Lubetkin on Communications

Auto Draft

PodcastSteve — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

US Airways Still Hasn't Found My Bag

PodcastSteve — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Since no one seems to want to answer the phones at US Airways, it looks like the only way to get their attention is to blog about how terrible their service has gotten, and then tell some aviation reporter that you've blogged about it.

The best thing that could happen to Philadelphia and Charlotte -- and to the tired, oppressed employees of US Airways -- would be for this colossal failure of customer service to simply roll up and blow away. Anything has to be better.

Here's my tale of woe:

I am spending a week studying at Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati. I left on Saturday afternoon for the airport for what I thought would be a 3:15pm flight to Cincinnati. Hah!

When I got to the airport, I checked my bag, made it through security with about half an hour to spare. The flight was leaving from Gate F29, all the way to the end of the F Concourse. I got there and learned the flight wouldn’t depart until 3:45pm. They boarded us around 3:15pm and then about 10 minutes after boarding, the pilot told us we would have a short delay for maintenance. There was something wrong with some kind of “trailer” on the vertical stabilizer, but the good news was that they had the part in stock and they had the book – presumably the instruction manual for installing the part. That didn’t engender great confidence in the passengers.

A few minutes later, the pilot told us that the ramp was being closed because of an approaching thunderstorm. This was bad news for two reasons: first, the maintenance crew had to stop working on the repair, and second, because the plane we were on didn’t use a jetway, but stairs. That meant we couldn’t get off the plane and sit in the terminal. We had to sit in the plane until the thunderstorm passed.

Two and a half hours later, the rain subsided, but the pilot informed us that he had good news and bad news. The good news was that the ramp was now open again, but the bad news was that the flight had been cancelled.

They let us off the plane, and I went immediately to a nearby customer service counter where we were directed. The young woman there rebooked me on a flight leaving at 6:05pm making a connection in Charlotte with a Delta flight to Cincinnati later that night. It was 6pm and I was at Terminal F. The 6:05pm flight was leaving from B Terminal, but I accepted the challenge and sprinted to the shuttle bus that runs between F and A/B terminals. At the other end, I had to sprint again from the bus to the B1 gate, but when I got there, I learned that the Charlotte leg of the trip was delayed almost two hours, and wouldn’t make the connection for Cincinnati. So the ticket agent rebooked me for Sunday morning at 9:45am.

“What about my bags?” I asked. I had checked a large suitcase and a collapsible luggage cart. She told me these would go to Cincinnati on the next available flight (which was actually the one she was booking me on Sunday morning). And of course since I had expected to fly from Terminal F, that’s where my car was parked, and I had to walk from Terminal B all the way back to Terminal F. US Airways didn’t even want to pay for my $17 parking fee. I went home for the night.

Sunday morning I left for the airport at about 7:15 am. Arriving at the terminal, I didn’t have to walk far from Garage C. The security check-in line extended almost all the way back across the bridge to the garage. I made it through security and then discovered that the gate assignment for the flight had been changed from Terminal C to Terminal A.

So I walked down to Terminal A. (In the last two days, I had now walked the entire length of Philadelphia’s terminals not once, but twice.)

Flight to Charlotte left a little late. They had a problem clearing the jetway away from the plane. When we arrived in Charlotte, they didn’t have a jetway “driver” so we sat for about 15 minutes staring at the jetway inches away from the plane.

Had to walk again from Terminal B to Terminal E at Charlotte to make the connecting flight. I bought a bottle of water and a turkey, cheese, lettuce, & tomato sandwich (nearly $10) and ate it on the plane.

In Cincinnati, as you might have expected, my bags had not arrived ahead of me, and did not arrive on the flight with me. The baggage office was closed, and had a sign saying, “if we’re closed, go to the US Airways ticket counter.” There was only one young woman working at the ticket counter, trying to cope with the disrupted passengers from a flight to Charlotte that had just been cancelled. She said she was alone and couldn’t leave the counter, until she realized there were about 10 of us whose luggage hadn’t arrived. A young man who had just started working for US Airways four days earlier (“I’m not even in the computer yet,” he said to me) opened the baggage room, but my bag wasn’t there.

He called for a supervisor, and she eventually arrived at the ticket counter and took my information. My bag was not showing on the list of bags held at Philadelphia or Charlotte, so they really didn’t know where it went.

It's now late Tuesday evening, and I still have no information from US Airways on the whereabouts of the bag and the luggage cart. WHen you call their baggage claim call center, you get a very cheerful automated voice, "Alex the Baggage Specialist." But not only can't he find anything, when he says he's going to transfer you to someone who can help you, he transfers you to a BUSY SIGNAL!!! Not even to a music on hold queue where they tell you every ten second how important your call is to them. A busy signal, with no recourse but to hang up.

Attention US Airways: How hard can it possibly be to figure out what happened to a bag you took off a specific cancelled flight in a specific airport on a specific evening?

I will keep you posted on how this turns out.

It's time for passengers to tell airlines like US Airways that they are mad as hell and not going to take it anymore.

Other Blog Technology

PodcastSteve — Sat, 26 Feb 2005 02:06:00 +0000

We're trying all the blog technologies. Our first blog is at stevesblog.lubetkin.net. Our website is at www.lubetkin.net.

Why do major media only make SOME corrections?

PodcastSteve — Sat, 26 Feb 2005 21:00:00 +0000

The New York Times is supposedly fastidious about making corrections, and yet in two instances recently, where I submitted corrections, or at least alerted them to errors, the errors have gone uncorrected for months.

Case in point: A photo essay in the Metro section on October 3, 2004, about the delivery of a new Torah scroll to Congregation Khal Chasidey Skwere in Brooklyn, shows a photo of a bearded man using a magnifier to look at an etrog, an Israeli-grown citrus fruit that plays a central role in the Jewish festival of Sukkot. The etrog must be considered perfect to be used in the festival, and the man is examining it for the required features, mainly the pitot or stems, that must be intact on either end. The Times' caption says in part, "Yitzchak Mayer Youngeworth, bottom left, examined a fruit for its adherence to dietary laws last Sunday at a stand in Borough Park."

Pardon me, but the Times of all papers ought to know that etrogim are not eaten, so "dietary" laws have nothing to do with this examination.

Two emails and a voice mail left with the Times' corrections desk have never been answered.

You can't find the photo essay on the Times website. I have a copy if you want to see it.

Second case: A December 2004 article about "an odd series" of money transfers out of the World Jewish Congress, describes a bookkeeper for the WJC as having done the transfers because of advanced dementia, but nowhere does the article offer the bookkeeper or his family any opportunity to rebut this terrible allegation, and the article gives no indication that any effort was made to get such a reaction.

Again, a call to the corrections desk has gone unanswered.

It would seem that only the news the Times thinks is fit to correct gets corrected.

Sound advice from a business journalist about corporate blogging

PodcastSteve — Mon, 28 Feb 2005 13:21:00 +0000

One of the most perceptive observers of the foibles of business leaders today is Lucy Kellaway, who writes the weekly "Business Life" column in the Financial Times of London.

Today's column, "Why executives should steer clear of the blogosphere," (FT subscription may be required to see the column) is one of the best demonstrations of how corporate communicators fail the executives they serve.

The problem is that creeping commercialism, and the desire to monetize every new technology-based media channel, can ruin the free thought concept behind blogging and other new media technologies.

Lucy gives a couple of examples of corporate executives' blogs. She describes one as "a tarted up press release." And that's exactly what it is. Companies are deathly afraid of having a conversation with employees and (heaven forbid!) customers that is honest and useful to them.

She does like the blog at General Motors being attributed to car-building legend Bob Lutz. And my fellow PR Blogger, Shel Holtz, featured the Lutz blog in his podcast conversation with Michael Wiley, director of new media communications for General Motors.

It's like the old joke about the guy who was able to navigate his plane out of the clouds for a safe landing, because when he shouted out to the guy on the ground, "Where am I?" the fellow told him he was in a plane about 200 feet off the ground.

The pilot later told the air traffic controller, "I knew that since he was telling me something absolutely true but completely useless, I must be near (FILL IN THE NAME OF YOUR COMPANY HERE) customer service."

A few years ago, a financial services firm I worked for thought it would be great to engage employees in an email dialogue with the Chairman. They made a big deal about setting up an email address for him and soliciting questions. The only credibility problem was that everyone knew that there were corporate communications people reading the inbox, not the chairman, and that only the questions likely to make him look good would be answered in public.

The advice from here is to let blogs be blogs, don't try to co-opt them into another vehicle for selling the party line.

Just like the endless streams of corporate intranet postings and internal newsletters, or (even worse) the broadcast voice mails from the CEO...it isn't going to work that way!

LOB Podcast for week of March 7, 2005

PodcastSteve — Sun, 06 Mar 2005 23:36:00 +0000

5/20/05: Updated link to podcast file.

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast for the week of March 7, 2005 is available. It's our first podcast, and it features my keynote speech to the Bank Marketing Association/NJ Bankers Association meeting in Woodbridge, NJ on March 3. Please give us your feedback and comments. Thanks.

Editor's Note, 3/30/2005: We've renamed our podcasts to make the file names a little more consistent. The podcast program remains the same. Thanks.

VNRs: Amused by the politics

PodcastSteve — Thu, 17 Mar 2005 12:11:00 +0000

I'm very amused by the political attack being waged against the current Administration for its effective use of such time-tested and valid public relations tools as video news releases. These are the pre-packaged news stories that public relations firms like mine can help clients put together. They are delivered via satellite feed to broadcast news outlets around the country at no charge, and they deliver product launch news, consumer tips, or other educational information about the client's products or services. In this case, the client happens to be a federal government agency.

Critics of the Administration, frustrated by the inability of their political leaders to come up with a message that effectively reaches the public, instead attack the successful use of these communications tools by the government. That's a bogus attack and the public should understand it for what it is.

The Public Relations Society of America, the largest professional association of public relations practitioners, has made it very clear to its 28,000 members and students that the PRSA Code of Ethics and Professional Standards requires clear disclosure of the origins of video news releases to the broadcast outlets that receive them. Once we do that, it is up to broadcast news directors to ensure that they tell their audiences where they got the report.

When I was a radio newscaster in the 1970s (LOOONG time ago!) there was an 800 number at the US Department of Agriculture where you could download audio news reports featuring interviews with USDA officials and experts. Like newscasters at many other radio stations, needing extra content for newscasts, I used these reports. They always signed off saying "I'm so-and-so with the US Department of Agriculture." What's the big deal?

One of the saddest signs for the decline in network TV news recently was coverage of the floods following heavy rains in Southern California. Two of the traditional TV networks, CBS and NBC, used purchased video footage of the damage caused by the flooding. There was no on-air announcement that the video didn't come from CBS or NBC film crews, just very small visual "bugs" on the screen as credit lines that most viewers would have missed.

What a state of affairs when two news organizations that were once worldwide in their scope now don't even have a video crew in Southern California! Even sadder, no one is attacking the networks for the decision to cut back staffing so much.

Did I coin the phrase "e-business?"

PodcastSteve — Thu, 17 Mar 2005 22:18:00 +0000

I don't know, but I'm going to claim it, just for the heck of it.

A while back, I got an email from an internal editor at IBM asking if I had invented the term "e-business." She Googled the phrase and found this posting I made to the BUSLIB-L newsgroup in 1993.

BUSLIB-L Digest - 28 Nov 1993 to 29 Nov 1993
Only 1 message in topic - view as tree
Steve Lubetkin Dec 1 1993, 1:44 pm show options

Newsgroups: bit.listserv.buslib-l
From: Steve Lubetkin - Find messages by this author
Date: Wed, 1 Dec 1993 13:19:02 -0500
Local: Wed, Dec 1 1993 10:19 am
Subject: Re: BUSLIB-L Digest - 28 Nov 1993 to 29 Nov 1993
Reply to Author Forward Print Individual Message Show original Report Abuse

Regarding the Health Care Legislation virus alert that keeps making the rounds
here and in other groups:

The files on the disks that the White House distributed were plain vanilla ASCII
files. To my knowledge, there was no binary program distributed on the disks,
so there is really no way they could carry a virus. Does anyone here have
firsthand knowledge of a virus, or are we just reposting the same bogus alert
over and over again?

Stop the rumors, please. I really believe this story is false.

Steve Lubetkin
doing e-business as lubet...@mgh.com, slubet...@delphi.com,
76616....@compuserve.com, and wvpk...@prodigy.com

This appeared, she told me, to be the earliest known online usage of the term e-business. I responded to her that I would be happy to negotiate an arrangement for IBM to continue using the term. Shortly after that, they seemed to halt their use of the phrase. Another missed opportunity for fame and fortune. (Unlike Al Gore, I'm not claiming the entire Internet, just the phrase "e-business.")

Anyone have an earlier, documented use of the phrase, I'm willing to concede it.

A nice mention in Corporate Communication - Theory to Practice

PodcastSteve — Sun, 20 Mar 2005 18:58:00 +0000

Corporate Communication - Theory to Practice Mentions my lecture at FDU Saturday. Be watching this space for a podcast audio version of the program.

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #2: Steve and Robert George at Fairleigh Dickinson

PodcastSteve — Mon, 21 Mar 2005 00:01:00 +0000

5/20/05: Updated link for podcast to our new libsyn.com address.

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast is back. Our podcast installment for the week of March 21, 2005 features a dialogue between me and Robert George, assistant editorial page editor of the New York Post at Fairleigh Dickinson University, recorded March 19 at the Schering Plough Executive Lecture series.

Editor's Note, 3/30/2005: We have gone back to our two initial podcasts and renamed the files for consistency. The programs remain the same.

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #3 for March 30, 2005

PodcastSteve — Wed, 30 Mar 2005 21:24:00 +0000

5/20/05: Updated link to podcast file.

LOBP for March 30, 2005: Features Steve's March 9, 2005 presentation "How to keep the news media neutral in a crisis," at the College and University Public Relations Association of Pennsylvania, Hershey, PA.

PodcastSteve — Thu, 31 Mar 2005 11:14:00 +0000

I am quoted in today's Charlotte (NC) Observer.

In "How do Panthers repair damage?" by business writer Rick Rothacker, I'm one of several public relations practitioners surveyed about how the Carolina Panthers should deal with the public relations crisis created by news reports alleging substance abuse by players and former players.

PRSA/Philadelphia Panel Discusses Career Enhancement for Public Relations Professionals

PodcastSteve — Sun, 03 Apr 2005 20:40:00 +0000

Panelists:
Janet Long, Recruiter, President, Integrity Search
Brian McPeak, Director of Corporate Communications, Rohm and Haas Company
Mary Kate Breslin, Account Executive, The Brownstein Group

Public relations professionals can best enhance their careers by seeking opportunities to broaden their experience outside of the traditional communications discipline, said panelists at a PRSA/Philadelphia breakfast on March 31.

Speaking on the topic "Taking Charge of Your Career: Making the Most of Your Opportunities," the panelists provided a broad spectrum of communications career experience, from an executive recruiter to a new professional in an agency setting, to a seasoned corporate director of communications.

Communicators need to incorporate in their personal career plans elements of continuing learning, challenge, growth, and above all, marketability, said Janet Long, president of Integrity Search, a retained executive recruiting firm.

“It’s a market where hiring managers often lament the lack of core skills among up and comers, yet at the same time frequently miss opportunities to hire skilled veterans who are able and willing to work as independent contributors and mentors,” said Long.

Communications professionals should “map out a plan, to really embrace the market’s contradictions and hedge your bets,” said Long. “You want to consider picking up some areas of concentration where you can stand out from the pack.”

Get close to the business, Long said. “This may sound radical, but even consider a stint in a line function, even if it’s a six month assignment you can grab at a company where you already have equity, but a role which will increase your credibility and your vantage point as a communicator. We’ve really seen that stand out with our clients that they like seeing communicators who’ve taken a risk and gotten another kind of experience.”

The biggest challenge for new professionals is juggling multiple client projects and managing time, said Mary Kate Breslin of The Brownstein Group. “Learning your clients’ personalities, what their business is like and being able to switch on command is definitely a hurdle, and we certainly look to our managers to help guide us,” she said.

Enhancing professional credibility with colleagues in other business disciplines can pay career dividends, said the panel.

“It didn’t get me a promotion, but it let me learn and get some different experience,” said Brian McPeak, director of corporate communications at Rohm and Haas, a chemical company headquartered in Philadelphia. McPeak spent two and a half years running an environmental remediation project, an experience completely outside the communications career path. “I knew nothing about cleaning up landfills, it was a financial, legal and political issue. I learned an enormous amount about construction, about labor unions, about all those things that I never in my life would have imagined. What I learned there I have used regularly in the Rohm and Haas Company. The most important thing is to just do something else.”

Long related the experience of a colleague who was having difficulty getting a communications budget approved. The colleague decided to engage in a closer relationship with the chief financial officer of the firm. The closer collaboration led to greater understanding of the role of communications on the CFO’s part, and resulted in a tripling of the communications budget, she said.

Junior staff members need to be given opportunities to participate in the information-gathering phase of managing an issue, not just in the writing process, said McPeak. “Don’t burden them with a lot of work, let them go out and learn,” he said.

The panelists agreed that continuing education was a plus, although they said they didn’t see significant value from advanced degrees or the APR credential.

“I wish that more employers and more hiring managers did ask for the accreditations, because people work so hard to get them, and they are so important, and there’s such rigor in the process,” said Long. Sometimes Long will add APR as a requirement in position specs for clients. As people move up the ranks, they are less likely to report to a communications professional, she said, noting that such managers are usually less familiar with the credential.

Where employers ask for a master’s degree, they are more likely to be interested in an MBA, she said.

“That signals to me a ‘learning person,’” said McPeak. “Have you been or are you interested in challenging yourself to learn new things?”

This "protection of intellectual property" is getting out of hand!

PodcastSteve — Tue, 05 Apr 2005 17:44:00 +0000

You used to be able to clip an article out of a newspaper and send it to your friends. Now, if you want to clip an article from many newspapers, they want you to buy copyright clearance to do so, and the charges are exorbitant.

Some newspapers are charging as much as $600 to share an article from their website. That's a bad business judgment, in my judgment. Fair use of copyrighted material used to mean you could make a few copies of an interesting article for friends and colleagues. Now, everything has a price tag on it.

Another tactic that news media are using is the "free registration" approach to invading your privacy. I was recently quoted in a major North Carolina newspaper (see post below). If you follow the link to their website included in my posting, you'll be asked to give up a lot of personal information just to read the article, which I could have included on this blog as a PDF file -- if I wanted to cough up the $600 license fee. So you have to choose between your identity or your money if you want to tell someone what you read in the paper. Geez! I can make my own PDF files and share them with people for a lot less than that. Does anyone really believe they are leaving THAT much money on the table for the centuries when they didn't charge you extra to cut up your own newspaper?

What about the clipping services? Do they get shaken down for more than the cost of the newspapers they buy and clip for their clients?

Agence France Press is carrying this to a ridiculous extreme. AFP has sued Google for its news aggregator's practice of incorporating AFP dispatches and photos into the Google news summaries. It's almost as if AFP doesn't want people to read its reports. Fine with me. But a very bad way to encourage people to explore your content.

Shareware developers have always let people try before they buy. What's the point of distributing news content if you don't want to make people broadly aware of its existence?

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast for April 5, 2005

PodcastSteve — Tue, 05 Apr 2005 22:08:00 +0000

REVISED POST TO UPDATE PODCAST LINK 5/20/05

We present the latest Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast, a broadcast featuring a panel discussion about blogs and blogging from the Chamber of Commerce of Southern New Jersey.

Show notes are below. The podcast file is large, but the sound quality, if I say so myself, is excellent stereo.

CramerSweeney Blogging Presentation Podcast
Show Notes

Marketing Resource Committee
Chamber of Commerce of Southern New Jersey
April 5, 2005
The Mansion, Voorhees, Camden County, NJ

Topics/Agenda
* Blogging Facts and Statistics
* What Is a Blog?
* Recent Worldwide Impacts of Blogging
* What Makes Blogs so Effective?
* How Blogs Can be Used – Enterprise Applications of Blogs
* Blogs about Business Blogging
* A Blog Chamber of Commerce?
* Blogging for Profit
* Create a Blog for Free
* Final Blogging Tips

Co-moderated by
Jenna Sweeney, president
CramerSweeney Instructional Design, the corporate training and e-learning division of CramerSweeney Marketing Communications

Sean M. Sweeney, chief executive officer
CramerSweeney Marketing Communications & chairman, CCSNJ’s Marketing Resource Committee

Profiles of Jenna and Sean from their company website.

Sean's blog: Advantage - The Smart Marketing Report - The Advertising and Public Relations Blog

Jenna's blog: Corporate Training & e-Learning Blog - Latest news, thoughts, trends, reports, and links focused on learning, instruction and e-Learning in today's corporate world.

Web Links and Resource References Mentioned in the Podcast

Newsweek "BlogWatch" column.
Pew Internet & American Life Project "State of Blogs" Report
Make your own blog at www.blogger.com.
The impact of bloggers
Trent Lott and Strom Thurmond
Photos of military coffins from Iraq
Kryptonite bike locks can be picked with a BIC pen
Blog businesses: http://www.lexblog.com.
http://www.businesslogs.com
http://corporateblogging.info Download free 16-page PDF "Beginner's Guide to Corporate Blogging"
Business Blog Chamber of Commerce
Business Blog Summit, January 2005, Seattle WA
"Page 18, the second link" - Robin Good's "Best Blog Directory and RSS Submission Sites"
At the end of the program, there is a discussion about building blogs for healthcare providers and their patients. For more information on HIPAA compliance concerns regarding healthcare blogs, contact Howard Yermish at World Wide Web Communications

Recording and Editing Equipment

Olympus DS-2 stereo digital recorder: This portable digital recorder delivers stereo audio files in WMA format or the proprietary Olympus DSS format. It will also record directly to WAV files, but at a significant reduction in the available recording time.

We record the programs in WMA format to maximize the stereo recording time at about 2 hours and 15 minutes. The DS-2 connects to a PC with a USB cradle. We download the WMA files and convert them back to WAV for post editing.

For conversion to WAV files, we use dbPowerAmp Music Converter, which can convert in either direction from a wide range of audio file formats.

N-Track Studio: Our primary studio production recording software. This multitrack software allows visual editing of WAV files and contains extensive sound studio post production, equalization, and sound processing features.

Microphones: For our main studio microphones we're using a matched set of Shure RS-130 vocal mikes, with a [discontinued] Realistic (Radio Shack) 32-1210 six channel mixer driving our Aureal soundcard.

InfoSelect 8.00.26: For preparation of show notes.

Annals of Bank Customer Service: We'll take the deposit, but if it's fraud, it's your problem!

PodcastSteve — Mon, 11 Apr 2005 13:22:00 +0000

My experience in banking industry public relations was also an educational opportunity for me.

Like most bank customers, I always thought cashiers' checks were "money good" because of the cashiers' check status. I thought that once you deposited a cashier's check, and the bank handed over the money by making it available to you, you were free to use that money.

Not really true, and many bank customers have learned this painful lesson over the last several years, as a very insidious cashier's check scam continues to swindle innocent consumers.

See also, American Bankers Association web site, or FDIC Consumer Alert from 2002, or National Consumer League's National Fraud Information Center.

Despite all the publicity about this scam, the banking industry stands ready to freeze customers accounts, but has been doing very little to help their customers avoid the fraud in the first place.

It would be very simple to stop this fraud, if the banks would proactively help their customers before taking a fraudulent cashier's check as a deposit.

Here's how this fraud works:

You are selling a large-ticket merchandise item, like a car, on an online auction web site. You get a winning bid from a stranger, often a stranger in another country. The winning bidder contacts you, the seller, and explains that they want to ship the item out of the US to another country, frequently in Africa.

The buyer further explains that their international consulting business includes US based clients who owe them money. Would you be willing to accept a US-based cashier's check sent by the buyer's client, deposit the money in your bank, keep the amount owed for the online auction, and then withdraw and wire the difference to the buyer?

Most people think this sounds fishy at first -- and it is. But they usually agree when an overnight package arrives bearing an official looking cashier's check drawn on a US bank for some amount larger than what is owed to the seller.

The bank is usually one you've never heard of, and the amount of the check is nearly always around $9,800 -- just $200 below the $10,000 threshold that would require a bank to report the transaction to the government under bank money laundering laws.

So the unsuspecting customer goes to their bank, and deposits the cashier's check. Tellers are not adequately trained to realize that there's a fraud being committed against the customer, and they are usually young, inexperienced, and reluctant to question a customer about a large deposit.

Banks, in a very competitive environment, make "funds available" from cashiers' checks within 24 hours. But they rarely tell the customer to wait before spending the money.

They never tell the customer that even cashiers' checks have to go back to the originating bank to be cleared.

They also don't tell the customer that if the cashier's check bounces, the customer depositing it is on the hook for the amount of the check.

That's what the crooks are counting on.

They pressure people to send the money right away, and so the customer withdraws thousands of dollars of this available money, not realizing that the check could bounce, and they could be asked to fork over nearly $10,000 or so.

What's worse, when the check does bounce, the bank will seize any money in the customer's account to begin recovery on the bad check, so checks you write to legitimate merchants, like mortgage companies, insurance, etc., will start to bounce. And there's a bounce fee attached to each of those, too.

Here's what the banks should be doing, in my opinion:

When a customer comes into the bank with a large denomination cashier's check, especially one close to $10,000 in value -- and their normal business relationship doesn't include routinely getting checks of that value -- the bank employees ought to be trained to say that there is a lot of fraud committed against bank customers with cashiers' checks, and could they sit with a manager for a few minutes to make sure the check is OK, so they don't get defrauded.

Then, the bank manager should call the originating bank named on the check to verify whether it is a good check or not. There's no excuse for not doing this. Every bank in the country has a toll-free number the manager can call.

This simple step would save banks from the reputation damage they get when the news media reports on their heavy handed collection efforts after some low- or moderate-income customer was swindled, and now the bank wants them to give back the money.

But consumers also need to be a little smarter. Any time you transact business with someone you don't know -- especially if they are in another country, verify the authenticity of any documents, securities, negotiable instruments, or checks. If you sell something online and the buyer wants to send you a check for more than they owe you, be suspicious. Before you deposit such a check, pick up the phone and call the bank that issued the check. Find out if the check is good before you make the deposit. If you must deposit the check, don't ever wire money to the prospective buyer until your bank tells you that the check is completely cleared. "Funds are available" is NOT the same thing as a check being cleared.

The basic piece of advice is that if the proposal sounds too good to be true, it is.

Philadelphia Newspapers are blogging, will be podcasting in next two months

PodcastSteve — Tue, 12 Apr 2005 21:03:00 +0000

The Philadelphia Daily News will be podcasting weekly beginning next month, and the Inquirer will follow in July, according to Fred Mann, general manager of Knight-Ridder's philly.com. Mann was a panelist this morning at a program on blogging sponsored by the Philadelphia bureau of BusinessWire held at Ikon Office Products conference center in Malvern, PA.

Mann said the Daily News podcast will involve a podcaster "chasing after" sports writers and music reviewers for interviews about what's happening that week.

Also on the program, Russell Glitman, online editor of the Morning Call newspaper in Allentown, PA. The Call's online site is mcall.com. Glitman says the newspaper is very wary about protecting its brand by keeping a separation between news content and reader-provided content like blogs and wikis. He says they are very interested in the "portal" model of web design exemplified by Delawareonline.com, where the Wilmington News-Journal's newspaper content is kept separate in a newspaper channel, and readers post their comments to a separate channel called "Community."

A separate feature of the Morning Call's offering is an entertainment web portal called MergeDigital.com.

Also on the panel was Will Bunch, senior writer for the Daily News, who has been serving up his own weblog, Attytood, since February, with what Bunch suggested was a liberal political view. He lists conservative blogs in his blogroll under the heading "If you must."

BBC Video Abandons the Colonies to Mediocre British Television; Fails to Release Civilisation on DVD in US

PodcastSteve — Mon, 18 Apr 2005 18:20:00 +0000

Media companies are incredibly arrogant and condescending to the people who keep them in business buy buying their music and videos. Perhaps that explains why people don't feel guilty about downloading music from the Internet.

Here's a real example of the lack of responsiveness you get from the custoidans of culture:

For some inexplicable reason vaguely hidden behind claims that there is insufficient customer demand, the BBC has failed to release a DVD version of the award-winning Civlisation: A Personal View series that appeared on PBS in the United States more than 30 years ago.

The 13-part series of lectures, based on Lord Kenneth Clarke's highly praised book of the same name, is available in the US only on VHS cassette. The four-cassette series retails for about $100, but a search of web video merchants indicates that the DVD version of the series is only available encoded for "Region 2" -- or the UK. There is no "Region 1" version of the DVD available, and the BBC's customer service has been somewhat evasive about why it has not made DVDs available in the States.

Here's the email I received from BBC when I first raised the question with them:

-----Original Message-----
From: customer.service@bbc.co.uk [mailto:customer.service@bbc.co.uk]
Sent: Thursday, February 10, 2005 11:03 AM
To: steve@lubetkin.net
Subject: I am Looking for a Specific Product

Steven,
Thank you for your comments. We try to release the most popular titles
first, based on feedback from our customers; unfortunately we have not
received many requests for "Civilisation" by Kenneth Clark. I will
forward your email onto our Home Video Department.
We appreciate your taking the time to contact us at
www.BBCAmericaShop.com.
Kind regards,
Dan

I wrote back:

-----Original Message-----
From: Steve Lubetkin [mailto:steve@lubetkin.net]
Sent: Thursday, February 10, 2005 11:20 AM
To: Customer Service
Subject: RE: I am Looking for a Specific Product

I'm shocked. All the email traffic I see at Amazon and elsewhere about the
VHS set always asks, "Why isn't this available on DVD?"
In the US, Civilisation is a classic of PBS. We desperately need a DVD
version in your catalog that can be played on DVD machines in the US.

Dan's response:

-----Original Message-----
From: Daniel Behalf Of
Customer Service
Sent: Thursday, February 10, 2005 11:34 AM
To: Steve Lubetkin
Subject: RE: I am Looking for a Specific Product

Hi Steve,
Please except my apologies, I wish I had better news for you then I do but
at the moment "Civilisation" is in the hands of licensing and rights so hopefully any issues attached to this title will be resolved so all fans can enjoy this great program. In the
meantime I will pass your email onto our Home Video team.

When I reiterated to Dan that there seemed to be strong interest in the US, and offered to start a letter-writing campaign, his response was:

Unfortunately a flood of emails will have little impact, our Home Video
Department is aware of the interest in this title but cannot move forward at
the moment. I will definitely reiterate that there is big interest in the
DVD format.

There has been no comment from the Home Video team at BBC since this email exchange took place in February.

Today, another Civilsation fan, Steve Wolf, shared with me the following email he wrote to BBC:

-----Original Message-----
From: Steven M. Wolf, Esq [mailto:swolfarb@comcast.net]
Sent: Monday, April 18, 2005 1:42 PM
To: customer.service@bbc.co.uk
Cc: steve@lubetkin.net
Subject: Kenneth Clark's Civilisation on DVD

I have been advised, from the response I received from Daniel Dowling's
e-mail address, to direct my message to your address.
I discovered on Amazon.com a comment from a devoted Civilisation fan that
Mr. Dowling had informed him there is not enough interest in providing us in
the US a properly-encoded DVD version of Civilisation. I have been waiting
for years for such a product, and my comments appear among Amazon's reviews
of the VHS release. If Mr. Dowling's message to the individual who inquired
is accurate, why do you find that the UK deserves a DVD version and we do
not? What exactly are your product researchers looking at? I am amazed
that you can reach such a decision, especially considering the large volume
of inferior programming we have no problem at all buying over here. Have
you at the BBC simply decided that Civilisation won't make enough cash over
here?
I find the lack of a US-encoded Civilisation DVD to be absolutely baffling.
I feel the same about the lack of a US-encoded Ascent of Man. Both are, in
my mind, the best of the best from the BBC. Please do not advise me to be
satisfied with the VHS version. We both know the limited life such products
have.
I have owned and enjoyed BBC videos for years. More recently, I have
purchased DVD products as well. However, if you have decided not to provide
US customers with a DVD version of Civilisation (or The Ascent of Man, for
that matter, which I also know UK customers will be offered soon), then I
have purchased my last product from you, and will advise friends with
similar cultural tastes to do the same.
The favor of a reply is requested.
Respectfully,
Steven M. Wolf
swolfarb@comcast.net

Why does BBC refuse to explain why there is no US DVD version of Civilisation? We have to put up with the other rubbish they ship over among the gems, but when there is true quality programming, we can't get it in the format we want. Why?

Lubetkin Communications Launches Weblog and Internet Broadcasting Practice; Will Develop Blogging and Podcasting Strategies for Clients

PodcastSteve — Wed, 20 Apr 2005 13:59:00 +0000

CHERRY HILL, NJ – April 18, 2005 – Lubetkin & Co. Communications LLC, a diversified communications consultancy here, has introduced a “blogging and podcasting” practice for its clients, the firm announced.
“Blogs,” or weblogs, are chronological diary/journals published to a website. They are often written by corporate executives to share day-to-day insights into their businesses, and to open a two-way dialogue with customers and others interested in their products and services.
“Podcasts” are recorded audio programs delivered via the Internet to listeners who can download the audio files to their Apple Ipods or other digital audio devices.
Both blogs and podcasts can be delivered automatically to subscribers through the use of technology called “Really Simple Syndication,” or RSS.
“We’ve been experimenting with leading edge technologies like these since dumb terminals attached to minicomputers ushered in the earliest days of the information revolution in the 1970s,” said Steven L. Lubetkin, managing partner of Lubetkin & Co. “We believe that expertise uniquely positions Lubetkin & Co. to provide strategic insights into the appropriate ways to integrate weblogs and podcasts into a company’s overall communications program.”
To enable clients and prospective clients to experience blogs and podcasts directly, Lubetkin & Co. has launched three blogs and associated podcasts.

“Lubetkin’s Other Blog,” features Steve’s personal commentary on the news media, journalism, and public relations, at http://lubetkinsotherblog.blogspot.com/. The blog also includes an audio podcast that visitors can download as MP3 audio files. Among recent podcasts are recorded presentations at conferences and seminars on public relations.

A second blog, “CompuSchmooze,” at http://compuschmooze.blogspot.com/, supplements Lubetkin’s monthly column on technology in the Jewish Community Voice of Southern New Jersey, a newspaper reaching some 40,000 subscribers. The CompuSchmooze podcasts feature interviews with technology company executives associated with products and services profiled in the CompuSchmooze column. More information is at http://www.compuschmooze.com/.

The third blog, “Lubetkin Broadcasting,” will allow clients to distribute their news releases and digital content by taking advantage of the RSS syndication system to deliver releases, audio news actualities and interviews, and digital photos directly to news media subscribing to the feed.

All three blogs are RSS-distributed through the feedburner.com web distribution. Subscribers using RSS reader software can subscribe to the blogs at:

Lubetkin is a veteran corporate communications executive for Fortune 100 companies. His firm specializes in strategic communications advice for corporate clients, executives, and other organizations. Clients include a national retailer and an international professional association. Its website is http://http://www.lubetkin.net/.

Been around the blog? (bizjournals.com Business Services:Advertising & PR headlines)

PodcastSteve — Wed, 20 Apr 2005 16:28:00 +0000

While not yet mainstream, online personal journals, commonly referred to as "blogs," are fast becoming a new communications medium for just about anyone who wants to share topical news and information -- as well as their personal viewpoints -- with a global audience.

Advanta, Brian Tierney reach separation deal, or "Brian, I knew ye when..."

PodcastSteve — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 11:51:00 +0000

Philadelphia Business Journal reports that Advanta Corp. has resolved its contractual issues with former vice chairman and prominent marketing executive Brian Tierney after terminating his employment earlier this year. From the Advanta filing, it looks like Brian won't have to seek employment anytime soon, although the package is rich enough that he clearly can buy just about anything he wants.

I first encountered Brian in 1985 when he formed his first PR firm in Philadelphia, and got legendary Bulletin business columnist Peter Binzen to feature him in one of his first columns for the Inquirer after the Bulletin folded. The column was all about Brian's firm, and barely mentioned his first client, Norfolk Southern, which at the time was favored by then-Transportation Secretary (now North Carolina Senator) Elizabeth Dole to acquire Conrail. It was strange for the piece to focus on Brian, since Binzen and his partner Joseph R. Daughen had penned the original history of the northeastern railroad bankruptcies, The Wreck of the Penn Central.

Later that year, the Buzz column in the Daily News picked up on the fact that when Brian arranged for Norfolk Southern executives to speak at a lunch with local Philadelphia business leaders, there was a "lone Conrail PR person" working the crowd, handing out anti-NS literature...guess who?

Accredited in Public Relations - Credential gets new visibility

PodcastSteve — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 12:02:00 +0000

Full disclosure here: I'm on the national board of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) and I earned my APR in 1989. But like the shoemakers' children, we PRSA leaders haven't done a great job of promoting the value of the APR credential to other PR people and hiring managers. But that is changing.

Thanks to some great research conducted to learn about the skills PR people actually use in their day-to-day work, we redesigned the Accreditation exam to be more relevant -- and harder to pass.

Now, PRSA and the other 10 partners in the Universal Accreditation Board are gearing up to launch some marketing efforts to help explain to members why they should try to achieve this distinction, and to help hiring managers understand why the APR means a candidate has an extra level of qualification through study and demonstration of skills and competency.

Today's South Jersey Courier Post explained the APR in its Alphabet Soup column on the Work and Life page in the Business section.

Sun CEO Schwartz thinks blog cuts through filters (FT story)

PodcastSteve — Fri, 22 Apr 2005 13:13:00 +0000

Here's why blogs are important to corporations: their CEOs think it's a great way to get the word out unfiltered, unvarnished, and yes, undistorted by the media and other third parties. A good example is in today's Financial Times, which has a profile (subscription required) of Sun Microsystems CEO and executive blogger Jonathan Schwartz by reporter John Gapper.

At the end of the feature comes this telling comment from Schwartz:

"If my readership in a month is greater than Computer World, why would I advertise through them? If I can capture their readership and ensure the content is faithful to what I think, why would I want to have one of them interpret it for me? I am humble enough to know my voice will never rise above the FT or The Wall Street Journal but will it rise above Slashdot? Yeah, it already has."

Media's rush to judge corporations badly

PodcastSteve — Fri, 22 Apr 2005 13:22:00 +0000

I've been in corporate public relations for a long time, long enough to feel, like many others, that there is sometimes a predisposition on the part of the news media -- I won't call it a bias, just a lack of understanding, or sometimes even a lack of common sense -- but a desire to believe that consumers have valid claims all the time.

It is true that sometimes companies have poor management oversight of their operations, or that they are dirty places, or they deliberately overlook problems. But these things are not really the daily occurrences that you might think they are.

Look at the rush to put Anna Ayala on national network morning news shows with her claim that she found a human fingertip in a bowl of chili at Wendy's. She gets to tell her story, completely trash a perfectly reputable company in the national press, and absolutely no one in the media waited to see if this outrageous story was even verifiable.

And in case you didn't see the follow-up report, she's now been arrested for concocting the story. Meanwhile, food sales were off so badly at the store she accused of selling the chili, that they actually had to lay off employees.

The pressure for ratings and "eyeballs" from the audience is so intense that it doesn't even matter to the media to verify the claim before reporting it. In the rush to get this bizarre and ratings-pumping story on the air, it doesn't matter how many minimum wage earning single parents might be thrown out of work.

There's no time to think about the long term consequences, and there's no time to even consider how improbable the claim might be. Why isn't the media reserving a little bit of the skepticism they apply to the corporations in these stories for the people bringing the stories to them?

Now, the journalists will say, "Hey, we've reported accurately what the woman SAID happened, so we have no responsibility for the fact that she made up the story and has a history of alleging corporate misconduct." I don't really buy that.

When I was a radio news reporter in the late 1970s, I was working on the night they arrested some poor sap as a suspect in the famous Hillside Strangler case in California. They announced his name, and distributed his mug shot to the wire services. By 6 am Eastern time, they had released him -- he simply wasn't guilty. But every morning newspaper in the country published his name and photo as a suspect. I always was glad that I did not use the story on my radio newscasts.

Sure, you can say that it is news when someone is arrested as s suspect, but once you name that person, you can't unring the bell. So too for allegations against a restaurant or a convenience store that later prove to be untrue.

There used to be a time when reporters were supposed to try to figure out if the story they were being told was at least credible before publishing it. It reminds me of the time when Newsweek was sold a forged set of alleged Hitler diaries, published a big cover story about it, and then when it was exposed as a fraud, excused themselves in a later article by saying "it almost doesn't matter if they are real." Come on, folks.

The editors who appear on panels at conferences gnash their teeth over the fact that reader surveys indicate an increasing percentage of readers who believe that newspapers make up the news.

That's not really fair, but it sure seems like an increasing number of people INTERVIEWED by the news media are making things up. And the longer the media go on accepting this nonsense at face value, reporting what people say without even making an effort at finding out if it's true, the more skeptical their readers will become.

Oh, Say, Can You See Why This Story Mattered At All?

PodcastSteve — Tue, 26 Apr 2005 05:09:00 +0000

The big story for TV news today was the poor Canadian singer, Caroline Marcil, who forgot the words to the US National Anthem at a hockey game, gave up, came back, and slipped on the ice. The video was played over and over. Why? This was the most important story they could come up with? Some poor girl embarassing herself? How is that newsworthy, or have we gotten to the point where it's national news because we can make fun of people when they make a mistake?

