks. The AP reports that AIG executives spent more than half a million dollars on golf trips, spa packages, banquets and a New England hunting trip. Nice.

Now where do you suppose we get some of those stereotypes involving corporate execs?

4. John McCain cancels on David Letterman. Oops. As a public relations professional this one really tickles me. To think that John Weaver, the Maverick's chief strategist, didn't see a red flag in cancelling on Letterman at the last minute only to have McCain interview with Katie Couric, also of CBS, just down the street is comical. Supposedly McCain was catching a plane to deal with the financial crisis...

That's the political equivalent of cancelling a date with a woman then showing up with her sister at the Applebee's where you two had planned to meet. Nice cover.

5. "Nike Just Blew It." Good headline Fineman, really.

Nike sponsored a women's marathon in San Francisco only to disregard the winner's time, a personal record by school teacher Arien O'Connell. Nike only monitored times of those in the "elite" leader pack, or in layman's terms, those athletes who Nike thought stood a chance. Really, the headline is good.

11. "The boobs have it, the biggest PR blunder since New Coke." OK, it's only a top 10 list, but this one involving UPS, Hooters, and a thoroughbred horse came darn close. Check it out.

Complete 2008 list with explanations is on Bulldog Reporter here.

I link to Bulldog Reporter because I've always found them to be a great source of information relating to the public relations field - check out the list and spend some time on their site. No, I'm not working for them. It's honestly good information for PR pros, firms, freelancers, students, professors, and anyone interested in managing your messsages in today's world.

You might also want to see the biggest PR Blunders of 2007.

U.S. unemployment rate reaches 7.2 percent...

The AP reports today that unemployment rates continued their historic rise in December to 7.2 percent. More than half a million Americans were sent home for good in one month - again. The United States unemployment rate was last this high 16 years ago.

Where others see depression (oops, mentioned the "D" word), I see opportunity. The unemployed folks are building a small army. With nearly one in every 10 Americans out of work, we're 11+ million strong. The image above does not depict a crowd in search of food and government checks, but rather an army in search of answers and government action.

No, not the action taken by lawmakers to give U.S. automakers billions in bailouts. We're certainly glad to hear that Rick Wagoner and General Motors (GM) will receive $13.4 billion to assist their needs, but in the words of Luke Skywalker when asked to join the dark side, "What's in it for me?"

If a long term solution is the answer, why didn't the government implement one a long time ago? It is now an accepted fact that the current recession, entering its second year, is the longest in 25 years.

As a communication professional, I understand that traditional news media are bound to objectivity (for the most part). Thus the opportunity and power of social media, user controlled media, can be further realized. As of 11:20 a.m. (eastern), an "unemployment" search on Technorati yielded more than 42,000 results with roughly 900 new related posts each day this week.

The economy may be discouraging, but it is very encouraging to see the conversation continue online; to read how this recession and unemployment affects others, how real people are dealing with real tough times, and most of all, to feel like I'm not alone. I'm not suggesting that thousands of unemployed Americans will gain employment by discussing it online, but at least we stand a better chance of being heard.

Here are some recent unemployment posts/blogs:

• EconomPic Data (good breakdown of unemployment demos)
• Unemployment vs. Underemployment (same blog, different post on "35% of US thinks we are in a Depression")
• "New Employment Growth Sector: Unemployment Centers" (Bad sign)
• Argument that unemployment is closer to 15% (You be the judge)

Real people, real lives, really unemployed:

• Outpost Mavarin
• Mr. Mom Blues (older, but telling)
• The 'Lil Bee (Even NYC girls are unemployed)
• Unemployment (YouTube video - I wonder if mental health facilities saw an influx in admissions during 2008. Good research topic for 2009...)

..............................................................................

Related news - My "Recession 'PR'oof" post discusses the resistence of the public relations and marketing industries to a recession.

Plugging the Portfolio

My professional experience and responsibilites in a communications capacity have included,

• public relations
• marketing
• market research
• brand positioning
• relationship building with local and national clients from multiple industries.

I've regularly developed...

• media relations strategies
• key contact databases and execution plans
• key messages
• positioning strategies
• online content (web editing)
• creative client materials
• internal communication documents
• unique public relations campaigns and initiatives
• wide variety of written materials, including editorials, press releases, newsletters, reports, training manuals, brochures, web copy and ad-based copy.

I've also supervised multiple interns while working on and leading professional and diverse account teams representing major brands.

Whew! Say that three times fast...

After all, career seeking is one giant self promotion, right?
(Try clicking on the drawing board looking icon at the bottom right of the presentation for a "full screen" view if your browser cuts off the right edge.)

"To establish oneself in the world, one does all one can to seem established there already." - François, Duc De La Rochefoucauld (1613–1680), French writer, moralist

Sports Media

I'm a huge sports fan. Gargantuan even. During the annual sports drought (April-July) I follow hockey, soccer and baseball spring camps while counting down the days to the NFL preseason just to satisfy my year round need for sports. That's why the peak sports season (August-March) is so important to me. So when I turn on ESPN and all I see is news of suspensions, steroids and players' legal issues, it upsets me.

By now we all know of Plaxico Burress' situation. The New York Giants' star wideout is facing felony weapon charges after accidentally shooting himself in the leg with a concealed .40 Glock handgun in a Manhattan club last Friday night. If you don't know about this, you don't watch sports. Or TV. Or read.

