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Home > Blogs > The Cycle
The Cycle

Report says Bayer CropScience tried to limit coverage of plant explosion

Posted April 23, 2009

Congressional investigators are saying that Bayer CropScience reportedly destroyed evidence and launched a “campaign of secrecy” to limit media coverage of a fatal explosion at one of its plants, according to a Bloomberg report.

The report, which was released by The House Committee on Energy and Commerce, alleges that the company’s PR firms encouraged “undermining local community groups and news outlets” to “limit public disclosure about the accident.”

Bayer CropScience had said it would not attend public safety meetings because of terrorism issues, but was also worried about bad publicity, noted The Charleston Gazette. For .

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Filed under: Crisis Communications, Industry/Energy, Media, Public Relations

Tags:Bayer CropScience, Bloomberg, The Charleston Gazette, The House Committee on Energy and Commerce

Calif. governor’s race gets a dose of social media

Posted April 22, 2009

Did you catch the social media blitz by San Francisco’s mayor Gavin Newsom, yesterday? In announcing his candidacy for the state’s governor, the youthful politician (41), took a cue from President Obama, it appears. From the San Francisco Chronicle:

Aiming to stake his claim to the tech-savvy young voters who helped elect President Obama, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, 41, today took to the new media to formally announce he’s running for governor - by directly addressing hundreds of thousands of supporters simultaneously via YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.

The video came in three languages: English, Spanish, and Mandarin. Touche. SFGate’s story continued…

‘We can’t afford to keep returning to the same old tired ideas and expect a different result,’ the Democrat told supporters in his three-minute YouTube announcement, part of the unprecedented ‘virtual fly-around’ campaign announcement done entirely in the new media.

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Filed under: Politics, Public Affairs, Public Relations, Social Media, Technology

Tags:Gavin Newsom, Social Media

Officials show support for volunteer programs

Posted April 22, 2009

It’s National Volunteer Week, and President Barack Obama is acting on his pledge to increase volunteerism in the US. He signed the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act today, which will reauthorize and expand Corporation for National and Community Service programs, such as AmeriCorps.

The Corporation for National and Community Service actually issued RFPs for strategic communications and creative and marketing services in December 2008. Responses were due February 20 and March 13, respectively. No decision has been made yet, according to the Federal Business Opportunities database.

On a more local level, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg a citywide campaign with MTV News in New York on April 20, urging people to volunteer.

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Tags:AmeriCorps, Corporation for National and Community Service, Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, MTV News, National Volunteer Week, President Barack Obama

NYT looks at drug ad confusion among marketers

Posted April 17, 2009

The New York Times with drug makers, a consumer watchdog group, the FDA, and Google about how a lack of specified rules for Internet marketing conflicts with the print and TV rules that the FDA currently applies to new media.

Fourteen pharmaceutical companies were warned by the FDA earlier this month for failing to include risk information in search ads. The consensus among communications professionals who spoke with PRWeek is that the FDA needs to develop a clear policy for digital communications. Search ads are used, in part, by pharmaceutical companies as part of a reputation management strategy.

The same sentiment was echoed in today’s story.

Mary Ann Belliveau, health industry director at Google, told the NYT that “… the sense in the industry was ‘that the F.D.A. sent letters about ‘you shouldn’t do this, you shouldn’t do that,’ as opposed to issuing clear digital guidelines that the companies should follow.’”

Now, companies will only use “generic-sounding Web addresses that redirect users to the brand’s site,” an allowance only made for pharmaceutical companies, and are questioning the FDA to evaluate the difference in online marketing techniques.

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Tags:FDA,

Penn, Schoen & Berland still owed from Clinton campaign

Posted April 16, 2009

As Hillary Clinton, now Secretary of State, works to clear the debt from her presidential bid, it appears that Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates, the WPP polling firmfounded by Mark Penn, is the only remaining creditor.

It is owed $2.3 million, down from $5.4 million as reported at the end of 2008.

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Tags:Hillary Clinton, Mark Penn, Penn Schoen & Berland Associates, Secretary of State

Bernanke, Federal Reserve looking at changes in comms strategy

Posted April 15, 2009

The Wall Street Journal takes a look at Ben Bernanke’s PR campaign and how it has placed him in the “starring role” as he tries to clearly communcate the Federal Reserve’s role, the paper .