Do news directors choose to use these stories simply because they have it on tape, so they can show it over and over again? It was on CNBC several times yesterday, and it made the rounds to all the local TV stations in the US.

Ms. Marcil isn't from Philadelphia, but the tape of her gaffe had a prominent place on the Philadelphia TV newscasts. Forget about anything of substance in Philadelphia, we'd rather show you someone from a thousand miles away being embarrassed in public.

No one from a single Philadelphia TV station has ever asked the Mayor of Philadelphia why the taxpayers are paying for him to have not one, but three BlackBerries (Scroll down to "BlackBerry Addiction" about 3/4 down the page). It's way more fun to humiliate a Canadian woman with no connection whatever to the "City of Brotherly Love", and do it repeatedly on newscast after newscast -- it's cheaper, too, since we don't have any film crews on the street any more, and we have to use mostly canned footage from somewhere else anyway.

The Toronto Globe and Mail rightly points out that few Americans know the words to "O Canada" and only about 61 percent of us know the words to our own National Anthem.

And please, don't get all high and mighty about the "Star Spangled Banner." The famous poem by Francis Scott Key only became our National Anthem after it was set to the music of a popular, and slightly bawdy, drinking song, "To Anacreon in Heaven."

We deserve better from the media than this juvenile glee at their ability to make a fellow human being look foolish.

Apparently Good Morning America tracked her down and let her sing it on the air, giving her an audience that maybe was more interested in hearing her succeed than in making fun of her.

PR can be a Circus -- Literally (Minnesota Public Relations)

PodcastSteve — Tue, 26 Apr 2005 05:34:00 +0000

For those who still believe that any publicity is good publicity you may
want to check out this story.

PT Barnum would be ashamed!

http://mnpr.blogspot.com/2005/04/pr-can-be-circus-literally.html

Steve is quoted in Saturday, April 30, Bergen (NJ) Record

PodcastSteve — Sun, 01 May 2005 13:53:00 +0000

I was quoted in a Richard Newman article, "Not even banks can stop those prying eyes," in Saturday's Bergen (NJ) Record, the second largest paper in New Jersey.

Listen to us in The Hobson and Holtz Report - Podcast #28: April 28, 2005 ([Technorati] Lubetkin)

PodcastSteve — Mon, 02 May 2005 16:10:00 +0000

I am in good company this week in the For Immediate Release podcast.

... , Dan York, Peter Dean, Nicecast, Apple PowerBook, iPod, NewsFire, Steve Lubetkin, Olympus DS2, Union ...
NevOn

Profiled in New Jersey Business Magazine

PodcastSteve — Tue, 03 May 2005 13:24:00 +0000

Steve is featured in the "Banking and Finance" column in the May 2005 issue of New Jersey Business magazine. The column, by George Saliba, is called "Public Relations Seminar: Tips Given for Banks." (PDF File)

LOBP #5, Podcast on Career Moves, PRSA/Philadelphia Chapter Panel 3/31/2005

PodcastSteve — Thu, 05 May 2005 22:37:00 +0000

LOBP #5, May 5, 2005: "Taking Charge of Your Career: Making the Most of Your Opportunities," a Panel discussion at PRSA Philadelphia Chapter meeting March 31, 2005.

Panel members: Janet Long, Recruiter, President, Integrity Search; Brian McPeak, Director of Corporate Communications, Rohm and Haas Company; Mary Kate Breslin, Account Executive, The Brownstein Group. Conversation runs about 1 hour and includes Q&A with audience.

I summarized this meeting in an earlier post to this blog. Now, you can listen to the entire program. Special thanks to the panel members, who agreed to be podcast.

Technical notes on our recording equipment.

Updating Podcast LOBP #5 Link for RSS Syndication

PodcastSteve — Thu, 05 May 2005 22:51:00 +0000

LOBP #5, May 5, 2005: UPDATES AND CORRECTS the link that you may have already received. This posting corrects the link and alerts you that the link in the original post also has been fixed. The correct link for the audio podcast is:

http://www.lubetkin.net/sounds/LOBP5-PRSAPhilCareer.mp3

Sorry!

Sounds more like an armoire...or maybe a steamship container...

PodcastSteve — Fri, 06 May 2005 01:23:00 +0000

Monday's lead headline in column 6 of the print edition of the New York Times:

35 Iraqis Killed As Leaders Seek to Fill Cabinet

Posting only selected comments hurts blogs

PodcastSteve — Tue, 10 May 2005 18:04:00 +0000

Most commentators in the blogosphere have railed against sanitized blogs as being inauthentic. It's my turn to join that chorus.

Richard Edelman, leader of one of the largest PR firms in the indistry, was among those invited to attend an industry wide summit meeting on ethical guidelines for PR practice. He didn't attend, but sent one of his aides. Apparently that aide didn't give Richard any kind of report on the session, which included the Council of Public Relations Firms and other notables from the industry.

Now Richard has posted a blog entry in which he grandly announces -- in response to a comment from a visitor -- that "I am going to push for an industry summit latest after Memorial Day We have to agree on standards on VNRs and some enforcement mechanism with teeth."

So I called him out on it by pointing out that there had already been an industry summit, and that he had been invited.

Here's what that exchange looks like on Richard's blog:

I read with interest your proposal for an industry wide agreement on standards, but I'm confused. The Public Relations Society of America, on whose board of directors I sit, went to great lengths to host an industry wide summit of PR practitioners and professional organizations last month in New York, and yet Edelman did not participate, despite being asked.
What will your summit accomplish that the summit already held by leaders in the industry did not?PRSA has had a code of ethics and professional standards for more than 60 years, and there are significant barriers to effectively "enforcing" such standards beyond being a moral compass.
(My blog/podcast is at http://lubetkinsotherblog.blogspot.com or RSS feed at http://feeds.feedburner.com/lubetkinsotherblog)
Posted by: Steve Lubetkin at April 28, 2005 04:56 PM
Steve,
Thanks for sending me a noteEdelman should have sent a person to the confab on ethics...i am not sure we knew about it PRSA has taken a leaderhip position for sure But there are other initiatives on going such as Council of PR Firms et al If we have a cacaphony at the end, nothing is improved That is what I was trying to avoid.
Richard
Posted by: Richard Edelman at May 6, 2005 02:29 PM

What Richard didn't post to his blog, although he promised to post it by Monday, was the rest of the email conversation we had. So in the interest of transpoarency and full disclosure, here's the rest of the thread:

From: Steve Lubetkin [mailto:steve@lubetkin.net]
Sent: Friday, May 06, 2005 5:46 PM
To: Edelman, Richard

Subject: RE: Your email

Richard, I don't think we had a cacaphony at all. From the documents I
have, you were invited personally to attend on behalf of Edelman. Why
you don't recall the invitation, I can't say.
Council of PR Firms was there, as were leaders of many major PR firms,
including Ray Kotcher, Tom Hoog, Larry Moskowitz from MediaLink, and
even journalists, represented by Kevin Smith from SPJ.
We had all the players in one room to discuss the issue.
It's one thing for a PR industry leader like yourself to miss the
opportunity to be at a true industry-wide summit on PR ethics because of
missed communications. These things happen. So I'll give you the benefit
of the doubt on that.
But then -- without doing any basic fact-checking that would have told
you that there already HAD BEEN a PR industry summit on ethics -- you
posted a blog entry suggesting that somehow the industry was ignoring
this issue. You made it sound like you are going to wave a wand and call
a summit to fix the problem. Well, pardon me, but that's just a little
ingenuous, and it's the kind of factually inaccurate hyperbole that
raises credibility problems for us all. That's why I commented on your
blog posting.
We'd love to have you on-board in this industry-wide initiative. Please
join forces with us. We will all be more credibile if we can achieve
alignment on ethical behavior throughout the industry. It's not going to
happen in the blogosphere.

-----Original Message-----
From: Edelman, Richard [mailto:Richard.Edelman@edelman.com]
Sent: Friday, May 06, 2005 5:49 PM
To: Steve Lubetkin

Subject: RE: Your email

Steve I accept Matt H [Matthew Harrington of Edelman] will be my proxy as he is running our ethics task force
I don't want to be a pain or to solve this in blog land
I do want to tell you that the Council of PR Firms for one is going its
own way
We want to be part of the solution for sure
Thanks for making sure we are in

Anyone else think Richard should post all the comments on his blog, not just the ones that make him look good?

New Blogs and Podcasts (Public Relations Ramblings)

PodcastSteve — Fri, 13 May 2005 22:32:00 +0000

We got a mention on Public Relations Ramblings. Thanks, Chris Thilk, for the
mention.

-----------------------------------------

Lubetkin & Co managing partner Steve Lubetkin has picked up the blogging
bug.

http://feeds.feedburner.com/PublicRelationsRamblings?m=11

Pay to Play Still Extends to Wall Street Analysts?

PodcastSteve — Wed, 18 May 2005 14:37:00 +0000

Interesting one-liner in the South Jersey Courier Post coverage of local darling of bank analysts, Commerce Bank (NYSE: CBH). Story about the shareholders' meeting mentions how the executives tried to deflect questions about the recent convictions of two bank executives in the pay-to-play corruption trial of Philadelphia City Treasurer. The story then mentions that the company's chairman, Vernon Hill, "also confirmed the bank sponsors seminars by Jim Cramer, a commentator on TheStreet.com who is a Commerce booster."

OK, let me get this straight.

Jim Cramer, a guy who holds himself out as an independent expert on various stocks, and who tells his paying clients they should invest in Commerce because he thinks it's a good investment, is on the company payroll, in the form of a sponsorship fee for seminars he conducts -- seminars that he charges people to attend, and at which he probably also touts Commerce's stock?

Nothing like independent financial advisors, is there?

Podcast links moving to libsyn.com

PodcastSteve — Fri, 20 May 2005 13:28:00 +0000

When I started the www.lubetkin.net website, I thought 600 mb was a lot of webspace. That was before I began podcasting with high-quality 192kbps MP3 audio files to take advantage of the stereo quality I can achieve with my Olympus DS-2 digital audio recorder.

Fortunately, thanks to my friends Shel and Neville at For Immediate Release.biz, I learned about LibSyn, a podcast syndication service that offers cost-effective hosting for podcast files. So we're moving the CompuSchmooze podcast archives (and future shows) off the main server.

So effective immediately, all of our podcasts for our different blogs are now being stored on our new podcast server at http://lubetkin.libsyn.com. You can also download our podcasts there for Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast, RatingAgency.com, CompuSchmooze and our audio syndication feed for radio stations, Lubetkin Broadcasting.

RSS feeds for all of our podcasts/blogs remain at Feedburner.com. I will republish all of the blogs with the revised links.

CBC to Develop a National Podcasting Show (I Love Radio .org)

PodcastSteve — Thu, 02 Jun 2005 10:15:00 +0000

Podcasting is gaining ground in the radiosphere, that is, the in the
"legitimate" sphere of radio broadcasting.

CBC Radio, Canada's public broadcaster, is developing a weekly on-air
program about the blogosphere and podcast community, using the voices of
audio bloggers and podcasters, reports Tod Maffin on his I Love Radio blog.

CBC has commissioned Tod (http://www.todmaffin.com) to host and produce the
show and a pilot is currently in production (not all pilots make it to air).
Maffin is an active podcaster and blogger, and maintains CanadaPodcasts.ca.
He has been a national producer and host for CBC Radio for several years. He
is also the networks technology columnist.

I've just completed a CompuSchmooze podcast interview via Skype with Tod
about his excellent e-book, "From Idea to Air: Podcaster's Edition, A
Podcaster's Guide to Making Radio," which gives practical, step-by-step
instructions on how to script audio features for radio and for podcasting.
The book spends a worthwhile amount of time on podcasting equipment and
software for recording, and how to edit a show. You can get the book for $15
for a limited time at http://todmaffin.com/ideatoair/podcast_edition.htm

The podcast interview with Tod Maffin will be posted to our CompuSchmooze
podcast/blog in the next few days.

According to Tod's blog entry, over the next week, he will be travelling to
major Canadian cities to host a series of podcaster meetups in Vancouver,
Toronto, and Ottawa (with a special invitation to Montreal podcasters) to
field questions about the show pilot and explain how podcasters can get
involved.

Should the pilot get approved, the program will likely be called The Feed
and its web site is at http://thefeed.org

Tod's blog reports that the CBC podcast show will air "the very best moments
from the best podcasts from around Canada and the world," and adds that
"Podcasters selected for the show will be paid a license fee to air their
material." Steve calling Tod: "Hello, I'm ready to license!"

The Feed will also be available for acquisition by other public radio
networks via the prx.org licensing site, Tod said. He added that he expects
CBC to announce what he called "a series of major podcasting initiatives
over the next few days."

More info at Tod's I Love Radio blog:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/iloveradio?m=432

Coincidence or Premonition?

PodcastSteve — Tue, 07 Jun 2005 10:00:00 +0000

John Grogan's column in the June 7 Philadelphia Inquirer, "Honked off by bumper sticker," describes his encounter in a massive traffic jam recently with a white SUV that cut him off. The gas guzzler was sporting a bumper sticker that said "I want to kill you." John rightly described the adult driver of the SUV as being sociopathic to think such a bumper sticker is funny.

In the print edition of the paper, the column appears on page B2 in the South Jersey section. Directly opposite on page B3, is the story "Hit-and-run SUV kills woman, 83." In that story, the search continues for a white SUV that ran over a woman and kept going.

Connection, you think?

LOBP #6: A Podcast from the PRSA Silver Anvil Awards

PodcastSteve — Sun, 26 Jun 2005 14:25:00 +0000

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #6: Live soundscape report from the Public Relations Society of America's Silver Anvil Awards Evening, held in New York City June 9, 2005. Interviews with participants and sounds of the awards ceremony, introduced by Steve Lubetkin.

A complete list of Silver Anvil Award winners is available on the PRSA website.

Surprise! The mainstream media send mixed messages...

PodcastSteve — Tue, 28 Jun 2005 13:43:00 +0000

A couple of items in the mainstream media caught my eye this week and deserved to be blogged.

The first deals with the odd juxtaposition of stories on the CBS Evening News Sunday night. The first story was a typical “tsk-tsk, shame on the media” report based on an Associated Press news item by Erin Texeira (TV people always want you to think they come up with this stuff by doing original reporting…CBS did not give on-air credit to the AP for the story) about how news coverage of missing people disproportionately focuses on young, white women, when the vast majority of people who go missing (“go missing” has entered the American lexicon from the UK; we used to say people who “disappeared.”) The report featured the frustration of an African-American woman in upstate New York who was unable to garner any media attention for the disappearance of her 42-year old sister.

The lesson from this report clearly has been lost on CBS News.

Don’t believe me? Flash forward to the next report on the very same newscast.

Barry Peterson, a veteran foreign correspondent, weighed in with a “Reporter’s Notebook” feature on how the survivors of last year’s tsunami are faring six months after the disaster. The report showed indigenous religious ceremonies in ornate Buddhist temples. It showed the efforts of living local residents to pick up the pieces and rebuild their lives. Then the report turned the camera’s eye on a memorial wall to those who died in the tragedy. Every photograph highlighted in this report showed a white, American face.

Are we in that much denial about the ethnicity of the vast majority of the tsunami’s victims? Most of those who died were nonwhite, poor residents of countries most Americans can’t even point out on a map, not white, blonde, and American.

Do we focus on the "runaway bride" and the "missing in Aruba" blonde teenager because they are more photogenically palatable to a white audience? The statistics in the original Texeira AP story suggest that there are more black men missing than blonde white girls. Here's a quote from that dispatch:

"To be blunt, blond white chicks who go missing get covered and poor, black, Hispanic or other people of color who go missing do not get covered," said Tom Rosenstiel, director of the Washington-based Project for Excellence in Journalism. "You're more likely to get coverage if you're attractive than if you're not."

When was the last time the network news media turned out to an inner city neighborhood with satellite trucks to broadcast live because a black man hadn't come home to his family?

Second item: This one is sort of funny, it's about locking the front door but forgetting about locking the one in back.

Comcast Cable is running a series of house advertisements urging subscribers to take advantage of the “parental controls” feature of its digital cable system to keep the kids from watching objectionable content. (I don’t bother with these controls, since my kids learned most of their shock vocabulary from the restroom walls at the elementary school, and there are no parental controls available there!)

Anyway, the commercial shows the kids sitting at home, trying unsuccessfully to access naughty cable content while Mom is out of the house, tooling around the other side of town in her SUV. And Mom can drive around in her gas-guzzler with total peace of mind, because she knows how to use the Comcast parental controls.

As evidence, the kids fail to dial up a porn show and express G-rated exasperation that Mom has outsmarted them.

But wait a minute! Aren’t those liquor bottles sitting on the open-sided wall unit behind the couch where the kids are sitting?

Good think Mom blocked them from watching The Sopranos, but let’s hope the kids don’t turn around in sheer boredom and look for some other mischief to get into…

Public Relations for Law Firms

PodcastSteve — Tue, 28 Jun 2005 19:46:00 +0000

My article, "Public Relations for Law Firms," was published in the May/June 2005 issue of The Declaration, the monthly magazine of the Philadelphia chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators. Courtesy of the editor, you can download a PDF of this article from my website by clicking the title of this posting, or by clicking here.

LOBP #7: PRSA Philadelphia Panel "Tuning into Diversity-Best Practices in Multicultural Marketing"

PodcastSteve — Fri, 01 Jul 2005 21:33:00 +0000

This podcast is a recording of a PRSA/Philadelphia panel held on Tuesday, May 3, 2005 at the Union League Club in Center City Philadelphia. This program focuses on the growing importance of multicultural markets and their enormous buying power - more than $900 billion annually in the U.S. - represented by African-American, Hispanic, and Asian consumers. Diversity is a key strategic goal of the Public Relations Society of America.

Nationally recognized panelists will explore some of the "best practices" for developing brand building initiatives aimed at multicultural audiences, offering a summary of best practices in multicultural marketing, and discussing the applicability of these best
practices and other factors important in their use and suggestions on how to integrate multicultural marketing as a core brand-building
discipline.

Moderator is: David W. Brown, President/Principal, Brown Partners, Philadelphia, PA

Panel
Rosanna M. Fiske, APR, Principal & Partner, Communique Group/Rise
Strategies, Coral Gables, FL; Rosanna is a member of the PRSA National Board of Directors and national chairperson for PRSA’s Diversity initiatives.
Marc Curtis Little, Partner, BrooksLittle Communications, Jacksonville, FL
Kenneth Wong, Principal, CIG Asia Ltd/Combined Insurance Group, Philadelphia, PA

http://libsyn.com/media/lubetkin/LOBP7-Diversity.mp3

We comment on George Steinbrenner's PR Moves in NJ's most influential newspaper

PodcastSteve — Mon, 04 Jul 2005 16:21:00 +0000

Steve is quoted in "Experts: Steinbrenner guilty of bad PR." in the July 4 Star Ledger. Story available free for 14 days. After that, email me.

Middle Chamber Books at Lubetkin & Co. Offers Cherry Hill Summer Reading List Books for Sale

PodcastSteve — Wed, 06 Jul 2005 21:47:00 +0000

All of the books in the Cherry Hill High School East Summer Reading List are available through Middle Chamber Books.

Follow the link above to http://www.lubetkin.net/middlechamber/eastbooks.htm to order your summer reading books.

We are an Amazon.com Associate bookstore.

Reserving the idea for a new reality TV Show

PodcastSteve — Wed, 13 Jul 2005 10:32:00 +0000

You want your kids to marry royalty? How about this for a reality show? (Dog the Bounty Hunter, please step aside.)

The father's a prince, the mother's a former actress. They reign over a tiny kingdom that has gambling as its primary industry.

The kids, well, the youngest daughter has children with three different men, the middle daughter has been married, er, several times, and the eldest son and heir is a member of the "mile-high club."

The title: "Those Wacky Grimaldis."

Just want to stake out my legal claim when this one debuts on MTV later this year.

Boston Herald Columnist has PR folks circling the wagons, but this time, gang, the reporter is onto something

PodcastSteve — Wed, 13 Jul 2005 12:36:00 +0000

Memo to the PR industry:

Let's all calm down about the Boston Herald column by Brett Arends slamming corporate PR people for not returning calls and not having the ability to answer simple questions.

Many PR people are rising up in anger with war stories about "when I was in corporate communications this reporter did that to me..." and all the grievances about reporters that you can think of. The column has been widely blogged. And here too.

But whoa, kiddies. Arends is right!

Strange words coming from someone who sits on the PRSA Board, I know. But let's stop being emotional and look at this objectively.

Let's take a minute and think about the underlying trend that Arends' observation hints at.

Corporations, large ones like the big financial institution that gobbled up my employer last year and sent me off into severance land, are drastically reducing their dependence on in-house PR people.

Corporate PR practitioners with lots of experience command decent salaries.

Big companies like to reduce decent salaries whenever possible, so when it's time to reduce headcount, seasoned PR people are often among those heads whose count gets reduced.

The same day I got tossed overboard, they also tossed a guy who had been handling media relations crises for the company for nearly three decades.

How do you let that much institutional memory and expertise walk out the door? And if you do make a decision to cut expenses in that way, how can you be surprised when reporters notice that the level of service has declined dramatically?

Reporters are, in a sense, customers of the PR department. And if the way you serve those customers gets changed dramatically, why are we shooting the messenger who's writing about how things have changed?

I've talked to lots of reporters recently who have complained about how big companies don't return calls, don't tell them anything useful on the rare occasions when they do return calls, and frankly don't seem to care if the reporters write about the company at all.

This is not going to pay off in great good will for these companies when they need community support for some initiative. If you only deal with reporters when you want something from them, you will be very sorry.

I know of one company in the financial sector that used to have a national team of media relations professionals representing its interests at a ratio of nearly one person for every state in which this company operated.

Know how many people handle regional media for them now?

One, with occasional help from very junior people who don't know the reporters, don't understand the issues. These junior people are paid a fraction of what the expert, senior practitioners used to earn, and all they can do is read from a script, if they are even given that much to say.

The bottom line is not that reporters are being unfair.

The true story is that large companies have made a conscious, cost-cutting decision that having expert counsel from veteran media relations people is NOT something they want to pay for right now.

And so a lot of very young, very junior/inexperienced people are answering calls from reporters they don't know and don't know how to handle.

The few, more-seasoned PR people tend to be at a distant headquarters, and generally their job is to shield executives from press inquiries by barking orders to those very junior people, who only are allowed to answer the phone, but don't have the authority to do or say anything.

As PR leaders, that's what we should be concerned about.

Brett Arends is telling our profession that it smells like something is burning. We should not be criticizing him for noticing the smoke!

We should be figuring out how to get corporate senior executives to understand that they are stoking the fire, and it will singe their eyebrows eventually.

Boston Herald is listening...

PodcastSteve — Wed, 13 Jul 2005 16:23:00 +0000

Thanks to Jay Fitzgerald, author of the Boston Herald EconoBlog, who liked what I said about Arends column (see below).

GM Vice Chair Bob Lutz is doing good PR for himself, but watch those hyperlinks!

PodcastSteve — Fri, 15 Jul 2005 11:11:00 +0000

The Financial Times noticed Bob Lutz at General Motors doing something most of the rest of us bloggers also do. We all promote our other articles and activities.

A short item in the FT today notes that "General Motors' vice-chairman and blogger-in-chief Bob Lutz devotes the latest entry on his FastLane blog to three reading suggestions for the summer holidays."

One is a first-person piece in Information Week describing his experience as an executive blogger.

Another is in AutoWeek, which I only found by reading one of the comments on Lutz's blog, and then linking to a related article in AutoWeek that had a referral link to the Lutz piece, but the direct link on the GM FastLane Blog doesn't work.

The third one is a link to Edmunds.com that doesn't work either, unless you copy and paste it.

So even though the FT found it necessary to take a tartly worded parting shot, "No prizes for guessing who is in charge of designing GM's new vehicles," I say, "Go Bob!"

But here's a tip to the people supporting every blog, including Bob Lutz's blog: Please make sure to have reprints of the articles PDFed and linked to your blog because these things are frequently only available to subscribers at the publications' websites, or, more commonly, they go offline completely. Two of the three links Lutz provided yesterday are already not working correctly from the GM Blog.

Dynamically published websites like magazines and news services don't make it easy for bloggers to publish links that remain active, but we need to be careful that the links we send our readers out to scarf up remain active.

The points critics don't want to make about public relations

PodcastSteve — Thu, 28 Jul 2005 13:05:00 +0000

There's been an awful lot of mud thrown at people who do public relations lately, including critics raising scurrilous questions about the value of hiring ghostwriters to help scientists and other technical professionals prepare articles for mainstream publications. Deborah Radman, chairwoman of PRSA's Counselors Academy, responded effectively to this criticism in today's New York Times.

Writers Group Rescinds 'Conscience in Media' Award Given to Judith Miller (Editor and Publisher: Today's Most Viewed Articles)

PodcastSteve — Thu, 04 Aug 2005 20:58:00 +0000

Independent writers have chickened out supporting Judith Miller for
protecting her sources. Are we back in the Nixon years, when the news media
was afraid of the government?

http://editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=
1001008093&imw=Y

...declare it a parade and make yourself grand marshall...

PodcastSteve — Mon, 08 Aug 2005 12:57:00 +0000

PR exec turned layoff into career opportunity

The high quotability of a wonderful piece of advice I was given by John Cooney, former attorney at Bank of America, with whom I worked on a very challenging and difficult press issue, helped to get me profiled in this past Sunday's Star-Ledger (Newark, NJ).

Thanks, John!

Stop Junk Mail to Dead Relatives...only $1

PodcastSteve — Mon, 08 Aug 2005 18:14:00 +0000

In a true modern definition of the Yiddish term chutzpah, the Direct Marketing Association is now offering you the opportunity to have deceased relatives removed from mailing lists. It will only cost you $1 for the privilege. Gosh, what a bargain.

Since it costs the direct mail marketing industry a lot more than $1 per piece to send junk mail to dead people, I say, let them keep sending it until they all go bankrupt from mailing to dead people.

It will serve them right.

Trackbacks enabled for LOB

PodcastSteve — Tue, 16 Aug 2005 11:06:00 +0000

We've signed up with Haloscan to provide trackback linking and commenting functionality. We hope this is useful to you. Please let us know!

Claiming Feedster Feed

PodcastSteve — Wed, 17 Aug 2005 18:38:00 +0000

No Need to Click Here - I'm just claiming my feed at Feedster feedster:0aa6ffd3540286dc75bd6946c7c61b7b

Newark Speaks - Where is Sharpe's other hand??

PodcastSteve — Fri, 19 Aug 2005 05:19:00 +0000

Newark Speaks - Where is Sharpe's other hand??

Scroll down the message board to see yet another use of the photo of me with Mayor James of Newark...

FDIC again warning banks about fake cashiers' checks

PodcastSteve — Fri, 19 Aug 2005 11:44:00 +0000

This alert recalls the blog entry I wrote several months back about how commercial banks are not giving tellers adequate training to identify these fake checks and to protect their customers from being defrauded. If anyone has heard about a customer losing money by depositing a fake cashier's check, write me at steve@lubetkin.net or post a comment to this blog.

Eight Counterfeit Checks And Money Orders Special Alerts Issued
Eight Special Alerts have been issued by the FDIC regarding counterfeit cashier’s checks drawn on White Oak State Bank, White Oak, Texas, Newtown Savings Bank, Newtown, Connecticut, and Waldo State Bank, Waldo, Wisconsin; counterfeit official checks drawn on HomeStreet Bank, Seattle, Washington, and Cathay Bank, Los Angeles, California; counterfeit checks drawn on NCB, FSB, Hillsboro, Ohio; counterfeit treasurer’s checks drawn on Laconia Savings Bank, Laconia, New Hampshire; and counterfeit money orders drawn on Shell Lake State Bank, Shell Lake, Wisconsin. Information concerning the counterfeit checks and money orders has been posted on the BOL Alerts & Counterfeits page.

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #8: Interview with Garrett Graff, editor of FishBowlDC blog

PodcastSteve — Tue, 30 Aug 2005 14:58:00 +0000

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #8: Interview with Garrett Graff, editor of FishBowlDC blog (23:05, MP3 31.7 mb)

Garrett was the firstblogger to be given a White House press credential. More recently, it was announced in the Washington Post and on Jossip that Garrett will become an editor-at-large at Washingtonian Magazine. Garrett tells LOBP that he will continue blogging for FishBowlDC, although a co-writer will be engaged. Says Garrett, "I couldn’t give up blogging, it’s too much fun!"

Program Notes
01:04 to 05:17 - Steve notes the debate regarding Boston Herald columnist Brett Arends' column about poor experiences with corporate PR people in Boston, and mentions his own response to the Arends column that took companies to task for reducing the number of seasoned PR people in corporate PR departments.The segment also includes an excerpt from the "For Immediate Release" podcast by Shel Holtz and Neville Hobson.

05:17-21:26 - Interview with Garrett Graff

Garrett Graff was previously vice president of communications at EchoDitto, Inc., a Washington, D.C.-based technology consulting firm. A Vermont native, he served formerly as deputy national press secretary on Howard Dean's presidential campaign and, beginning in 1997, was then-Governor Dean's first webmaster. In college, he was a news writer and executive editor at the Harvard Crimson, Harvard University's daily newspaper, where he wrote more news articles than any other writer in half-a-century and held internships at ABCNews' Political Unit and at the Atlantic Monthly. He is also a frequent speaker on blogging and the intersection of politics and technology.

21:26-23:05 - Closing credits. Thanks to 300Stars for Ying Yang, our theme music.

Thank Heavens Katie Paine is bringing some perspective and sanity to the blogging question!

PodcastSteve — Thu, 01 Sep 2005 10:58:00 +0000

Katie just posted a commentary on the New Communications Blogzine that is well worth the time. It's about the value of measuring the blogosphere. Everyone in PR whose clients are asking about blog measurement should read this to put things into perspective.

Katie writes (in part):

"Having just wasted another hour or so in the blogosphere, I've come to the conclusion that most companies should not be measuring blogs at all. To quote Bill Murray in Meatballs, (one of my all-time favorite flicks), "IT JUST DOESN'T MATTER!"

"Okay, if you are Hewlett-Packard and people are trashing your product on www.gizmodo.com you need to know about it. But there are maybe a dozen or so blogs out there that qualify as "influential" and that's exactly .00008% of the total. If you are Raytheon, and there are a hundred people on the planet who are allowed to buy your products, I can promise you that the purchasing decisions of those hundred are not going to be unduly influenced by what's being said in the blogosphere. "

All I can say is "Go get 'em, Katie!"

Incredible photos of the devastation by NY Times shooter Vincent Laforet

PodcastSteve — Fri, 02 Sep 2005 13:13:00 +0000

PDNOnline has a Q&A interview with Vincent Laforet, the New York Times photographer on the ground in New Orleans, whose dramatic photos have been illustrating most of the Times' coverage of the disaster.

[PDNonline: Today's Most Viewed Articles]

There's also an article about all of the photographers covering the catastrophe, and Laforet has posted many of his photos on the SportsShooter.com website.

Our thoughts and prayers remain with the people of New Orleans and all the surrounding areas. Please contribute to the relief efforts.

You can start at the Union for Reform Judaism's Disaster Relief Fund website.

I would really like someone to tell me...

PodcastSteve — Fri, 02 Sep 2005 13:36:00 +0000

...does this guy have anyone counselling him about his career-limiting ideas?

Yesterday, there was this report in the Inquirer:

His blog is laced with references to pornography and strip clubs, a lust for whiskey and women, and disdain for President Bush and Céline Dion. [News -- Philly.com]

This has got to be one of the dumbest things an elected official ever did. Blogging is becoming like the CB Radio craze of the 1970s. Everyone had to have one, and then some people started using the radios to broadcast profanity for no other reason than to hear themselves speak. So goes the blogosphere. It's this kind of juvenile spewing that will discredit the technology's really valuable attributes for delivery of narrowcast messages to interested audiences.

The rule of thumb always used to be "If you don't want to see it on the front page of the New York Times (well, ok, the Philadelphia Inquirer can hurt you too), don't say it."

Today, the Inquirer reported that the blog was offline. And to add embarrassment to stupidity, the Inky editorial page had this comment:

"But when Daylin Leach makes jokes about drugs and sex, he has given away his moral position on those issues in Harrisburg. And when he maligns the standard-bearer of the opposition party, he can kiss bipartisan cooperation goodbye.

No doubt Republicans are already targeting his 149th District as a winnable seat next year. They're smart enough to know voters don't want a representative who is a joke."

Where were the communications advisors when Rep. Leach said, "I want to blog about my fantasies about teenage girls, getting high, and visiting S&M clubs." Are we all so afraid of being fired that we don't give people the common sense advice they are supposed to be paying us for?

PR counselors, take note: You may need the revenue, but you don't get to keep the revenue over the long-term if you let your client make a fool of himself in public.

Steve is published in Financial Planning magazine, about effective conference panel moderation

PodcastSteve — Fri, 02 Sep 2005 17:55:00 +0000

Steve's article, "Message Control: Leading a panel discussion can be an effective way to get your ideas across, if you're prepared," appears in the September 2005 issue of Financial Planning magazine. You can download a PDF of the article here. (2.9mb PDF)

LOBP #9: Thomas Doll, EVP & CFO of Subaru of America

PodcastSteve — Tue, 20 Sep 2005 00:57:00 +0000

Thomas J. Doll, Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer of Subaru of America, was the keynote speaker on Thursday, September 15, 2005, at the Rutgers University School of Business (Camden) Executive Breakfast Series, held at the Tavistock Country Club, Haddonfield, NJ. This podcast features Mr. Doll's remarks. (61 mb, 48:30, stereo audio file.

http://libsyn.com/media/lubetkin/LOBP9-Subaru.mp3

Strategic Public Relations: 20 Creative Uses for Podcasts

PodcastSteve — Sun, 25 Sep 2005 12:16:00 +0000

Kevin Dugan lists 20 creative (commercial) uses for podcasts, and other podcasters like me are adding suggestions to the list. See his original list at
Strategic Public Relations: 20 Creative Uses for Podcasts: "http://www.typepad.com/t/trackback/3165185"

Since starting this blog and podcast, I've tried to advocate for professional production values in podcasts (that means editing out the glitches, false steps, feedback, etc.) I also believe that our listeners want something more than just me talking to myself, so I've tried to make interviews and location recordings a standard part of my programs. Take the listeners somewhere they can't go themselves.

Go portable, y'all. Record the events you attend, the activities in which you participate. I always have to force myself to get out of my windowless basement office once in a while.

LOBP #10: Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast -- A Special Interview, John Deveney, ABC, APR, president of Deveney Communications, New Orleans

PodcastSteve — Mon, 26 Sep 2005 00:00:00 +0000

In this special podcast, produced in cooperation with the Public Relations Society of America, we interview John Deveney, ABC, APR, president of Deveney Communications. John and his team had to evacuate from the affected area after Hurricane Katrina struck, and recently returned to New Orleans to help coordinate media relations in the crisis operations center of the New Orleans Travel and Tourism Bureau. He is still coping with the after-effects of Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita.

In this podcast, John describes the evacuation experience, the implementation of his firm's hurricane evacuation protocol, and the lessons learned from the experience. He provides advice for public relations practitioners reevaluating their own firms' crisis communications preparedness.

For more information on hurricane and disaster relief activities being undertaken by the Public Relations Society of America, visit http://www.prsa.org.

Theme Music: The New World Relámpagos, El Arlequín de Toledo, from GarageBand.com

LOBP #10 - 34:05, 47.9mb stereo.

Great Minds ... (yadda yadda yadda)

PodcastSteve — Mon, 26 Sep 2005 02:46:00 +0000

While I was producing today's podcast interview with PRSA National Board Member John Deveney, ABC, APR, president of Deveney Communications in New Orleans, about John's experience dealing with Hurricane Katrina, evacuation, and crisis PR for the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau, Shel Holtz and Neville Hobson of the For Immediate Release podcast were interviewing Charles Pizzo, ABC, past chairman of the International Association of Business Communicators (in photo), also a New Orleans resident, about his experience.

You can access their interview with Charles at this link.

Another example of how podcasting can bridge the gap between superficial broadcast news coverage and the in-depth highly specialized and carefully focused content that people will find valuable and can use in their daily work.

What a relief to hear him say this!

PodcastSteve — Mon, 26 Sep 2005 18:13:00 +0000

Wells Fargo CEO dismisses talk of megamerger

The Milwaukee Business Journal reports that Wells Fargo CEO Dick Kovacevich downplayed speculation that the San Francisco bank will combine with another major bank.

Note to blog readers: Remember when Mark Twain said "Rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated?" This is what bank CEOs all say right before they jump in and buy something big. I'd put my money on something here in the Northeast...maybe next Monday (they like to announce them Monday morning...)

Star-Ledger Feature About Blogs Only for Print Readers...

PodcastSteve — Sun, 02 Oct 2005 19:02:00 +0000

In today's edition of New Jersey's largest newspaper, the Star-Ledger's syndicated Technology Columnist Allan Hoffman writes about the popularity of RSS, and his column is billboarded on the business front page.

However, if you visit the Star-Ledger's website, you will not find the larger Sunday business feature written by locally by Star-Ledger Staff Writer Sara K. Clarke. Clarke's story, "The Inc. Blog: Companies learn the goodwill value of Web diaries," dominates the business front page of the Ledger, and with a sidebar by Hoffman about CEO blogs, takes up two-thirds of page 7 in the business section as well.

The Clarke article talks about the GM Fast Lane Blog, mentions Darren Rowse (left) , and talks about internal blogging at Sun Microsystems. It quotes David Weinberger, a fellow at the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at the Harvard Law School.

But if you visit the Ledger's website, you won't find the story or the CEO Blog sidebar. They simply don't exist on the Ledger's website.

Wonder what it is about blogs that the paper is trying to hide?

What Happened to "Days of Awe"? Now we trot out the poor and needy as props for a Today Show feature

PodcastSteve — Mon, 03 Oct 2005 13:47:00 +0000

As we approach the Jewish High Holidays, a time of introspection and reflection on how well we are maintaining our relationships with God and with those around us, I am struck by how easily the entertainment divisions of our broadcast networks have lapsed into using the poor and needy as mere props to create a visually "exciting" feature segment.

This morning on the NBC Today Show, we had a segment about NBC and TimeWarner helping Habitat for Humanity build houses for people affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The segment came complete with a live on-site audience of people to act as a cheering section for the demonstration build of housing frames, and obligatory non-interviews by Ann Curry with young children, into whose mouths she was easily able to insert the stereotypical emotions of how excited they were to receive toys and gifts, and how wonderfully everyone was treating them.

We even had a Dixieland band on site to serenade the lucky soon-to-be-homeowners.

And of course, these unfortunate hurricane victims felt absolutely no pressure to participate in this shameless dog-and-pony show to demonstrate their gratitude for their benefactors from north of the Mason-Dixon line.

Have we become so jaded that we need to create entertainment value from the devastation and need being experienced in the affected areas?

It's absolutely essential for us to dig deep to help these folks in their misery, but do we need to turn every act of kindness into a pat on the back for ourselves for doing what we're supposed to do? The wise scholar Maimonides http://www.chabad.org/library/article.asp?AID=45907 speaks of eight levels of charity, each one more honorable than the others. The Today Show event today ignored Maimonides' belief that the most honorable kinds of charity are when we give without expecting to get credit for the giving.

I know it's hard for media organizations to do anything without telling people loudly that they did it, but what would have been the harm if NBC had just donated whatever it donated, and had decided not to do a segment with a band and an audience, and kids being manipulated into saying things to make NBC feel good about its donations?

What's the harm for all of us if we give of ourselves without expecting to get credit?

And since it seems that it's all about getting credit for ever larger and more "spectacular" donations, is it any wonder to my colleagues in the PR world why they can't get the media interested in well-meaning but modest local donations to local charities?

Many (but thankfully not all) corporations are interested in "signature" donations to major national campaigns, but that effort to get recognition for the donation neglects needs much closer to home. In return for the flash and sizzle of being associated with Major League anything, or with celebrity CEOs, or glamorous galas that their senior executives can attend in tuxedo and gown, any kind of donations to local needs becomes expected, obligatory, and no longer newsworthy.

When was the last time you actually got the local media to cover a client's check presentation to a local charity?

Thanks, NBC. Now we know that charity without strings attached will never be a news story again, since we can't afford to fly in a network correspondent and arrange for a band.

Sara Clarke's Star-Ledger Story, "The Inc. blog" now online

PodcastSteve — Mon, 03 Oct 2005 20:40:00 +0000

The Inc. blog

In response to my blog entry and an email query to the reporter, I'm informed that the Sara K. Clarke story on corporate blogging is now online on the Star-Ledger's website at the link referenced above. They only leave these stories on the free section of their site for 14 days, so click now, supplies are limited!

BBC makes it look like George Bush gave them an interview about how God told him to do it...

PodcastSteve — Thu, 06 Oct 2005 20:37:00 +0000

The press release posted and embargoed at the BBC's press office website has a misleading and inaccurate lead.

Let's put aside for a minute how silly it seems to post something on a public website and then tell people it's embargoed. Rule #1 in PR 101 (all together, please?) "If you don't want to see it on the front page of the NYT, don't say it!"

The lead of the breathless press release states that 'President George W. Bush told Palestinian ministers that God had told him to invade Afghanistan and Iraq - and create a Palestinian State, a new BBC series reveals. '

Wow, I knew GWB was religious, but I didn't know he was messianic in that way! But wait, this is pure hype and editorializing by the BBC.

