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Home > Blogs > The Cycle
The Cycle

SAG and AMPTP reach agreement

Posted April 20, 2009

The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) National Board of Directors approved the tentative agreement that the union developed with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) last week.

The two organizations released a joint statement on Friday, saying they have reached a tentative agreement for the TV and theatrical contract that expired June 30, 2008. The SAG board voted on Sunday to approve and recommend the agreement to members. SAG then released the details of the agreement.

The situation and communications between the two sides have been followed since the contract originally expired on June 30, 2008. The proposed contract expires on June 30, 2011, putting SAG in sync with other unions, such as American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), for renegotiations with AMPTP.

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Filed under: Announcements, Arts & Entertainment, Media

Tags:AFTRA, AMPTP, contract, entertainment, SAG

Highs and lows of marriage

Posted April 17, 2009

The Chapel of Love in the Mall of America celebrated its 15th anniversary by having 15 couples get married on April 15. The couples exchanged vows and rings on the Pepsi Orange Streak roller coaster. The Mall of America, which has Weber Shandwick as PR AOR, handled PR in-house for this event, and publicized it on its Web site and through e-mail alerts. The wedding event was covered on local TV affiliates and by newspapers and the AP. A photo is included after the jump.

Read more »

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Filed under: Events

Stephen Colbert and NASA come to an agreement

Posted April 15, 2009

NASA avoided some PR drama when it agreed to name something in its new International Space Station after comedian Stephen Colbert: the treadmill. Colbert encouraged his fans to write in his name in the contest to name the new wing of the station, and NASA responded to the outpouring of votes saying they have final say in the naming of the node.

Astronaut Sunita “Suni” Williams appeared on The Colbert Report on Tuesday night to announce the naming of the Combined Operational Load Bearing External Resistance Treadmill (COLBERT).

“I think a treadmill is better than a node…because the node is just a box for the treadmill,” Colbert said. “Nobody says, ‘Hey, my mom bought me a Nike box.’ They want the shoes that are inside.”

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Filed under: Announcements, Arts & Entertainment, Branding, Technology

Tags:NASA, Stephen Colbert

#amazonfail

Posted April 13, 2009

Blogs and Twitter are abuzz with , the coined after several books were removed from the ranking system on Amazon.com. The books, largely with homosexual themes, included Brokeback Mountain, Ellen DeGeneres: A Biography, and Heather Has Two Mommies. It seems ranks have now returned to some titles, but some blogs are keeping track of those that were affected.

Mark Probst, the author of gay romance book The Filly, first noticed that his book was de-ranked and contacted Amazon. After receiving a response saying it was due to a policy where “adult” materials were not included in rankings, he blogged about it. But when consumers pointed out that some heterosexual “adult” materials were still included in rankings, Amazon said the original de-ranking was due to a .

The news has quickly spread through social media like Twitter, and some groups are urging a of the retailer. Amazon does not have a press release up on its Web site and representatives from the online retailer and its PR agency OutCast Communications have not yet returned PRWeek’s calls for comment.

UPDATE: Patty Smith, director of corporate communications for Amazon, replied to PRWeek with a statemtn via email, saying “This is an embarrassing and ham-fisted cataloging error for a company that prides itself on offering complete selection.”

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Filed under: Arts & Entertainment, Blogs, Corporate Reputation, Crisis Communications, Diversity, Social Media, Technology, Web sites

Tags:#amazonfail, Amazon.com, LGBT, OutCast Communications

Phoenix Suns get Twackled

Posted April 7, 2009

The Phoenix Suns, which has been a leader in social media in the NBA, launched its own Twitter-based platform, which will collect Tweets from fans and Suns players and staff and display them on its Web site.

The new platform, Suns Twackle, was developed in partnership with Octagon Digital and, in addition to fans, will pull in Tweets from Shaquille O’Neal (@The_Real_Shaq), Steve Nash (@The_Real_Nash), the Suns Dancers (@SunsDancers), various staffers, and Alvin Gentry (@AlvinGentry), the NBA’s first head coach to join Twitter.