According to Reuters, the Fed is reworking its communications strategy, as part of a transparency push that may include regular news conferences and increased availability of information, possibly online.

In recent months, Bernanke has discussed the economic crisis to audiences ranging from college students and the general public to the media and Congress, and he tells the WSJ: “‘I think it is important for the public to understand what is going on and to know that the government is trying to solve the problem … They should know we have a plan and a strategy.”‘

Yet, the paper also notes that Bernanke may placing himself at the heart of the PR effort to ensure his position as chairman of the Federal Reserve is secure. Within the year, President Barack Obama will decide whether or not to reappoint Bernanke.

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Tags:Federal Reserve, President Barack Obama

AIG’s PR firms in the news again

Posted April 13, 2009

Criticism of AIG’s hiring of PR firms just won’t die. Rachel Maddow and Breakingviews recently took critical looks at the company’s agency roster given its federal funding. This time, it comes in the form of an article from Time: “Is AIG spending too much on public relations?” The author points to recent comments from members of Congress that question “the firm’s p.r. payroll,” as well as a lawyer of former AIG chairman Hank Greenberg. AIG’s SVP of comms, Nick Ashooh - who made PRWeek’s people with the “toughest jobs in PR” 2008 list - broke down the responsibilities of its PR firms to Time.

AIG retained only one full-time p.r. firm when it ruled the insurance world. Today’s four firms, said Ashooh, have different missions: Sard Verbinnen & Co. helps to structure statements on the bailout, Kekst & Co. focuses on sales of assets to pay back federal loans, Burson-Marsteller handles controversial issues and Hill & Knowlton fields inquiries from Capitol Hill and prepares congressional testimony for company officials. “If the criticism was we were running image-advertising or doing sponsorships to make ourselves look better, I could see that,” Ashooh said. “But we’re doing a lot of information-processing. It’s really been just responding to inquiries” from Congress and the media.

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Tags:AIG, Hank Greenberg, Nicholas Ashooh, Rachel Maddow, Time

US military to get new view on social media

Posted April 10, 2009

A new report from the National Defense University offers some social media tips for government folks - ones “that actually makes sense,” writes Wired’s DangerRoom blog. The aptly named “Social Software and National Security,” report is expected out early next week, Wired says, but the blog provides a sneak peek at the four tenants the paper suggests:

  • Inward sharing
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  • Inbound sharing
  • Outward sharing

Hmm…

An excerpt under the “Outward sharing” headline reads:

The 2005 natural disaster of Hurricane Katrina is now a textbook example of the need for multi-agency, multi-government, multi-media engagement in an ad hoc and constantly evolving manner.  More recently, people using social software have been able to make useful contributions during real world events such as flooding in Bangladesh, the California wildfires, and Hurricane Gustav…

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Tags:defense, military, Wired

Health messages should be tailored to reach men, as well

Posted April 8, 2009

Much has been made about how to communicate with women, especially those who are considered healthcare decision makers, but an April 8 story in The Boston Globe at a look at the way men communicate health news.

The story says: “Men are raised with inhibitions or ‘rules of manhood’ that may keep them out of the healthcare system, Zoske explains. He says that most health messages are expressed in a ‘feminine form.’ The basic public health theme, he says, is, ‘Notice your body, pay attention when something isn’t working well, and seek help when needed.’ But, Zoske says, this statement doesn’t really speak to guys. He points out that men may be deaf to their body’s symptoms because they are brought up to ignore factors such as vulnerability and pain.”

Other key points include engaging men in a dialogue by letting them know that other men have similar symptons or ailments; communicating health messages by framing them in terms of safety, strength, and performance; and using numbers, statistics, and metaphors because men respond to those communications tools.

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Tags:The Boston Globe

Gershon Kekst rubs elbows with Martha Stewart

Posted April 8, 2009

Vanity Fair did a piece about the heavy-hitters who frequent The Four Seasons, which turns 50 years old. Martha Stewart, Tom Brokaw, and Liz Smith are among those featured in a photo taken in the restaurant’s Grill Room. Standing on top, fourth from the right, is PR’s own Gershon Kekst. Click for video as well.

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For both journalists and communicators, the news cycle never ends. At The Cycle, PRWeek’s editorial team offers commentary and viewpoints on how the latest marketing, business, political, and cultural news impact the PR industry.

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