When you read further, however, you learn that the source for this amazing revelation is actually one of the Palestinian leaders engaging in some tasty hearsay. This didn't come from the White House.

The BBC's reputation for journalistic integrity is severely damaged by this kind of hyperbole, and it could have been avoided if the press release writer had simply added the phrase, 'according to a Palestinian leader who claimed to have heard the statements.' The way it's written makes it look like the Beeb interviewed George Bush and he said these things to a BBC news team. It's misleading, and whatever you think of Mr. Bush's politics or religious beliefs, it has no place in a BBC news release.

That's the gist of the formal complaint I lodged with the BBC's website. Let's see if they respond. I will report back if I hear from them.

Jewish Exponent: Yellow Pages Listing No Longer Couples 'Messianic' and 'Jewish'

PodcastSteve — Thu, 06 Oct 2005 20:54:00 +0000

My efforts to get Verizon to remove Messianic Christian congregations from the Synagogues section of the Yellow Pages has been reported previously in the Jewish Community Voice of Southern New Jersey. Now, the Jewish Exponent of Philadelphia has picked up the story.

But Verizon is still taking the approach that ad dollars are more important than misleading Yellow Pages readers. According to the Verizon official quoted in the Exponent's story, Verizon is not changing the categories elsewhere in the country. So I guess that means it's ok to mislead people in parts of the country where they don't complain to the chairman of Verizon?

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #11 - PRSA/New York MegaTech Day Panel on Blogging, Podcasting, and RSS Feeds.

PodcastSteve — Fri, 07 Oct 2005 22:38:00 +0000

REPOSTED TO ADD NEW PHOTO OF PANEL.

On September 29, I was a panelist on the topic of Blogs, Podcasts, and RSS feeds as part of at the PRSA/New York MegaTech Day event.

What’s New and Next on the Web? All about Blogs, Logs, Micropersuasion, Podcasts, RSS
Feeds and Related Tools and Tactics

From left, Don Bates, Media Distribution Services (MDS), panel moderator; Steve Rubel, vice president of CooperKatz Public Relations; BL Ochman of What'sNextOnline blog; Steve Lubetkin; Emiliano DeLaurentiis of Isanté online magazine. Photo courtesy Henry Feintuch, KCSA Public Relations.

Complete MegaTech agenda/program

This podcast is a live recording of that panel discussion. (stereo MP3, 123 mb, 1 hr. 25 min.)

Theme Music: "Sing Sing," the Dave Manley Band, from GarageBand.com.

PR NewsWire: New PodSpider Search Engine Delivers Largest Directory of Podcasts in English, Breaks Barrier of 20,000 Podcasts

PodcastSteve — Sun, 09 Oct 2005 06:07:00 +0000

This item comes from PRNewswire...the question in my mind is, how many web aggregators of podcasts do we really need? (And for the phrase "web aggregators of podcasts" you can substitute "airlines" or "manufacturers of gas-guzzling SUVs"...you get the picture)...

KARLSRUHE, Germany, Oct. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- RapidSolution Software today took another aggressive step toward its goal of becoming the market leader in podcasting technology by unveiling its new PodSpider Portal. The new internet-based podcast search engine leaps beyond the Apple iTunes directory, providing access to over 20,000 podcasts and the largest directory of podcasts available in the English language. The portal, available at http://www.podspider.com/ , coincides with a new release of PodSpider offering fully-automatic synchronization between a user's PC and MP3 player.

Paraphrasing the student to the rabbi as the villagers pack to leave Anatevka in "Fiddler on the Roof,"

"Rabbi, if there were ever a time for convergence to arrive, wouldn't this be a good time?"

"We'll just have to wait for [it] somewhere else," said the rabbi.

LOBP #12 - PRSA/Philadelphia Panel on Collaboration between PR and Advertising, 9/28/05

PodcastSteve — Sun, 09 Oct 2005 18:45:00 +0000

LOBP #12 - PRSA/Philadelphia Panel on Collaboration between PR and Advertising, 9/28/05

In this age of integrated marketing and increased emphasis on results, it is essential for public relations professionals to work effectively with advertising and marketing colleagues to plan and implement integrated programs. This lunchtime presentation will outline effective tools to expand the role of PR in the marketing mix. Nancy Bacher Long, president of Dorland Global Public Relations and Maribeth Roman Schmidt, president of FCF Schmidt PR will provide practical tips and share real world successes that you can implement immediately in your business.

Photograph made after the September program shows(from left): Dana King, director of marketing, Gregory/FCA, a member of the PRSA/Philadelphia Chapter board; and panelists Kristina Broadbelt, group supervisor, Dorland Global Public Relations; Maribeth Roman Schmidt, president of FCF Schmidt Public Relations; Kate Shields, vice president, FCF Schmidt Public Relations, and Nancy Bacher Long, president of Dorland Global Public Relations.

Download the podcast, a 71.5 mb file, 51:44 minutes, stereo MP3.

Daddy, why are all those Jews for Jesus on our front lawn?

PodcastSteve — Fri, 14 Oct 2005 20:21:00 +0000

No, they're not really, not yet at least, but I've laid in an extra supply of apples and honey in case I have to show them hospitality, now that the New York Times has taken up the story of the Great Yellow Pages Debate of 2005.

Just to recap, today's Times story was generated by the coverage in the Jewish Exponent that was repurposed on Ynet.com.

Original reporting was done by the indomitable Harriet Kessler, editor of the Jewish Community Voice of Southern New Jersey. (Full disclosure: I write a monthly column on technology for the Voice, but the discussions with Verizon over this issue happened in my capacity as Vice President for Government and Public Relations for the Jewish Community Relations Council of Southern New Jersey.

I don't think we've heard the final chapter on this. Stay tuned!

Yes, it's that "Who is a Jew" argument...

PodcastSteve — Fri, 14 Oct 2005 21:28:00 +0000

Jason Unger has blogged in support of my efforts with Verizon. Thanks, Jason!

Dealing With Data Theft: After the Fact: I have some expertise here...

PodcastSteve — Sun, 23 Oct 2005 15:04:00 +0000

Dealing With Data Theft: After the Fact:

How should banks communicate effectively with their external constituencies after a security breach? I've had to deal with this several times during my financial services PR tour of duty.

I was interviewed last week for an article by technology writer Eileen Colkin Cuneo. The article has appeared in several CMP Publications, including:

Information Week
Bank Systems & Technology Online
Security Pipeline
Desktop Pipeline
Systems Management Pipeline

LOBP #13: PRSA Philadelphia "Meet the Media" Panel, 10/14/2005

PodcastSteve — Sun, 23 Oct 2005 18:08:00 +0000

This podcast includes an informative and interactive media panel with representatives from some of Philadelphia's most prestigious media outlets as they offer tips on getting your pitches heard by the right people, and your news covered.

Participating in the panel were (from left): Dan Rubin, author of the Blinq blog for the Philadelphia Inquirer; Michael W. Armstrong, Assistant Business Editor, Philadelphia Inquirer; Frank Devlin, Associate Editor, Philadelphia Business Journal; Tom McGrath, Editor-at-Large, Philadelphia Magazine; Jonathan Morein, Senior Account Manager, Tattar Richards-DBC, who moderated the panel, and Scott Tattar of Tattar Richards-DBC, president of PRSA/Philadelphia. (66mb, 48 minutes stereo MP3 podcast)

Use words right, then you'll be an author

PodcastSteve — Tue, 01 Nov 2005 12:08:00 +0000

The dust-up over Google's efforts to scan and digitize every book ever printed reminds me of the 1970s Robert Klein comedy routine on the LP "Mind over Matter". It was called "The Final Record Offer," a parody of those late-night commercials offering compilations of hit music, or less-than-hit music, which offered "Every record ever recorded."

But today's Wall Street Journal article (Registration required) about this controversy includes indignant comments by Michael Gorman, president of the American Library Association, and Dean of Library Services at the Henry Madden Library, California State University, Fresno, who the Journal quoted as follows:

FAIR USE EXCERPT FROM Wall Street Journal:

Further, he noted that as a published author, he opposes Google's intention to build an enormous database that includes copyrighted texts. "It's a flaunting of my intellectual property rights," he said. [Emphasis added.]

Mr. Gorman, please note that "flaunting" means (according to Yahoo!'s dictionary) "To exhibit ostentatiously or shamelessly: flaunts his knowledge."

Yahoo! goes on to note, as I would have:

To flout is "to show contempt for": She flouted the proprieties. For some time now flaunt has been used in the sense "to show contempt for," even by educated users of English. This usage is still widely seen as erroneous and is best avoided.

Mr. Gorman is flaunting his understanding of copyright law; Google has not yet been found by a court to be flouting the law, but Google may be flouting Mr. Gorman's understanding of it.

But just to be clear, before we create a noun to accomodate each of these, please remember that a flautist is not one who flouts; it is one who plays a flute.

Fair Measures - Employee Blogging Package

PodcastSteve — Fri, 04 Nov 2005 00:38:00 +0000

Here's a legal solutions firm that has created a checklist package for employee bloggers to make sure they don't get "dooced," or fired for blogging.

One way to keep from getting fired is to refrain from dissing your employer online! When we did a blogging panel together in New York in September, BL Ochman expressed astonishment at the naivete of some bloggers who were surprised when a young woman got fired after candidly blogging about how much she hated her boss and her job in a specific PR firm.

What did she expect?, BL wanted to know. Indeed.

My first mentor in the PR world, Don Campbell, a former Erie-Lackawanna salesman turned PR savvy guru, once told me, "I was never sorry for the things that I DIDN'T say."

How true. How valuable.

South Jersey Courier Post Story on Blogging

PodcastSteve — Mon, 07 Nov 2005 00:11:00 +0000

Courier Post Photo by Avi Steinhardt

In the November 6 "South Jersey Living" magazine section of the Gannett-owned South Jersey Courier-Post, I was interviewed in the article, "Blog spot: Web blogs offer South Jerseyans a place to express themselves and make a difference," by staff writer Judith W. Winne.

PubSub Community Lists: The PR List

PodcastSteve — Thu, 10 Nov 2005 16:35:00 +0000

PubSub Community Lists: The PR List

Our blog is tied for 73rd place in the newest ranking of PR blogs! If you are blogging about PR or journalism, please consider an in-link to our blog. Thanks!

Born to Run Turns 30...will it infect your PC with spyware?

PodcastSteve — Wed, 16 Nov 2005 00:12:00 +0000

In all the swirl of controversy over Sony's boneheaded copy protection scheme that secretly deposits spyware on your computer, no one has asked the critical question:

Bruce Springsteen's 30th Anniversary reissue of "Born to Run" is coming out tomorrow.

Bruce Springsteen records on Sony's Columbia Records label.

The inventory of CDs must have been pressed before the world found out Sony was secretly installing software on everyone's computers.

So the question is: Is the Springsteen CD going to pollute our computers? Should it be avoided until Sony publicly confirms that the CD does not include the egregious copy protection scheme?

This brings up the larger issue that consumers should be screaming about: Being treated like criminals by the companies we support with our dollars.

I tried to install an upgrade of TimeSlips 2006 today. You have to key in an activation code, a serial number, and then call to get a registration number.

But when I tried to open my database, it told me it had an error in it, and I would have to open it with the old version, fix the error, and then convert it to the new software. Only one "minor" problem: I overwrote the old software with the upgrade.

But no big deal, right? I have the CD and installation codes, so I should be able to reinstall the old software. Not so fast. It's an upgrade, so it won't install unless you have the PREVIOUS version installed so it can confirm a legitimate installation. So now I have to install version 8 -- THREE VERSIONS BACK FROM WHERE I AM NOW -- and then try to use the 10.5 upgrade CD to upgrade it. But the upgrade freezes when you try to upgrade, so now I am totally screwed. And they close their tech support at 5pm eastern time. (You only get one call before you have to pay anyway.)

I think the new rule of thumb is to refuse to buy software that assumes you are going to do something illegal with it. Companies should be ashamed of this approach to copy protection. And customers shouldn't put up with it any more.

On the Unbearable Precision of Language

PodcastSteve — Wed, 16 Nov 2005 00:32:00 +0000

There is a movie theater near us that we frequent because they show "small" and "art" movies in addition to the swill that Hollywood forces down our collective throats these days.

But this theater inflicts two quirky pre-movie announcements on audiences, and I have to report on them.

The first one, which the theater claims is required by state law, patiently informs listeners that there are two exits at the front of the theater, each marked with a red "Exit" sign. It then reminds us that there is also an exit at the back of the theater and -- Surprise! -- it is also marked with a red "Exit" sign.

In case of emergency, we are told, we should go to the nearest exit and exit the theater immediately.

Seems like the guy who wrote this got extra pay for how many times he could use the word "Exit." And what if someone doesn't know what "exit" means? (Let's not even discuss that the film is addressing a collective audience of "yous" plural, and should instruct "all of you" to "exeunt" the theater...)

But wait, there's more. After warning you that "for your peace of mind" you may not want to put handbags or other personal belongings on the floor (in case the guy behind you kicks over his soda, or just pees on the floor?)...then they invite you to provide comments to the manager of the theater. "He or she wants to be of service to you."

And companies wonder why their workers are dispirited and demoralized? Why should the employees be happy and smiley when the company doesn't even care to find out if the manager of a theater is male or female?

Best for last department: American Airlines "Bistro" flights. They used to put a cooler in the jetway and tell you it was a Bistro flight. That's aviation talk for "We fired all the flight attendants, pick up your own damned lunch!"

NJBankers Podcast #1: Outlook for 2006

PodcastSteve — Thu, 08 Dec 2005 17:40:00 +0000

NJBankers Podcast #1: Forecast 2006
Recorded Thursday, December 1, 2005 (163.3 mb mono MP3 file, 1:58:55)

Steve adjusts microphone for Sun National Bank president Tom Bracken during the podcast recording

NJBA Photo/Timothy Doherty

What direction will New Jersey's economy take in 2006?
What effect will our new governor have on the business climate?

Who better to answer these and other questions than the head of the NJ State Chamber of Commerce, the Chief Examiner for the New Jersey Deparment of Banking and Insurance and the Chairman of the NJ Council of Economic Advisors?

Now, listen to the entire program in this first of a series of podcast recordings, produced for NJBankers by Lubetkin & Co. Communications LLC of Cherry Hill, NJ.

Speakers

Mr. Bracken began his banking career with New Jersey National Bank in 1969. He was named Executive Vice President and Head of Commercial Banking in 1975, and retained that position through CoreStates' acquisition of New Jersey National Bank. In 1993, Mr. Bracken was named President of CoreStates/New Jersey National Bank and in 1998, following the CoreStates merger with First Union Bank, he was appointed Executive Vice President and Head of Commercial and Government Banking for New Jersey, New York and Connecticut. In May of 2000, Mr. Bracken was named Executive Director of First Union's Public Sector Group. Tom currently is the Chairman of the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce.

Thomas A. Bracken
President & CEO, Sun Bancorp, Inc.

Dr. Seneca is Chairman of the New Jersey Council of Economic Advisors. The Council prepares semiannual economic outlooks and advises the Governor and Legislature on economic policy and economic development. He has taught at all levels of instruction throughout his career at Rutgers and has received numerous awards for exemplary teaching and contributions to public service. Dr. Seneca is the author of numerous articles, reports and books on economic policy, public finance, environmental economics and state economic development. He was named the 2002 Educator of the Year by the Research and Development Council of New Jersey.

Dr. Joseph J. Seneca
Rutgers University Professor, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning & Public Policy

Mrs. Akey has served as the Chief Examiner of the Division of Banking since October 1989. As Chief Examiner, Mrs. Akey is responsible for the examination and supervision program for all State chartered commercial banks, savings banks, savings and loan associations, trust companies and holding companies for the State chartered institutions. Mrs. Akey has also served as the Secretary to the Bank Advisory Board since 1994.

Janine J. Akey
Chief Examiner, NJ Department of Banking & Insurance

Direct download: NJBankers1-Outlook2006.mp3

New York Times Notices the result of the "Soylent Greening" of American corporations...

PodcastSteve — Fri, 09 Dec 2005 16:05:00 +0000

In today's New York Times, "New Surveys Show That Big Business Has a P.R. Problem," by Claudia Deutsch, underscores my feeling about the "Soylent Greening" of American corporations.

It's good news for those of us who are independent consultants, but large companies need to understand that cutting overall costs by getting rid of experienced professional communicators on their staffs has its risks -- and so does hiring outside communications consultants who lack the business experience of seasoned (read "older, more expensive") professional communications executives.

For those of you too young to remember, "Soylent Green" was a very counterculturish 1973 film in which young people in a future society were trying to figure out what mysterious things were going on in the company that produced a popular environmentally friendly (!) food biscuit called "Soylent Green."

At the end of the movie it turns out they were turning the senior citizens into processed food bars.

Sort of like what's happening in corporate America to the seasoned, experienced PR staffs -- with the result being articles like this one in the Times, about how the business leaders can't understand why they are doing such a bad job of communicating about the importance of their business.

When you outsource your communications to someone who wasn't even born when the Penn Central Railroad defaulted on its commercial paper (1970), or whose parents were in elementary school when John Lennon died (1980), you are going to be communicating with your constituencies through a lens that cannot provide any context for the overall evolution of your business over more than a single business cycle. Businesses generally do outlast a complete business cycle, but they often expect to tell their story by using people who've only been there a few months or years at the most.

If companies are going to downsize their communications teams and rely on outside counsel, they need to stop regarding their former communications leaders as raw input for the Soylent Green factory, and demand that their outside PR firms engage the services of some individuals with experience, communications skills, and an understanding of context -- how the business operates, and why it is important.

It's not just about how many clips you show to the C-Suite. As the movie says, "Soylent Green is...people."

Why "Public Relations" and "Credibility" are becoming mutually exclusive

PodcastSteve — Sun, 11 Dec 2005 15:52:00 +0000

It's a fine line between public relations and publicity, but most people can understand the difference between arranging for a corporate executive to appear on a news interview show and making sure that the right starlets and the right rappers are invited to the lavish party with just the right color of red carpet.

Nevertheless, there is a worrisome trend among PR practitioners to go for the lowest common denominator to keep clients happy. What I mean is PR people who think creating a stunt generates excitement for a product or service. You may get 10 seconds on the evening news as a b-roll background to the weather statistics, but this isn't about communicating your client's message. This is a diminishing-sum game that will irreparably damage a PR industry already on the credibility ropes if it continues.

We wail and gnash our teeth about journalists not giving us respect and we wonder why we don't have credibility with them.

PR people: Look in the mirror for the answer to this dichotomy.

Tanya Barrientos' "Unconventional Wisdom" column in Saturday's Philadelphia Inquirer, "Story pitches we should just, well, pitch," gets to the heart of the "let's find a news hook, no matter how tenuous, ridiculous, or contrived it is" disease that afflicts many inexperienced -- and some surprisingly very experienced -- practitioners.

The sad part is that many clients of PR firms think this sort of pitch is a really clever way to get their clients in front of the media.

It may sound exciting but generally all it does is turn the media off to those clients as credible sources of expertise.

Barrientos spotlights such silly approaches as these (direct quotes from Barrientos' column):

"It's holiday party time," the release says. "You've sent out invitations, hired a caterer and trimmed the tree, and you're looking forward to celebrating with your guests on Christmas or New Year's. But have you also planned for potential legal issues you may face as the host?"

Gastro Expert Tips for Avoiding Xmas Indigestion. The pitch? "Those big family dinners we enjoy over the holiday season have an unspoken dark side, one that's among society's last taboos: the flatulence that results from gastrointestinal distress."
The publicist goes on to suggest an interview with a nutritionist who authors the "first blog to tackle... serious, open discussions about why we fart... "

Now, these two examples are probably pitches for very small firms that are having trouble getting their expertise on the radar of the mainstream media.

However, stunt publicity is also being used by very large organizations that have reasonably seasoned practitioners and are paying their PR firms millions of dollars to do sophisticated studies, surveys, media clip analysis, and to throw so many people at a media campaign that you would think someone would tell them this emperor ain't wearing anything special.

One major financial institution is helping BusinessWire make its sales numbers for December by issuing a flurry of identical "media advisories" in markets all over the country.

The important news being "advised?" This company is alerting local media across the country that it is "depositing a large red couch" at major sporting events. Apparently, they are having sports fans dive into the couch casting around for loose change (not to be confused with a casting couch, one would hope).

This confection is served up to get people excited about a new "product" that rounds off your nickel and dime purchases and transfers money into a linked savings account. Wow, pardon my cynicism, but this is a big news event worth thousands of dollars in BusinessWire releases? This is the best thing that all these great PR minds could come up with?

What happened to having experts speaking plainly with people about personal finance issues and providing them with useful, actionable information? When the hoopla is all over and the fans go home and sleep off the beer buzz from the football game, are they really going to remember what that big red couch was for, let alone what firm paid to "deposit" it at the game? (Meanwhile, check with the financial reporters in the major media markets this company serves, and they say they can't even get a phone call returned promptly.)

My guess, the PR people all know this approach to the public is flawed, insulting to the intelligence of the most attractive (high-net-worth) potential customers, and is ultimately a bunch of hooey, but the PR people already have seen that the corporate poobahs don't want to hear how silly it is.

Even the agencies who help cook up this nonsense know that it is in fact nonsense, but they like the billable hours too much to put a stop to this madness by giving their clients the honest advice they are being paid handsomely to provide. So they get to do the silly tricks for a couple of years, they bill millions for it, and then they lose the account in a "review" a few years out, and someone else starts the miserable cycle all over again.

If we in the PR industry want more respect from journalists for our clients and ourselves, we need to cut out the "stunt" approach to communications, and start clearly articulating the competencies of our clients in a professional manner. We need to stop creating "events" and "opportunities" where no event or opportunity really exists. The public deserves better.

If we provide valuable resources to our friends in journalism, we will become credible.

But as long as we keep providing nothing more than bread and circuses, they will keep treating us like a bunch of clowns.

And we will deserve it.

Attention must be paid to such a woman...

PodcastSteve — Fri, 30 Dec 2005 13:57:00 +0000

Many of my colleagues in the PR blogosphere have duly noted the important posting by Katie Paine regarding a new PR measurement paradigm she is proposing on her KDPaine's PR Measurement Blog, and let me join the parade.

Katie is adamantly opposed (thank you very much, KD!) to the use of Advertising Dollar Equivalents or Advertising Value Equivalents, whatever you want to call them. This is where you measure the column inches of the story and multiply it by the dollar-per-inch advertising rate of the publication to get the value of the article. Agencies have been able to get that metric past unsophisticated clients for a long time.

Katie's now suggesting PRV, or PR Value Ratio, a measurement of the COST of achieving article placements, rather than the VALUE of the placements, to demonstrate the efficiency of PR -- by at least one order of magnitude -- over advertising.

As Katie explains it, "... if research reveals that your earned media has reached a million pairs of eyeballs with your messages that would be a significant milestone. More importantly if it reached those million eyeballs at a fraction of the cost of buying the same eyeballs (i.e. advertising), that would show that PR was contributing in a big way to the organization's bottom line. So for example if the annual PR budget is $100K and the Ad budget is $1 million and both deliver the organizations key messages to 5 million eyeballs a year, PR delivers the same output for a tenth of the cost so the value ratio would be 10:1."

It is becoming increasingly essential for practitioners to demonstrate hard dollar value from corporate PR expenditures, because it has traditionally been seen as a "soft-dollar" cost center that doesn't add anything to revenue. We need to prove that what we do is cost-effective, or when the lean years arrive, we will simply get carved away like the wings on a Thanksgiving turkey. Kudos, Katie!

Trackback URL for Katie's blog posting: http://www.typepad.com/t/trackback/3926587

Do you think he will offer special train service to the casino?

PodcastSteve — Fri, 30 Dec 2005 14:27:00 +0000

With all news media eyeballs dazzled and blinded by the glam-celeb front people renting out their egos to casino developers eager to get licenses in Pennsylvania, (like Sylvester Stallone, Donald Trump, and Pat Croce -- Quincy Jones was also mentioned), no one seemed to notice that the Inquirer's first-day story on the last-minute license rush included an affluent but obscure player: David LeVan.

In its "Power players look to cash in on slots" story on December 28, the Inquirer described him thus:

"David LeVan: A member of Rendell's transition team as governor, he wants to build a casino in Gettysburg."

Geez, Dave. How quickly they forget that you were once the chairman of one of Philadelphia's largest employers, Consolidated Rail Corporation, a/k/a Conrail . Where's a good transportation reporter like Tom Belden when you need him?

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, which still apparently has business reporters with some sense of history, at least realized there was a story here.

Yes, Dave was chairman of Conrail and thought he'd found a "white knight" in the CSX Corporation.

Unfortunately for Dave (and the thousands of Conrail employees whose jobs were ultimately vaporized), CSX got a better offer from Norfolk Southern, Conrail's old nemesis from the Reagan years when Liddy Dole wanted to sell the whole railroad to NS. So CSX and NS agreed to carve up Conrail, leaving nothing but a shell of the company. (Note to political wonks: Yes, the chairman of CSX who blindsided LeVan on that one was none other than our US Treasury Secretary, John Snow.)

LeVan and a few others pocketed huge severance payouts but many Conrail folks had to learn second languages ("would you like fries with that?") while he was growing his pony tail and opening his Harley Davidson dealership -- and donating generously to his alma mater, Gettysburg College.

Wonder if they will sell casino chips on the private rail cars hauling gamblers to Gettysburg from points east?

Check the New York Times on page A2 for what should be a very entertaining Editor's Note tomorrow...

PodcastSteve — Mon, 02 Jan 2006 12:14:00 +0000

The Metropolitan Diary Column in today's New York Times apparently has been fooled by an Internet con artist.

The lead item in today's column, allegedly by a reader named Dorothy Seeber, recounts her experience in a public rest room answering questions posed by the occupant of the adjoining stall. At the end of the conversation, the other person supposedly says: "Listen, I'll have to call you back. There's an idiot in the next stall who keeps answering all my questions."

The only problem is, this isn't a first-person story. It's a joke that's been circulating on the Internet for years!

A simple Google search of the words "idiot next stall answer questions" brought up several references to this joke, and it's frankly surprising that the editors of the Metropolitan Diary column never received an email from a friend including this joke (look at Joke #2 under September 30). I've gotten it several times over the last several years, including from my Mom (sorry Mom, but your friends sent it to you)!

Some other references to the same joke:

http://www.snowbirds.org/csanews/issues/42/41.html

University of California, Berkeley Commencement Convocation: Faculty Address by Professor Alan Dundes, Professor of Anthropology and Folklore, 17 May 2002, where Professor Dundes claims it happened to him.

Bathroom Conversation at JokesEveryDay.Com

It really makes you wonder who is vetting what gets sanctified as real life by the New York Times these days.

SweatShops for Tech People: Blog writer for tech site (US) (craigslist | writing/editing jobs in new jersey)

PodcastSteve — Tue, 03 Jan 2006 18:38:00 +0000

Someone is posting a job on Craig's List seeking a blog writer for a tech
website, and they think that $7 an article is a worthwhile amount to pay.
They've got to be kidding, or maybe the website is in a third world country.

Well, here's the link to the job posting. All of you communications pros and
freelance writers looking for extra income, please form a line at the cyber
door. http://newjersey.craigslist.org/wri/122229416.html.

Note to the job poster: You'll get what you pay for. Or not.

NY Times Admits Reader Misrepresented Metro Diary Story

PodcastSteve — Wed, 04 Jan 2006 12:38:00 +0000

Correction in today's NY Times (http://www.nytimes.com/ref/pageoneplus/corrections.html) reads:

A reader's contribution in the Metropolitan Diary on Monday misstated the origin of an anecdote about a cellphone conversation in a restroom that ended: "I'll have to call you back. There's an idiot in the next stall who keeps answering my questions." It has circulated for years; it was not based on the contributor's personal experience.

So it's the reader that "misstated" the origin of the anecdote.

I thought the Metropolitan Diary editors went to some extent to confirm that the stories they print are real life experiences.

Now we know that you can send them the hack gags you pick up off the Internet, and if the editors are bored enough with sifting through real stories, they might print the jokes.

Comedians, start your engines.

Waiting for confirmation

PodcastSteve — Thu, 05 Jan 2006 23:36:00 +0000

All the discussion about the mining disaster (double disaster because of the poor handling of the tragic news) reminded me of a smaller incident back when I worked in radio news on the overnight shift.

It was in the mid-1970s (yes, before the Internet and nonstop news cycles), and on the West Coast, LAPD had arrested a suspect in the notorious Hillside Strangler murders. By middle of the overnight, around 2am eastern, Associated Press wires had moved a story and a mug shot with the name of the suspect, for the AM-Cycle papers to use. For some reason, probably because I had to be awake to do hourly newscasts during the overnight, I fixated on the fact that this poor bastard was being named as the Hillside Strangler before even being charged with the crimes. I thought, "what if he's not guilty?"

So I didn't use his name on my overnight newscasts. I also alerted the overnight news editor at the co-owned newspaper so that we at least waited to see...and by 6am, the police had released the suspect and said he was no longer a suspect. But thanks to the AP, I believe most newspapers in the AM editions carried his photo and his name, and probably ruined the rest of his life (not much to ruin, he was a career criminal anyway, as I recall, but he wasn't the Hillside Strangler).

The best rule of thumb is the one Dan Rather attributes to Walter Cronkite's UPI training in The Camera Never Blinks: "Get the story. Get it right. Get it out first."

Too many people not picking up on the second sentence in that advice.

Paul is a dead man, miss him, miss him...if you are old enough to remember what the fuss was all about.

PodcastSteve — Mon, 09 Jan 2006 14:00:00 +0000

The most humorous thing in the Wall Street Journal's column 4 evergreen today, "Behind the Music: Sleuths Seek Messages In Lyrical Backspin," is not that some computer geek managed to convince them to trot out a story about this old, tired 1960s gimmick in a new, digital way on the front page of the largest circulation paper in the US.

What's really funny is the generation gap that seems to have developed between multibillionaire Paul McCartney and his publicist.

Some of you old enough (and sober enough) to remember the 1960s will recall the "Paul is dead" rumor that swept through Beatle fandom (as much as it was possible for rumors to sweep through something in that pre-Internet era). Also see Paul Is Dead, Is Paul McCartney Dead?, and countless other conspiracy-busting websites you can find by doing a Google search on the terms "paul mccartney dead."

Everyone was playing Beatle records backwards. Shure Electronics certainly saw a spike in sales of stereo turntable styli (ask your parents about diamond needles against vinyl) that were damaged from twisting the records backwards.

In today's article, reporter Dionne Searcey notes that

The search for hidden messages in music first gained popularity decades ago after Michigan disc jockey Russ Gibb, prompted by a caller, put a Beatles song, "Revolution 9," on his turntable and spun it backward. He said he thought he heard: "Turn me on, dead man." His observation fed rumors that Paul McCartney was dead. Mr. McCartney eventually turned up very much alive, but that didn't stop music fans from finding all sorts of alleged backward messages when they spun their other records in reverse.

Then, the account goes on to report that

Mr. McCartney's spokesman said the ex-Beatle was unavailable for comment, but he noted he had never heard the subject of secret messages come up with Mr. McCartney. "There's a lot of Beatle folklore out there," he added.

Paul's PR guy never heard of the secret messages? How old is this guy, and why is Paul paying a publicist who doesn't know about this particular piece of "Beatles folklore"?

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #14: Interview with Katie Delahaye Paine

PodcastSteve — Thu, 12 Jan 2006 19:44:00 +0000

Katie Delahaye Paine is one of the leading experts on statistically supportable measurement of public relations results. The CEO of KDPaine and Partners, Katie is a founder of the Institute for Public Relations special commission on measurement and evaluation, and she has served as the US liaison to the European Standards Task Force on international standards for media evaluation. Recently, she has put forth a concept paper on her blog about a new approach to public relations measurement, the "Public Relations Value Ratio," or PRV. We spoke with Katie this week about the new measurement tool.

Download the podcast here. (19:20 duration, 27mb stereo MP3 file.)

Podsafe theme music for this program: Soliloquy, by Omni, courtesy of GarageBand.com

Critical Mass is Approaching...whoops, it went hurtling right by us!

PodcastSteve — Wed, 18 Jan 2006 23:39:00 +0000

I was pleased to see this blog ranking 9th amonth PR blogs tracked in PubSub Community Lists: The PR List. We dropped two notches from yesterday, but hey, it's the top 10, isn't it?

Blog readers obviously go for quality...we'll try to do even better! Thanks for your support.

RutgersQBO: Rutgers University School of Business at Camden Quarterly Business Outlook Podcast #1

PodcastSteve — Tue, 24 Jan 2006 18:23:00 +0000

Lubetkin & Co. Communications is pleased to present the first podcast of the Rutgers University School of Business at Camden Quarterly Business Outlook. This quarterly forum, presented by Rutgers University in cooperation with the Chamber of Commerce of Southern New Jersey and sponsored by the law firm of Flaster Greenberg, features South Jersey area business leaders who assess the Southern New Jersey economy in their business sectors.

This program was recorded on Tuesday, January 24, 2006, at the Clarion Hotel and Conference Center in Cherry Hill, NJ. Technical specifications regarding our production of podcasts is available here.

Download the podcast program here (Stereo MP3 file, 85.6 mb, duration 1:00:54.)

The program was introduced by Stephen M. Greenberg, shareholder in Flaster Greenberg, sponsor of the QBO panel.

The panel includes five leading experts in economics, health care, manufacturing, retail/consumer products, and real estate who discussed current and six-month outlooks in their respective fields:

Economy: Dr. Joel Naroff, Chief Economist, Commerce Bank

Health Care: Richard Murray, President & CEO, Kennedy Health System

Manufacturing: Keith Campbell, Chairman of the Board, Mannington Mills, Inc.

Retail/Consumer Products: Ronald Wilson, President & COO, The Philadelphia Coca-Cola Bottling Company

Real Estate: William Hankowsky, Chairman, President & CEO, Liberty Property Trust

The Moderator is Roger Dennis, Provost, Rutgers University-Camden.

Special thanks to Samantha Collier, director of external affairs, Rutgers University School of Business, Camden, and Michael Sepanic, Director of Public Information, Rutgers University, Camden, for their interest in promoting podcasting technology.

LOBP #15: PRSA/Philadelphia Presentation, PR in the Military: Maj. Sean Clements, USMC Reserve

PodcastSteve — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 00:09:00 +0000

The term "war zone" took on a whole new meaning for Philadelphia PR professional Major Sean Clements, USMC when he left on a seven-month tour as a director of public affairs in Iraq.

Maj. Clements discussed the role PR plays in the military, especially during wartime, captivating us with stories of leading a team of combat journalists and photographers, managing embedded media during the battle of Fallujah, and even supervising an Iraqi polling site on election day.

Download the Podcast here. ( 70 mb stereo MP3 file, 49:48 duration).

Maj. Sean Clements with Michele Chierici, APR, Philadelphia PRSA Chapter President, after Clements' presentation January 19.

Podsafe theme music: "Resolve," by Simpático, from www.podsafeaudio.com.

At least we know where they stand on selling nonfiction books that really are true...

PodcastSteve — Mon, 30 Jan 2006 12:33:00 +0000

Jeffrey Trachtenberg's second-front story, "Publishers Say Fact-Checking Is Too Costly," in today's Wall Street Journal, describes a remarkable scene in the offices of Random House.

After appearing on the Oprah Winfrey show -- and not having a very good answer as to why they published as nonfiction a book Frey had shopped to other publishers as fiction -- Nan Talese, the publisher of the now-discredited fake memoir by James Frey, walked into her office to what Trachtenberg describes as "a standing ovation from her colleagues." This was followed by a supportive phone call from the chairman of Bertelsman, the big German conglomerate that pays her salary.

An aside: Let's not forget that Bertelsman's BMG music group is also connected to Sony and its ill-fated attempt to sneak spyware onto consumers' computers on the presumption that everyone who buys a Sony/BMG CD is a criminal.

So let me recap here: The company's employees give a standing ovation to lying to us about the books they publish, and another division of the company wants to spy on our computers.

The whole thing has haunting parallels to the Hitler Diary hoax about 20 years ago.

Back then, Newsweek magazine paid gazillions for what turned out to be forged diaries by Der Fuehrer. Then, instead of apologizing for hyping the forgeries in its magazine, they turned around and wrote a story about the forgeries that even said straight out, "Real or not, it almost doesn't matter."

In other words, the big media companies give their audiences so little credit for ethical behavior that they figure the truth "almost doesn't matter."

Sounds a lot like the way Nan Talese and Jim Frey were spinning the story last week. "So what if he lied, it's a great, true-sounding story."

That's why Oprah tried to get away with defending the book in her call to Larry King, until some common sense prevailed among her fans, and they took her to task for the lapse in ethical standards.

She was forced to backtrack -- not because the truth was so important to her -- but because she realized that her audience was unhappy with her lapse in ethical standards and she had to protect her brand's value.

The only real question left is why we keep enriching companies with questionable moral compasses by buying their tainted products?

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #16: Excerpts from Philadelphia Meet-the-Media Panel 2/7/2006

PodcastSteve — Wed, 08 Feb 2006 17:17:00 +0000

In this edition of our podcast, we present excerpts from a "Meet the Media" Panel hosted on February 7, 2006 by the Center City Proprietors Association and the Philadelphia Public Relations Association. The program was held at the PNC Bank Conference Facility in Philadelphia.

We've excerpted some of the key comments made by the veteran Philadelphia business journalists on the panel, shown in photo, who are (from left):

Henry Holcomb of the Philadelphia Inquirer

Natalie Kostelni of the Philadelphia Business Journal

Earni Young of the Philadelphia Daily News

Download the podcast here (33 mb stereo MP3 file, 24:00 duration).

Special thanks to Ed Kozmor, PNC Bank's senior external communications manager, for his hospitality.

Please take part in our podcast listener survey. Click on the icon or follow this link. Thanks!

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #17: PRSA/Philadelphia Breakfast Panel on Hurricane Katrina, 2/16/2006

PodcastSteve — Thu, 16 Feb 2006 21:51:00 +0000

In this edition of our podcast, we present a panel discussion conducted February 16, 2006 at the Cherry Hill Hilton Hotel.

Philadelphia PRSA February Program: "Hurricane Katrina: Surmounting the Communications and Public Relations Obstacles"

Panelists

Steve Rosen, President, Star/Rosen Public Relations, the PR division of The Star Group.
Steve and his team at The Star Group helped Touro Infirmary, one of New Orlean's oldest hospital, with all aspects of marketing communications before, during, and after Hurricane Katrina. Activities included crisis media relations, creating and hosting a Hurricane Information website, assisting with employee, patient and physician communications, as well as producing a new multi-media advertising campaign to ensure a bright future for the hospital post-Katrina.

Owen Edmonston, Senior Director, Internal Communications, ARAMARK and Dave Freireich, Senior PR Manager, ARAMARK.
ARAMARK played an integral role in the relief effort by providing facility services and hundreds of thousands of meals for Hurricane Katrina victims in multiple locations throughout the country. Owen and Dave were on site at the Houston Astrodome and discussed the victories and challenges experienced by the ARAMARK staff, as well as the communications vehicles used to apprise employees, the community, and the media of what was happening inside the walls of the relief efforts.

Jeff Brody, President, Omni Video Creations.
Jeff Brody, a video production professional, spent a good portion of his career with NFL films and shooting/editing for the major networks. In 1987, he founded Omni Video Creations and became a one-man production house, doing his own shooting, writing, editing, graphics, and narrations. Last fall, Jeff had the privilege of documenting Hurricane Katrina's impact on the Jewish community in New Orleans.

The program was sponsored by the Philadelphia Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America.

February Program Panel Discusses Communications and PR around Hurricane Katrina: Members of the February 16, 2006 Philadelphia Chapter Breakfast Panel in Cherry Hill discussed the PR community's response to Hurricane Katrina. From left: Steve Rosen, president of Star/Rosen Public Relations, Cherry Hill; Chapter President Michele Chierici, APR; Jeff Brody, president of Omni Video Productions; Owen Edmonston, senior director of internal communications, and Dave Freireich, senior PR manager, both of ARAMARK Corporation.

Chapter Members attending the February Hurricane Katrina panel chatted with Chapter President Michele Chierici, APR, at right. Shown with Michele (from left): Mary V. Danielsen, director of public information, Builders League of South Jersey; Jim O'Reilly, senior video production manager, D.S. Simon Productions, New York; and James Ely, vice president, communications, AirGas Inc., Radnor.

Download the podcast here (68 mb mono MP3 file, 49:32 duration).

Please take part in our podcast listener survey. Click on this link. Thanks!

Podcast Theme Music from Mike Stewart, "Internet Audio Guy"

REPOST FOR PODCAST LINK ON RSS FEED: Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #17: PRSA Philadelphia PRSA Panel on Hurricane Katrina

PodcastSteve — Fri, 10 Mar 2006 11:08:00 +0000

UPDATED 2:23pm 3/10/06. We seem to have some negative interaction between Blogger, Libsyn, Feedburner, and Podtrac. Somewhere, one of the services is incorrectly coding the podcast enclosure. We're trying to troubleshoot, but as near as we can tell, it has something to do with the referrer link from Podtrac, so we've taken it out in this reposting. We are trying to work with all the services to figure out where the problem is.

In this edition of our podcast, we present a panel discussion conducted February 16, 2006 at the Cherry Hill Hilton Hotel. For complete details, see the blog entry below this one.