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Filed under: Arts & Entertainment, Social Media, Sports, Technology, Web sites

Tags:NBA, Phoenix Suns,

Sick bats are in need of some positive PR

Posted April 6, 2009

Bat biologists in New England are looking for some help when it comes to getting positive PR for bats. An article in the today discusses how a mysterious illness affecting bats is causing concern among wildlife biologists, and they are in need of funding.

Despairing bat biologists want to hire a publicist - a kind of public relations batman - to give bats an image makeover and educate people about the night creatures’ ecological benefits. If they could get people to care even half as much as they do about polar bears, these researchers say, desperately needed dollars and attention may follow to save the misunderstood animals.

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Filed under: Consumer, Education, Media, Public Relations

Tags:animals, Boston Globe, wildlife

Executive search firms change tactics during downturn

Posted April 3, 2009

This week, I wrote a news article about executive search firms and how the economic downturn has affected their work. While almost everyone I talked to reported a decrease in projects and assignments, many of them were taking action, hoping to stay bring in and keep more clients. After the jump, a few ways executive search and recruitment firms are changing.
Read more »

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Tags:Charet & Associates, executive search firms, Korn/Ferry, MJS Executive Search

Marketing your book on the Web

Posted March 19, 2009

On Wednesday evening, I attended a panel on online marketing for books. The NYC Chapter of the Women’s National Book Association hosted Getting the Word Out: Marketing Your Book on the Web, held at the Jefferson Market Library in New York. The well attended event focused on topics including being authentic when using social media, how blogging and social media translates to book sales, and ().

Susannah Greenberg, principal of Susannah Greenberg PR, moderated the panel, which included several authors and book publishing insiders: Fauzia Burke, founder and president of Internet marketing firm FSB Associates; Peter Costanzo, director of online marketing for Perseus Books Group; Ron Hogan, founder of Beatrice.com and senior editor at MediaBistro’s Galleycat; Kelly Leonard, executive director of online marketing at Hachette Book Group USA; and Abby Stokes, author of Is This Thing On?: A Computer Handbook for Late Bloomers, Technophobes, and the Kicking and Screaming. Read more after the jump.
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Tags:Abby Stokes, Beatrice.com, Book Publishing, FSB Associates, Hachette Book Group USA, online marketing, Perseus Books Group, Susannah Greenberg PR,

New Moon Girls Media launches Daughters.com

Posted March 17, 2009

The PR for new online community Daughters.com focused on what the site offers: advice and an interactive community designed to help families raise girls ages 8 to 15.

New Moon Girls Media, the company behind New Moon Girls magazine and Web site, worked with Cahill Media Group on the March 10 launch, reaching out to mommy and grandparent bloggers, telling them of the “parent to parent” discussion board, searchable collection of articles about raising girls, and ways they can submit questions to experts. Additionally, the PR campaign targeted traditional media nationwide.

Founder and CEO Nancy Gruver contributes to one of several blogs on the site and said in a statement, “After nearly 17 years of creating groundbreaking communities for tween and teen girls, we’re thrilled to provide parents and caregivers with the first place they can visit 24/7 to find answers to all of their questions about raising daughters.”

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Tags:Cahill Media Group, Daughters.com, New Moon Girls Media

Leno spreads some laughs

Posted March 11, 2009

Jay Leno is doing his part to help the unemployed—by making them laugh. The comedian’s latest publicity stunt offers free tickets to the April 7 taping of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno for anyone who is unemployed in Detroit. “Jay’s Comedy Stimulus Plan,” held at the home of the Detroit Pistons, the Palace of Auburn Hills, will also have free refreshments and parking.

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Tags:Detroit, Jay Leno, stimulus

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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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Studios still beholden to TV spend

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SAG and AMPTP reach agreement

Highs and lows of marriage

NYT looks at drug ad confusion among marketers



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