If you haven't heard yet (you will), O.J. Simpson was sentenced to a minimum nine years (varying reports on the exact number) in federal prison this morning for armed robbery. Wait. Hold on...more breaking news from the sports media. This just in - O.J. Simpson hasn't played professional football since 1979! Let CNN cover it.

With that out of the way, it's time for some BCS debating or Tyler Hansbrough bashing, right? Nope. ESPN is broadcasting Sean Avery's comments that fellow NHL players, specifically Calgary defenseman Dion Phaneuf, fall in love with his "sloppy seconds," referring to ex-girlfriend Elisha Cuthbert. It's a little odd, certainly timely and involves a sports star. OK. It can qualify as sports news. But do we need to hear about it at the top and bottom of each hour? I think not.

It would be one thing if we were experiencing a critical shortage of sports news. But we're not. On the contrary, we are saturated with sports news! The NFL season features some of the tightest playoff races we've seen in some time, and the perennial superpowers aren't at the top. The NFC South's top three teams, all in playoff contension, are a combined 26-10, equal to the top three teams in the preseason favorite NFC East (that's with the New York Giants at 11-1).

It's bowl season in college football for crying out loud! The BCS and national championship game are under scrutiny again with three Big 12 teams making claim to the conference championship game and ultimately the national title game. Lets not forget the ECU Pirates, this year's Boise State for the first month - then Boise State showed up. The Pirates and Tulsa play for the CUSA championship tomorrow at noon. Who knew? This weekend also features the SEC, ACC, MAC and Big 12 title games.

The NBA is off to a great start - the Lakers are 15-2 and the Celtics are 18-2. Feels like the 80's. This league is in the midst of a rebirth and yet it makes up (guesstimation) no more than 15 percent of ESPN's coverage. About as much as Plaxico Burress.

So why all the non-game related news? Is it a result of 24 hour sports news media like ESPN that there is a self-inflicted need for sports news material at all times? Hence that broken record feeling I get everytime I turn to channel 29 in the Charlotte market. Or could this be an extension of reality TV and our society's infatuation with celebrity status, which more and more athletes are reaching?

It could be all of the above. But in as much as the above factors contribute to non-sports related sports news, so does the modern day professional athlete. More and more we hear "projects to professional postseason" stories and the effects that youth, ridiculous amounts of money and near limitless freedom have on today's rising stars (Sports Illustrated gives great insight into "ghetto loyalty" as a result of Michael Vick's dog fighting charges). If this is what sports stars are engaging in, this is what sports media will cover.

I have a suggestion. This is for the sports media, agents, parents, sponsors, fans, coaches and yes, the players. Ready? Very simple. Three words that could return the sport into sports: Play. The. Game.

Allo, allo!

Good morning, good day and good night - in case you stop here. For those brave souls that care to venture on, my name is Justin Moore and I am an unemployed public relations and marketing professional living outside Charlotte, NC. Intriguing, I know. If you're reading this, I either referred you here to see what a diligent and skilled worker I am (how'm I doing?), or your search engine made a mistake :) I kid. Never can get enough of that Google juice though, that's part of what I do!

I've carved out this little knook of the internet as a place to show some of my work and offer more info about myself for those select businesses and individuals that may be in a position to hire someone with exemplary communications skills (it's my blog, I'll endulge if I want). Feel free to check out some work samples on the right menu bar or contact me for more specific stuff - I've worked in many areas of the biz and have tried to categorize on this blog for convenience and viewing sake, but I'm happy to oblige requests. But lest I appear too greedy or self serving with my online abode, I feel that there's potential for an interesting sub-plot here...

We all know of the country's economic woes and unemployment issues (look Ma, I'm a statistic!) So I wonder if my adventure, as I optimistically refer to it, could be a micro-case study of sorts. Charlotte is considered one of the few shining markets (even if faint) in a tarnished economy - so how hard could it be for a college grad with professional experience to get a job in the Queen City? We'll find out! And personally, I'm rooting for the guy... stay tuned.

But why should you care? You don't know me on a personal level and have no reason to feel for or relate to my situation. Lets fix that :) You can find out all all kinds of things "about me" to the right. The elevator speech version - I graduated from ECU (go Pirates!) with a Comm. degree and worked in Greensboro as an account executive at a public relations and marketing firm for a couple years. We were small in staff but big in clients. I did it all - media relations, market research, tours, brand positioning, corporate communications and writing, creative design, web editing, media training, event management - really, the list goes on. I'm a newlywed to my best friend of more than six years. We're such good friends that when she was offered a good paying job doing what she loves (textiles design, and lets face it, you can't be picky here), your's truly made the move with no resistance. We found out about the job/move just as we were getting married (mid-October) and had all of three weeks to get married, plan and execute a move and bravely enter the unemployment market during arguably the worst economic crisis of this lifetime (well, I did). Stress has no meaning to me anymore, throw me in the deep end!

I got a lot going for me though - I write (and actually enjoy it), I'm good with people in many different situations and environments, I'm resourceful (sounds basic, but some folks still can't attach files to emails) and I commit and see things through to completion - remember the 6+ years stat prior to my marriage? I get the job done. Whatcha got?

That's me in a 10-story ride to the lobby. Feel free to stick around, I think it'll get better. Oh, did I mention I'm open to criticism and actually learn from it? Drop me a line anytime. There is no set framework for this blog, only to plant myself out there in this crazy social media world and see what grows. Add water at will.