Download the podcast here (68 mb mono MP3 file, 49:32 duration).

Posting to Claim this Blog's feed in Odeo

PodcastSteve — Fri, 10 Mar 2006 22:59:00 +0000

My Odeo Channel (odeo/45ae29a265ce4ea6)

BBC finally making Kenneth Clark's Civilisation available on DVD in the US...

PodcastSteve — Wed, 15 Mar 2006 15:02:00 +0000

We got this wonderful news today...someone was listening.

-----Original Message-----
From: customer.service [mailto:customer.service@bbcamericashop.com]
Sent: Wednesday, March 15, 2006 9:54 AM

Subject: Kenneth Clark's Civilisation on DVD

Dear Mr. Lubetkin ,

BBC Video (BBC Worldwide America) is proud to announce that 'Civilisation: A
Personal View by Lord Clark' (DVD) will be available for pre-order on May
23rd. We rely on our valued customers input and appreciate your patience.

Kind regards,
Dan

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #18: Interview with Cheryl Procter-Rogers, president of the Public Relations Society of America, 3/23/2006

PodcastSteve — Thu, 23 Mar 2006 12:33:00 +0000

In this edition of our podcast, we present a telephone interview with Cheryl Procter-Rogers, president of the Public Relations Society of America, the world's largest professional organization for public relations practitioners.

In a February speech to PR students at Ball State University, Procter-Rogers addressed three critical issues for shaping the future of the public relations profession. Diversity, ethics and risk are becoming increasingly critical to the financial success of businesses, she said. Cheryl also spoke to the students about the dangers of succumbing to "confirmation bias," a kind of complacency in which mass media audiences only pay attention to news and opinion content that matches their own belief system closely.

With more than 25 years experience in the public relations arena, Cheryl Procter-Rogers is currently corporate affairs director for Home Box Office (HBO), where she is responsible for the development and implementation of public relations and integrated marketing communications strategies across 11 states in the Midwest.

Before joining HBO, she worked as a communications consultant in the Chicago area, assisting such clients as Sears Roebuck & Co., Nissan North America, Inc., Allstate Insurance Company, McDonald's Corporation, and HBO in developing and implementing internal and external communications strategies supporting critical business objectives.

Cheryl holds an M.B.A. from Keller Graduate School of Management, Chicago, IL; a B.S. in English and Journalism from Bradley University, Peoria, IL; an E-Business Certificate from the School of Business Administration, Loyola University Chicago; and a professional designation in public relations from UCLA Extension.

She was the youngest member of the Los Angeles Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) in Los Angeles to earn the Accreditation in Public Relations (APR), and the first African American woman to earn that honor there.

In 2000, Cheryl became the youngest member ever to be inducted into the Public Relations Society of America's College of Fellows, a distinction held by a little more than 400 individuals in the field of public relations. She, along with Dr. Debra Miller, was the first African-Americans inducted into the College. She was the first African-American elected as president of the 500-member Chicago Chapter of PRSA. She is a charter member and past president of the Black Public Relations Society of Southern California.

Download the podcast here (43 mb mono MP3 file, 31:10 duration).

Please take part in our podcast listener survey. Click on the icon or follow this link. Thanks!

Podcast Theme Music from Mike Stewart, "Internet Audio Guy"

I was going to blog about this speaking appearance, but one of the other speakers beat me to it...

PodcastSteve — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 17:43:00 +0000

I'm in Newark participating in an NJIT seminar on new/social media like blogs, podcasts, and wikis. I thought I should mention it in a blog entry. I was hesitant to write a lenghty entry since I just have my Treo qnd not the external keyboard.

Fortunately, one of the other speakers had a laptop, was blogging during my talk on podcasts and beat me to it. You can read Ken Ronkowitz's blog entries here.

NJIT liked the program so much they booked all of us to repeat the program on June 21. More info at techexpress@dl1.njit.edu or on the website.

Note to online map users. Don't try to use MLK Blvd off of Route 280. Lots of construction and major traffic headaches.

Use Broad Street to Central Ave. Cross MLK Blvd and first left is Summit Place at NJIT.

Link to Ken Ronkowitz' blog entry

PodcastSteve — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 18:22:00 +0000

Here's the link to Ken's blog...

Another opening, another show...

PodcastSteve — Fri, 07 Apr 2006 02:48:00 +0000

Had a great time at NJIT yesterday...spending a lot of time on the road chatting people up about podcasting. More events coming up over the next several weeks, so if you happen to be in these neighborhoods, I would love to see you in "meat" space...

April 11, NJ Communications, Advertising and Marketing Association, Doral Forrestal Hotel, Princeton, NJ, luncheon speaker.

April 20, Philadelphia Chapter, Public Relations Society of America, panel speaker, "Non-Profit Public Relations Practitioners Forum," Union League, 140 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA, 5:30 PM

April 24, National Chicken Council, Food Writers' Seminar, Philadelphia.

April 26, Introductory Seminar with Merle Margolese of Merle Margolese Presents..., Mt. Laurel, NJ.

May 2, Blogs and Podcasting in the Pharmaceutical Industry, speaker at South Jersey Pharmaceutical and Medical Technology Industry Alliance annual conference, The Enterprise Center at Burlington County College, Route 38, Mt. Laurel, NJ. Kindly RSVP by TUESDAY, APRIL 25 to Joyce Sico, phone-fax: 856-303-7632

May 17, Jewish Business Network of Southern New Jersey, breakfast speaker.

June 21, Introduction to Podcasting, New Jersey Institute of Technology Tech Expressions Series, 8am-3pm. See blog posts below for reports on the first session, and links to register for the June program.

June 27, PR Council of Greater Atlantic City, Angelo's Fairmont Tavern, Atlantic City, luncheon speaker.

July 11, Presenter on Public Relations Society of America teleseminar for PR Accreditation candidates on "Planning Terminology and Structure." For info, contact Kathy Mulvihill at (212) 460-1436.

July 27, 2006: American Association of Medical Society Executives Annual Conference, Montreal Canada. Contact: Kim Schardin, AAMSE Membership/Meetings Manager, (414) 221-9275.

Sorry, as much as I don't care for the idea of corporate blogging, this is not a corporate blog...

PodcastSteve — Wed, 12 Apr 2006 11:31:00 +0000

The Wall Street Journal reports today in the Advertising column (registration required) that Starwood Hotels has launched a web log called TheLobby.com. But read further...they're not allowing their customers or other blog visitors to comment on the blog.

As much as I question the value of senior corporate executives spending their time blogging, I have to agree with corporate blogging evangelists that a one-way blog with no dialogue going on between the corporate bloggers and their audience just is NOT a blog at all.

It's nothing more than a website where the designers are using a publishing tool that lets non-techie corporate PR folks running the website post their press release information without having to cope with corporate IT people who want to control web posting.

It's ingenuous to post a "blog" with a bunch of super-solicitous, flattering (is that redundant?) links to bloggers their consultants must have identified as "A-List" bloggers that the company would want to be associated with -- but not even create the pretense of a conversation with the folks who really matter -- the ones that choose to stay with Starwood.

Companies that want to call their latest website a blog need to understand what that term implies, namely, give-and-take with the audience. Starwood could learn something useful about the travel needs and desires of its patrons, but they haven't taken that risk.

Making blogs matter?

PodcastSteve — Wed, 12 Apr 2006 11:43:00 +0000

New York Times Technology Column on Monday (OK, I'm a little behind in my reading...) A Home Where Bloggers Can Plumb Those Obscure Passions describes how Squidoo.com hopes to channel and aggregate the highly specialized expertise of individual bloggers. The premise is that the collective wisdom is highly useful and better than trying to find individual blogs on obscure topics. Maybe.

I just did a quick visit and it sure seems more like a Technorati, Google or Yahoo! than a completely new way of aggregating blog content.

So I'm going to experiment with creating a Squidoo "lens." I'll report back on the experience.

What they said...

PodcastSteve — Wed, 26 Apr 2006 13:58:00 +0000

I'm detecting a steadily building backlash against blogs from the MSM folks, and I don't think it's a bad thing at all.

In Sunday's Philadelphia Inquirer, Jonathan Last wrote "Blogs, humbug," and pointed out something I've been saying for months...

"Whether the person blogging is a pajama-clad lawyer or a Pulitzer-winning journalist," Last writes, "The medium is the message, and the message of blogging is: More! FASTER!"

Blogs ultimately want attention from the mainstream media, and the only way to rise above the noise of 36.4 million bloggers pecking away (that's the last number I saw on Technorati.com) is to be shrill, outrageous, and controversial.

"Bloggers are forever telling us how easy journalism is, yet very few of them have ever really practiced it," Last complains. I agree. As a former journalist, I appreciate the fact that so much of what passes for commentary in the blogosphere is often unsupported by any facts. Even some of my esteemed colleagues in the "podcasting space" tend to engage in idle speculation about the motives or agendas of other people, without ever picking up the phone or writing an email to that person to ask first-hand what they were thinking.

Case in point: I've blogged about my continuing correction battles with a major New York newspaper. In my most recent encounter with the publication, I reported on its use of a widely circulated Internet joke in a column that purports to tell humorous, real, first-person stories. What I DIDN'T do -- and what it took a professional daily journalist blogger, Dan Rubin at the Inquirer to do -- was track down the woman whose name was attached to the item and actually INTERVIEW her. Only Rubin discovered that she never told the newspaper the incident had happened to her. She just thought it was a funny joke and sent it to them.

The "pernicious effects of blogs," according to Last: "They elevate analysis over news-gathering; they value speed over judiciousness; and they encourage the practice of journalism to turn in on itself, to tend ever more toward navel-gazing."

There is no substitute for news-gathering and reporting. Don't assume that what you read in the blogs is accurate or even wants to be accurate. You don't respond to the requests for help smuggling money out of Liberia, Nigeria, Iraq, and (hopefully) you don't click on that link to the major bank that wants you to update the password on the account you don't have with them. Why in the world are we giving the blogosphere so much credibility and respect when only a few thousand reputable things (maybe) are going on there?

Why do we elevate certain bloggers -- even corporate ones -- to rock stardom when they act just like the companies they represent when the wagons need to be circled in a corporate crisis? Use a little common sense, folks.

Then, as I was cleaning out my library of unread newspapers from the past week (I'm a dinosaur, I read five dead-tree news delivery devices every day), I came across this Daniel Henninger "Wonder Land" column in the Wall Street Journal, "When Blogs Rule We Will All Talk Like ----" (Registration and/or subscription may be required.)

Henninger spells out the dark side of the blogosphere: "...[T]here is one more personality trait common to the blogosphere that, like crabgrass, may be spreading to touch and cover everything. It's called disinhibition. Briefly, disinhibition is what the world would look like if everyone behaved like Jerry Lewis or Paris Hilton or we all lived in South Park."

He compares the blogosphere to some scary indoor roller coasters, or "dark rides," and concludes that "This dark ride could be a very long one."

Yep.

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #19: PRSA Philadelphia Chapter Panel on Public Relations and Marketing for Not-for-Profit Organizations, 4/20/2006

PodcastSteve — Thu, 27 Apr 2006 15:53:00 +0000

In this edition of our podcast, we present a panel discussion conducted by the Philadelphia Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA). This program was recorded April 20, 2006 at the Union League Club in Philadelphia.

From left: Steve Lubetkin; Hope Primas; Les Wolff; Janis Shields; and Peter Key. (Rick Alcantara photo)

The panelists are:

- Hope Primas, Principal, Hope Primas & Associates, an expert resource on nonprofit fund development and management in the Philadelphia region, will provide a brief presentation about planning and give an overview of the public relations tools you can employ to maintain public awareness of your programs and needs.
- Les Wolff, CEO of Philadelphia-based Smart Marketing Group, a 46 year veteran of the marketing arena who has worked with non-profits in a wide range of activities, will talk about how to manage a strong ROI using a celebrity (such as his client Smokin' Joe Frazier) and how to create strategies that achieve other key objectives.
- Steven L. Lubetkin, APR, Fellow, PRSA, managing partner of Lubetkin Communications LLC, a technology-savvy veteran of more than 25 years in corporate and financial communications and print and broadcast journalism, will provide guidance on how to leverage emerging technologies effectively to enhance outreach efforts.
- Janis D. Shields, Director of Media and Public Relations for the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) and an award-winning journalist, will provide solid ways to get the most out of your PR efforts on a shoestring budget.

Download the podcast here (119 mb stereo MP3 file, 1:24:59 duration).

Show Notes
00:00:00 Steve introduces the program
00:03:52 Michele Chierici, APR, president of the Philadelphia PRSA Chapter introduces the panel and makes opening announcements.
00:07:10 Hope Primas makes introductory remarks about nonprofit PR.
00:19:29 Peter Key, Philadelphia Business Journal
00:31:57 Janis Shields, American Friends Service Committee
00:52:24 Les Wolff, Smart Marketing Group
01:06:26 Steve Lubetkin, Lubetkin Communications LLC

Please take part in our podcast listener survey. Click on the icon or follow this link. Thanks!

Susan Werner - "My Strange Nation"

PodcastSteve — Sun, 30 Apr 2006 13:50:00 +0000

A friend of mine, Randy Alexander of Randex PR who works in the rarified field of music publicity has pointed me to an interesting client of his, Susan Werner.

Susan Werner, composer of a middle-ground protest song about the US, "My Strange Nation," has caused a little stir. A short video set to the song is now playing on the Huffington Post blog. It's got some funny twists in the lyrics, but is ultimately a love song to America. In a time of hyperventilating politics, that might be enough to kill it, and that would be unfortunate.

The song reminds me of Cashman & West's "American City Suite," from the 1970s.

Worth a listen, though. You can download the MP3 and lyrics for free at Susan's website.

Thesis was, I thnk, advanced for its time...but no one was collaborating online much back then...

PodcastSteve — Sun, 30 Apr 2006 22:47:00 +0000

I just spent a few minutes updating links to my clients in the New PR Wiki, Constantine Basturea's great online directory of PR resources. I added my MBA thesis, "Bond Ratings in Cyberspace," in which I looked at the attitudes of bond analysts toward the use of collaborative computer technology. I did this research in 1994, way before anyone had heard of blogs and podcasts, and the leading edge of collaborative technology was this new thing called Lotus Notes. I went to several "groupware" conferences that year as part of the research. The thesis was helpful to an organizational change-meister at S&P, Henry Carrier, who used it to help implement some changes in corporate culture at S&P.

Anyway, I've put the executive summary of the thesis online as a PDF. I'd love to hear comments from people about what I learned 12 years ago, and how it's changed today.

Does anyone really think Brian will keep his hands off editorial?

PodcastSteve — Wed, 24 May 2006 22:47:00 +0000

So now instead of representing clients and doing media relations with the major publications in Philadelphia, Brian Tierney now OWNS (or at least is "Mr. Outside" for the people who put up most of the money to own) the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily News.

Freedom of the press is guaranteed -- fer shure -- to them what buys ink by the barrel. His clients must be dancing.

I refer blog readers to my posting about Brian a year ago. This is a guy whose idea of media relations is to trash publicly some of the finest reporters the Inquirer has to offer over the years because they wrote stories his clients didn't like.

Editor & Publisher pointed this out in Mark Fitzgerald's article in March, describing Brian's work on behalf of the Catholic Archdiocese.

What will he say to reporters investigating wrongdoing now, "nothing personal, just business?"

I've always told my clients and employers that public relations is not about manipulating the news, but engaging journalists in a dialogue about your business.

They are not always going to agree with your point of view, and if you have something negative going on, I can't stop them from writing about it -- and it would be a mistake to try.

What I can do as a responsible communications counselor, is to confront the questions candidly and if it's something the client can fix, fix it.

Most of us in PR don't blame the messenger -- but that's Brian's very contrary M.O., and it has made him a wealthy man, so should we argue with success?

Yeah, I think so.

At least one reporter I know said a business person told the reporter they were thinking about hiring Brian to be their PR counsel, and asked if the reporter would take Brian's calls. The response was "Yes, but I won't believe anything he says."

Is that the kind of reputation you and your business want in your dealings with the media?

The only bright light in all this is that both newspapers are staffed by journalists of great integrity and professionalism. I seriously doubt that Amanda Bennett and her editorial team will stand idly by and let Brian interfere in the newsroom. But money does talk and one has to wonder how long it will be before he gives in to the temptation to try. I worked for a newspaper where advertiser pressure over negative stories was felt by reporters.

The other thing that bothers me is wrapping himself in this "civic-mindedness" that he's somehow saving the community by buying the papers. Brian is saving Brian. He sold his firm twice, and landed at Advanta for a painfully short time, exiting with yet a few more millions (he's a good negotiator for his side of the contract!) and now needs something to do...

Also, people have short memories while they celebrate his "local focus." Brian's first official act when he opened his PR firm in 1984 was to take on Norfolk Southern as his client when that railroad was hand-picked by then-Transportation Secretary Elizabeth Dole to buy federally owned Conrail...and help them in their unsuccessful effort to ship 6,000 management jobs at the second-largest employer in the Delaware Valley out of Philadelphia.

If you don't think that would have been the outcome in 1984, flash forward to when John Snow (current Treasury Secretary, then CEO of CSX Corporation) sold out Conrail Chairman Dave Levan and made a side deal with NS to carve up Conrail. They carved it to the bone (the survivors call the switching railroad remnant of Conrail "rump Conrail,") and shut down all but a few management jobs here.

I guess we have to give Brian the benefit of the doubt until he behaves otherwise, but keep your eyes on the news columns of the Inky. If they suddenly stop referring to the present Democrat governor by name, we'll know Brian is channelling Walter Annenberg.

Maybe not interference but self-censorship?

PodcastSteve — Tue, 30 May 2006 13:16:00 +0000

In a previous post (see below) I raised questions about whether the new lead investor in the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily News, Brian Tierney, would be able to suppress his PR-man urge to meddle in the editorial content of the papers if his former clients and business associates complained to him about negative coverage.

Part of my comments appeared in a summary of blogosphere reaction to the new owners that appeared in Dan Rubin's Blinq blog that is part of the Inquirer's web product. Unfortunately, of the blog entries that Dan quoted online, only the blandest ones made it into the print version of his observations about the new owners.

Pardon me for thinking my line about "channelling Walter Annenberg" would be snarky enough to get picked up somewhere...readers old enough to remember the last time the Inquirer was in local hands will also recall Annenberg's dictum to the newsroom that Democratic Gov. Milton Schapp's name was not to be mentioned in the Inquirer, which led to some outrageous efforts to cover a sitting governor without naming him.

I like Dan very much, and he has quoted me approvingly in the past on several occasions.

And maybe I shouldn't bite the hand that fed me a page one photo with photo credit last week (Amtrak power outage, see images 5 and 6 in the flash album at http://inquirer.philly.com/slideshows/news/060525train/index.html -- #6 made the front page), but now I'm wondering if fully transparent blogging can coexist with local owners at a major media outlet.

It's easy for columnists to fire potshots when the corporate fathers are in California or Miami, but will they still be comfortable printing harsh criticism, even by someone other than themselves, when the boss/owner can walk right over to your desk, maybe you start thinking about whether you really want to put the tough-edged stuff in the column.

I know, I know all about news holes and word counts, and the need to prune and edit to fit the allotted space...I have been writing a technology column local to Cherry Hill for ten years, and it's hard to fit it all in in 650 words or less. But when I look at the blog entries that made the print column, vs. the ones that appeared in the online blog, I can't help but think Dan went a little to the soft side. Here are other examples.

Dan used the funny comment about Brian's hair looking vaguely like Donald Trump, from Philebrity, but he carefully excised the part where Philebrity opines that Brian is "cuckoo for Jesus and the Republican party," and then goes on to comment cynically on Brian's hands-off pledge, adding "but like all good Rebublicans [sic] do, Bri-Bri promises to retire from political life if the deal goes through to avoid potential conflicts in interests. How quaint."

Dan also omits from the print version the comment from Kiko's House: "The buyers have zero publishing experience and while they promise to keep their mitts off of the editorial content and have even signed so-called 'no interference' pledges, I'm taking a wait-and-see attitude."

Intentional self-censorship? Probably not, but it's awfully hard to reconcile publishing the unvarnished entries on the web, and ignoring them completely in the printed column. Is it because the new owners read the paper but not the blog?

This is not the only place I'm noticing self-censorship, or maybe just confusion and trepidation, about how to cover the new owners. A big Inquirer Sunday story by Jane Von Bergen about corporate executives and their high salaries this weekend mentioned that among the top five highest paid executives in the Philadelphia area is "an executive at home builder Toll Bros." He's not even mentioned by name in the article; you have to go to the table of executive pay to find out which one it is. It's not Bruce Toll, the head of the company, but nowhere in the article are we reminded that Bruce Toll is chairman of the investor group that just bought the Inquirer.

Back when a former president of Mexico was being investigated for corruption, every single time he was mentioned in the Wall Street Journal's coverage of that investigation, the paper reminded readers that he was a member of the Dow Jones board of directors, and that Dow Jones owned the Wall Street Journal.

Every time BusinessWeek magazine quotes a bond analyst from Standard & Poor's, the article reminds readers that S&P, like BusinessWeek, is "owned by The McGraw-Hill Companies."

This is pretty routine for publications to avoid any appearance of failing to disclose. Hope the Inquirer figures out how it wants to handle those disclosures in the future. Maybe I'm expecting too much, but the initial signs I'm seeing don't give me a strong feeling that they are going to be tough on the new owners in the paper...

CORRECTIONS DEPARTMENT -- Looks like my memory isn't as good as I think it is. All these years I thought that Brian's first profile in the Inquirer was written by Peter Binzen, but it appears that I may be thinking of a February 1985 profile by Ewart Rouse. Oh, well, sorry about that, Peter and Ewart. The main point, though, is that all my PR colleagues and I at Conrail thought it was odd that the first visible pitch Brian threw to the Inquirer was about himself, not about his client. We grew up in a kinder, gentler PR world in which the client's interests came first.

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #20: PRSA Philadelphia Chapter Luncheon Speaker, Dr. Joseph Turow, on social networks and non-traditional marketing

PodcastSteve — Thu, 01 Jun 2006 20:47:00 +0000

In this edition of our podcast, we present the May 2006 PRSA Philadelphia luncheon presentation by Dr. Joseph Turow on the new direction emerging in marketing through social networks and the non-traditional marketing realms developing around viral marketing and social/collective intelligences.

This program was recorded May 24, 2006 at the Inn at the University of Pennsylvania.

From left: Michele Chierici, APR, Chapter President; Dr. Turow; and Gretchen Ramsey, vice president and director of public relations, LevLane Advertising, program chair.(Steve Lubetkin photo)

Download the podcast here (99.5 mb stereo MP3 file, 1:10:46 duration).

Please take part in our podcast listener survey. Click on the icon or follow this link. Thanks!

Memo to NPA: Will you ever stop scratching this one?

PodcastSteve — Fri, 16 Jun 2006 14:13:00 +0000

The Wall Street Journal, stirring up what appears to be a liberal political vendetta against "No Child Left Behind" (NCLB) laws, argued the case on behalf of a nonprofit organization that arguably has made millions of dollars selling parents, legislators, and educators on a goofy (but personally profitable for the organization) theory about how best to control head lice.

The page one Journal story, "Kink in Federal Law Is Prompting Schools To Stop Picking Nits," (subscription may be required to view story) fronted the point of view of the so-called "National Pediculosis Association," registered as a 501(c)3 nonprofit, claiming that it has the best interests of children and wants to protect them from "toxic" chemicals used to combat the common, and relatively harmless, infestations of head lice that kids sometimes get, either at school or at camp.

NPA is now arguing that NCLB laws give schools extra credit for good attendance rates, so schools are, in NPA's view, getting lax on keeping kids out of school when they have nits in their hair from head lice.

"Nits" are the empty egg casings left behind after the lice hatch. By themselves they are harmless, and most reputable medical experts now say that school policies requiring children to be completely free of these nits before being allowed back in school, are based on superstition, fear, prejudice, and no scientific facts about how to control lice.

NPA wants schools to adopt no-nits policies again, mainly because NPA wants to sell desperate and uninformed parents a special "nit comb" so they can spend hours picking through the kids' hair for these lifeless protein globules that are very difficult, if not impossible, to detach from the hair shafts.

The Journal story reported on NPA's righteous indignation about NCLB, but the story completely omitted interviews conducted with public health experts at the Harvard University School of Public Health, one of whom confided in me that they spent hours with the reporter and repeatedly told him that "no nits" policies were ill-advised.

The story also ignored the fact that in its 2000 federal 990 tax return, NPA reported nearly $2 million in revenue from the sales of nit combs. Talk about vested interests!

The bottom line is that NPA is not a public-benefit nonprofit group. It is really just a clever mail order scheme taking advantage of the tax laws and using its ability to reopen debate on a scientifically closed medical issue with emotion and junk science -- so that it can sell more of its hair care product.

Happily, however, nit comb sales are plummeting as people become better educated about what a non-issue head lice and nits really are from a medical standpoint.

NPA's 2004 Form 990 seems to report less than $200,000 in sales from nit combs. That's good, considering they avoid taxes while paying their executive director over $100,000.

Unless they are hiding the nit comb sales somewhere else.

I haven't had a chance to study the 23-page form at length yet. But there's more interesting stuff revealed -- except if you read the Journal article. It doesn't mention the fact that NPA's 990 form lists no expenses for lobbying on public issues, and yet their website crows about their efforts to have various pesticides banned or restricted by state legislators.

The bottom line, NPA is abusing the 501(c)3 shield. It's conducting lobbying efforts to reduce the use of effective treatments, and arguing a political case against NCLB to try to foster regulations that would improve its abilities to sell more nit combs.

To me, that's lobbying, and their Form 990 is seriously deficient by not reporting expenses for pestering government officials at every level in hopes of selling more combs.

I wrote a letter to the editor of the Journal about this seriously unbalanced and medically flawed story. They haven't published my letter (what a surprise!).

So that's why I'm publishing it here in a slightly amplified form with relevant hyperlinks, and copying it to Robert Tomsho, the reporter who produced the story:

To the editor:

Robert Tomsho's story in the June 1 Journal , about efforts to revive the medieval and medically unnecessary practice of torturing children by barring them from schools until you have methodically removed every empty egg case from long-dead lice (the receptacles are called "nits"), fails to mention important information that your readers will appreciate .

The National Pediculosis Association, despite its registration as a nonprofit corporation, generates more than $2 million a year in revenue from the sales of "nit combs" ostensibly to help parents rid their children of this "terrible scourge," according to the organization's own IRS 990 form. [2000 form; sales have declined dramatically as noted above.]

Thus, NPA has a strong, financial interest in seeing that school districts enforce ill-advised "no-nits" policies, so that desperate and ignorant parents will purchase NPA's combs. NPA also advocates laws against the more useful and effective prescription anti-lice shampoos and creams -- which, if more widely prescribed, would certainly cut into nit comb sales.

NPA persists in fighting this battle in favor of antiquated treatment modalities, even though such policies are frowned upon by most major medical authorities, including the American Academy of Pediatrics , the National Association of School Nurses, which specifically states in its policy, "Data does not support school exclusion for nits. Because no disease process is associated with head lice, schools are not advised to exclude students when nits remain after appropriate lice treatment, although further monitoring for signs of re-infestation is appropriate," [emphasis was already in the statement] and the previously mentioned Harvard University School of Public Health, among many others.

There is no medical need to eliminate empty egg cases from childrens' hair if there is no evidence of live infestation -- and even live lice are not known to be medically harmful, just unsightly to the squeamish.

The article should have reflected medical reality, not merely used the opportunity to raise questions about the "No Child Left Behind" law. The "nit-picking" fanatics have been terrorizing children and causing extraordinary and unnecessary absenteeism for years.

Don't encourage your readers to disregard medical facts because someone wants to sell them a $9.95 nit comb.

[End of letter text]

And that goes for all of you reading this.

Fight ignorant school officials who try to tell you no-nits policies are appropriate. These idiotic policies are costing your children countless days out of school, and only enriching the people who sell these stupid combs.

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #21: NJCAMA Spring Conference, Part 1 of 3 - Michael MacDonald, Xerox Corporation

PodcastSteve — Tue, 20 Jun 2006 16:18:00 +0000

In this edition of our podcast, we present part one of three parts based on the New Jersey Communications, Advertising, and Marketing Association's "Create, Communicate, Connect" Spring 2006 conference, recorded June 1, 2006 at the legendary Sarnoff Research Center in Princeton, NJ.

Michael MacDonald, Xerox Corporation(Steve Lubetkin photo)

Michael C. Mac Donald, the first speaker at the NJCAMA Conference, is president of global accounts and marketing operations for Xerox Corporation, Stamford, Conn. He was named to this position in October 2004 and was appointed a corporate senior vice president in July 2000. You can read more about his background here.

Download the podcast here (75 mb stereo MP3 file, 53:12 duration).

Please take part in our podcast listener survey. Click on the icon or follow this link. Thanks!

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #22: NJCAMA Spring Conference, Part 2 of 3 - Bryan Eisenberg, Futurist, Founder of Future Now

PodcastSteve — Thu, 22 Jun 2006 22:02:00 +0000

In this edition of our podcast, we present part two of three parts based on the New Jersey Communications, Advertising, and Marketing Association's "Create, Communicate, Connect" Spring 2006 conference, recorded June 1, 2006 at the legendary Sarnoff Research Center in Princeton, NJ.

Bryan Eisenberg, Founder of Future Now(Steve Lubetkin photo)

Bryan Eisenberg, Futurist, Founder of Future Now, is the author of Waiting for Your Cat to Bark? Persuading Customers when they don't respond to traditional marketing. Bryan has been helping companies realize that maximizing their results means incorporating expert persuasion techniques into website design, email marketing, and other marketing tools.You can read more about his background here.

Download the podcast here (84 mb stereo MP3 file, 59:41 duration).

Please take part in our podcast listener survey. Click on the icon or follow this link. Thanks!

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #23: NJCAMA Spring Conference, Part 3 of 3 - Gerry McGoldrick, SVP, Performance Marketing, Refinery

PodcastSteve — Fri, 23 Jun 2006 18:39:00 +0000

In this edition of our podcast, we present the final installment of our three-part series based on the New Jersey Communications, Advertising, and Marketing Association's "Create, Communicate, Connect" Spring 2006 conference, recorded June 1, 2006 at the legendary Sarnoff Research Center in Princeton, NJ.

Gerry McGoldrick, senior vice president of performance marketing for Refinery (Steve Lubetkin photo)

Refinery is a suburban Philadelphia agency working with clients on strategic consulting, creative, technology, user experience, search marketing and account and project management assignments. Gerry oversees all external marketing initiatives for Refinery and its clients, and leads the efforts of the search and analytic teams. Gerry's presentation runs about 51 minutes.

Download the podcast here (78.3 mb stereo MP3 file, 54:21 duration).

Please take part in our podcast listener survey. Click on the icon or follow this link. Thanks!

Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast #24: PRSA Health Academy's First Podcast, Patient-centric Medicine and Medicare Part D

PodcastSteve — Thu, 06 Jul 2006 22:06:00 +0000

Trends and Implications for the Healthcare Industry and the Role of PR

In this podcast we present a PRSA Health Academy panel discussion, "Patient-centric Medicine and Medicare Part D - Trends and Implications for the Healthcare Industry and the Role of PR."

Participating in the panel were Lois Aronstein, State Director for AARP in New York; Melinda Abrams, senior program officer for the Commonwealth Fund; and Marily Rhudy, senior vice president, public affairs, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals.

The program was recorded June 28 at the offices of Fleischman Hillard in New York City.

Speakers

	Lois Aronstein, AARP New York State Director. Read bio here...
	Melissa Abrams, Senior Program Officer, The Commonwealth Fund. Read bio here...
	Marily Rhudy, Senior Vice President, Public Affairs, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals. Read bio here...

Download the podcast here (78.3 mb stereo MP3 file, 54:21 duration).

Time Codes

7:00 - 28:10 Lois Aronstein, NY State Director, AARP

29:09 - 43:32 Melinda Abrams, senior program officer, Commonweath Fund

44:42 - 53:01 Marily Rhudy, senior vice president, public affairs, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals

53:38 Questions

Please take part in our podcast listener survey. Click on the icon or follow this link. Thanks!

My Odeo Channel (odeo/756643f7a4d51e37)

Including "and" and "the"...as Mary once said.

PodcastSteve — Wed, 02 Aug 2006 11:46:00 +0000

Philadelphia Inquirer readers were greeted this morning with the crossing of the first journalistic Rubicon, as publisher Joe Natoli was reported leaving the paper to take a position as "senior vice president of the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Fla., starting next month," the paper reported. I don't know Natoli's decision process, but on the several occasions I met and chatted with him, he seemed like a sharp guy. But please, how many newspaper publishers in major metropolitan markets REALLY aspire to running the finances of a university?

The story, by respected business writer Joe DiStefano, who has done a highly responsible job with the unpleasant task of reporting about his new boss, goes on to say that "Brian Tierney, chief executive officer of the investors' group that bought The Inquirer, the Philadelphia Daily News and Philly.com in June, now will also take on the role of the newspapers' publisher, but not the title."

All I can say is, I told you so.

So much for the promises, written and oral, that he would keep his hands off the editorial side of the newspaper. Now he has them around the news side's throat. All that's left is the squeeze.

Interestingly, while the story ran in the lead column position on the front of the business section, it is not billboarded on the newspaper's website as one of its lead business stories. Guess we don't want to draw too much attention to the new owner's first move to take closer control of the editorial side of the newspaper.

Say, Don, what are you putting on your grass roots to make them so green?

PodcastSteve — Thu, 03 Aug 2006 12:26:00 +0000

Public relations professionals know that one of the best ways to influence public opinion and ultimately achieve changes in consumer behavior, including influencing legislation, is when citizens engage in "grass roots" action, forming activist groups and communicating with their elected officials and other public policy "influentials."

Over the past several decades, a less honest form of grassroots campaigning has arisen, fueled by powerful interests trying to take advantage of the effectiveness of citizen voices. You see this whenever some group with a high-sounding name, like "Citizens for Good Government," calls a press conference to complain about some issue. Only later do you discover that the grassroots organization is really being sponsored by some group that has exactly the opposite goal from what the name suggests. In PR, we call this an "AstroTurf" campaign or AstroTurfing. As we all know, AstroTurf does not really have grassroots.

It is artificial. But today, too many issues oriented campaigns are about capturing emotional reactions, not about having a real dialogue or conversation.

That's why so many people are turned off to politics and issues. It's more about who has the best sound bite, or whose army of young interns can get a blog entry posted more quickly, not about thoughtful debate over substantive issues. It's about ridiculing your opponent before he/she makes fun of you. Look at all the video mashups of the Howard Dean post-election rally where he was trying to revv up his campaign workers, and his cheerleading scream was looped a million times to make him look unstable.

Today's Wall Street Journal reports on a video lampooning Al Gore's "Inconvenient Truth" movie.

The video, which has Gore brainwashing penguins and blaming global warming for making Lindsay Lohan lose weight, sounds very funny. But when the Journal tried to contact the purported "amateur" who created the animation, his email response to the Journal included IP address information that the Journal was able to trace to a computer owned by a Washington PR firm that has oil companies as its clients.

There's nothing wrong with PR firms representing oil companies. There's nothing wrong with PR firms proposing as part of a public dialogue points of view that differ with those of people who disagree with their clients.

But it impedes the channels of honest communications when firms create an impression of a grass roots activity where none exists.

The Public Relations Society of America, the largest professional organization of PR practitioners, has a Code of Ethics and Professional Standards that, among other things, appears to prohibit members from engaging in the creation of deceptive "AstroTurf" campaigns. The Code indicates that it would be improper conduct for a PRSA member to engage in (among other things) this kind of activity:

"Front groups: A member implements "grass roots" campaigns or letter-writing campaigns to legislators on behalf of undisclosed interest groups."

In August 2004, PRSA's Board of Ethics and Professional Standards issued a Professional Standards Advisory reminding members that creating unidentified "front" groups violated the code.

From what I can tell, the PR firm featured in the Journal article does not have any employees who are members of PRSA, so it is not subject to the provisions of the PRSA Code of Ethics and Professional Standards. That's too bad.

Some other communications practitioners are beginning to voice the same opinion. Shel Holtz, ABC, Fellow, IABC, an A-list blogger and For Immediate Release podcast host, says in his blog entry on this topic, "Astroturfing has no place in any PR practitioner’s toolkit. It is deceptive, dishonest, unethical."

It seems there is now a real grass roots campaign forming among PR professionals to make everyone involved in the communications business play by a set of ethical guidelines.

I hope this movement gets lots of care and feeding. If we don't stand up for honest and ethical communications, we deserve all the negative impressions people have of PR as an occupation.

Excuse me, could you move those pyramids over there where the light is better?

PodcastSteve — Tue, 08 Aug 2006 03:17:00 +0000

There's a troubling trend going on among photojournalists, and it has to do with using a little too much of the functionality in the digital darkroom of everyone's choice, Adobe Photoshop.

Photoshop is the program where photographers weave digital magic around their photographs, but the people who provide images to the mainstream, legitimate news media are not supposed to tinker with what's in the image. It's so easy to manipulate digital photos that the name of this software program is often used as a verb, as in "I broke up with that girlfriend, so I Photoshopped her out of the picture."

Today we learned that a freelance photographer for Reuters was fired for adding a few more plumes of smoke to a scene of Beirut under attack.

Reuters, you will remember, is the wire service that refuses to use the word "terrorist" to describe people who strap explosives to their bodies and detonate them around civilians. As a matter of style, Reuters will only call them "insurgents."

The Reuters caption for these two pictures reads: "Reuters on Sunday withdrew an image of smoke rising from burning buildings after an Israeli air strike on the suburbs of Beirut on August 5, 2006 after evidence emerged that it had been manipulated to show more smoke. The manipulated image is shown on the left. The unaltered image, shown on the right, has since run. Reuters has told the photographer, freelance Adnan Hajj, that the agency will not use any more of his pictures."

The photographer claimed that working in a low light environment made it hard for him to realize what changes he was making to the photo. Come on, it's a completely different tool in PhotoShop to change brightness and contrast. Surely he would know he was using the cloning tool...

Manipulation of images is nothing new. It began when photography did. The problem is the images today can be more convincing than ever.
In 1982, National Geographic was discovered using expensive (at the time) computerized retouching equipment to artfully squeeze the Great Pyramids of Giza a little bit closer together so that the horizontal photo could be used on the vertical magazine's cover. They also later admitted to making a man's hat just a bit taller for the same reason. They took a real reputation hit on that one.

You'd think that would have been enough for NG to swear off fakery, but apparently not. Steve Kapsinow reports on the Graphic Design Forum that a National Geographic publication has been caught again, this time buying this PhotoShop composite as if it were a real photo.

A few weeks ago, the Charlotte Observer fired a photographer for adjusting the color too much in a dramatic photograph of a fireman against a brilliant orange sky. The problem is the original photograph didn't have a brilliant orange sky, it was a muddy brown.

The photographer, Patrick Schneider, was in trouble for his PhotoShop prowess a few years ago. He got suspended for alterations he made to some photographs.

You don't have to have a lot of expertise to do something that will fool people.

Look at this crude effort of mine. I like to tell people the reason Ari Fleischer left the White House was because I decided not to renew his license to use my face.

Paul Martin Lester, a professor on the communications faculty at the University of California at Fullerton, wrote a book about ethics in photojournalism in 1991. It's now available on the web and should be required reading for photojournalists.

Once is apparently not enough for fired Reuters freelance photographer...

PodcastSteve — Tue, 08 Aug 2006 03:28:00 +0000

And once was not enough for the Lebanese freelance photographer fired by Reuters.

According to the wire service, a review of all the photos he had sold them turned up yet another photo, this time of an Israeli jet dropping a flare. Adnan Hajj apparently added a few more flares to the photo. Reuters has withdrawn hundreds of Hajj's photos from its archives.

Keep a close eye on this page at NYT.com...it may change suddenly

PodcastSteve — Wed, 09 Aug 2006 06:13:00 +0000

The New York Times is playing catch-up on the story of the Reuters freelance photographer who altered photos of an air raid on Beirut. In its third-day lead on the story, "Bloggers Drive Inquiry on How Altered Images Saw Print," the Times displays the two images as moved in a matched set by Reuters after the deception was discovered.

The problem is that the Times originally had the caption information backwards. The Times caption on the page when I read it first stated: "A photographer has been accused of doctoring a photo of an Israeli air raid on Beirut. The original picture, left, and the manipulated image, right."

The doctored photo is obviously the one on the left, with telltale circular marks in the smoke plume that are clear evidence of tampering with the "clone stamp" tool in PhotoShop.

During the time I was writing this blog entry, I also emailed the Times' web editor, and they changed the caption error. The caption now is correct on the Times' site. (They corrected it before I could paste it into this entry...I had to go back to the cached version of the page in my browser -- from which I also made a PDF.

If anyone wants to see it, let me know.

Reuters identified the doctored photo accurately in its caption with these same two images. I wonder why the Times changed the wording and had to have it pointed out to them?

They were fast, weren't they?

PodcastSteve — Wed, 09 Aug 2006 06:26:00 +0000

Times corrected the bad caption so fast that the posting on my blog went out on the feed with the corrected caption that I cut and pasted from the (unknown to me) updated page.

But I do have a PDF of the original caption, which had identified the manipulated photo as the original, and the original as the one doctored by the photographer.

Crazy things happen late into the night.

I used to go to events like this...

PodcastSteve — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 02:32:00 +0000

Somewhere, there must be a school where they teach business executives to think that forced "cute activities" are great teambuilding exercises.

They pile you into a bus to go do a day's worth of charity in a section of town you'd never visit on your own. They make you wear special shirts and work in teams to solve some pretend problem.

They encourage people to write poetry about how much they love their jobs.

It's like the Stockholm Syndrome for corporate life. Everyone is such a scared hostage, so afraid that they might get a pink slip that they will happily drink any Kool-Aid, play any ridiculous role-playing game that the HR people hire a high-priced consultant to "facilitate," just to give themselves a chance to survive another day.

It keeps getting worse. Now, they make you sit in a meeting after a merger that you know is going to result in thousands of people being fired and listen to a song someone wrote about the merger.

You work in the Inquirer Newsroom? So why aren't you out networking?

PodcastSteve — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 02:44:00 +0000

I spend a lot of my working life in a windowless office in my World Headquarters (OK, it's in the basement...someone once took note when I said it was "windowless" and responded "Oh, you use a Mac?")

So I try to go to lots of events to network and market my services. It's productive time, but I didn't realize until I actually started my own consulting practice how much time I would need to spend doing those things. So whenever I can go to an event someone else organizes, I do. I consider a networking meeting a success if I engage in at least one business card exchange during the evening.

Tonight was one like that. Irene Maslowsky, the irrepressible PR empress of northern New Jersey, has helped her client, Boss Staffing, establish a regular series of monthly networking happy hours for creative types, like PR people, advertising copy writers, editors, graphic designers, art directors, etc. They do them in several cities on the first Wednesday of the month. You can find the schedule and location at CreativeConnects, a special page on the Boss website.

Philly creatives, especially Inquirer scribes watching the writing being erased from the walls as they prepare for the next career, please note: The party in our market is held at Manayunk Brewery & Restaurant, 4120 Main Street, Philadelphia, PA 19127. Next one is in December.

You should come!

Dan Rubin thinks I like to say "I told you so..."

PodcastSteve — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 03:15:00 +0000

He's right. I do. And I seem to be the only blogger in the Delaware Valley who never believed that Brian Tierney would keep his hands off the editorial content of the Inquirer. Everyone said "wait and see, wait and see."

Here's a reminder from the May 23 article announcing the deal:

"Pressed on how his promise to respect the newsroom will be enforced, Tierney said, 'I'll beat the crap out of anyone' who breaks it."

The Newspaper Guild has produced a radio advertisement that speaks to its concerns.

As a vigorous and zealous PR counselor, Brian fiercely fought on behalf of his client, the beleaguered Philadelphia Catholic archdiocese.

He tried mightily to suppress news coverage of the church's ham-handed efforts to hide pedophile priests by moving them from one parish to another, instead of turning them over to law enforcement.

At least one Inquirer columnist has written about his pressure tactics in that role, which included a public tongue-lashing. (Now who do you think will be one of the 150 journalists getting a pink slip in the next week or so?)

It's that previous background that makes him such an unlikely person to publish the Inquirer. It calls to mind the Annenberg years, when you couldn't mention Milton Schapp's name in the paper, even though he was a sitting governor.

Now, it's a little disappointing that Inquirer readers and the business community are losing Executive Editor Amanda Bennett. Three years ago, she got a standing ovation from the Philadelphia PR community at a panel program where she acknowledged that the business section of the paper had failed to provide any kind of sustained coverage of local companies that contribute to the vibrancy of the economy.

Now, I have nothing against Bill Marimow, he's a top notch journalist with a long reputation here and elsewhere, but what made Amanda fall out of favor?

Was it the NPR interview she gave when Knight-Ridder, the former owner, told management they would have to make major job cuts, and she said she spent the morning throwing up? She told Editor & Publisher that it's "nothing personal, just business."

Amanda walks the plank while Brian watches.

Even more worrisome, Brian's using each of these changes to further consolidate control of the Inquirer's content in his hands.

Take a look at this paragraph in the press release Brian issued announcing that he's tossing Amanda Bennett off of the SS Inquirer:

"Following the model of several other large city newspapers, Mr. Tierney also announced that Chris Satullo, editor of the editorial page, will
report directly to the publisher. Previously, Satullo reported to the editor."

So now Chris Satullo, one of the most respected editorial writers around, has to worry about whether he came down too hard on the housing industry (a member of the Toll Brothers family is one of the Inquirer's investors) or the Church, or some other client or "friend of Brian" (FOB)...

Wasn't there a promise that the investors wouldn't be getting directly involved in the editorial? But didn't he also promise he wouldn't take the publisher title? That lasted how long?

Oh well. The emperor didn't have any clothes when he made the Promise. He's still walking around in his BVDs.

LOBP#25: Bill Smullen, former Chief of Staff to Colin Powell, PRSA Philadelphia Luncheon Speaker, 11/8/2006

PodcastSteve — Sat, 11 Nov 2006 20:00:00 +0000

In this podcast we present a PRSA Philadelphia Chapter luncheon speaker presentation, "Managing the Big Kahuna," by F. William Smullen III, Director of National Security Studies at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University.

The program was recorded November 8, 2006 at the Westin Hotel in Philadelphia.

Smullen Speaks at PRSA/Philadelphia: PRSA Chapter President Michele Chierici, APR, left, with Col. Bill Smullen and Frank Wilkinson, APR, of SEI Corp. (Steve Lubetkin Photo)

Download the podcast here (105.1 mb stereo MP3 file, 01:14:43 duration).

LOBP#26: Remembering Max Soliven, Filipino Journalist and Newspaper Publisher, 12/9/2006

PodcastSteve — Sat, 09 Dec 2006 20:45:00 +0000

In this podcast we present excerpts of remarks by Max Soliven, publisher of the Philippine Star newspaper, from his presentation to the Public Relations Society of the Philippines at the 13th National Public Relations Congress in Manila on September 28, 2006.

I met Max when we both spoke to the PRSP conference, and was impressed to learn of his journalistic career, which began when Vietnam was still called Indochina. As a "newsman in the trenches," Max covered the French military disaster in Indochina, the US military conflict in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, and went on to cover insurgencies and uprisings all over Southeast Asia. He was jailed for a time during the Ferdinand Marcos regime in the Philippines, and was charged with criminal libel by President Corazon Aquino for a story his paper published claiming that she hid under a bed during the military coup that overthrew her regime.

As publisher of one of the largest newspapers in the Philippines, Max wrote a 2,000 word column six days a week. Max Soliven died of a heart attack in Japan on November 24, 2006.

His last column, "Is a jingoistic Japan on the rise under Abe? Or is this aging powerhouse no longer dangerous?" filed from Japan, expressed concern about the rise of a new nationalism in the Japanese government.

His newspaper, The Philippine Star, captured his essence in a tribute the next day.

Download the podcast here (38.8 mb stereo MP3 file, 00:27:37 duration).

This podcast is being cross-posted to the CompuSchmooze Podcast Feed.

Max Soliven speaks at the Public Relations Society of the Philippines 13th National Public Relations Congress, September 28, 2006.

Max Soliven speaks at the Public Relations Society of the Philippines 13th National Public Relations Congress, September 28, 2006.

Max Soliven answers questions at the Public Relations Society of the Philippines 13th National Public Relations Congress, September 28, 2006.

Max Soliven, second from left, chats with Matt Lussenhop of the US Embassy and Steve Lubetkin (far right) at the Public Relations Society of the Philippines 13th National Public Relations Congress, September 28, 2006. At left, face obscured, is Maloli K. Espinosa, vice president of corporate communications, ABS-CBN Television, chair of the PRSP National Public Relations Congress.

Max Soliven chats with Matt Lussenhop of the US Embassy and Steve Lubetkin (far right) at the Public Relations Society of the Philippines 13th National Public Relations Congress, September 28, 2006.

Not Every Blogger is Having a Nice Day...

PodcastSteve — Sun, 10 Dec 2006 19:05:00 +0000

MEMRI, the Middle East Media Research Institute, is organizing a campaign to advocate for the freedom of Abdelkarim Soliman, an Egyptian blogger who ran afoul of the government there for some of his blog entries. You can read more about the campaign at the MEMRI blog:

Release Abdelkareem Soliman - Egyptian Blogger Arrested

Bloggers all over the world have a lot at risk if governments can silence speech they don't like.

BofA Song gets topped...

PodcastSteve — Mon, 18 Dec 2006 12:19:00 +0000

Lucy Kellaway in today's Financial Times gives her awards for the worst business jargon of 2006, and in it she includes the following corporate song:

"And now for something a little bit special. This is an award for Company Song So Awful I Was Positive It Was a Spoof. The outstanding winner in this category is Shell. Its song is called “Growing and Winning” and is set to “We Are the World”. “We have moved on, growing day by day/Sharing strengths, we practise what is best/We are all a part of Shell’s global family/Doing work aligned with everyone.” It is a haunting mixture of pyschobabble, sentimentality and business jargon. Have a listen yourself. You won’t be disappointed.

LOBP#27: Remembering President Gerald Ford, 12/27/2006

PodcastSteve — Thu, 28 Dec 2006 04:45:00 +0000

THIS POST UPDATED 4/22/2009 to include a link to photos of President and Mrs. Ford taken in 1976.

Noting with sadness the passing of President Gerald Ford, we wanted to add a light moment to everyone's memories of the 38th president.

In this very short podcast we present an aircheck excerpt from Tom Snyder's "Tomorrow" show, a late night talk show broadcast on the NBC television network in the 1970s. On April 17, 1976, Snyder opened the broadcast with a blooper of President Ford being introduced at the Daughters of the American Revolution convention in Washington. Snyder's introduction is almost as much of a classic as the actual blooper.

Tom Snyder

Download the podcast here (4.6 mb stereo MP3 file, 00:03:16 duration).

During the 1976 presidential election campaign, I was a student broadcaster at WMCX-FM, the radio station of Monmouth College (now Monmouth University), and we obtained press credentials for Gerry and Betty Ford's campaign visits to New Jersey.

Here are images of the press credentials from the visits:

Gerald Ford Shut Down Tom Jarriel Questions During NJ Campaign Visit in 1976

I remember vividly that when Air Force One arrived at what is now Atlantic City International Airport (then it was the FAA's NAFEC test facility near Pomona, NJ), Ford strode off the plane to face a bullpen full of reporters, including the White House press corps, which had landed in its own plane just a few minutes before Air Force One. Tom Jarriel, then White House correspondent for ABC News, immediately tried to start the questioning, but Ford waved him off.

Tom Jarriel

"I'd like to take questions from the local media first, Tom," Ford said with a smile. Even as a young college radio reporter, I knew that he had won over the local news media by shutting down Jarriel.

The next day, Betty Ford made a separate visit to New Jersey. Her plane landed at the old passenger terminal at Newark Airport. It was kind of ridiculous but we had to drive all the way to Newark Airport to get our press credentials, then ride the press bus all the way back to Monmouth County, where she made an appearance at the Monmouth Mall in Eatontown, and then back on the bus to the airport to retrieve our car and drive BACK to Monmouth County again.

At the airport, Betty was met by a CB Radio club (CB Radio was the Internet of the 1970s) that presented her with a windbreaker personalized with her CB "handle," or nickname, which was "Big Mamma."

I've got some good Kodachromes from the Ford visits.

UPDATED 4/22/2009 – The Kodachromes of the Ford visits are now on my Flickr site.

Social media in public diplomacy

PodcastSteve — Thu, 11 Jan 2007 19:36:00 +0000

Just a short note from the State Department in Washington where I am speaking this afternoon about social media, blogs, and podcasting before a group of Public Affairs Officers from all the embassies in Asia.

I'll get to reconnect with PAO Lee McClenny, one of my hosts in The Philippines last September.

This is my third appearance before State Department audiences...maybe I can get appointed US Ambassador to Second Life?

'Inky' Minority Staffers Deliver Protest Letter to Publisher Tierney

PodcastSteve — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 16:17:00 +0000

Editor & Publisher, the bible of the news industry, has this item in yesterday's edition: 'Inky' Minority Staffers Deliver Protest Letter to Publisher Tierney

It's a shame that a once proud newspaper is gutting its core competency, news reporting, and it's a double shame that a critical portion of its public, the African-American community that makes up an enormous demographic in the circulation area, is taking a disproportionate hit in the jobs lost.

The best I can say is that PR people in Philly are reaching out to the ex-Inquirer newsies. The Philadelphia PRSA chapter is having a kick-off 2007 meeting January 24, and we've invited the jobseeking journos to join us for networking about communications, PR, and jobs...many will be coming...stay tuned for more insights!

Maybe Amanda and DiStefano will see each other?

PodcastSteve — Fri, 19 Jan 2007 23:31:00 +0000

Editor & Publisher is reporting that another ex-Inkystained wretch is joining Bloomberg. Read Ex-'Inky' Editor Amanda Bennett to Join Bloomberg News.

That means Amanda and business writer Joe DiStefano, who decamped for BBN just as the axe was falling repeatedly in the Inquirer newsroom, will be working together yet again...

DiStefano is covering the credit card industry for BBN, and will eventually stop commuting to NYC and work from Wilmington, much closer to home.

Joe was our first guest on our Middle Chamber Books podcast, talking about his book Comcasted, about the Roberts family and its media empire.

As opposed to investing in "domestic" countries?

PodcastSteve — Mon, 29 Jan 2007 14:35:00 +0000

Quote in a press release issued today trumpeting the selection of a PR agency in New York to help the nation of Belgium promote investment in the US market:

We selected [NAME OF FIRM DELETED -- let's not embarrass them just yet] because of their substantial experience in communicating to U.S. companies the advantages of investing in international countries," said Mrs. Renilde Loeckx-Drozdiak, Consul General of Belgium in New York. "We were particularly impressed with the firm's work for Invest Northern Ireland."

Good thing Belgium recognizes that it is an international country, huh?

Does anyone proofread this stuff anymore before they shovel it out the door?

LOBP#28: PRSA Philadelphia 2007 Kickoff Meeting, 1/24/2007

PodcastSteve — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 03:29:00 +0000

In this podcast we present the PRSA Philadelphia Chapter Kickoff Meeting for 2007, featuring chapter officers explaining the value of a PRSA membership, the programming planned for this year, and special focus on host committee activities for the PRSA International Conference, which comes to Philadelphia later this year. The program was recorded January 24, 2007 at the Union League Club in Philadelphia.

	Maribeth Roman Schmidt, 2007 Chapter President, introduces the program. .(Steve Lubetkin Photos)
	Marisa Avallone Sharkey, chapter president-elect, speaks to the audience.
	Jonathan Morein, chapter vice president.
	Chapter Membership Chair Michael Gross explains membership benefits.
	A portion of the audience. Former journalists from the Philadelphia Inquirer were guests of the chapter for networking and job seeking.

Download the podcast here (56.9 mb stereo MP3 file, 00:40:31 duration).

No TV allowed in Yum Brands Headquarters, or maybe Louisville doesn't get cable?

PodcastSteve — Sun, 25 Feb 2007 14:23:00 +0000

I watched with morbid fascination on Friday as a short piece of citizen video, backed up by local news cameras from WNBC-TV, Channel 4 in New York, spent the better part of Friday in front of a Greenwich Village Taco Bell restaurant where rodents were running wild on the restaurant floor. This story ran virtually nonstop all day long on CNBC, one of the most influential media outlets for investors making decisions about which companies they should be placing bets on in the markets. It quickly blasted around the world on other news services, like FoxNews and the Associated Press.

Where was Taco Bell's owner, Yum Brands?

Issuing a single sentence tersely worded statement from its headquarters a thousand miles from the crisis in Louisville, KY.

Making it worse, whoever cobbled together this customer-unfriendly statement decided to use their standard press release template, so right after they insist that the rodent infestation is disgusting and unacceptable, they go into a mindless, completely-disconnected-from-reality solliloquy about what a wonderful company Yum Brands is and what a great place it is for women and minorities to work.

Memo to Yum: Hey, guys, even the airlines know enough to stop advertising when a plane crashes. If you were going to issue a statement, even one as bad as the one you issued, at least have the good sense to leave off the chest-puffing boilerplate. It just looks stupid saying how wonderful your company is right after you apologize (grudgingly) for having rats in the kitchen.

I'm sure lots of women and people of color are just breaking down the doors to go to work for a company that doesn't even have someone trained to meet the media in a crisis PR situation like this. I'm sure they want to be on the front lines facing customers fearful of food contamination from bacteria and rodents. Sounds like a great challenge.

By not having someone on camera responding to the story, Yum has allowed its one franchise owner (or store manager if the store is company-owned, and that would be unconscionable) to severely damage the brand in the public's mind.

Taco Bell is already reeling from the e.coli issues earlier in the year, and the complete and utter lack of comprehension from corporate headquarters of how to deal with the public on this issue suggests that they don't really care. That may not be true, but it is the impression left when NO ONE from the company appears on TV to discuss and try to defend.

Have they even sent an operating executive to New York to find out what happened? That should be the least of it, never mind they should be sending a media specialist to help with the reputation crisis.

They will have lots of meetings in Louisville to pore over sales figures, scratching their heads about the decline, but they don't seem to make the connection between reputation and sales.

Where were the PR counselors when Yum decided on this closed-door strategy for communications?

But even in this story, there is an ironically funny epilogue. There's a screen-scraper website called bestsyndication.com that clipped this news story from the wires. The website uses Google AdSense to post ads on its pages relevant to the topic being discussed. Guess what ads are posted next to the picture of Willard (above)?

Yep, ads for restaurants and fine dining in New York.

I'm pretty sure that these restaurants, if they had any idea Google was serving them up next to a story on e.coli and rats, would certainly ask Google to give them a doggie bag instead.

Yes, but could you please hold off trying to use it until we restore service?

PodcastSteve — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 10:39:00 +0000

From the "Annals of Exquisitely Poor Timing Dept.": We received this beautifully color-coordinated and branded USB cable from Sprint/Nextel the other day with a promotional offer to get the latest Sprint-enabled Blackberry.

Guess which day this arrived in the mail? (More stories on the Blackberry service outage...)

Can you imagine the emotional stress level in Sprint/Nextel's direct marketing team's office that day?

Praise may be hurting kids more than it helps

PodcastSteve — Sat, 05 May 2007 12:37:00 +0000

Last week, in "The Most Praised Generation Goes to Work," Journal columnist Jeffrey Zaslow reported about how companies have to teach managers that younger workers need constant praise, even for arriving on time to work, because of the way they have been brought up.

Such younger workers have been overpraised since childhood, and taught to believe they are extraordinarily special. So now we have to throw confetti at them, send them thank you notes almost daily by email or in person, and on and on.

Zaslow has just reported in today's Wall Street Journal on the feedback he's received from the first article, and it reminded me of an experience we had a couple of years ago.

My youngest daughter was co-captain of her junior varsity cheerleading squad. The girls were competing in one of these regional cheer competitions that have elevated cheerleading from its former role as an adjunct to boys' sports. They were one of two squads competing in a particular level of the competition, and at the end, during the awards ceremony, the girls went wild when they heard the announcer report that the "First place in the JV division goes to Cherry Hill East!"

My daughter and her co-captain proudly retrieved their trophy and went back to a big celebratory group hug with the rest of the team. (You can watch the team video I created that includes the celebratory moment here.)

Just as our girls were jumping up and down hugging each other, the announcer declared that the "Championship Trophy" in that division had gone to the other team.

In other words, our girls didn't come in first, they came in second of two teams, or, as we would have said in a less-praiseworthy time, they were LAST.

But in the interests of overpraising (and maybe a little resume stuffing?), the competition organizers didn't award first- and second-place trophies, they awarded Championship and First-Place.

Even my daughter saw through that. On the ride home, she told us "When we realized that we came in second, we felt really stupid for going all crazy and happy like that."

Somewhere, some kid is probably listing that first place trophy on a college application, too. Who's going to check?

The bottom line is, as Zaslow noted, we are not doing our kids any good by making them think they can never fail. They need to have normal disappointments in life.

When I was laid off from a job in the early 1990s and went to a job-seeker support group at Trinity Episcopal Church in Princeton, we jokingly called it a "character-building exercise." But it really was, and our kids need some smaller ones before they have to cope with those bigger ones.

PodcastSteve — Thu, 10 May 2007 13:29:00 +0000

The feeling is mutual...funds...Just finished double-teaming the Communications Committee of the Investment Company Institute at a breakfast at ICI's General Membership Meeting conference in Washington this morning. ICI is the industry trade association representing mutual fund companies.

Matt Schifrin

I presented a cautionary take on blogs for corporate communications professionals in the group, and Matt Schifrin, personal finance editor of Forbes.com speaking about how Forbes has integrated blogs of responsible commentators into its coverage.

The key word here is "responsible." Athough Matt argued that the blogosphere is very important to Forbes, he also noted that they have evaluated blog commentators and only post content from those they deem reliable or responsible.

Matt noted that Forbes editors still review the blog postings and edit/fact-check as needed.

I said to him afterwards that this approach is really just putting the traditional PR-journalist relationship into a new vocabulary. The bloggers Matt is using on Forbes.com are the same people to whom Forbes has always turned, reputable equity analysts and mutual fund commentators, who now don't have to mail out their opinions or put them on a fax machine. What they really have is the benefit of the blogosphere as a distribution mechanism to more efficiently get Forbes the content we PR people used to contribute via hard copy delivered by fax, messenger, overnight services, etc. Now, they sit at their computers and the content comes to them.

So call it embracing the bloggers, or bringing social media into the conversation, or whatever. What's most important is that Forbes brings its own reliable, trusted brand and disciplined approach to journalism to the content screening process, which is what is lacking in much of the blog-bloviation that's going on out there.

Bus Week publisher says Murdoch likely to get WSJ by end of the year

PodcastSteve — Thu, 10 May 2007 19:05:00 +0000

The Wall Street Journal is likely to lose its independence by the end of the year, and will probably succumb to an enhanced takeover bid by Rupert Murdoch's NewsCorp, according to BusinessWeek publisher John Byrne.

Byrne made the prediction durina a panel on the future of the news media we're attending at the Investment Company Institute's General Membership Meeting in Washington. Also on the panel with Byrne is L. Gordon Crovitz of Dow Jones, who said his company is more comfortable publishing the headlines than being in them.

We'll have some excerpts from the panel in our podcast in the next few days.

Get back to your First Life, people!

PodcastSteve — Tue, 15 May 2007 09:54:00 +0000

Eric Kintz, Vice President of Global Marketing Strategy & Excellence for HP, has made a very cogent argument that supports all of the gut instincts I've had about Second Life, the Linden Labs "metaverse" where people get to create avatars for themselves that might or might not be human. A lot of people are REALLY passionate about Second Life, including some folks in the PR community.

Lots of computer companies have invested tons of capital to create a presence there. Car companies have showrooms that look beautiful, but are not staffed with salespeople 24/7. The result is a very creepy feeling world that seems a lot like EPCOT after the park closes. All the lights are on and the eery new age music is still playing, but there's no one there, most of the time.

And when there is a meeting, there are a lot of people walking around barely clothed (free membership doesn't include Linden dollars to buy wardrobe, you have to pay to play there!). And these people communicate by "air typing" on keyboards that they can't afford to buy. No one talks, they just type.

But there's a mad rush among some PR people to convince their clients that they simply MUST launch that new product or have that executive press briefing in Second Life to demonstrate how "with it" they are. I've been involved in technology in some form or another since the 1970s. That must be why I still don't get this one.

Take a look at Eric's 10 reasons and decide if you need to be there.

Top 10 Reasons as to why I still need to be convinced about marketing on Second Life

Where's the outrage?

PodcastSteve — Wed, 23 May 2007 10:52:00 +0000

Last year, everyone's knickers seemed to be in a twist over the idea that a company controlled by Dubai, one of the few strongly pro-American parts of the Arab world, was not fit to safely manage US port operations with arguably one of the most patriotic sectors of the US workforce: members of US labor organizations who unload ships in our nation's ports.

No one seems to be at all upset that General Electric just sold its plastics division to a company controlled by Saudi Arabia, and there hasn't been a squeak of opposition to the just announced injection of Chinese government money into the Blackstone private equity firm for a 10% stake in a company that's about to go public and give its partners a $5 billion payday. This is a successful company that's buying up and taking other companies private, and moving the jobs in those companies out of the US.

You can't move US port jobs to a less-developed country. They have to unload the ships here. But you can make plastics and cars without American workers. And if you control those industrial platforms (plastics factories and heavy machinery manufacturing facilities) you have a lot of say in whether the US can build equipment it needs or may need to defend itself in the future.

Where's the outrage?

LOBP#29: Short Excerpt from Journalism Panel, ICI Conference, Washington

PodcastSteve — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 19:00:00 +0000

In this podcast we present brief excerpts of comments made at the Investment Company Institute's General Membership Meeting in Washington in May.

Speakers were

John Byrne, executive editor of BusinessWeek

Gordon Crovitz, publisher of The Wall Street Journal.

Download the podcast here (6.34 mb stereo MP3 file, 00:04:34 duration).

Keywords: lubetkin,cherry hill,ici,crovitt,byrne,businessweek,wall street journal,dow jones,washington

LOBP#30: Central PA PRSA Panel on The State of the Media 2007

PodcastSteve — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 20:46:00 +0000

In this podcast we present a panel discussion recorded May 17 in Harrisburg Pennsylvania, sponsored by the Central Pennsylvania Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America. The program was "The State of the Media 2007," a panel about the future of the news media.

The panelists were:

Mark Jurkowitz, associate director of the Project for Excellence in Journalism, part of the Pew Research Center in Washington

Cate Barron, Managing Editor, Harrisburg Patriot-News

William Bova, Vice President, Programming, Pennsylvania Cable Network

Scott Gilbert, News Director, WITF-FM

Steven Ibanez, Editor in Chief, PennLive.com

Jason Klinger, Editor, Central Pennsylvania Business Journal

Steve Lubetkin, Managing Partner, Professional Podcasts

Greg Zoerb, News Director, WHP-TV

After the panelist presentations, there is a Q&A session with the audience.

The program is introduced by Robert Saline, APR, president and CEO of PRWorks, a Harrisburg based PR consulting firm.

Download the podcast here (244.0 mb stereo MP3 file, 02:58:01 duration).

Time Codes

00:03:04 - Bob Saline, APR, of PRWorks Inc. introduces the program

00:05:55 - Jean Waverka, APR, of Waverka Communications, introduces
Mark Jurkowitz, associate director of the Project for Excellence in Journalism, part of the Pew Research Center in Washington

00:07:01 - 00:39:35 Mark Jurkowitz

00:39:43 Jean introduces Jason Klinger, Editor, Central Pennsylvania Business Journal

00:40:40 - 00:56:28 Jason Klinger

00:56:28 Bob Saline introduces Steve Lubetkin

00:59:14 - 01:13:42 Steve Lubetkin

01:13:53 Bob Saline introduces Cate Barron, Managing Editor, Harrisburg Patriot-News

01:16:07 - 01:32:00 Cate Barron

01:32:19 - Bob introduces William Bova, vice president of programming for Pennsylvania Cable Network Television.

01:34:17 - 01:54:18 William Bova, Vice President, Programming, Pennsylvania Cable Network

01:54:18 - Jean introduces Steven Ibanez, Editor in Chief, PennLive.com

01:54:30 - 02:13:06 Steven Ibanez

02:13:06 Bob introduces Greg Zoerb, News Director, WHP-TV

02:14:07 - 02:20:51 Greg Zoerb

02:20:57 - 02:21:47 Jean introduces Scott Gilbert, news director, WITF-FM

02:21:57 - 02:32:07 Scott Gilbert

02:32:16 - 02:56:34 Q&A session

02:56:44 - END Steve Lubetkin closes the podcast with houskeeping information, email address and podcast comment line.

If you have comments, please email or call our podcast comment line, +1-206-333-1263.

Keywords: lubetkin,cherry hill,journalism,pew,harrisburg,prsa,saline,panel,jurkowitz,cate barron,bova,pcntv,patriot-news,gilbert,witf,ibanez,cpbj,jason klinger,zoerb,whp-tv,podcast

LOBP#31: PRSA/Philadelphia Presentation: Philadelphia Inquirer's Business Coverage with Business Editor Tony Gnoffo

PodcastSteve — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 16:08:00 +0000

This podcast features a presentation by Tony Gnoffo, recently named business editor of the Philadelphia Inquirer. The program was recorded June 12 at the PRSA/Philadelphia Chapter luncheon at the Union League Club in Philadelphia. After Tony's presentation, he takes questions from the audience of PR professionals in a Q&A session moderated by PRSA/Philadelphia Chapter vice president Jonathan Morein.

Maribeth Roman Schmidt introduces Tony Gnoffo, business editor of the Philadelphia Inquirer

Tony Gnoffo makes a point during his presentation

Tony responds to an audience question while Jonathan Morein looks on.

Download the podcast here (119 mb stereo MP3 file, 01:26:46 duration).

Send comments to steve@professionalpodcasts.com or call podcast comment line, +1-206-333-1263.

Time Codes

00:00:00 - 00:01:32 Steve Lubetkin introduces the program

00:01:32 - 00:02:03 Seat belt safety public service announcement by New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine

00:02:28 - 00:10:20 Maribeth Roman Schmidt, PRSA/Philadelphia president, introduces the program.

00:10:30 - 00:25:17 Tony Gnoffo's presentation

00:25:17 - 01:25:40 Q&A with Tony Gnoffo and Jonathan Morein and Maribeth Roman Schmidt

01:25:40 - END Steve Lubetkin closes the podcast with houskeeping information, email address and podcast comment line.

Keywords: lubetkin,cherry hill,journalism,inquirer,philadelphia,gnoffo,business,prsa,podcast

Golden egg? Fuggeddaboudit, gimme that carving knife!

PodcastSteve — Thu, 21 Jun 2007 11:35:00 +0000

Robert Klein cut his comedy chops with a routine called "The final record offer," a spoof of those late-night television ads for special mail-order music collections.

"We bring them to your house in a truck," he intoned.

A funny commercial a few years ago had a guy checking into a fleabag motel in the desert, to be told by the clerk that the in-room TV offered "every movie ever made."

"How is that possible?" the guest queried.

Well, the movie industry opened the floodgates (from the music industry's perspective) when it didn't succeed in preventing home videocassette machines from recording broadcast content for personal use. A famous Supreme Court decision, Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios, 464 U.S. 417 (1984) gave significant legal protection to personal home recording.

Now music company executives, who have arranged for us to repurchase our music libraries every time technology changes, are making up for lost opportunity by crushing every consumer-demanded opportunity for a new content channel.

Their support for copyright reform that will lead to massive increases in royalty payments from the nascent Internet radio industry is one more example of how clueless the recording industry has become, how out of touch with their customers, and frankly, how indifferent they are to what that customer base thinks of them.

While we do not advocate copyright infringement -- indeed, much of the work we produce is protected by copyright, either for our companies or for our clients -- we can understand why consumers of music content are frustrated and angry.

VCRs did not kill the movie industry, any more than TV killed radio (despite the 1980s Buggles' song's claim).

Many of us like the free-form content of Internet radio. It's the only place to find album-oriented rock or alternative music, now that Clear Channel owns all of the radio stations in the world and programs trash talk and worse music.

Jonathan Schwartz

For those of us who grew up when Jonathan Schwartz essayed his way through the evenings on WNEW-FM, and Allison Steele, "the Nightbird," haunted the fevered dreams of every male rock fan within earshot of 102.7 FM in New York, or Ed Sciaky on WMMR-FM, introducing listeners to Bruce Springsteen and Southside Johnny, Internet radio has become our refuge.

Allison Steele with John Kalodner

Ed Sciaky

Even more, it's the only place where you can discover experimental, alternative, and just plain different music than what you get shoved down your throat by the overly commercialized broadcast radio outlets. Is it any wonder people would rather spend days ripping their (legally acquired) music CDs onto computers so they can load it on MP3 devices and never listen to the radio again?

We should be howling at the moon over Washington, where this deal with the ware-wolves of the music industry was struck.

Those of us who do podcasts would love to play songs from famous artists, but that would mean paying royalties to ASCAP and BMI, the two US licensing agencies. The only problem is they have no model for the tiny size of most podcast audiences, so they sell licenses based on radio station models.

As Tod Maffin of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation found out when he tried to get a license from the Canadian counterparts of ASCAP and BMI, the costs are astronomical when the podcast generates $0 in revenue and only has 300-500 listeners. Conversations about a more rational formula appear to have died two years ago.

A quick visit to ASCAP's website let me plug some numbers into their "rate calculator." For a podcast distributed for free, with an audience of 500 listeners and $2,000 in sponsorship revenue (highly optimistic) ASCAP would expect a license fee of $288. That's more than 10% of the revenue -- and that's only for one episode. That fee would apply for every episode in that series.

The unwillingness of the music industry to seek reasonable compromises has led consumers to do what they do best -- invent circumventions.

We've already seen rock bands and other promising musicians recording their own albums without the dubious benefit of major recording labels charging all sorts of useless promotions and "artists and repertoire" personnel to the recording budget. We're seeing "podsafe" music websites offering new artists' works for free use in podcasts in return for links back to their band sites.

Now is the time to urge your elected representatives to stop this foolishness.

Read the Wall Street Journal coverage of this issue here:
Web Broadcasters Plan Protests Over Royalties: Web broadcasters are planning to turn off their music for one day to protest higher statutory royalty rates payable to artists. Many services say the new rate structure will put them out of business.

BlogPhiladelphia

PodcastSteve — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 14:04:00 +0000

Attending a session on how independent workers can meet through social networking at BlogPhiladelphia. Alex Hillman of IndependentsHall.org is leading the discussion.

Program is being live blogged by dozens of attendees. Significant presence of mainstream media. I'm sitting with Carl Lavin, deputy mng. Ed of Phila Inquirer for digital projects. Yesterday spoke with Mike DiNardo of KYW radio and Wendy Warren, biz editor of Phila daily News. Interviews with attendees qill be in the podcast...stay tuned!

Liveblogging on Phillyist at BlogPhiladelphia

PodcastSteve — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 14:11:00 +0000

Jillian Ivey liveblogging from BlogPhiladelphia as Alex Hillman of IndependentsHall.org leads discussion of working independently and meeting other freelancers. Jillian is editor of the Phillyist.com city blog.

Options

View Picture
Order Prints and Gifts
Reply to Sender
Reply to All
Forward

Send and receive Pictures and Videos through Picture Mail^SM. For more information go to www.sprint.com/picturemail.

Importance of blogs

PodcastSteve — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 15:52:00 +0000

My team members from PodCamp Philly (www.podcampphilly.org), Lisa Marshall and Whitney Hoffman, are leading a breakout at BlogPhiladelphia about basic entry level blogging.

Phila Chamber of Commerce staffers are tryimg to convince their bosses they need a blog.

What would you like to see on a Chamber blog?

blogphilly steve1

PodcastSteve — Sun, 15 Jul 2007 13:03:00 +0000

blogphilly steve1
Originally uploaded by toonerlisa

Thanks to ToonerLisa of Toonamation.com for taking this shot of me at the BlogPhiladelphia closing party at National Mechanics. Lisa and Stan have an awesome app that turns live video into cartoons, without the expense and time of rotoscoping. I'll be interviewing them for my CompuSchmooze column/podcast (www.compuschmooze.com).

Lots of very interesting stuff at BlogPhiladelphia, more to come at PodCamp Philly in September, I will be producing an LOBP podcast for this blog with all the interviews.

Thanks to Inquirer DepManEd Carl Lavin for the shoutout in his 07newsroom blog. Kudos to Inquirer for trying to figure out social media while weathering the storm of trying to figure out how to transition a dead-tree publication to the networked world.

blogphilly Toonerstan & Toonerlisa

PodcastSteve — Sun, 15 Jul 2007 13:04:00 +0000

blogphilly Toonerstan & Toonerlisa
Originally uploaded by toonerlisa

Here's Stan and Lisa. Check out toonamation.com. Very cool.

LOBP#32: BlogPhiladelphia Short Report 7/16/2007

PodcastSteve — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 19:37:00 +0000

This podcast features excerpts from interviews conducted during BlogPhiladelphia on July 12-13, 2007.

We interviewed several participants and organizers of the conference for their reactions. We'll have a longer program later this week, but this podcast will give you some highlights of the conference.

Here are some photos:


Steve recording live on-site podcast interviews. (Jason Smith Photo)	Carl Lavin, deputy managing editor for digital media at the Philadelphia Inquirer

Jill Ivey, editor of Phillyist.com, who "live-blogged" the conference.

Annie Heckenberger, social media director of Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation, which organized the conference (Jason Smith Photo)

Download the podcast here (6.87 mb stereo MP3 file, 00:05:00 duration).

Send comments to steve@professionalpodcasts.com or call our podcast comment line, +1-206-333-1263.

Keywords: lubetkin,cherry hill,blogphiladelphia,philadelphia,podcast,heckenberger,lavin,.marshall,hillman,ivey

Second-Lifers, start hitting the virtual ATM

PodcastSteve — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 13:32:00 +0000

I haven't been a great big fan of Second Life. As I've written previously, I find it a creepy environment that distracts from communications that could be conducted more easily, and reliably, using video and audio conferencing tools that don't require massive recurring credit card charges for play money to create environments in which to meet other people.

Now, as Linden Labs exercises some of its awesome TOS powers to arbitrarily seize the casino properties that its subscribers have bought and paid for, simply because Linden Labs decided (apparently with encouragement from First Life law enforcement authorities) to change the rules of the game. Remember, all you SL millionaires, you consented to give Linden Labs this power to control all aspects of your wealth when you agreed to the TOS.

When I worked on Wall Street, I learned about the concept of the "sovereign ceiling." I have seen first-hand how governments use their powers to control currency flows -- thereby collapsing their own economies as they devalue assets and currencies in the process.

I wonder how long the illusions about the "altruism" behind Second Life will continue? Pay no attention to those terms of service behind the curtain...

The Doctor's Avatar will see you now...

PodcastSteve — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 11:20:00 +0000

Did you know why men frequently choose female avatars (graphic representations of themselves) in online virtual worlds? Dan Gottlieb had a guest with the answer yesterday on WHYY.

Dr. Dan Gottlieb is the Cherry Hill-based psychologist with the award-winning "Voices in the Family" show on local NPR affiliate WHYY-FM, had a great discussion Monday with researchers looking at the psychological impact of virtual worlds like Second Life.

His guests included Dr. Craig Kerley, who actually has a practice in Second Life. You can listen to the discussion as a podcast.

More information on the episode is at http://www.whyy.org/91FM/voices.html.

Dan's website is here.

330 out of 150??? We have a long way to go!

PodcastSteve — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 04:27:00 +0000

Advertising Age - Power 150

Todd Andrlik's Power 150 PR Blogger list made its debut in AdWeek magazine and we're proud to even see our name on the list, even though we turn up at 330 on the list. Better to be on the list than to be on the "D" List, right?

Anyway, it clearly means that blogging about communications means something...not sure what, but we're going to work a lot harder to move this diatribe closer to the top of the house.

Wall Street Journal on Second Life's coming financial meltdown

PodcastSteve — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 13:08:00 +0000

WSJ BreakingViews.com column reports on financial problems that seem to be piling up in Second Life just like the bills that come in First Life.

There's been an embezzlement from the stock exchange and the bank has refused to cash people out? Didn't we predict that months ago?

I know it's schadenfreud-y of me, but we have been warning about this play money scheme for a long time in this blog.

Online stuff is pretty, it's cool, sometimes it even works as advertised, but there are red flags all over this.

PodcastSteve — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 00:39:00 +0000

New Podcast Comment Lines for Professional PodcastsOne of the problems with free voice mail lines is that if you don't use it at least once every 30 days, it goes away. So our (206) number has gone away.

The good news is that we're using Skype Voicemail for our new, more permanent podcast comment line. Please make a note of this number if you'd like to leave a podcast comment for us.

The number is +1 (856) 861-6146 in the US.
You can also call the UK at +44 020 7193 6146

The alienated worker in Second Life

PodcastSteve — Sun, 02 Sep 2007 12:46:00 +0000

FT.com / Comment & analysis / Columnists / Christopher Caldwell

This weekend's FT (great newspaper, a must-read if you want to understand how the non-US centric part of the world thinks), features a superb commentary on the Second Life virtual world from Christopher Caldwell, a senior editor at The Weekly Standard. You can try to read the article at this link, but you might need a paid subscription to see the whole thing, so I will hit the high points.

Caldwell argues cogently that spending lots of time in an alternative reality is "a vaguely onanistic hobby that serves as a retreat for those who can find no purchase in real life."

In fairness, there's something to be said for vaguely onanistic hobbies, but he does make a few good points:

"Online avatars are not autonomous. They are not related to their creators the way Mr Hyde is related to Dr Jekyll. They are related to their creators the way Mr Hyde and Dr Jekyll are related to Robert Louis Stevenson."

"If avatars were really the free spirits that internet boosters claim they are, then trademarks would lose their value in 'alternative' worlds – and they don’t."

He does point out that there are a lot of businesses setting up shop in SL, but he also makes the argument that few SL devotees are willing to admit:

"Corporate marketers consider avatars mostly as “eyes” that can be drawn in a non-shopping but fantasy-susceptible situation – as in a football stadium, or in front of a TV screen. Virtual reality is a new form of advertising. It is not a new world."

Caldwell comments on the highly publicized article in the Jesuit magazing Civilita Catolica, which I haven't been able to find online in English -- or Italian for that matter. (Anyone know where to link to the original article?) by Fr. Antonio Spadaro, which calls for missionaries to inhabit Second Life.

A lot of online commentators have used this as a jumping off point to ridicule religion, but Caldwell and Spadaro have the right spin, I think:

"Virtual reality may be overrated as an economic phenomenon, but it is an important spiritual one. While not offering anything particularly new, it may still manage to devalue the old, posing dangers to a person’s inmost character – his 'real' character or, if you prefer, his soul. It does this mostly through what Fr Spadaro calls 'the temptation towards the cancellation of experience'. More and more of life can be 'rewound', undone and treated as an 'experiment' that has no moral meaning."

If you don't believe this, Caldwell goes on to point out an uncomfortable truth about Second Life. To a large extent, it's about the "idol worship" all of our great religious texts warn against, the triumph of materialism over spiritual growth. If you don't believe that, consider the kinds of avatars Caldwell notes that people choose:

"There are reportedly few children in the world of Second Life avatars and few members of the working class. The virtual world makes it clear that there are identities nobody wants."

In what seems to be an echo of T.S. Elliot's famous line, Fr Spadaro writes. “Today people are afraid of naked reality.”

There are good reasons to experiment in virtual worlds, but there are also good reasons to keep both feet in the real one too.

Yum Brands and KFC Continue to be Clueless about PR -- and their agency doesn't seem to be helping much

PodcastSteve — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 10:29:00 +0000

The Colonel would have cancelled this pitch we received today...

A few months back, we had the 24-hour nonstop news cycle spectre of CNBC showing an almost continuous loop of video depicting rats running wild in a New York City KFC outlet. We blogged about the clueless, tepid, and no-boots-on-the-ground crisis non-response of KFC's parent, Yum Brands.

Well, their PR agency has helped them once again with a brilliant strategy.

We got a breathless email from a WeberShandwick PR person letting me in on "...a celebrity story that is QUICKLY gaining attention..."

The pitch goes on as follows:

As you may know, Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony are soon to start their En Concierto tour and are also BIG fans of KFC! To return the favor and show them the high esteem that they have with The Colonel, KFC has sent an official letter to Jennifer Lopez inviting her to have a KFC After-Party at a nearby restaurant immediately following her concert performance.
On September 28, the couple will kick off their 13 city tour starting Atlantic City, NJ. JLo and Mr. Anthony, their entourage, and a few VIP guests are all invited to take KFC up on their offer and stop in at any of 13 KFC locations and fulfill their midnight cravings!

Below, please find the letter address to Ms. Lopez and the 13 stops on her tour/13 KFC locations where the after party could take place. Please dont hesitate to contact me if you need additional information! Lets PARTY!!!

September 19, 2007

An open letter to Jennifer Lopez:

Whether you are topping the charts with your latest musical hit or shining on the silver screen, you have always had an Original Recipe for success.

We recently heard about your love for KFC and want to help you celebrate your upcoming nationwide tour with a tasty offer. On the road the comforts of home can seem miles away, but KFC is offering you a home style meal no matter what block you find yourself on during your route.

From Madison Square Garden to Miami, Atlantic City to Anaheim, and everywhere in between, we would like to offer you, your entourage and a few VIP guests an all access pass to the KFC location of your choice. You have a bucketful of choices for "after party" locations because KFC has more than 5,500 restaurants across the country. Hearing about your fondness for KFC was music to our ears, so just name the time and the place and we'll open our doors to you for a post-concert feast.

Good luck on your upcoming tour and we hope to host you soon.

Your Fan,

Gregg Dedrick
President of KFC
[The open letter is followed by a list of about 20 KFC restaurants near where Lopez is appearing in various cities. It did not include the restaurant in New York City where the rats were videotaped.]

Let's analyze what this PR strategy involves.

KFC's PR agency heard or read somewhere that Jennifer Lopez told someone she liked KFC.

So instead of KFC's advertising people throwing some bucks at her for a real endorsement, or to sponsor her concert tour, they got this teriffic idea.

What if we send her an "open letter" inviting Jennifer and her entourage to chow down at KFC after concerts in various cities?

Maybe, just maybe, we can get some underpaid, inexperienced ink-stained wretch in the local market, assigned to cover the concert and so poor they would kill for KFC to eat, to actually mention that there is a KFC near the concert venue?

They are not even offering local residents patronizing those KFCs some sort of party to celebrate the concert. They are just inviting Lopez to stop by and hoping someone will write about that?

And this is 'quickly becoming news' because ... er ... why?

I wonder what WeberShandwick billed KFC to have an intern cut and paste the list from the restaurant locator function of KFC's website?

It's attempts to create linkages and "news" where no news exists that make people think of PR practitioners as used car salespeople. This is just one more awful example of the lack of strategic insight and ignorance of how to manage corporate reputation that seems to dominate product and celebrity publicity.

This guy gets the social media, in a very short video nutshell

PodcastSteve — Sat, 29 Sep 2007 12:35:00 +0000

Marc Wright, of simply-communicate.com, understands the social media. It's just another way to communicate, he says in this video posted on MyRagan.com, and professional communicators need to spend less time arguing over the relative merits of one social media channel vs. another, and more time understanding how to get people to communicate more effectively. Bravo! What he said!

Marc Wright

We also liked his reference to getting input from more gray-hairs who have experience as professional communicators...yay!

This explains why he hasn't been responding to emails...

PodcastSteve — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 01:53:00 +0000

According to the Talking Biz News Blog, Carl Lavin of the Philadelphia Inquirer has jumped to Forbes.com.

Forbes.com names new managing editor

We met Carl at BlogPhiladelphia earlier this year (see photo), and even interviewed him in one of our podcasts. He said he was trying to figure out how the Inquirer could benefit from all the conversations going on in social media. Too bad the Inquirer won't be benefitting from his research efforts.

Sad state of the PR community in Philadelphia...

PodcastSteve — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 02:40:00 +0000

How pathetic and sad is this item from the O'Dwyer PR website?

Comcast Taps Burson After RFP

Burson-Marsteller wins RFP process for seven-figure pact to support PR efforts for the growing cable company.

Tags: PR, Comcast, Burson-Marsteller

The largest private employer in Philadelphia selects a PR agency to handle a seven-figure contract and the agency doesn't even have an office in Comcast's home town?

Why are the companies in this market so insecure that they feel compelled to hire New York agencies for PR and advertising (and all the associated baggage of higher billing rates and big markups for the donuts served during client meetings) instead of trying, just trying to work with some of the really excellent, talented people in the creative community closer to home?

Comcast is getting all kinds of tax breaks for its giant monument to itself in Center City, taxes that will come out of local residents and commuters who work in Philadelphia, NOT from people who work 85 miles to the northeast in Manhattan. They probably think we call the business district of Philadelphia "midtown."

Is anyone in the Philadelphia advertising or PR community going to write to Brian Roberts to ask how in the world they could choose a New York agency?

Marking the passing of Commerce Bank

PodcastSteve — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 11:09:00 +0000

PLUS

Commerce Bank, the Cherry Hill based darling of many analysts for its seven-day a week lobby hours and its "penny arcade" coin counting machines, fell to the merger machine yesterday as its board accepted an $8 billion offer from TD BankNorth. We're quoted on the topic in today's Newark Star-Ledger

Before being bought by Toronto Dominion Bank, TD BankNorth was a tiny New England-based institution that nipped at the heels of my former employer, FleetBoston Financial.

It's sort of deja vu. TD BankNorth had purchased Hudson United Bank, and had a few branches around South Jersey, but not enough to gain what bankers call "critical mass." It's expensive to build new branches, $1-2 million a pop by most estimates. Cheaper to buy an existing network of branches, because they already have the land leases, the physical building, and as a nice bonus, they come with depositor money already in the vault.

It's almost a direct rerun of when Fleet came out of New England with just a smattering of branches in New Jersey (the result of its earlier purchase of NatWest), and scooped up Summit's 460 branch network, only to later succumb to Bank of America.

But the demise of Commerce (and it will be a demise, once they finish the "merger integration" and change the signs) doesn't mean the end of small hometown banks. Far from it. Since Bank of America came to New Jersey, many of its refugee executives have launched de novo (that's banking industry jargon for "new") banks.

Bank mergers are like the Whack-a-Mole game. You hit one in the head and knock it down, and three more pop up out of the other holes.

LOBP#33: Podcast of PRSA Philadelphia Chapter Ethics Panel, 9/20/2007

PodcastSteve — Sun, 07 Oct 2007 23:16:00 +0000

This podcast features a panel discussion on ethical practice for public relations professionals, held at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia on September 20, 2007. The program was sponsored by the Philadelphia Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America.

Panelists were:

Christopher Bauer, president of Bauer Ethics Seminars

Former Philadelphia Managing Director Phil Goldsmith of Goldsmith Kahn and Associates

Dave Frankel of Montgomery, McCracken, Walker & Rhoads, LLP

David Kirk, APR, Fellow PRSA, President of The PR Guy, Inc.

Moderating the panel was Jonathan Morein, vice president and chief ethics officer, PRSA/Philadelphia.

Download the podcast here (76.5 mb stereo MP3 file, 00:55:43 duration).

A video podcast of this panel is also available on the PRSA/Philadelphia website and on the Professional Podcasts Video Feed..

Learn more about our new video podcast capabilities.

Send comments to steve@professionalpodcasts.com or call our podcast comment line, (US Callers +1-856-861-6146; European Callers, +44 020 7193 6146).

Keywords: lubetkin,cherry hill,blogphiladelphia,philadelphia,podcast,heckenberger,lavin,.marshall,hillman,ivey

Produced by Professional Podcasts LLC.

Chrysler gets social media better than GM, despite GM's head start in the blogosphere

PodcastSteve — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 11:17:00 +0000

General Motors got a lot of buzz when it launched the GM Fast Lane Blog a couple of years ago, with one of the highest-profile executive bloggers, vice chairman Bob Lutz, who engaged several hundred passionate car and truck enthusiasts in a dialogue about engine design, one of his personal passions.

But for all its novelty, the GM blog pretty much slapped down any visitors who wanted to talk about real issues like GM's massive financial losses over the past several years, or the important cost, environmental, and design issues confronting the industry.

Then Mr. Lutz either got tired of blogging daily, or someone on GM's board suggested that there might be better things for him to do to help stop the $12 billion that hemorrhaged from the company last year.

In any case, GM started a new blog, FYI, in which less-well known bloggers (read "the PR staff") would post useful nuggets, mostly culled from the releases they were writing for various product groups.

To my surprise, some of my colleagues in the PR blogosphere heaped lavish praise recently on GM for posting to the Fast Lane blog an item about the then-impending strike by the UAW.

The item basically said, "This is not something we're going to talk about in the blog, we're going to negotiate with the union the traditional way."

Shel Holtz thought it was courageous of GM to even mention it in the blog. But I don't think GM went far enough, and Chrysler has proved this point very nicely.

I responded to Shel's posting (see comments #2 and #4) that I think corporate blogging isn't going to do very well if companies continue to circle the wagons and muzzle their blogs when the dialogue turns difficult or uncomfortable, leaving the so-called "conversation" with constituencies only for the "happy news." And yet, that's what most companies, even those that encourage employee blogging like Microsoft, do. When it's a bet the company crisis, they all go to radio silence.

Or almost all. Well, Chrysler, newly taken private, has shown exactly how to do it right.

First reported in PRWeek,they've got a comprehensive multimedia blog site called ChryslerLaborTalks07.com that includes management interviews, videos, audio, and huge media briefing books articulating management's viewpoint on the issue. There is a lengthy audio interview with the SVP of Employee Relations, and a range of video clips related to the labor discussions.

You may not agree with their bargaining position or their view of the issues, but you have to give them points for taking their case to the public in a full and comprehensively thought-out way.

The value for the company is they get their message distributed publicly, unfiltered by news media who don't understand the nuances of the issues, unlimited in time and space, not compelled by the publishers and broadcasters to keep their answers to 30 seconds or less, or 25 words or less. They aren't at the mercy of a tech savvy union that might sway the public all by itself, using a blog while the company dithers, as has often been the case in previous labor disputes.

Chrysler is setting a new standard in not letting its management be a punching bag for its critics. It's about time.

This one has to rank with the "mystery cougher" that BL Ochman loves to hate...

PodcastSteve — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 13:29:00 +0000

You all know about the disgusting PR idea that Ricola cough drops has resurrected? The "mystery cougher" who goes around in public coughing on people randomly, and if you give him a Ricola cough drop you could win a prize?

Well, TequilaConfessions.com is right up there with Ricola in the Annals of PR Ideas That Weren't Fully Thought Through. The PR firm that billed Partida Tequila what must have been hundreds of thousands for a glitzy website and high production videos came up with the idea of conducting person-on-the-street interviews in which people confess to things they did when they were drinking tequila. Sounds like, as the agency put it, "a fun way" to get people to learn about the benefits of the product.

There's one problem with this. The centerpiece of the website, the signature video clip, is an interview in which a young man confesses that while getting drunk on tequila in Chicago, he apparently had a one night stand that produced a pregnancy, and he now has a child in Chicago.

Very funny stuff, right?

Sure, unless you're this irresponsible idiot's kid, or one of the kid's friends, and recognize his "Say, Jane, you are a good sport" dad.

People, the Internet is forever. You can't unring this bell and eventually you will hear from lawyers for people whose social and professional lives are irreparably damaged by this cavalier attitude toward personal behavior.

If you hate it when your mom drags out your baby pictures, imagine how you will feel when your boss calls up your Tequila Confession and asks you for more receipts to justify those expense account entries...

I just hope the PR firm that cooked up this brain bullet (apologies to Lucy Kellaway and Martin Lukes at the FT) also baked some legal fees and a crisis PR plan into their budget. They are going to need both.

Mia Farrow at PRSA Intl Conf

PodcastSteve — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 17:45:00 +0000

Mia Farrow is speaking at PRSA international conference in Philadelphia. She confronted the lack of pressure being put on the Chinese government, which supports the genocide in Darfur through its economic and military support for Sudanese Government.

She noted that many US companies sponsoring Olympics are also represented at PRSA conference and also noted that China has hired big US PR firms to burnish its image.

She called on US companies to put pressure on China to pull its support for the genocide.

Still no news release in response from those PR firms helping China hide the blood on its hands...

Farrow blogged her way across Africa

PodcastSteve — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 17:51:00 +0000

Mia Farrow, at PRSA conference, says the blog posts she dictated by sat phone back home got 30k hits a day on www.miafarrow.org.

PRSA New Media Ethics Panel Photo

PodcastSteve — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 14:17:00 +0000

PRSA International Conference panel on New Media Ethics.  Here's the lineup below: Left to right: Peter Himler of Flatiron Communications; Katie Paine of KDPaine & Partners; Rick Murray, me2revolution at Edelman: Josh Hallett of Hyku.

John Bell's workshop at PRSA International Conference on the 360degree conversation

PodcastSteve — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 16:53:00 +0000

Public Relations professionals face the challenge of mastering social media so they can make fresh, creative recommendations to their clients , according to John Bell, Managing Director of Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide's 360 degree Digital Influence. Bell presented a workshop on using the social media to engage in a 360-degree conversation with customers and other audiences.

Responding to a question in the session, John said that public relations people need to stop considering themselves only as the "arms and legs of media relations," but must be proactive in learning as much as they can about how to engage in social media.

Bell talked about deepening levels of consumer engagement with companies, ranging from the simplest interaction of branded online entertainment up through the more complex engagements of content creation, social collaboration like bookmarking, wikis, tagging and voting, up through content co-creation like consumer generated ads and crowdsourcing.

A campaign created for Sleep Number beds involved creation of a web portal leading to an RSS feed mashup highlighting sleep conversations.

The goal is to create shareable content that is useful; to consumers. A campaign for Aveeno included creating a relationship with street artist Julian Beaver, famed for ultra realistic chalk paintings. Check out this video and this Flickr site created to support the campaign.

More later. Have to prepare for my session on podcasting for thought leadership.

More on John Bell's presentation from PRSA International Conference

PodcastSteve — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 01:19:00 +0000

Picking up where we left off with John Bell's presentation, a few more highlights...

The Aveeno campaign included connecting people to the YouTube timelapse video of chalk artist Julian Beaver creating one of his outstanding 3D chalk sidewalk drawings. They created a Flickr gallery for the press and consumers, with the twin goal of activating the media, and also activating the Julian Beaver fanbase.

Making content shareable helps meet the key goals of engaging consumers through social media, giving people a voice, embracing third party messages, but also leveraging the ability of social media to enhance search engine positioning.

John really gets outstanding when he goes into the measurement metrics. His measurement suite includes the following elements:

Engagement and Reach
Page impressions
Time spent
Emails opened
Audio/video plays

Word of Mouth
# of mentions
# of posts
# of recommendations
# of mentions per user
# sent to friends

Earned Media
Online
Offline

Search Visibility
Higher mentions
Share of search
3rd party

Research
Customer/stakeholder feedback
Product sampling

The breadth of this measurement suite is really comprehensive. We should all be striving to provide this value to our clients in the overall evaluation of social media campaigns.

Twitter is rocking my professional life

PodcastSteve — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 01:34:00 +0000

Like a lot of people, I've been wrestling with how to understand Twitter. I think I've finally figured it out. Kami Huyse calls it "Instant Message on steroids." I'm going way back to the Dark Ages before the 'net and calling it "CB Radio for the 'net."

We all used to drive around pretending we were truckers, saying things like "Breaker 1-9 for a 10-36" and hoping there was someone out there who would tell us what time it was so we could chat for a few minutes. Or we would meet friends on the air and make arrangements to stop for coffee.

It was fun but it was only useful within a really short radius because the radios were limited to 5 watts of AM power, which gets you about two miles away on a good day.

Twitter gives you the same partially random network but with global reach.

You make connections you might otherwise not make. Example: Alex Hillman of Independents Hall in Philadelphia tweets yesterday about how quickly Hyku posted some photos online. I'm sitting in a PRSA Conference panel that is just about to start when I read this tweet. Hyku, a/k/a Josh Hallett, is sitting on the panel. So after the program I go over and say, "So what's this about you and Alex Hillman and some pictures?" Josh does a slight double take and says "how did you know,", but his eyes immediately widen with recognition when I shrug and say "Twitter."

And people can enhance each other's day by being coaches or giving tips or just by reacting to what they are hearing in a way that offers dynamic feedback to the person being tweeted. Today, Josh came to my program on using podcasts to promote thought leadership. At one point he tweeted a negative challenge in reaction to something the other presenter said, and I was able to adapt my response to an audience question in a way that addressed his concerns -- a dynamic morphing of the presentation tailored to some real-time feedback from the audience.

This could be really powerful if we could get the hang of reading and typing and speaking all at the same time.

Liveblogging Leadership New Jersey's Forum on the Future of New Jersey

PodcastSteve — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 12:50:00 +0000

Today we are producing podcasts for Leadership New Jersey at the studios of NJN in Trenton. We did this last year, and you can still hear last year's podcasts at the podcast blog. The Forum on the Future of New Jersey also has its own site.

That's also where we will be posting the podcasts from this year's program, which is just getting underway with welcoming remarks from Diane Brake, LNJ '90, of PlanSmart NJ.

Diane Brake

Michael Willmann of WMSH Marketing Communications in Haddonfield is the organizer of the Forum.

Here's the lineup of speakers/panels. We'll blog each one separately.

1. "Is New Jersey in the game...or on the bench?" - US Attorney Christopher Christie on the challenges of balancing business needs and the duty to guard against terrorism.

Panel 1: The insider's view (on the ground)
Academic and business leaders discussing why businesses choose to locate in New Jersey. Panelists are Greg Bohn, Advanced Drainage Systems; Jim Hughes of the Bloustein School at Rutgers, Ann Limberg, New Jersey market president for Bank of America; and Kenneth Traub, American Bank Note Holographics.

Panel 2: The Regional View (from 500 ft.)
Regional agencies offering their strategies for attracting business and the investments needed to ensure the state's competitiveness.
Moderated by Jack Lettiere of Nation's Port
Panelists: Tom Carver, NJ Casino Reinvestment and Redevelopment Authority; John Matheussen, Delaware River Port Authority; Carl Goldberg, New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority; Susan Bass Levin, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey; Joe Montemarano, SMART (Strengthening the MidAtlantic Region for Tomorrow).

Panel 3: The Natitonal and International View (from 10,000 feet)
Leading Corporations discuss the challenges they face in remaining in the state. Moderator, Tom Tauke of Verizon. Panelists: Jay Biggins, Biggins Lacy Shapiro; Nick Montalto, Diversity Dynamics; and Tom Morr, Select Greater Philadelphia.

Keynote speaker at lunch is Gary Rose, Economic Growth Chief, State of New Jersey.

There are about 150 attendees at the New Jersey Network studio in Trenton for the program. We'll be back with more as Chris Christie gets his speech underway momentarily.

US Attorney Chris Christie at Leadership NJ's Forum on the future of New Jersey

PodcastSteve — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 13:37:00 +0000

Chris Christie, US Attorney in New Jersey (Republican in a very Democrat state) - wikipedia entry here.

Little relationship between security against terror and restrictions on business, Christie says.

Ft. Dix 6 were not radicalized in Pakistan or Afghanistan, they were radicalized in Mt. Laurel and Cherry Hill, in front of their computers, in their bedrooms. They had videos of Osama Bin Laden, last will and testiment of 2 of 19 9/11 hijackers on their computers. Were caught making a training DVD that they emailed around to other like-minded folks. Two of the five biggest terror cases since 9/11 have been in New Jersey, and demonstrates that law enforcement is on the case. Store clerk who saw the video called Mt. Laurel PD, and because of their sensitivity post-9/11, they contacted federal authorities leading to the investigation that led to the arrests.

Why is economic growth a problem in NJ? Some problems outside my job description, Christie says. But one problem he hears about is lack of integrity in the state and how discouraging to try to interact with government without feeling you're being shaken down at the point of a loaded gun. Basic problem in NJ is "we don't trust each other, and we certainly don't trust our government," and it's at every level from local up to state. Business has good reason not to trust government.

Record of prosecutions 124-0 Christie says, prosecuting elected officials and government officials.

Undercover investigation bought five members of Pleasantville NJ Board of Education, FBI created a fictional insurance brokerage, Coastal Solutions. Citing other examples of local officials offering to get investigators contracts with government

FBI forgot the envelope in one sting, $5,000 cash, official stuffed in his pocked, then put his arm around the FBI guy, and said "I love you, man."

You can't make this up, Christie says. The guy pleaded guilty on Friday.

Businesses looking to interact with city governments that have this corruption are uncomfortable, says Christie.

NJ is the "butt of derision" around the country.

He quotes an editorial from the Statesman Journal in Salem Oregon, which wrote about some of the corruption and then concluded, "Ah, New Jersey."

This may be one of our ugliest periods, but we have a long and rich history, he says of the state. We have an obligation to leave this place better for children and grandchildren than it was left for us.

Asides: We don't have a state song, but as a Springsteen fan, Christie hints that he has some ideas...Readers, vote for your favorite version of Born to Run...

Christie concludes: We can't afford the "luxury" of cynicism. It's unpatriotic to be cynical. We have the responsibility to change what's happening in the state, "a long and ugly slog."

Politicians don't think the public is watching. And when they make promises they don't keep, and are caught, "they are like a child." We need to start holding them to account, Christie says. It's the beginning of the slippery slope to criminal conduct, he believes.

NJ is a great place to live, and we're not going to allow the corrupt to define who we are, Christie concludes. Tells his assistant US attorneys, "every day they work in your name."

Leadership New Jersey Panel 1: Insider's View, on the ground

PodcastSteve — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 14:18:00 +0000

Moderating panel is Andrew Sinclair of Princeton Public Affairs Group.

Forum on the Future of New Jersey: Panel 1, Business and academic leaders discuss why businesses locate in NJ. From left: Ann Limberg, NJ president of Bank of America; Jim Hughes of the Bloustein School at Rutgers University; Ken Traub, American Bank Note Holographics; Greg Bohn of Advanced Drainage Systems; and moderator Andrew Sinclair of Princeton Public Affairs Group

Panelists opening comments on why businesses choose NJ when they can go anywhere.

Greg Bohn, Advanced Drainage Systems (NJ connection is in this BusinessWire release)

Facility in NJ is most expensive and time-consuming they've every built. Regulations weren't impossible but a significant drag in the timeframe, 6-9 months behind their plan. Influence of construction costs related to unions, they did a great job, and got a great facility, but it was a challenge that raised costs "and some blood pressures." Happy to be in NJ, good run so far.

Estimates $1 million in transport cost savings by being closer to customers locating the plant here.

Jim Hughes, Dean of the Bloustein School at Rutgers

1980-2000, reinvention of NJ economy. Badly fading manufacturing dynamo, by 2000 knowledge based economy, with 4.1 million jobs, enormous high density concentration of jobs. One million can be considered key knowledge-based jobs, advanced post-industrial jobs in three sectors, information (telecom, internet, publishing); professional and business services; financial activities (traditional banking and very advanced Wall Street-type brokerage employment.)

Given that concentration, gives the state second-highest median household income. Maryland just knocked NJ off its #1 perch. Income in New Jersey 33 pct higher than the rest of the nation. one of the most "potent" consumer markets in the country.

NJ has one of the finest labor forces, fifth among the states in percentage of adults with BA or higher degree. Third among states in Ph.D degrees. Attractive for pharma companies, "a lot of workers to steal from companies that are already here."

Geography is good - NYC still the "dominant economic node" in the country, and being near it is important.

Ann Limberg, New Jersey market president for Bank of America

Incredibly important market, highly talented workforce. Company nationally and internationally is focused on the consumer. More than 60% of revenue comes from consumer bank. NJ one of largest markets for the bank. Consumer opportunities ranging from highly wealthy individuals to students. NJ have 6,000 employees, and it's the most expensive place for bank to do business.

Kenneth Traub, American Bank Note Holographics.
Move to NJ was consolidation from Westchester County, New York; Dalton, Massachusetts; and Pennsylvania.Turned out to be a teriffic move for his company. Ironic reaction to Chris Christie's remarks about corruption, he says he took control of the company after previous CEO was caught committing securities fraud. Very ironic considering that company makes security holograms for document and currency protection.

Should be looking at positives, gets encouragement from Rep. Rush Holt to locate here. Increased his space 80% but saved over half a million dollars in operating expenses.

Comment from Joseph Montemorano, Princeton University, state hasn't reinvested in its research universities. Sees a lack of comprehensive strategy, except becoming a "one-industry" state, namely pharma. Thinks state needs to make transformation from telecomm to IT, but needs someone at state level to discuss where the investments should be made. Universities otherwise may pursue paths independently of state.

Question from audience member: What are some of the givebacks from companies, re diversity, community, minority and women-owned businesses, what are the commitments on that?

Bohn's company has donated to special needs children in Florida. Came from a casual conversation between two executives.

Questioning was thin and softballs mostly.

Leadership New Jersey, Panel 2: The Regional View (from 500 ft)

PodcastSteve — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 15:27:00 +0000

Panel 2: The Regional View (from 500 ft.)
Regional agencies offering their strategies for attracting business and the investments needed to ensure the state's competitiveness.
Moderated by Jack Lettiere of Nation's Port

Leadership NJ Panel 2: Regional View. From left: Susan Bass Levin of Port Authority of New York & New Jersey; Joe Montemarano of SMART; Carl Goldberg of NJ Sports & Exposition Authority; Tom Carver, Casino Reinvestment & Redevelopment Authority; Bob Gross, Delaware River Port Authority; Moderator Jack Letierre, Nation's Port

Panelists Comments

Tom Carver, NJ Casino Reinvestment and Redevelopment Authority;

Assets we have are "blatant." Problems we have challenges are to use them intelligently. We "bifurcate" our thinking into North and South Jersey. Example, "that little gritty port in Camden." great desire to get rid of it to build nice waterfront properties, but without planning to replace it.

Major growth will be in the southern part of the state. Trying to coordinate through CRDA all of the state agencies involved in land use and transportation infrastructure. Gov. office has bought in and everyone is on board.

Doing the research to put in new master control for traffic system in Atlantic City. Dynamic signage and traffic control. Also talking about extension of Patco High Speed Line.

Talking to DEP about land use.

Bombarded every day by politicians promising not to raise taxes. Thinks they don't understand the problems.

Tom singles out Steve Adubato who is running a North Ward center in Newark and is "saving kids" by getting them out of the Newark school system.

Bob Gross, Delaware River Port Authority

Need to compete not among ourselves, but with other states. Camden port - can accommodate retail, entertainment and port activity if we work smarter.

Carl Goldberg, New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority;

Now have $1.3 billion stadium "finest football facility in the US" built by JV of Jets and Giants. Will have mass transportation link, rail connection to sports complex, Feb 2009. Bring people from Bergen, Morris, Monmouth, Hudson Counties, and NYC to Meadowlands for sports events.

Jobs, tax revenue being created by construction, but also hope that sports complex will help that region of NJ become a tourism destination. Thinks tourism will help drive NJ economy, ranked second now bringing people to the shore, wants to bring them to Meadows.

Surprising that one of most important "eco tourist" destination is the 6,000 acres of the Hackensack River estuary area where people are coming to visit.

Housing costs are a problem, very expensive to live here. Have to look at overrregulation, how to incent the development community to build houses, office, and retail in areas of the state where that is desirable.

Susan Bass Levin (Wikipedia), Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (Website is www.panynj.gov, but as of 11:26AM it was coming up as not reachable.

Former mayor of Cherry Hill, getting things done, because it's a bistate agency, take longer because of the strategic view, longer tail solutions for problems. NJ a very small crowded state with the perfect location. Road and transit, bridges, tunnels, all far beyond capacity. But election to election, local government will not solve those problems. That's why a bi-state agency is important.

Building ARC "Access to the Region's Core", new tunnel for trains to NY. Cost $7.6 billion, but will take cars off the road.

72 percent of new households in the region will be west of the Hudson, that's NJ. People from here want the jobs that will be created in NYC. Tunnel also creates construction jobs and economic development in the towns served. Not a short-term project.

Joe Montemarano, SMART (Strengthening the MidAtlantic Region for Tomorrow).

We are not prepared to compete against other parts of the country. Need to get better coordiantion. Need to work together to identify common areas and market that to other parts of the country and the world.

The game has changed. What we have begun to develop is entrepreneurial spirit in NJ that wasn't present even in the early 80s. The sectors, pharma, biotech, IT, military, there are ups and downs in the sectors. Fortunately not all "in the toilet" at the same time.

Silicon Valley successful because if things don't work out at one company, you go across the street to another, you don't have to move.

Question Period

Susan Bass Levin - Public transit (in response to audience question) needs to be reliable, fast and cheap. Basic question is these things aren't cheap, talking billions of $ and multiyear commitments. Question of where do you put trains. In Cherry Hill looking at expanding train service, had a "raucous" meeting where everyone objected to the noise and train traffic that expansion would bring.

PATH system is looking at increasing capacity. Right now at peak capacity. Need to be looking at long-term solutiopns. At PATH, top to bottom modernization program, will help Newark and Harrison increase economic development potential.

Bob Gross - PATCO looking at expanding west in Philadelphia and east into NJ. Multibillion-dollar projects, difficult, one thing they are doing is a transit-oriented development component, to fold smart technology into stations that make them more than just a railroad stop.

Leadership New Jersey Panel 3 (10,000 Foot View): National and International View

PodcastSteve — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 16:40:00 +0000

Panel 3: The Natitonal and International View (from 10,000 feet)
Leading Corporations discuss the challenges they face in remaining in the state.
Moderating is Kathy Kish of MarketEntry, a marketing communications firm.

Leadership NJ Panel 3: Panelists discuss national and international perspectives on the regional economy. From left: Nick Montalto, Diversity Dynamics; Tom Morr, Select Greater Philadelphia; Jay Biggins of Biggins Lacy Shapiro, a location economics firm; Tom Tauke, EVP of Public Affairs, Policy and Communications of Verizon; and moderator Kathy Kish of MarketEntry.

Tom Tauke, Executive VP, Public Affairs, Policy and Communications of Verizon, billed as moderator, actually gave an overview summary.

Notes that he visited Google last week to see new version of Google Earth. Driver said he was using Google Earth today to get to Trenton. Even with Google Earth you need the right address. There's a difference between Stockton Street and South Stockton Street. "Nothing here looks familiar." Sounds a lot like New Jersey in general, huh?

Not a NJ resident, but spends most of his time here because of his work for Verizon.

In NJ, Verizon can't charge a late bill fee to nonpayers. Says something about state's mindset. Also strange to people from outside the state that you can't pump your own gas in NJ. It says there are forces here that prevent pepole from doing "normal" things.

New Jersey has a great comms infrastructure. Fiber to the home $1 billion/year means state will be most wired in the country.

Reputation of state worse than biz climate. State's government viewed as corrupt. Businesses want to invest in places with stability and where the processes work right. Doesn't think NJ deserves the bad reputation. State gets a bit of a [bad] rap. Business climate is viewed badly, partly because of momentum in attracting high wage jobs. Decline in the # of high wage jobs in the state. Need to find ways to break out of that.

Leadership is a key issue.Good leadership will cause people to take a "second look."

Exchange among the panelists:

Jay Biggins, Biggins Lacy Shapiro

Kish asks Biggins, small state, small business is important but we are very respectful of the big companies like Verizon that have regional or corporate HQs here. Do we want those companies to stay?

Biggins notes involvement of his location economics firm in harbor development in New York.

On NJ, he says that one of our most important industrial assets is R&D, knowledgeware. Losing that, major pharma companies, some have said publicly won't invest further in NJ. Won't move, but migration "by attrition." We have a tax base and legislature, even as we cooperate as a region, have healthy competition. PA is very effective in pharma industry, peeling off large opportunities but also small entrepreneurial companies. NJ doing reasonably well with startups, but regionally losing more than we are gaining.

Tampa FL has a "Wall Street South" - lots of financial svcs jobs sailed right over NJ and PA, in labor surplus markets where the regulatory environment was hospitable and costs low.

NJ regulatory environment "unpredictable or worse." Captured by interest groups where we are not achieving balance, even with aggressive advocacy on all sides. NJ needs to do a lot in fact and in perception to "break out of the morass," both the facts and the perception that it is a difficult place to do business.

Leadership New Jersey: Program chair Michael Willmann and the studio audience listen to Panel 3 discuss the national and international view, at the Forum on the Future of New Jersey, 10/24/07, Trenton NJ.

Tom Morr, Select Greater Philadelphia

Mentions famous sign on Trenton-Morrisville bridge, "Trenton Makes, The World Takes." -Things do not stand still, every place is a work in progress. Philadelphia/NJ region has remade itself. Fewer manufacturing jobs in region than national avg. Service based, knowledge driven economy. Most of the world doesn't know that. Perception of declining rust belt area with low income populations and unemployment.

Need to help create the parade for the leaders to lead. We're the stewards, need to help the leaders make the decisions they need to be able to make. We need to be "very afraid" of where we are going to be 20-25 years from now.

Nick Montalto, Diversity Dynamics
Nicholas Montalto says: Global marketplace. The talent-attracting "nodes" will be most successful in the global economy.

Not all environmental regs are good, properly applied, or properly sized, says Biggins. Have a guerilla campaign going on that is "almost beyond civility" in some cases. Need to achieve balance between economic development and quality of life, but lookat the extent to which economic development will vote with its feet because it is being restrained.

Morr: You avoid those places that make business difficult. If regulations are tough on both local and nonlocal companies, that's OK, but it's the consistency thing. Need to have higher expectations of elected officials and create mechanisms that bring resolution and harmony. Electronic voting in Congress makes it impossible for members to duck issues that may be good for economy or harmful to their constituents.

Nick Montalto: If we are to attract best and brightest, pepole look for opportunities to enjoy leisure activities, so a strong environmental sensitivity is important. Also important strong arts and culture infrastructure, and vibrant ethnic communities. Ethnic diversity is one of our great strengths, are we tapping into it?

Leadership New Jersey Keynote Speech: Gary Rose, Economic Growth Chief, State of New Jersey

PodcastSteve — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 17:50:00 +0000

Gary Rose, New Jersey's Economic Growth Chief, speaks at the Forum on the Future of New Jersey, 10/24/07, Trenton, NJ

Gary (official state bio) was introduced by Ann Limberg of Bank of America

Gary is speaking about what NJ needs to do to "win" in the economic marketplace.

About to release second revision of state's strategic economic plan. Commerce Commission was restructured to focus on marketing the state. Was doing tourism too, was unfocused. All the resources that think about how we promote NJ has a common theme.

Given fiscal situation of NJ, economic succes means productive and profitable businesses and jobs by growing the revenue line "the right way," not by just raising taxes but by raising tax revenues.

How are we doin'? Gary thinks we're ok, but results maybe, maybe not.

Independent players say NJ is doing better. Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation ranks NJ #2 on states leading transformation of their economies based on "gazelle" firms.

Other rankings look good too, but there's room for doubts. Forbes, NJ in the top 20 for business, CNBC top 15 for biz and #1 quality of life. NJMonthly is skeptical.

Tax Foundation ranks NJ 48 or 49, but encourages audience to understand their methodology. Doesn't agree with methodology, state measures itself by different criteria.

Reduce greenhouse gases and achieve energy efficiencies. Challenges but create economic opportunities. Energy companies like PSEG need to be players in the work to achieve these goals.

Q&A

Rose was asked what the next "big win" is going to be. There are a couple of companies about to announce major expansions in pharma area that will tie them more closely to NJ and create jobs. He says 2-3 in pharma. Would love to see new pharma mfg facility in NJ.

Gov. broke ground yesterday on the Jets practice facility in Florham Park, brings a $110 million payroll out of Long Island. Income tax throw-off to state more than services the state's investment in the land for the Atlantic Health Jets Training Center facility. Jets spending $100 million, state spent $10-20 million on the land.

Leadership New Jersey Wrap Up: Ralph Izzo of PSEG

PodcastSteve — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 18:05:00 +0000

Ralph is Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated. He spoke about environmental issues. Focused on CFL bulbs. Consumers are looking at the pricing of bulbs. PSEG just announced a new 400 megawatt power plant today, estimated $250-$300 million cost.

Higher "hurdle rate" for CFL bulbs. Need to correct the flaw in the marketplace. Need to make the customers into investors willing to pay more for the CFL bulb knowing that the savings are real over time.

Renewable energy sources are a key component of energy efficiency going forward, and clean power plant operations.

State will need a new nuclear power plant. Not proposing to do it right now, will take 10-12 years to get any electricity produced. It is carbon-free source of electricity. PSEG has a site it already owns for the plant.

Firm believers in NJ at PSEG, Ralph says.

NJBankers/New Jersey Bank Marketing Association Video Pod #2: Matthew Harvey of Financial Institutions Consulting, "Business Development on a Sho

PodcastSteve — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 09:58:00 +0000

Click to Play

This is program #2 in the NJBankers/New Jersey Bank Marketing Association's Fall podcast series. If you'd like to see all the programs in the series, visit http://njbapodcasts.blogspot.com or our video feed at http://professionalpodcasts.blip.tv.

This is the second of three podcasts produced from the BMA's October 2007 seminar, "Business Development on a Shoestring." In this episode, we offer a presentation by Matthew Harvey of Financial Institutions Consulting Inc.

FIC works with financial services firms on engagements related to growth, productivity and profit improvements. This program runs approximately 17 minutes.

This program, the second of three, runs about 17 minutes. Produced by Professional Podcasts LLC. A DVD of all three parts of the seminar is available for purchase. Contact steve@professionalpodcasts.com.

Banks Are Creating a New Kind of Customer Intimacy With Web 2.0 and Social Networking

PodcastSteve — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 11:57:00 +0000

Banks Are Creating a New Kind of Customer Intimacy With Web 2.0 and Social Networking

Interesting story from Finance Tech Wire about Wells Fargo Bank jumping feet first into the Social Media. Wells has a Second Life-inspired online world called "Stagecoach Island," which sounds like it may even have been a white-labeled version of SL, because the descriptive info about it encourages people to have their online avatars "fly" as the most convenient way to island hop in the world. Sound familiar, Second Lifers?

Wells also has an interesting blog, Guided By History, that actually draws on the Wild West past of the bank through the research efforts of professional archivists. (Unlike the other big banks that want to eradicate every memory of their history, Wells actually discovered earlier this year that helping high net worth customers trace their families could lead to more business!)

I think the headline goes a bit far. There are few banks creating this kind of social network. And would you REALLY call an online virtual world "customer intimacy," when they still process all their loan applications in a distant factory that just looks at credit scores, not at the person sitting in the branch?

Nevertheless, I think it's great that Wells Fargo, alone among the major banks, is making an effort to understand these tools of the social media. This gives them a leg up in understanding how younger customers (read "the customers they will need to be nice to over the next 20 years") use banks and use technology.

Wonder if any of the other major banks is taking note?

Stories you won't see on the network news...is "network" even relevant any more?

PodcastSteve — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 12:42:00 +0000

I go to a lot of networking/social events where I meet very creative, talented people working in the new social media, and I learn a lot from them. Last night at the regular monthly "CreativeConnects" mixer sponsored by BOSS Group, I met Brian Conley, a filmmaker and freelance journalist who recently relocated to Philadelphia after spending quite some time in Iraq and other hot spots.

Brian is one of the leaders of a citizen-journalism project called Alive in Baghdad. They have professional, native Iraqi videojournalist teams on the ground in Iraq, filming stories of everyday life in Iraq by actually (note to Brian Williams and the rest of the MSM) going out and TALKING TO REAL PEOPLE. They don't do their nightly reports from the balcony of the hotel while waiting for room service to bring dinner.

Click To Play

Alive in Baghdad's latest video is a story about a Baghdad printing plant that employs 900 people, including what seems to be a fair number of women, but the government has decided to shut them down for some reason. They've done other stories, like on the scene features about how Sunni Muslim Iraqis are now partnering with the US to fight the so-called "Al Qaeda" insurgency. We don't see much real reporting on these stories on ABC, CBS, NBC, or CNN.

AIB supports itself like public television, through viewer sponsorships and donations. You can subscribe right on the site and even make monthly donations through PayPal.

If I have any quibbles with the approach, I'd like to see some voice-over context that explains the story -- they do this in the show notes on the site, but there needs to be some narrative beyond the subtitled, cinema verite video style, to make it a more contained report and less free-flowing, but the point is this.

With creative, resourceful, indigenous journalists able to produce stories this well crafted, why can't the mainstream media, with all of their vast resources, keep up? What are they thinking up at 30 Rock and these other temples of mainstream broadcasting?

Even ComputerWorld magazine thinks the Emperor of Linden Land may not have any clothes on...

PodcastSteve — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 12:55:00 +0000

Gary Anthes, a veteran columnist and reporter for ComputerWorld, went on assignment in Second Life recently. (This isn't Gary's avatar.)

His report on what he found -- and what he didn't find, appears on the ComputerWorld site, under the headline that vaguely sounds like what I've been asking for along time..."Second Life: Is There Any There There? After a week's sojourn, our virtual traveler isn't so sure."

Neither am I.

BusinessWeek Vindicates Lubetkin

PodcastSteve — Thu, 22 Nov 2007 15:04:00 +0000

I have been making this observation in my presentations on social media for over a year and a half: despite all the fabulous buzz about user-generated content and the joy of watching people whack themselves with a rubber chicken on YouTube, the reality is this.

When people go to the Apple iTunes Music Store for podcasts, the top 100 podcasts they download are heavily weighted in favor of professionally produced content by well-known media companies, like the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, CBS News, ESPN, C-SPAN, etc.

In the latest BusinessWeek, the article Web Video: Move Over, Amateurs vindicates my argument.

Steve Lubetkin's first Utterz - a video

PodcastSteve — Thu, 22 Nov 2007 16:13:00 +0000

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterz. Replies.

The Writers Guild of America is Write...er, right...it deserves a new contract...so does IATSE - stagehands

PodcastSteve — Fri, 23 Nov 2007 15:13:00 +0000

To borrow a phrase from a labor organizer (see image) from way back, there is a spectre haunting American business and it is the spectre of renewed interest in organized labor.

Karl Marx

I think it's probably time for white collar workers in our knowledge-based economy to take a hard look at the situation.

Being nonunion used to have some advantages, like the possibility of advancement, more compensation, etc. But those advantages were always illusory. Companies always managed to find a reason to cut merit increases for nonunion people, (we can't give anyone more than 3%) or bonuses (we're cutting bonuses in half this year -- even though last year was already cut in half from the previous year)...you get the idea. And oh, by the way, we're laying you off because you still make too much money, or you're too old, or whatever, we don't really need a reason.

The economic changes wrenching many "knowledge-based" industries call for some renewed push for greater equity in the labor-management equation.

Look what's happening in banking and finance, where mistakes made by highly compensated managers and CEOs are punished how? The people who created the mess get to leave with huge "retirement" packages, and then the company lays off 3,000 or 4,000 working stiffs to balance the messy books the "retired" executives pooped on. And by the way, the people who "retired" were really only doing what they were expected to do, maximize profits by engaging in risky transactions that hopefully wouldn't blow up before they sold them to the next unsuspecting investor. But once the music stops, someone has to lose, and it's not going to be the board that authorized the transactions. How is that right?

The entertainment industry has run headlong into this buzz saw by picking two fights that it is doomed to lose, at least in the court of public opinion.

I'm talking about the Writers Guild strike and the Stagehands union in New York.

Write Once, Get Paid Little

Take the Writers Guild. The simple mathematics gets lost when the studios and networks accuse the writers of greed.

The reality is very different. At any given time, nearly half of the WGA's members are technically unemployed. The WGA has made a very straightforward short video that explains their position, and it's worth watching.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJ55Ir2jCxk&rel=1]

They are also urging supporters to send pencils to the studio heads as a form of protest and support for the writers. On the WGA's unofficial blog site, you can click a button to buy a box of pencils for $1 using PayPal. You can even tell the studio "moguls" which show's writers you are supporting. I think this is a good idea, and I've ponied up my dollar. I hope you will also.

At the DeadlineHollywoodDaily Blog, a press release announces that some high profile actors have joined the WGA's strike efforts.

Let's have a hand for the stagehands, too

Meanwhile, if you haven't been following the stagehands' strike in Broadway theaters, here's an NPR update on that. The gist of it seems to be that the producers and theaters want the stagehands of various crafts (electricians, carpenters, etc.) to be on call at the theater, but not actually go on the clock until it's physically their turn to screw in a light or hammer in a nail. Excuse me, but if you have to be at the place of employment ready to work, you ought to get paid. As one stagehand union official pointed out, no one ever suggested that actors should just be paid for the time they are on stage. More information at the IATSE website.

As a sometimes creative professional, I have to support these folks. Their contract demands are not unreasonable. They are very important to the entertainment industry, and unless you want to watch reality-drivel shows for the next decade, let's ratchet up the pressure on the theaters, the producers, the networks and the movie studios to settle this fairly.

Appreciation for a headline writer who took a few extra minutes...

PodcastSteve — Sun, 25 Nov 2007 13:57:00 +0000

Story appearing in today's Press of Atlantic City, major South Jersey newspaper, about the impending retirement of Jim Saxton, longtime congressman, and his legislative support for fishing industry in New Jersey. You have to admire a headline writer who took the time to develop this pun-laden "hed."

Anglers will miss Saxton in House

Employees are our greatest asset...except when they are our greatest liability...

PodcastSteve — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 17:06:00 +0000

So this story is moving on CNBC, and Citi is making only the limp, prepared statement denials. It appears that as many as 45,000 Citi employees will soon be introducing themselves as "recovering" bankers.

Citigroup Plans New Round Of 'Massive' Job Cuts - Financials * US * News * Story - CNBC.com

Expect these folks to be hitting the street before December 15, because that's the traditional day that banks close the books on the year's finances (I'm sure Citi wishes it could have closed those books back in August before the subprime market blew up like an exploding dye pack of stolen money). The more important reason to Citi to have these folks exit then is, as Charlie G. points out in the CNBC report, that will X them out of the bonus pool for the year, which is already likely to be microscopic.

And the bank also managed to sell another big chunk of its equity into the Middle East, to a venture fund owned by Abu Dhabi. It's so comforting to know that the largest bank in the U.S. is majority owned by interests that are not always aligned with those of the US economy or -- heaven forbid! -- US workers.

There is a silver lining, though. People at Citi with entry level titles like vice president and senior vice president will almost certainly end up as executive vice presidents at smaller community banks.

Employees are our greatest asset...except when.

PodcastSteve — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 17:31:00 +0000

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterz. Replies. mp3

Going Bicoastal...

PodcastSteve — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 20:21:00 +0000

Fired Microsoft CIO re-emerges as operations chief at mortgage firm

If you have any doubts about why there is trouble in the subprime mortgage market, consider this...

Some good ideas for marketing programs in 2008 from Chief Marketer

PodcastSteve — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 02:39:00 +0000

Drew Neisser, president of Renegade.com, a New York agency, wrote Top Ten: Marketing Ideas To Consider in 2008. Some excellent thoughts on tactics and strategies for marketing in the new year.

Anyone want to add to Drew's list or challenge anything on it?

PodcastSteve — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 12:03:00 +0000

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterz. Replies. mp3

Fire a whole truckload of people...no wait...hire a bunch of people...no wait...um...

PodcastSteve — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 21:37:00 +0000

From the "Hmm...that's strange timing department" at one of the world's largest financial institutions, comes this email that crossed my desk today. The only thing you can say is, that might be a very very short career indeed.

A:link {
TEXT-DECORATION: none
}
A:visited {
TEXT-DECORATION: none
}
A:hover {
TEXT-DECORATION: none
}
A:active {
TEXT-DECORATION: none
}

If you're an established performer with the ambition to realize a higher level of success, we have opportunities near you that will allow you to reach the next level of your career.

Opportunities of interest for experienced professionals:

Personal Bankers
Lending Consultants
Relationship Managers
Business Bankers

Forward this email to a colleague

Text "Citi" to the word CAREER (227337) to receive employment updates!

Unsubscribe

2981 Ford Street, Ogdensburg, NY -13669

Quoted about business blogging - Princeton Business Journal

PodcastSteve — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 22:03:00 +0000

I was quoted in this article in the Princeton Business Journal, about business blogging. Comments are welcome!

PodcastSteve — Sun, 02 Dec 2007 16:07:00 +0000

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterz. Replies. mp3

PodcastSteve — Sun, 02 Dec 2007 21:15:00 +0000

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterz. Replies. mp3

Haven't often agreed with Charlie Gasparino, but this time he's really right, and swimming upstream...

PodcastSteve — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 12:54:00 +0000

Check out this on-air live battle on CNBC yesterday (kudos to CNBC for actually posting the clip) http://urltea.com/2a2v.

Gasparino is supporting Ben Stein, whose Sunday New York Times column questioned Goldman Sachs' efforts to sell what turned out to be toxic investments in mortgage-backed bonds secured by sub-prime mortgages while at the same time hedging those securities by selling them short in their own account (short sellers hope to profit by selling securities they don't own and buying them back at a lower price later.)

Outside observers would easily see such sales as an admission that the firm was selling something that was a bad investment. People on Wall Street don't seem to see any conflict in Goldman unloading these barrels of waste on teachers' pension funds while going out the back door and shorting them. Watch how the host of the show and the guest gang up on Charlie.

Live business television at its most remarkable. Host and correspondent both lose their temper. Amazing stuff!

River Communications Group Video Pod #1: Web 2.0 with Brian Crooks, Avenue A|Razorfish

PodcastSteve — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 22:39:00 +0000

Click to Play

The River Communications Group presents a discussion of Web 2.0 with Brian Crooks, executive creative director in the Philadelphia office of Avenue A|Razorfish, recorded November 8, 2007 at the Merrill Lynch Conference Center in Pennington, NJ, by Professional Podcasts LLC of Cherry Hill, NJ,

The program runs about 1 hour 10 minutes.

Lubetkin Communications' Corporate Photojournalism Division Scores Two Magazine Covers in Three Months

PodcastSteve — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 10:53:00 +0000

I have to toot our horn a bit here. I've been making photographs for news organizations and corporate clients going all the way back to my work as photo editor of the Christian Brothers Academy yearbook Pegasus in 1974. (Aside: w00t! CBA has an entry in Wikipedia!)

My dad, Murray Lubetkin, was a professional photographer. He taught it at the Central Institute of Photography in Newark, and later at the Photo Division at Fort Monmouth.

He taught me photography back when light meters were optional equipment on Minolta SLRs (I still have his Minolta SR-1 with the little bracket where the add-on light meter is supposed to sit.) For years, I thought the Rule of F-16 was the only way to figure out exposure.

We spent many happy hours photographing fall leaves together, and he was always especially proud that we used one of his autumn leaf photos in that 1974 yearbook -- with the only photo credit line in the entire book (I insisted on it.) One of his particular photographic obsessions was light reflected through displays of colored glass objects in retail stores, and I confess to trying to repeat some of his work there.

Anyway, he fueled my enthusiasm for photography. Later, I managed to irritate the photographers at the newspaper I worked at by being one of the only reporters who could take his own picture (and I got more than a few spot news photos of fires and car crashes in the paper). Later, as a corporate PR minion, many of the pictures I made for Conrail appeared in newspapers around the country, and a night photo I took of the railroad industry's first "just-in-time" train, KZLA, from Kalamazoo to Lansing for General Motors, made not only the cover of Progressive Railroading, but also was used to illustrate a William Greider article in Rolling Stone.

Well, it's been more than 20 years since that photo made the cover. During the final 10 years of my corporate PR career, I relearned photography in the digital world, and produced publishable photos of news value for Standard & Poor's and the three banks where I sat for five years.

In recent months, I've been very thrilled that our corporate photojournalism is still delivering high impact imagery for business publications.

Photographic assignments we took on for SBN Publications have landed our work on the cover of the October and December issues of Smart Business Magazine's Philadelphia edition.

October 2007 Smart Business Cover Photo of Judy Spires, President of Acme Markets

December 2007 cover photo of John Grierson, president of Delaware Valley Division of Pulte Homes

Any shooter will tell you that getting covers like this just inspires them to do more, and do better, and it definitely perks me up and reinvigorates my desire to produce great quality photojournalism that will make my clients happy.

PodcastSteve — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 23:35:00 +0000

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterz. Replies. mp3

He has too much hair.

PodcastSteve — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 11:54:00 +0000

Podcast Geek
Originally uploaded by ExtraLife

ExtraLife comic artist Scott Johnson has created a poster depicting the 56 species of Geeks. This is one of them, but his hair is too dark, and well, too hairy. Also, where are his glasses, huh?

Let me tell you how we are going to handle the ice cream, ma'am...

PodcastSteve — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 12:11:00 +0000

Last night I attended an annual networking ritual in South Jersey, the holiday party of the Chamber of Commerce of Southern New Jersey. They start the evening with a business meeting where, by unanimous ballot, they elect the board and officers for the next year. (It's unanimous because everyone is breathing a sigh of relief that they aren't being elected.)

Just as that meeting was ending, the lights flickered and went out, then came back on, flickered and went out again. And they stayed out for the better part of an hour. After a few minutes of confusion, the catering hall staff rustled up a supply of candles (see below) and the crowd shuffled in darkness to the top floor for the party.

Deb DiLorenzo, president of South Jersey Chamber, greeting guests by candlelight

Networking in the dark may not be such a bad idea. Someone observed that it was hard for people to congregate in their usual cliques because they couldn't really see each other clearly enough to identify their friends, so people were actually talking to people they didn't already know.

However, more than a few people commented that the candle-lit "ambience" was different and sort of nice. To which I say: Emperor, you have no clothes! This is just really poor business contingency planning. Let me explain.

When I travelled to the Philippines in 2006, I began my keynote address at the Public Relations Society of The Philippines National PR Congress just as Typhoon Milenyo struck Manila. The power went off for 10 million Filipinos for the better part of a week, but guess what? The hotel had a backup generator that kicked in within less than a minute, and life went on -- with power. Hotels and shopping malls in Manila all had backup power, and so even poor Filipinos had a place to go -- shopping in dimly lit but air-conditioned malls. And by the way, they didn't lock the stores and send the employees home. They actually WROTE sales receipts by hand -- yes, by hand -- and continued to do business without POS terminals. How many American teens know how to make change? (Aside: how much of a pet peeve is it for you that because they depend on the machines, they always hand you the paper currency first and then dribble the coins on top of them, instead of counting out the change first and then giving you the bills?)

If I were planning a wedding for my daughters and spending tens of thousands of dollars at this catering hall, I would have had a conniption to find out that they have no backup power of any kind.

How can you run a business where the central mission is to provide people a place to host lavish catered events, and not plan for the business contingency that the lights might go out?

Shabbat Shout out to the Reform Judaism Biennial

PodcastSteve — Sat, 15 Dec 2007 13:07:00 +0000

(Cross-posted to CompuSchmooze blog.

Have to give a big Shabbat Shalom to the Union for Reform Judaism, which is holding its Biennial in San Diego through Sunday. They are doing quite a respectable job of blogging, live-blogging, and podcasting from the event, so those of us who couldn't be there can get a great taste of what's going on. Here's one sample, but you can hear more and see a Flickr photo stream as well. Very nice integration of social media into a live conference event by a group with limited resources. Demonstrates how social media return power to the organizers to promote, publicize, and engage their audiences...

What does Shabbat Mean To You

As we prepare for our Shabbat here in San Diego the Biennial Blog spoke with two rabbis about their personal Shabbat routines and how they make the Sabbath Day holy. Click on the play button below to listen in.

Professional Podcasts is featured in Red Cross Power of Two Newsletter

PodcastSteve — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 18:16:00 +0000

Power of Two Newsletter

We're honored and flattered to be featured in the "Power of Two" newsletter. We look forward to working with the American Red Cross, and we urge everyone to keep them in mind, especially at the holiday season, when blood donations and contributions slow down and, but the need for ARC services does not.

Getting Cooktop Installed

PodcastSteve — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 19:04:00 +0000

Click to Play

The employee kitchen at Professional Podcasts needed a new cooktop and when the installer came to put it in, we decided to make this quick video of how they did it.

Thanks to Ralph Prate of Pro Installs for being a willing participant in our video and for doing the little commercial pitch for his business at the end of the video.

Podsafe Music, "Sing Sing" provided by the Dave Manley Band.

PodcastSteve — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 22:12:00 +0000

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterz. Replies. mp3

NJ Open Racquetball 2007

PodcastSteve — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 23:31:00 +0000

Click to Play

In November, Steve competed in his first racquetball tournament in more than 30 years. This year's NJ Open Tournament was held in Woodbridge, NJ. This is Steve's video blog report on that competition.

PodcastSteve — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 16:23:00 +0000

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterz. Replies. mp3

Steve at PRSA 2007 College of Fellows Induction Dinner, Philadelphia, PA

PodcastSteve — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 18:05:00 +0000

PRSA 2007 College of Fellows Induction Dinner, Philadelphia, PA
Originally uploaded by brbmcdonald

I didn't really do anything to deserve having my photo taken. I was representing the Philadelphia Chapter at the dinner. The Chapter was one of the presenting sponsors for the Fellows Dinner, since we were the host chapter for the 2007 PRSA International Conference. So that's why I'm getting a piece of crystal from Debbie Miller. We wrote PRSA a check. W00t!

RIAA Advances Efforts to Kill Recording Industry from Within...

PodcastSteve — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 14:23:00 +0000

Photo from Flickr.com courtesy FrozenMeat. All rights reserved.

After reading Download Uproar: Record Industry Goes After Personal Use - washingtonpost.com, you have to wonder if the recording industry will next be suing owners of Apple iPods who purchase music from iTunes and then copy it onto their iPods.

Apparently, RIAA has filed a lawsuit against an Arizona man who copied legally purchased CDs onto his computer, claiming this is illegal. Except that the US Supreme Court has ruled that video recorder owners can legally make copies of copyrighted video content (TV shows) for personal use, and it has long been accepted that if you own a copy of a CD or vinyl record, you can make copies for your personal use. This doesn't seem to matter to RIAA.

This is outrageous, anti-consumer behavior by the music industry.

If they don't realize they are going to kill their entire business by treating customers like criminals, they deserve to collapse under the weight of their own lawsuits, or see scenes like the one above outside their corporate offices.

What a stupid, ill-advised, reputation killing (as if there were any reputation left to kill) legal strategy this is.

Shame!

Professional Podcasts' Managing Partner appearing on new media panel in West Deptford NJ January 16

PodcastSteve — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 15:39:00 +0000

Contact:: Michael Willmann
856-616-2886 (o)
856-216-9772 (fax)
856-278-3333(m)
michaelwillmann@wmsh.com (e)

Web 2.0…a primer on social media: What It Is…and Why It Matters to Entrepreneurs and Leaders of Not-for-Profit Organizations

Free Workshop on January 16th Will Feature
Insider Tips from “New Media” Practitioners

WEST DEPTFORD, NJ—Two regional business service organizations are joining forces to offer a free workshop on how to successfully use “new media” on Wednesday, January 16, from 8 AM to 11 AM at Riverwinds in West Deptford.

The Non Profit Development Center of Southern New Jersey and the Entrepreneurs Forum of Southern New Jersey are presenting their first-ever joint workshop on the topic of “Web 2.0—What It Is, Why It Matters, and How to Use It.”

Thanks to a sponsorship grant from Susquehanna Bank, registration fees have been waived and the event is free and open to the public.

The workshop will feature two sessions discussing how two distinct groups—entrepreneurs and leaders of NPOs—can use the not-so-new social media that are lumped under the term “Web 2.0” to help their organizations.

Joining advertising and public relations executive Michael Willmann of WMSH Marketing Communications, who will moderate, in the first session will be:
• Steve Lubetkin, APR, Fellow, PRSA, managing partner of Professional Podcasts LLC and the acknowledged dean of podcasting in the Garden State,
• Lou Antosh, award-winning editor, reporter, and blogger, and
• Terry Rossi, CIO and co-founder of PICS On-Line and webinar master.

The second session will feature two panelists who regularly use Web 2.0:
• Rob Stuart, President of Evolve Strategies, and
• Chandrasekhar Vallath, Associate Professor of Radio/TV/Film at Rowan University

Dubbed by Business Trends as South Jersey’s “marketing guru,” Willmann says “Web 2.0 is everywhere. Here’s a chance for business people who don’t understand what it is to get exposure to the new social media tools and learn how to use them to help their organizations.”

To register or for more information about the event or the two sponsoring organizations, interested parties can contact Sarah Piddington at 856-256-4271 or piddington@rowan.edu.

###

My office this morning

PodcastSteve — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 14:23:00 +0000

Grande Yukon and reduced fat blueberry coffee cake (Like Eagles song, already gone.)

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterz. Replies.

PodcastSteve — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 13:07:00 +0000

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterz. Replies. mp3

Zantac is for cannibals?

PodcastSteve — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 01:43:00 +0000

There's a Zantac ad running on TV that includes some hidden humor, and no one seems to have picked up on it. A couple is eating in a bistro and eventually need Zantac. But the hidden humor is the name of the cafe, which is seen in mirror image on a window above the door of the cafe (because we are looking from inside the cafe toward the street, so we see the window from the inside, right?)

The name of the cafe is Cafe Raoul. Not ringing any bells yet? Try reviewing this Wikipedia entry.

First time we are aware of a commercial for over the counter medication to take after cannibalism.

Pepperpots2007

PodcastSteve — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 22:33:00 +0000

Click to Play

Relive the excitement of the PRSA/Philadelphia Pepperpot Awards Dinner from December 2007 in this breathtaking music video.

Times story on Wounded Marine Retraining is new twist on old story - My Uncle Retrained Wounded Vets after WWII

PodcastSteve — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 13:21:00 +0000

Today's New York Times has a wonderful story on a program to teach Marines wounded in Iraq a useful skill in the photographic, video, or film industries.

It's inspiring and the concept of helping veterans who have made such great sacrifices of body and soul should absolutely receve significant support from all corners of society.

We do, however, need to look back to the post-WW II era and realize that this is not the first time the private sector has reached out to veterans whose bodies have been damaged by war.

When my mother's family owned Dorn & Kirschner Music in Newark, my Uncle Fred Kirschner started the Eastern School of Musical Instrument Repair in the business and became one of several small private programs that trained wounded World War II and Korean War veterans to become musical instrument repair technicians.

Lars Kirmser wrote about the programs in an effort to establish a certification program. Miller's Saxophone Shop in North Haledon NJ wears its founder's certification by Uncle Freddie as a badge of honor.

And you can be certain that the Marines being schooled in the visual arts in this new program will always, always remember the new opportunity they are being given.

If anyone has photos from the Dorn & Kirschner days in Newark, please drop us a comment on the blog. We would love to start archiving any photos that still exist.

LOBP#34: Jeff Pulver Social Media Breakfast, Philadelphia

PodcastSteve — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 23:43:00 +0000

This podcast features a report on the breakfast for social media devotees hosted by Jeff Pulver in Philadelphia on January 31, 2008. Steve attended along with about 50 other social media users including bloggers, podcasters, videobloggers, web designers and others.

Steve interviewing Jeff Pulver

More photos at Steve's Flickr site

Download the podcast here (17.4 mb stereo MP3 file, 00:12:42 duration).

Send comments to steve@professionalpodcasts.com or call our podcast comment line, +1-856-861-6146 (Europe and UK, +44 020 7193 6146)

Keywords: lubetkin, cherry hill, philadelphia, business, social media, pulver, breakfast

Produced by Professional Podcasts LLC.

PodcastSteve — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 22:43:00 +0000

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterz. Replies. mp3

PodcastSteve — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 01:33:00 +0000

Photo from Jeff Pulver social Media Breakfast in Princeton 2/5/08. More photos @ Flickr http://tinyurl.com/28et9d.

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterz. Replies.

Are you sure no one called to reserve a table? What about email?

PodcastSteve — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 11:06:00 +0000

Monday February 11 was supposed to be a big fundraiser in New York for Democratic Congressional candidates. The New York Observer reported that House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Democratic Caucus Chairman Rahm Emanuel were supposed to be guests of honor at the Yale Club for the event.

But the room may have been emptier than they hoped. At the end of the Observer report linked above, contact information for luncheon organizers so that prospective sponsors can open their checkbook for $25,000 tables and other opportunities reads as follows:

For more information or to RSVP, please call Marcia Dickstein Sudolsky (xxx) xxx-xxxx

Or via e-mail at xxxxxxx@xxxxx

I thought ICANN voted against the xxx domains?

LOB Podcast #35: An Evening of New Media Myth Busting Panel Discussion at Rowan University Co-Sponsored by PRSA/Philadelphia

PodcastSteve — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 22:28:00 +0000

This podcast features a seminar recorded live at Rowan Hall, Rowan University, Glassboro, Gloucester County, New Jersey, on February 13, 2008.

Download the podcast here (147 mb stereo MP3 file, 01:47:26 duration).
Send comments to steve@professionalpodcasts.com or call our podcast comment line, +1-856-861-6146 (Europe and UK, +44 020 7193 6146)

The panel, "An Evening of New Media Myth Busting," was sponsored jointly by Rowan University's Advertising/Public Relations Department, the Rowan Ad Club, the Rowan PRSSA, and the Philadelphia Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America.

Panelists are:

Adam Roberts
Director, Media Services
Digitas Health

Katy Thorbahn
Senior Vice President
General Manager
Philadelphia Office, Avenue A|Razorfish

Chris Lukach
Account Manager/Co-Owner
Anne Klein Communications Group LLC

Alan Levy
Co-Founder and CEO
BlogTalkRadio

Edward H. Moore, APR
Associate Professor, Public Relations and Advertising
Rowan University

Moderator: Kevin Pitts, Vice President, Advertising, Circulation, and Marketing, Philadelphia Business Journal (at lectern, far right, below).

More photos here.

The Jeff Pulver Blog: A Look at Jeff Pulver's "Breakfasts Across America:"

PodcastSteve — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 01:17:00 +0000

Thanks very much to Jeff Pulver for cross-posting our MediaBullseye story about his social media breakfasts. It's posted at The Jeff Pulver Blog: A Look at Jeff Pulver's "Breakfasts Across America:"

Very social of you, Jeff! Thanks for the link love.

Hard to believe we missed this when it was posted...

PodcastSteve — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 11:26:00 +0000

Last summer, I attended BlogPhiladelphia, the first of two social media "un-conferences" held in the City of Brotherly Love. While there I recorded several interviews with bloggers, tech gurus, and other participants, which have made their way into some of our podcasts.

I also got interviewed about podcasting by some guys with Ziddio.com, but I never managed to find where they posted the video. Yesterday, a random video search brought it up through the AOL video portal. Amazingly, a Google search on "Lubetkin" never surfaced it (like most people, I probably didn't drill down through enough pages, but what does that say about the success of Ziddio's SEO capabilities -- and it can't be a question of financial resources, since they are closely connected to, if not wholly owned by Comcast!)

Anyway, here's my Ziddio about Podcasting 101 and why we like making high quality podcasts for our clients. Enjoy.

Help a reporter, help yourselves!

PodcastSteve — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 14:17:00 +0000

Peter Shankman, the New York publicity maven and author of Can We Do That?, a book describing how to create effective outrageous publicity stunts, has moved his "If I can help a reporter out I will" service for PR pros off of Facebook as the list of participants is bumping up against FB limits on the size of a mailing list.

Peter gets a lot of calls from media types looking for people to interview. Sometimes, he says, he just doesn't have a client who fits theirneeds, so he throws it out to the immediate world of PR people that he has invited into If I Can Help. Sometimes he asks people to route the requests through him, and sometimes you can contact the reporter directly.

He asked folks to publicize the fact that the service has moved, so there, consider it publicized.

You can join Peter's newest iteration of Help a reporter at http://www.helpareporter.com/.

If you want to hear more about how he got it started, and his book and a bunch of other stuff, listen to our Middle Chamber Books podcast interview with Peter here.

Inmates dangerously close to running the asylum, and we're letting them...

PodcastSteve — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 12:39:00 +0000

Every once in a while I get very contrarian about this blogging stuff, and today is one of those days.

One of my Twitter buddies alerted me to a posting on CrunchNotes, the companion to Michael Arrington's hugely popular TechCrunch blog. (Find it yourselves, I'm not going to contribute link-love to someone whose only aim is to embarrass someone.)

In this posting, Arrington ridicules a PR person for a Washington firm for emailing him and requesting permission to reprint something from the blog -- and for a price quote on obtaining reprints.

This is a very standard practice for the mainstream media. If you print an article from the Wall Street Journal's online edition, it comes automatically emblazoned with a warning that you can only use it for your personal needs, and must purchase a reprint from them if you want to use it for other purposes (so much for the mainstream media's attempts to kill "fair use", but I digress).

Let's be clear here: Someone actually respected intellectual property enough to ask the content owner for permission to use the content owner's content.

But instead of a rational, professional answer, Arrington posts a lightly redacted copy of the email (by lightly I mean he blocked out the signature and email address, but "accidentally" left the writer's name in the reply block ("On XXX, Jane Doe wrote:...")

The key here is that Arrington is trying to make the PR person look stupid. That's grossly unfair in this instance.

The PR person was doing her job protecting her client from what I suspect would be guaranteed misery that Arrington would inflict in his blog if they dared to quote him WITHOUT asking permission.

In this world where "gotcha" drives blogging, you cannot communicate with some bloggers on any level.

If you send them a press release, they blog about how clueless you are for sending them a press release.

If you don't send them invitations to press junkets or nice toys, they blog about how clueless you are about their influence and how important they ought to be to your clients.

Why do we even bother with these people?

We need to take the conversations above the "gotcha" level.

But I don't know how to do this. Bloggers like to be snarky and even mean, especially when there is a PR pitch involved.

We need to move the blog conversations beyond what we don't like about "the process," so we can actually get to the conversation about the things, whatever those things are.

Way too much energy being wasted on ridicule and criticism. I remember having a teacher in the eighth grade whose technique was to ridicule kids instead of teaching them. That sure works. NOT.

If you blog and don't like the way people (PR people especially) approach you, how about helping them by explaining yourself instead of ridiculing them publicly?

What do you think?

LOB Podcast #36: Doug Hay of Expansion Plus discusses search engine optimization at Third Thursday in New York, March 20, 2008

PodcastSteve — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 23:08:00 +0000

This podcast features a live remote recording from the inaugural meeting of Third Thursday New York at the Heartland Brewery, Fifth Avenue and 34th Street (Empire State Building), New York.

The presenter was Doug Hay, President and Principal of ExpansionPlus, an online PR and marketing firm based in Los Angeles, who spoke about search engine strategies. We also interview Richard Nacht, host and founder of the Third Thursday New York group, and discuss the upcoming New Communications Forum, April 23-24 in Sonoma County, California.

New York, New York, USA - Thursday March 20, 2008: Posing after the session were (from left): Sally Falkow, APR, Senior Fellow, SNCR and co-founder of ExpansionPlus; Richard Nacht, Senior Fellow, SNCR and host of Third Thursday; and Doug Hay, president and principal, ExpansionPlus.

Photography Copyright ﾩ2008 Steven L. Lubetkin
More photos at Steve's Flickr site

Download the podcast here (66.4 mb stereo MP3 file, 00:47:09 duration).

Send comments to steve@professionalpodcasts.com or call our podcast comment line, +1-856-861-6146 (Europe and UK, +44 020 7193 6146)

Keywords: lubetkin, cherry hill, third thursday, nacht, falkow, hay, expansion plus, new media, business, social media, search engine strategies, seo

Do broadcasters have any moral responsibility when advertisers are selling snake oil, and the broadcasters know it?

PodcastSteve — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 20:56:00 +0000

A lot of the cable channels are carrying commercials for over-the-counter "weight loss" products, particularly one called Lipozene. These snake oil products are being produced by companies that are under investigation, or being sued, or in some way are being questioned for fraudulent claims by the Federal Trade Commission. It only takes a look at Wikipedia or Google search to figure this out.

And yet the advertising continues. So the question has to be why are broadcasters willing -- nay, enthusiastically, ecstatically happy -- to be complicit in these efforts to sell largely worthless products to the American public?

Has broadcasters' sense of morality and the notion of operating in the public interest become so diffuse that they don't care that someone is damaging their reputations by selling useless products on their airwaves?

Are they so interested in revenue that they have no problem taking money for advertising time because they themselves are not making claims for these products?

Whatever happened to truth in advertising, and what happened to the spines of media companies when it comes to rejecting deceptive or fraudulent ads?

I guess we all know the answer to that!

Quoted about podcasting in The Press of Atlantic City

PodcastSteve — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 21:12:00 +0000

I was quoted in last Sunday's Press of Atlantic City, in Amy Kuperinsky's Life section article, "Planet Podcast: Where everybody's a DJ and everything is worth a discussion."

It's great to see podcasting becoming more mainstream.

Our third Smart Business magazine cover photo! [w00t!]

PodcastSteve — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 09:46:00 +0000

The April 2008 Smart Business magazine cover story features Gerald Schreiber, founder of J&J Snack Foods Corporation, Pennsauken, Camden County, New Jersey.

And illustrating the cover is our photo of Gerry during a recent tour of the plant.

This is our third cover photo since we began shooting for Smart Business last year. Earlier covers depicted Judy Spires of Acme Markets and John Grierson, president of the Delaware Valley Division of Pulte Homes. You can see these covers on our Photojournalism page. (Another photo of Judy Spires made during the same session was used to illustrate a profile in the print edition of SNJ Business People, but it's not on their website yet.)

We're thrilled to be providing our corporate photojournalism services to a high quality, locally oriented business publication.

The trick? Shel Israel and PodcastSteve double-teamed him! NewMediaJim will be at New Communications Forum in April

PodcastSteve — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 14:30:00 +0000

As I've previously noted, as a senior fellow of the Society of New Communications Research, I'm heavily involved in organizing panels and workshops for the New Communications Forum April 22-25 in Sonoma County, CA.

Part of the planning has been a behind the scenes effort to get one of the leading crossover lights of the old-media, new-media worlds to join us, and it hasn't been through his lack of WANNA. (Remember George Carlin? "WANNA" was a sin all by itself, but I digress...)

It's been partly because of the corporate lethargy that is causing broadcast networks to continue their swoon. They simply don't understand the way their media world is changing. But Jim Long does understand.

I'm happy to report that Jim Long, NBC News Videographer and NewMediaJim to his friends on Twitter, will be joining us at the conference. Thanks to great efforts by Shel Israel and more modest persuasive efforts by my own self, Jim's been able to wrangle the richly deserved comp time and will be with us in Sonoma.

This conference will offer great opportunities to learn about the convergence, fusion, and subsequent supernova spinoff and pullaway from old media of the new channels we are all working in and learning in.

The discussion I am leading will focus on the changing face of journalism today, and we'll hear from Jim, as well as from Andria Carter, online editor and former business editor of the Trentonian, a leading tabloid in New Jersey's capital city that is wrestling with the transition between dead-tree and web-based publishing. I will also be live-blogging and podcasting from the sessions.

So why don't you charge your PDA, put another card in the digital camera or camcorder, and join us in Sonoma County later this month, huh?

SXSW is sooo yesterday, with all the corporate sponsor money now. C'mon, you guys. New Comms Forum is where the real stuff is going to happen.

New Communications Forum - Great opportunity to meet social media practitioners

PodcastSteve — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 05:18:00 +0000

I am attending the New Communications Forum 2008 in Santa Rosa, CA as part of my new responsibilities as a Senior Fellow of the Society for New Communications Research. We'll have some podcasts next week based on some of the keynote presentations, as well as some workshops. The conference is a great chance to actually meet some of the leading lights of the social media "space," people working in podcasting, blogging, and other online technologies that facilitate the interactions between companies and their customer, or just between groups of individuals with common interests.

I've also been photographing the conference, and the photo set is on my Flickr site.

Leticia Gomes is also photographing the conference, and these are photos she took of me:

del.icio.us Tags: NewCommForum,podcaststeve,lubetkin,SNCR

Jim Long and Steve Lubetkin

PodcastSteve — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 02:32:00 +0000

Jim Long and Steve Lubetkin
Originally uploaded by helloleticia

NewMediaJim (Jim Long of NBC News) was an active participant in panels and conversations during the New Communications Forum, a great contributor of insights into the convergence of new and old media, and a generally gregarious guy, which is no big surprise based on his video blog entries, his QIK videos, and his Utterz.

In a forthcoming Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast, we'll have excerpts from the panel I moderated on the changing face of journalism, which included Jim, Tom Foremski from Silicon Valley Watcher blog, online editors Randy Keith from the San Jose Mercury, and Andria Carter of New Jersey's own Trentonian, and Neil Chase, Vice President, Author Services, Federated Media.

This photo of me and Jim by Leticia Gomes. More of Leticia's photo coverage at http://flickr.com/photos/helloleticia/

As Woody Allen said...

PodcastSteve — Sun, 04 May 2008 20:54:00 +0000

"Ninety percent of success is just showing up..."

And that is how I managed to become the 89th ranked racquetball player statewide in New Jersey. I showed up and played in some tournaments -- make no mistake, I lost badly, but there it is, on the USARacquetball rankings website. USAR New Jersey Ranked Players

USAR New Jersey Ranked Players
Sat, 26 Apr 2008 09:17:46 GMT

PodcastSteve — Tue, 13 May 2008 23:52:00 +0000

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterz. Replies. mp3

River Communications Group: Peter Shankman, 5/12/08

PodcastSteve — Tue, 20 May 2008 00:54:00 +0000

Click to Play

In this podcast presented by the River Communications Group, Peter Shankman, CEO of The Geek Factory and author of Can We Do That? -- Outrageous PR Stunts that Work, and Why Your Company Needs Them, discusses the importance of social media for professional communicators, and explains how to differentiate yourself by using social media.

This program was recorded May 12, 2008 at Marsha Brown's, New Hope, PA. The program runs about one hour.

Produced by Professional Podcasts LLC.

LOBP Podcast #37: Audio from An Evening with Peter Shankman, 5/12/08, River Communications Group

PodcastSteve — Tue, 20 May 2008 18:12:00 +0000

In this special edition of Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast, we present the audio soundtrack from the vidcast being distributed at http://professionalpodcasts.blip.tv/file/920310/.

In his May 12 appearance at the River Communications Group, Peter Shankman, CEO of The Geek Factory and author of Can We Do That? -- Outrageous PR Stunts that Work, and Why Your Company Needs Them, discusses the importance of social media for professional communicators, and explains how to differentiate yourself by using social media.

This program was recorded May 12, 2008 at Marsha Brown's, New Hope, PA. The program runs about one hour.

Download the podcast here (118 mb stereo MP3 file, 01:04:34 duration).

Send comments to steve@professionalpodcasts.com or call our podcast comment line, +1-856-861-6146 (Europe and UK, +44 020 7193 6146)

Keywords:

del.icio.us Tags: lubetkin,cherry hill,shankman,geekfactory,@skydiver,twitter,new media,business,social media,search engine strategies,seo

Produced by Steve Lubetkin, SNCR Senior Fellow, managing partner of Professional Podcasts LLC.

NJ Bank Marketing Association Vidcast 2008-05-02 Part 1: Promoting Thought Leadership Through Podcasts

PodcastSteve — Sat, 24 May 2008 01:37:00 +0000

Click to Play

In this first part of a two-part vidcast, NJ Bank Marketing Association Board Member Steve Lubetkin, managing partner of Professional Podcasts LLC,
explains how banks can use podcasting technology to distribute messages and promote thought leadership in financial matters. The program was recorded May 2, 2008 in Woodbridge, NJ. It runs about one hour.

Blogger-terrorist Michelle Malkin humbles Dunkin' Donuts; her spiritual mentor Joe McCarthy would be proud

PodcastSteve — Fri, 30 May 2008 12:01:00 +0000

One of the things that really scares and worries me about this whole blogging thing is this:

One emotionally needy ("no one has written about me in a while, let's stir something up") blogger, who happens to have a wide readership because of her "bully" pulpit of a syndicated column, can bring a decent company and an awfully nice spokesperson to their knees.

I'm talking about Michelle Malkin (usually given the title "conservative columnist") and her attach on Dunkin' Brands and Rachel Ray.

You may have seen news stories that Dunkin' caved in to Malkin's unprovoked and unfair attack and withdrew a series of ads featuring Rachel Ray wearing a scarf with a black-and-white paisley design.

Having nothing better to do, and absolutely no facts at her disposal to support the allegation (remember when Sen. McCarthy declared "I have here in my pocket a secret list of Communists"?) Ms. Malkin decided that Rachel Ray's scarf bore a resemblance to the kaffiyeh, the patterned headgear favored by some terrorist leaders.

Come on, people. Have we totally lost control of our ability to sort out the facts?

This is a kaffiyeh:

Here is a photo of the most prominent terrorist leader wearing a kaffiyeh:

And this is Rachel Ray wearing "the scarf."

They are obviously and distinctively different, and reasonable people would see that just by looking at the photos.

It only took me 10 minutes (probably less) to find these images using Google.

So the serious, important question is this:

Why do we act like sheep and let people like Malkin spew their nonsense without challenging it?

Why didn't any news media people compare the images, and question Malkin's sanity?

Remember, she is also the same bloggoterrorist who once suggested prosecution for anti-American statements by Jill Carroll, the Christian Science Monitor stringer kidnapped in Iraq and forced at gunpoint to those statements while in captivity.

Aside from the fact that Malkin didn't lose her juicy syndicated column contract over that outrageous attack, why does the news media still give any shred of credibility to anything she says?

Why do we have a media firestorm over the allegation and no one, NO ONE, standing up to say clearly and without hesitation:

Dunkin' Donuts and Rachel Ray didn't do anything wrong.

The charge is bogus, and Michelle Malkin's news syndication service should be ashamed that they give a channel to this kind of witch-hunting masquerading as journalism.

Let's be very clear: The person who is wrong here is not Rachel Ray. Dunkin' Donuts is also not doing anything wrong.

The one who's wrong -- once again -- irresponsible bloggoterrorist making the allegation without any foundation and for no other reason than to stir the waters of controversy and get her name mentioned.

The ones who are guilty, however, are the journalists who dutifully report Malkin's crazy assertion and conclude that they have done their jobs by merely reporting what she said accurately and what the other side said in response -- accurately.

There is an obligation to report the truth, and that means reporting skeptically about the original assertion when it is easy to prove that the assertion is wrong. This is the same failure of the media when Joe McCarthy brandished his fictitious "list."

And it demands that we ask the same question of Michelle Malkin that Joseph Welch, head attorney for the US Army, asked of Joe McCarthy toward the end of McCarthy's reign of terror:

You've done enough. Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?

PRSA Chair Jeff Julin responds to attack on PR by CBS's Andrew Cohen

PodcastSteve — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 14:54:00 +0000

In a surprisingly clever use of social media, the Public Relations Society of America has employed YouTube to deliver its response to a scathing and ill-researched attack on the public relations profession in general and PRSA in particular.

On CBS Sunday Morning last week, commentator Andrew Cohen lambasted the society for its Code of Ethics and Professional Standards, arguing that having such a code was akin to a professional organization of burglars promising not to steal.

Jeff Julin, APR, PRSA's 2008 Chair, responded in a letter to Cohen and then posted a video on YouTube:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xzf0eswdVkU&hl=en]

Despite what many people may think because of the bad examples of publicity agents masquerading as communications consultants, the vast majority of public relations professionals do attempt to base relationships with the media on a two-way, transparent, and honest dialogue about issues as they represent their clients.

As a matter of personal policy, I incorporate the PRSA Code in every contract I write with clients, and provide them with a copy so they know what I will and will not do. And I really will walk away from business if a client asks me to be deceptive.

Anyway, it's a big step forward for PRSA to be employing the social media tools in this way. In the late 1980s, I was part of a "Communications and Technology Committee" that was trying to get PRSA's then executive director to embrace CompuServe's PRSIG special interest group as a means of online communications. At the time, PRSA's Job Center was a printed list that went out to members once a month. Headquarters would only fax the typed 3x5 cards to Ron Solberg in Chicago, who rekeyed them and posted the jobs on CompuServe.

How far we have come!

Liveblogging from International Association of Online Communicators (IAOC) Conference in Reykjavik

PodcastSteve — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 15:37:00 +0000

CROSSPOSTED FROM PRSA Philadelphia Brainstorm Blog:

Greetings from Reykjavik, Iceland, where the IAOC Conference is underway. We're here as the IAOC Conference gets underway. We will live blog the session highlights, and there will be podcast recordings of the short presentations, sponsored by the Philadelphia Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America.

There is also live blogging at the IAOC blog, courtesy of conference sponsor Phillippe Borremans of Blackline, a Belgian social media company.

We are sitting at square tables for a series of roundtable presentations. I've convinced (wasn't hard) Suzanne Sparks Fitzgerald, APR, Fellow, PRSA, of Rowan, who organized the conference, to have the presenters rotate instead of the listeners. That way, we don't have to move podcast equipment from table to table.

OK, up first is Kathryn Quigley of Rowan University, who is presenting research entitled "Loud Voices, Silenced Voices; The Ethics of Online Content in Media Coverage of High-Profile Child Death and Child Disappearance cases."

Kathryn is examining how news media are handling child disappearances and murders in their online coverage. Some papers have allowed offensive and scurrillous comments on their online content. The Madeline McCann website set up by the Sun in London has 38 different click-on discussions available. Discussion is more tabloid, headlines, the bias is more pronounced, she says.

We'll post her presentation here on the blog when it's available to us.

Preparing Online Communicators for the Future of Information Systems

PodcastSteve — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 16:08:00 +0000

CROSSPOSTED FROM PRSA PHILADELPHIA BRAINSTORM BLOG

Diane Penrod and Bill Wolff of Rowan presented on information "ecologies," including online portfolio, RSS feeds, and social bookmarking tools. Goal is showcasing how information is moving. Bill showed an example from a student about how that student is gathering information from multiple blogs and rss feeds and aggregating them in a way that is useful for her own collaborative writing projects.

Diane is interested in the "semantic domain" of Web 3.0. Beat-blogging is citizen journalism mixed with professional journalists and other experts interested in journalism. Twitter is mentioned in coverage of spot news events increasingly.

Teaching them a semantic, linguistic structure - Tweets are different semantic, linguistic structures.

Students are not digital natives, they are digital "primitives." They are not completely fluent. Goal is to take the primitives and get them away from the primitive uses and move the communications process forward by helping them learn how to use these technologies better.

Wolff: goal is to think critically about these tools and technologies, rather than just using them.

User Interaction with Time-dependent Presentation in Online Journalism. Results of an Eye-tracking Study

PodcastSteve — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 16:11:00 +0000

CROSS POSTED FROM PRSA PHILADELPHIA BRAINSTORM BLOG

Peter Schumacher of the University of Trier reported on multimedia websites and how people look at them. His interest is in determining the best ways for designers to pull the content together for multimedia presentations, automated slide shows, and other online content, to enhance the experience by using data collected from how people actually navigate through such presentations. He analyzed eye-tracking data from participants to see how they viewed these presentations. You can see what parts of pictures people look at first and where their eyes go in the presentation's environment.

Online Newsrooms and Media Kits

PodcastSteve — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 16:12:00 +0000

CROSSPOSTED FROM PRSA PHIlADELPHIA BRAINSTORM BLOG

At IAOC Conference in Reykjavik, Iceland, Joe Basso of Rowan University presented on online newsrooms and media kits, and how people in different age groups use them.

At University level, there is an emphasis on one-way communications model, using communications platforms online as delivery systems to repackage existing material. Teaching professionals to think about how they use the channels to move organizations toward ethical business decisions is critical.

Question from Sam Terilli of University of Miami - are notions of transparency doomed? One way that enhances is that everything goes right out instantly. Compare with more seasoned practitioners who might be more reserved if they've has a problem.

Answer from Joe - Younger group wants to communicate without thinking about the fallout, needs to learn how to take time to think about the fallout. 36+ view the message more important. Slower to communicate but more conscious of the fallout. 35 and younger almost an addictive drug, the need to communicate overshadows thinking strategically. Younger people are not thinking about the two-way process. They are more interested in getting the communications out quickly.

Broadcast Media Meets Social Media; Radio 2.0 and the Future of Broadcasting

PodcastSteve — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 17:03:00 +0000

CROSS POSTED FROM PRSA PHILADELPHIA BRAINSTORM BLOG

Professor Keith Brand of Rowan University discussed his research on how radio stations are using social media. This is from the IAOC Conference in Reykjavik, where we are producing podcasts for PRSA Philadelphia.

Looking at NPR profile, noted adults 45-60 are top group listening to NPA, he said. Younger listeners are not listening as much.

Paper looks at different examples of radio stations or networks dealing with "participatory culture," endemic to the younger demographic.

Problem with these services that radio stations are trying are - attempting to create separate programs for separate sudiences.

Brand focused on Vocalo, a podcasting/broadcasting initiative by Chicago Public Radio that puts members of the community on the air in their own voices. Vocalo rhymes with the Spanish word Zocalo, which means "plaza." Currently broadcasting on an unused repeater frequency, but a signal strength boost is coming.

Metrics - measuring amount of content being uploaded and downloaded on the website

Participatory approach could be a way to get younger people reinvigorated about radio.

Issues of Organizational Commitment in the Era of the Virtual Office

PodcastSteve — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 17:27:00 +0000

Crossposted from PRSA Philadelphia Brainstorm Blog:

At the IAOC Conference in Reykjavik, Professor Evonne Kruger (left) from Richard Stockton College, and Diane Holtzman, of Stockton and Rowan University, presented research on how millenials and Gen X-ers deal with organizational commitment and structure in the era of virtual offices. PRSA is sponsoring my presence here to produce podcasts, and we're also live-blogging.

Findings - millenials because of all the years of volunteering, they actually read corporate mission and vision statements, want to know the values of the organizations they are interacting with.

Gen X need to see things that affect their lives.

Millenials expect more praise, difficult to have conversations with them that involve constructive criticism of work performance.

They have close relationships with parents, who are seen as mentors and friends. They are less interested in going away to school than boomers were.

There are also differences culturally and nationally.

Back for second day of IAOC Sessions

PodcastSteve — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 10:10:00 +0000

Good morning again from Reykjavik, where the International Association of Online Communicators is holding its international conference. We have heard several presentations on academic research by IAOC members, summarized in the blog posts below. These summaries and the forthcoming podcasts from the conference are underwritten by a grant from PRSA/Philadelphia. These posts are also being cross-posted at Lubetkin's Other Blog. The conference is also being live-blogged at http://www.iaocblog.com/.

Up first in our paper presentations today,

Using Google Applications for Online Teaching: Competition For Proprietary Educational Software in an Age of Fiscal Constraint, presented by Kevin Lee of Western Carolina University.

Free applications attractive to professors, particularly in an age of fiscal constraint.

Quotes Esther Dyson as recognizing early on that commercial life of most products online will be brief. Quotes from 1994 writing suggests that content providers will need to figure out what to charge for and what to give away free as a way to encourage people to buy other services.

Music CD sales plummeted, TV shows available on the 'net. University courses now available free online, thousands of copyright-free books, free online phone calls, open source, including wikipedia model.

Kevin sees trend accelerating, people are buying fewer things, and if they can get it online, they will.

Free microapplications at Google - course management software, email that is essentially spam-free; word processing, presentation and spreadsheet software, synchronous chat, voice chat, blogging, web creation and hosting, photo and image management, video, academic research (scholar.google.com), RSS reader, private groups.

He discussed some other online services available for academic applications, some of which charge for access, but offer some discounts if schools commit to their applications, like Blackboard.com and Web-CT.

He thinks schools will increasingly turn to the free, Google style alternatives.

Melissa Bass, a Rowan graduate student attending the session, noted that Google's scholar application is not as comprehensive as Lexis-Nexis.

She also finds gmail.com a better organizing tool and has her school email forwarded directly to gmail. She can even respond using her school email address directly from gmail.

Old Needs, New Demands: How Online Communication has Re-shaped the Practice of School PR

PodcastSteve — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 10:11:00 +0000

Ed Moore, APR, of Rowan University, presented research on how school public relations is changing because of online communications.

For last several years, he has looked at award winning school websites and pulled the top national winners, and audit them, to identify the components that make them excellent.

Creative approach - special purpose websites (portals) - such as site for school bond issues; new residents; teacher recruitment

Interactive sites designed to provide financial information - pressure to be transparent and comply with freedom-of-information requirements. Schools responding by putting all financial information online.

Issues

Research suggests municipal government websites are often written above the 12th grade reading level. Yet most people believe governments have responsibility to provide information on the web. The question is how well they are actually communicating.

Need to look at metrics - how well schools are doing this. He has anecdotal data of how some districts address the issue. Schools look at improving traffic through site, getting to destination data in fewer number of clicks. Currently no real standard for what metrics to watch. Accuracy and timeliness of information important, but Moore thinks a need for ratcheting up the level of sophistication in performance metrics.

Sees three areas for additional work:

Trying to track how schools are adopting technologies
How to get the most out of communications/PR and IT staffs
Standardizing and codifying performance metrics

Student-produced news media, how complex have their online efforts become

PodcastSteve — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 10:42:00 +0000

Rick Sykes of Central Michigan University researched student-produced media. He was surprised to find student media recruiting his students to become multimedia editors. They are moving to multimedia journalism including video and podcasting.

His survey of several hundred student publication websites shows only a small fraction were still text-only. More than 90% had photos or slideshows, some with video and audio. 46% were using podcasts, about two-thirds had some blogs. Industry professionals in print told him that columnists blogging for the sports page was one of their biggest features. Readers want to see opinions from columnists.

Online Libel and the Court’s attempt to apply First Amendment Protection to an Emerging Medium

PodcastSteve — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 10:58:00 +0000

Joe Basso of Rowan University presented research on efforts to apply First Amendment doctrines to online speech.

False ideas will be discredited by speech that directly rebuts it. Problem is what if the original listener is not online to get the rebuttal.

It almost becomes the ethical duty of the sender of the message to infomr people that thier view is biased, and that readers need to seek out divergent points of view. It's a laissez faire approach to free speech; i.e., we actually have to seek out other opinions.

Cyber SLAPs - Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Opinion. Courts have refused to force disclosure of anonymous bloggers. Come down on the side of the bloggers.

Basso discusses paper while Lubetkin live-blogs and podcasts

Reykjavik, , Iceland - Friday June 13, 2008: IAOC Conference Speakers presented papers in the second day of the conference. Joe Basso of Rowan University presented research on online libel and First Amendment issues. Looking on are (from left): Rick Sykes of Central Michigan University; Keith Brand of Rowan University; and Luc Van Braekel, who was live blogging the conference.

Effective Tactics During a Product Recall: A Case Study of the Menu Foods Pet Food Recall

PodcastSteve — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 11:10:00 +0000

Melissa Bass of Rowan University (with microphone) is presenting her Master's thesis research on product recalls. She's a graduate student at Rowan University.

She reviewed the Menu Foods pet food recall and her survey of pet owners about how they got information.

37% of survey respondents were older, yet still went to the Internet for information about the recall. Only 8% were between 18-35, and all used the Internet for their information.

Consumers remain confident in pet food industry. Despite early chaos in the recalls, once consumers were able to get information about specific brands that were affected, it helped alleviate concerns. People did not switch brands. Also, most people used dry foods which were only recalled as a precaution but were not affected by the issue. Small percentage actually didn't use affected brands but cooked their own pet food.

International Online Communications

PodcastSteve — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 13:06:00 +0000

We had a concluding panel before lunch about the international implications for online communications.

Reykjavik, , Iceland - Friday June 13, 2008: IAOC Conference panel on European/US issues of online communications included (from left): Philippe Borremans of Blackline, a Belgian social media consulting firm; Bill Wolff, a professor from Rowan University; and moderator Don Dunnington.

Here's a small video excerpt from the panel. We're producing a full audio podcast of the panel, courtesy of the grant from PRSA/Philadelphia.

Keynote about Swarms and Collective Intelligence, Peter Gloor, MIT

PodcastSteve — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 13:14:00 +0000

Concluding the IAOC Conference in Reykjavik today is Peter Gloor, an MIT professor and chief creative officer of galaxyadvisors researching swarm intelligence and crowdsourcing, using some social network analysis software called CONDOR.

It analyzes the relationships between people and the topics they are discussing in online communications channels, building a map of relationships and connections, and enhancing predictive value of the content.

This has application in business for integrating new employees into the company network.

Complete audio podcast will come in a week or so, thanks to a grant from PRSA/Philadelphia, which is underwriting this coverage of the conference.

UPDATED 6/14/2008: Luc Van Braekel, Belgian blogger and podcaster who helped Philippe Borremans liveblog the conference, has posted a video of Peter's presentation.

Social Media Experts have Tweetup in Reykjavik

PodcastSteve — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 10:00:00 +0000

Reykjavik, , Iceland - Saturday, June 14, 2008: Social media experts from three countries had an encounter at the Hotel Holt here. Posing while discussing social media networks are (from left): Steve Lubetkin, managing partner of Professional Podcasts LLC, a leading US producer of business podcasts; Luc Van Braekel, a Belgian blogger and podcaster; and Hjörtur Smárason, president and CEO of Scope, an Icelandic internet marketing consultancy. Lubetkin and Smárason met online via LinkedIn and Twitter; Van Braekel met Lubetkin and Smárason in Reykjavik. Lubetkin and Van Braekel were covering the International Association of Online Communicators conference at the Hotel Holt. Live blogging of the conference appears on the PRSA/Philadelphia Brainstorm Blog, on Luc's blog, and on the IAOC's blog.

Photography Copyright

Some ideas about the gas price crisis that you won't hear on mainstream TV

PodcastSteve — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 14:25:00 +0000

You may not like his politics or even agree with him, but Newt Gingrich makes some compelling statements here about how to deal with the gas price crisis. We have the intellect and the technological means to figure out how to be environmentally responsible while exploring for new oil. So why don't we?

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOpcPfAarjY&hl=en]

PRSA/Philadelphia Video Podcast: Media Chameleons: How the Visual News Media is Adapting in the Fast-paced Video World, May 22, 2008

PodcastSteve — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 21:00:00 +0000

Click to Play

PRSA/Philadelphia and Professional Podcasts LLC present a video podcast program, recording at the Union League Club on May 22, 2008.

In this vidcast, a group of media experts discuss how their jobs have changed and the media has adapted to technology and changes in the news business. The program runs 1 hour 23 minutes, and includes an audience Q&A session.

Panelists

Sarah Glover, Inquirer Photographer
Shawn Sullivan, Courier-Post web content producer
Brian Conley, Alive in Baghdad
Jim Eyles, NFL Films

Moderator: Cheryl Squadrito, President, Media Friendly Public Relations

LOBP-SNCR1Jaffe: Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast Special SNCR Episode #1, Keynote Address by Joseph Jaffe at New Communications Forum, 4/2008

PodcastSteve — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 13:58:00 +0000

In this first in a series of special episodes of Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast, we present the keynote presentation at the New Communications Forum in April 2008 by Joseph Jaffe, president and chief interruptor of crayon, a new marketing company.

This program was recorded April 22, 2008 at the New Communications Forum in Santa Rosa, CA.

Download the podcast here (139 mb stereo MP3 file, 01:41:52 duration).

Send comments to steve@professionalpodcasts.com or call our podcast comment line, +1-856-861-6146 (Europe and UK, +44 020 7193 6146)

Keywords: jaffe, sncr, new communications forum, lubetkin, cherry hill, nj, newcommreview, crayon, california, santa rosa, conference, new media

del.icio.us Tags: jaffe,sncr,new communications forum,lubetkin,cherry hill,nj,newcommreview,crayon,california,santa rosa,conference,new media

Produced by Steve Lubetkin, SNCR Senior Fellow, managing partner of Professional Podcasts LLC.

Interview about podcasting appears on the Marketing Safari blog

PodcastSteve — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 14:37:00 +0000

I met Hjörtur Smárason through LinkedIn initially, when I was trolling the web looking for corporate sponsors for a series of podcasts we're producing from the International Association of Online Communicators meeting that took place June 11-13 in Reykjavik, Iceland. Hjörtur graciously recommended several clients and acquaintances in the Icelandic business community who he thought might be interested in the project.

We began a regular correspondence via email and Twitter that culiminated in a face-to-face "Tweet-Up" when I was in Reykjavik. We previously posted this photo of me, Hjörtur (right), and Belgian new media expert Luc Van Braekel:

Now, Hjörtur has posted an interview with me about podcasting on his Marketing Safari blog. We will be producing a podcast in the next few weeks with Hjörtur about the state of social media in Iceland and the other countries where he practices.

Recycle Bin Technology Comes to New Jersey, just as it's being tossed on the, well, dustpile, in the UK

PodcastSteve — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 11:42:00 +0000

So next week, Cherry Hill, NJ residents will begin using their new high-tech recycle bins to give politicians additional cover to avoid the tough decisions about our trash.

Why should we build much-needed trash to steam generating facilities that might anger some people (aka voters) while benefitting us with cheaper energy, if we can pretend that government-enforced recycling with a high-tech gift certificate at the back end will solve all our ills?

This is the pattern among those we elect to run our government. Take the easy way out. Don't tell people the hard facts of reality. Don't really DO anything that requires making tough, unpopular decisions. We saw what happened to NJ Gov. Jim Florio when he actually told people the truth, that he was going to raise their taxes.

Why should we allow responsible exploration of our vast reserves of shale oil, offshore oil, or ANWR oil as part of a comprehensive plan for energy independence?

It's much easier to just offer people a few pennies off on gas for the summer vacation season by suspending a much-needed gasoline tax that pays for the highway repairs we aren't even doing, because we've stolen the trust fund money to prop up social security, because we don't want to ask people the hard question about funding it properly?

Let me review.

We now have beautiful, blue barcoded recycle bins, delivered by our tax dollars to your door. Starting June 30, we must put all of our recyclable glass, plastic, metal, and paper into these bins, which have wheels (easier to schlep to curbside) and are very big and tall, to hold a week's worth of this stuff.

When they are picked up, the garbage truck will read the bar code and keep track of what you have recycled.

Then you can log onto www.recyclebank.com and find out how many "points" you have accumulated toward the purchase of what? More "stuff", as the late George Carlin would have said. "Stuff" that is wrapped in more waste paper, packaging, etc., that you can put into the recycle bin and start getting points all over again.

Talk about bread and circuses! Distract people from the real issue by making them work really hard at throwing stuff away correctly.

News flash...we just got back from the UK, where one of the interesting local controversies is the discovery after spending millions of UK pounds (worth twice the US dollar at this point)...gasp! The bin-data technology doesn't seem to work very well. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/06/17/microchipped_wheelie_bins/

Can't wait until someone in Cherry Hill asks how we know the recyclebank.com points are being accurately awarded...that will keep everyone's minds off the energy issues for at least another campaign season.

LOBP-SNCR2Binhammer: Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast - SNCR #2, Richard Binhammer of Dell Computer

PodcastSteve — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 01:02:00 +0000

In this second in a series of special episodes of Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast recorded during the New Communications Forum of the Society for New Communications Research, we present SNCR Senior Fellow John Cass interviewing Richard Binhammer of Dell Computer.

Richard Binhammer, left, and John Cass, SNCR Senior Fellow (Lubetkin photo)

This program was recorded April 23, 2008 at the New Communications Forum in Santa Rosa, CA.

Download the podcast here (95.7 mb stereo MP3 file, 01:09:44 duration).

Send comments to steve@professionalpodcasts.com or call our podcast comment line, +1-856-861-6146 (Europe and UK, +44 020 7193 6146)

Keywords: sncr, new communications forum, lubetkin, cherry hill, nj, newcommreview, dell, binhammer california, santa rosa, conference, new media, social media

del.icio.us Tags: sncr,new communications forum,lubetkin,cherry hill,nj,newcommreview,dell,binhammer california,santa rosa,conference,new media,social media

Produced by Steve Lubetkin, SNCR Senior Fellow, managing partner of Professional Podcasts LLC.

Steve discusses podcasting at NJ Technology Council

PodcastSteve — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 05:49:00 +0000

Professional Podcasts was one of seven companies from New Jersey and Quebec, Canada invited to present a seven-minute overview of their business at the New Jersey Technology Council's "What's Next in IT?" conference held at the Mezzanine in 744 Broad Street, Newark, NJ, on June 26.

About 125 high-tech executives, investors, and others attended the event.

Alleged News Story Potentially Reports on Suspected Shooting, Allegedly.

PodcastSteve — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 23:19:00 +0000

The Associated Press demonstrates how heavily lawyers have drilled into journalists that they have to hedge the way they describe anything that happens, to the point of ridiculousness.

The tragic story of a shooter going into a church and firing upon congregants in Knoxville, Tenn., was reported by AP on the Philadelphia Inquirer website this way:

A suspected gunman has opened fire during a church service in Knoxville, Tenn., and several people are injured. [Emphasis added]

This was the lead of the article. The fact that there was a gunman is pretty evident from the fact that several people were critically injured. Why do we have to refer to him as a "suspected" gunman. It was a real gunman.

The word suspected, or alleged, or purported, or police claim, is only really necessary to describe the actual suspect when he/she is identified. But it's just plain silly and careless writing and copy editing to open the story with "A suspected gunman..."

Just say what happened. It's that simple.

When in doubt, take the safe course...

PodcastSteve — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 14:02:00 +0000

That's one of the primary safety rules they teach you on the railroad, and it seems that it still applies throughout our corporate economy, where doing what's safe and expected and riskless takes precedence over doing something new, untested, experimental, edgy, or -- gasp! -- uncontrolled by IT and the company.

I just attended a networking event for a technology group, and one of the panelists in the short dialogue that preceded the drinks made a point of saying her organization blocks access to iTunes and other social media.

When I questioned that approach, the answer was pretty much the same you always hear...we're afraid our employees can't be trusted to be responsible in their downloading, they might clog the server with music, or something worse.

Of course, the guy who runs IBM's employee blogging program has answered that question quite well.

When asked how they can trust the employees to blog, he says, we trusted them enough to hire them, now that they are employees why would I trust them less? But most of corporate America does distrust its employees. And the employees know it.

It's pervasive in corporate America. Assume the worst of all employees, block all ability to try something new or different. Don't manage by exception, just block everyone. The right approach would be to let people try new things, see if there's a great application that could enhance the business, attract new customers or donors or supporters, whatever.

Only block the ones who actually abuse the system.

But they never seem to do that. Much easier to tell everyone you don't trust them, and then act shocked when they try to circumvent the restrictions.

ShankmanPRSA20080717

PodcastSteve — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 21:36:00 +0000

Click to Play

Public Service Electric & Gas installs a new transformer in Cherry Hill, NJ

PodcastSteve — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 16:59:00 +0000

Click to Play

At about 9:15pm on August 20, 2008, a power transformer serving about six homes on Crestbrook Avenue in Cherry Hill, NJ, burned out, cutting power to the homes for more than 14 hours. About 12 hours into the power failure, PSE&G crews arrived with a replacement transformer. The failed unit was one of the original transformers installed when the neighborhood first received underground wiring almost 40 years ago. In this documentary report, Steve Lubetkin of Professional Podcasts shows the repair and installation process. The report was recorded on the VuPoint Solutions DA1 camera and a Sony VX1000 MiniDV camera. Post-production in the studios of Professional Podcasts on Sony Vegas Movie Studio Platinum 9.0. Comments and suggestions welcome, at steve@professionalpodcasts.com

A Brief Visit to Camp Biden, Delaware

PodcastSteve — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 23:33:00 +0000

Click to Play

News media speculation about Barack Obama's choice for his running mate includes the possible naming of Delaware Sen. Joseph Biden. The local and network news media are camped out at the foot of Biden's driveway. Professional Podcasts paid a brief visit to the press corps, and spent a few minutes with Jim "NewMediaJim" Long of NBC News, one of the videographers on the Biden VP Watch.

NewMediaJim Seesmic of Our Visit to "Camp Biden"

PodcastSteve — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 11:47:00 +0000

We visited NewMediaJim (Jim Long of NBC News) who was on the Obama VP watch at Sen. Joe Biden's home in Delaware. It looks like they sent Jim to the right location, but the excitement was punctuated by long stretches of sheer boredom, interrupted by lunch runs from social media types. The other journalists on site were amazed at the extent of Jim's social media network.

Whitney Hoffman, leader of the Podcamp Philly organizing committee (September 6-7 at Temple University), lives nearby and has visited Jim several times during the media vigil. I connected with Whit (@ldpodcast on Twitter) and we brought sandwiches and drinks.

Here's Jim's Seesmic report on our visit:

08222008030

We know this famous sports person, make her fit our product line...

PodcastSteve — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 10:54:00 +0000

Here's an example of why people are cynical about what PR professionals do.

Can someone please tell me how this incredibly tenuous linkage has been turned into a press release and video website campaign, and why any news media of any consequence will consider this newsworthy?

SOCCER STAR MIA HAMM AND GUARDIAN TEAM UP FOR OPEN ENROLLMENT SEASON

Olympic Gold Medalist Encourages Americans to Invest Time Reviewing Employee Benefits to Make the Right Choices for Themselves & Families

The best part are the quotes from Hamm and the company execs trying to explain what, if anything, Mia Hamm has to do with their employee benefits business:

"As a soccer player and soccer mom, I have a commitment to ensuring my family is financially protected, and a big part of this is making the right insurance choices. ..." said Hamm.

Sort of like, "I'm not a benefits manager, but I play one on TV..."

Then the company executive helpfully tells us:

"Mia is a true humanitarian and uses her celebrity to help others. As a new mom she understands first-hand the importance of having the right insurance protection and as an Olympic champion she clearly understands the importance of preparation," said Elena Wu, 2nd Vice President of Guardian Group Marketing and Worksite Planning. "Guardian is honored to work with someone who is a trailblazer in her field. She dedicates her life to not only sports, but also health and service through charitable efforts such as the Mia Hamm Foundation which provides support for marrow and blood transplant patients and their families."

I have no quarrel with Mia Hamm's world class achievements both on and off the soccer field, or her humanitarian instincts.

But there is absolutely nothing in her background that makes for a compelling connection between her and the insurance products being flogged.

How anyone who has taken PR 101 in the last three to five years thinks this kind of promotion will drive insurance sales in any measurable way is beyond me.

What do you think?

Walmart Store #3422, Deptford, NJ - Video Wrapper Feature

PodcastSteve — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 18:01:00 +0000

Click to Play

In connection with our public relations work for Success Communications Group on behalf of Walmart, we produced this video wrapper combining standup, b-roll, and interview clips about the new Walmart supercenter that opened September 17, 2008 in Deptford, NJ.

Also includes video clip of Walmart market manager Sherry Thomas at VIP reception for grand opening of store.

Walmart Store #3422, Deptford, NJ - B-Roll

PodcastSteve — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 18:22:00 +0000

Click to Play

Video b-roll of Walmart Store #3422, Deptford Supercenter, Deptford, Gloucester County, NJ. Scenes of various departments with ambient stereo sound. Cleared for use in broadcast or online media reports about the store. Please email slubetkin@successcomgroup.com with any usage reports. Thanks.

Live-blogging Leadership New Jersey's Forum on the Future of New Jersey

PodcastSteve — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 12:45:00 +0000

We are on location in the Trenton studios of New Jersey Network, recording podcasts and preparing to live-blog Leadership New Jersey's Forum on the Future of New Jersey. It's a full-day seminar and town hall meeting at which public policy participants and corporate executives exchange views on the best practices that will help New Jersey government deal with the many complex issues it faces.

Today's panels come on the heels of a new Monmouth University/Gannett New Jersey poll that says nine out of 10 New Jerseyans think government should be overhauled at all levels. The poll's author, Patrick Murray, director of the Polling Institute at Monmouth University, is one of the speakers at the Forum today, so hearing his findings first-hand should be interesting.

You can get more information about today's event on the Forum's website. This year, the event is also being live-streamed in video by New Jersey Network.

We'll be watching for citizens with pitchforks and torches descending on the nearby state capitol building.

Lineup for Leadership NJ 2008 Forum on the Future of New Jersey

PodcastSteve — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 13:50:00 +0000

Here is some taste of today's program.

After opening remarks by Michael Willmann of WMSH Marketing Communications, the chairman of the forum, we'll hear a keynote morning address from former Rep. Bob Franks, president of the Healthcare Institute of New Jersey.

Topic is "Clean Slate, Fresh Start." 77 people will speak, 50 for just four minutes each. Best and brightest of NJ, says Willmann.

Franks suggests paying legislators 100-125 K a year, but ban all outside income.

County legislators shouldn't get a paycheck from state legislature too. Reduce the number of masters people are trying to serve.

Bob Franks of Healthcare Institute of NJ

Monmouth University/Gannett New Jersey Poll Results - State Government is 'Broken'

PodcastSteve — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 13:59:00 +0000

Patrick Murray, director of the Polling Institute at Monmouth University, is presenting the results of the latest poll about how people in NJ feel about state government.

Among problems facing NJ, property taxes was ranked highest, 8.7 out of 10.

NJ residents don't believe that government as currently structured in NJ, works for them. Two thirds say it needs a major overhaul.

Quality of life in NJ is good, but cost of living is difficult.

State, County, and Municipal Governance in 21st Century New Jersey

PodcastSteve — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 14:29:00 +0000

Next discussion is led by Tim McDon ough and Dianne Brake. This is difficult, they are only allotted four minutes each speaker. And Tim got the bell in the midst of his comments.

TIM

Revolutionizing or changing things in NJ.

Start with municipalities.Too many levels of government in NJ today. NJ is #1 in total tax burden per capita, including state and local property taxes.

Too much government bureaucracy. Suggestion to consolidate into county level government, but Tim thinks should eliminate county government as a cost-savings. County govt and services are redundant.

DIANE

How do we deliver services efficiently to residents? Problem, particularly in land use, which determines job growth, housing, etc., local government does things that cannot ever add up to necessary goals in NJ. Given local govt some of the "wrong things to do."

Images from Forum on Future of NJ - Speakers present their ideas

PodcastSteve — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 15:05:00 +0000

NJDOT Commissioner Jack Lettiere and Michael Willmann discuss Lettiere's remarks at Leadership NJ Forum on the Future of NJ.

Prof. Richard Harris of Rutgers University with Willmann.

Gil Medina, former state Commerce Secretary, delivers his remarks.

Short presentations continue @ LNJ Forum

PodcastSteve — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 15:21:00 +0000

Political consultant and commentator Don Sico looks on while Michael Willmann leads discussion of Sico's presentation.

Sico ponders his remarks.

Tom Byrne of Byrne Asset Management

First Group of Speakers Concludes at LNJ Forum on Future of NJ

PodcastSteve — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 15:46:00 +0000

Program Chair Michael Willmann, right, converses with NJ State Chamber of Commerce President Joan Verplanck.

Dr. Michael Chrisman, president of the Coriell Institute in Camden, comments on science and technology.

Harry Pozycki, founder of the Citizens Campaign.

Pam Mount of Terhune Orchards

Second Segment of Speakers at LNJ Forum on Future of NJ

PodcastSteve — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 16:30:00 +0000

Barbara Heisler Williams, CEO at Fund for an OPEN Society

Dr. Richard Goldstein, president of the NJ Council of Teaching Hospitals, waits to see Consensor voting results on his remarks.

Susan Zellman, chairman of the board of trustees of the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority.

New Jersey Network provided a live video stream of the conference on its website. Here, technician Adam Goldberg monitors the feed as Thomas Geisel, president of Sun National Bank, makes his remarks.

Leadership New Jersey Luncheon Panel Features Two Former NJ Governors, State Officials

PodcastSteve — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 17:22:00 +0000

The luncheon panel at Leadership NJ's Forum on the Future of New Jersey featured a distinguished roster of participants. From left: Roland Machold, former state treasurer; former Gov. Brendan Byrne; Anne Limberg, market president of Bank of America, which sponsored the panel; Christopher Daggett, chair of the NJDEP 2008 Permit Efficiency Task Force; former Gov. James Florio; and Kent Manahan of New Jersey Network, who moderated the panel.

LNJ Topic 3 - Issues in Higher Education

PodcastSteve — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 19:23:00 +0000

Speakers on this topic were:

Richard McCormick, president of Rutgers University

Richard Miller, CEO of Virtual Health Systems, Voorhees, NJ

Tim Touhey, New Jersey Builders Association

Phil Kirschner, New Jersey Business and Industry Association

John Barna, Editor, Gloucester County Times

Sharon Schulman, executive director, William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy

Tom O'Neill, former executive director of Leadership New Jersey

James Weinstein, former DOT Commissioner

Roland Anglim, Rutgers Initiative for Regional/Community Transformation

Barry Seymour, executive director of the Delaware Valley Planning Commission

John Seitter, Executive Director, South Jersey Tourism Corporation

Lou Magazzu, Cumberland County Freeholder Director

Fred Jacobs, St. Barnabas Health System, former state health commissioner

LNJ Topic 4 - The New Demography

PodcastSteve — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 20:43:00 +0000

Speakers were:

Dr. Joseph Seneca and Dr. James Hughes, economists from Rutgers

Joyce Gabriel, managing editor, Courier-Post, Cherry Hill

Jeff Tittel, executive director, NJ Sierra Club

James Maley, mayor of Collingswood, NJ

Peter Kasabach, president, NJ Future

Rebecca Purchase, Executive Director, Salem County United Way

Gregg Edwards, President, Center for Policy Research of New Jersey

Michele Byers, Executive Director, NJ Conservation Foundation

Ed Wengren, NJ Farm Bureau

Jeff Stoller, Director, Communications & Outreach, Heldrich Center for Workforce Development, Rutgers

Steve Morgan, CEO of Jersey Central Power & Light

LOBP-SNCR3 Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast - SNCR #3, Luncheon Panel of New Comm Forum Alumni

PodcastSteve — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 19:47:00 +0000

In this third in a series of special episodes of Lubetkin's Other Blog Podcast recorded during the April 2008 New Communications Forum of the Society for New Communications Research, we present a panel luncheon discussion among alumni of previous New Communications Forum programs.

Keynote Luncheon Panel begins its presentation. From left: Susan Getgood, moderator (obscured by lectern); Wendy Harman, American Red Cross; Bob Siller, Altera; Doug Bardwell, New Forest; and Chris Turner, Lifeway Christian Resources. (Lubetkin photos)

Bob Siller of Altera comments as Wendy Harman of the American Red Cross looks on.

Doug Bardwell of New Forest discusses his social media experiences.

Chris Turner of Lifeway Christian Resources discussed his experience.

This program was recorded April 23, 2008 at the New Communications Forum in Santa Rosa, CA.

Download the podcast here (66.5 mb stereo MP3 file, 0:48:28 duration).

Send comments to steve@professionalpodcasts.com or call our podcast comment line, +1-856-861-6146 (Europe and UK, +44 020 7193 6146)

Keywords: sncr, new communications forum, lubetkin, cherry hill, nj, newcommreview, Turner, Bardwell, Harman, Getgood, Siller

Produced by Steve Lubetkin, SNCR Senior Fellow, managing partner of Professional Podcasts LLC.

Coherent Sales Consulting - Ed Callahan’s Blog » Blog Archive » How can I learn about “social media” for my business?

PodcastSteve — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 00:33:00 +0000

Coherent Sales Consulting - Ed Callahan’s Blog » Blog Archive » How can I learn about “social media” for my business?

Ed Callahan wrote a summary blog post of the social media workshop in which we participated yesterday for the Center City Proprietors Association.

Participating in Jeff Pulver's Social Media Jungle Thursday 11/13

PodcastSteve — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 00:32:00 +0000

I will be up and on the road quite early on Thursday, driving up to Melville, NY, to participate in Jeff Pulver's Social Media Jungle all-day webstream conference. I will be facilitating a discussion of podcasting and vidcasting as a way of helping companies reduce their marketing expenses. My portion of the program begins at 2:45pm. Visit www.socialmediajungle.com to watch the festivities, starting around 8:30am tomorrow.

I interviewed Jeff earlier this year during his social media breakfast in Philadelphia.

Jeff Pulver kicks off Sociak Media Jungle

PodcastSteve — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 14:45:00 +0000

Jeff Pulver kicks off the all day Social Media Jungle in Melville, NY. I wil be leading a discussion on podcasting this afternoon.

Live tweeting is going on from multiple sources. Search hashtag #smj08 and follow @podcaststeve.

Howard Greenstein

PodcastSteve — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 16:54:00 +0000

Howard and Dean presented on three screen world

Dean Landsman presenting

PodcastSteve — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 17:00:00 +0000

Dean Landsman (@deanland on Twitter) presents about the three screen world. Social media can support other media by connecting all three screens (TV, handheld) and computer.

Jeff Sass speaks @ Social Media Jungle

PodcastSteve — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 17:31:00 +0000

Jeff Sass (Twitter @sass) discusses social media from the agency perspective. At #smj08

Nelly Yusupova discusses monetization

PodcastSteve — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 19:10:00 +0000

At Jeff Pulver Social Media Jungle, Nelly Yusupova (@DigitalWoman on Twitter) discussed monetizing social media content...

Steve Lubetkin, APR, Fellow, PRSA
Managing Partner
Lubetkin Communications LLC
Professional Podcasts LLC
steve@lubetkin.net
1.856.751.5491 ofc/cell

Oz Sultan discusses social networking stes

PodcastSteve — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 19:42:00 +0000

Oz (@ozsultan) and Brett Petersel discussed social networking site trends. @smj08 Social Media Jungle.

Brett Petersel @ Social Media Jungle

PodcastSteve — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 19:45:00 +0000

Brett talked about some examples of business models that use social media.

Jonathan Yarmis discusses getting out of the Kumbaya zone with corporate clients

PodcastSteve — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 20:42:00 +0000

Jonathan Yarmis (@jyarmis - Twitter) discusses how to be more effective engaging corporate clients in social media. It's not about the conversation for most CEOs, it's about how that conversation helps meet real corporate objectives.

Ben Grossman discusses ROI

PodcastSteve — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 21:16:00 +0000

Benn Grossman (@bengrossman on Twitter) discussing Schultz's work

Return on Investment (ROI)
Return on Brand Investment (ROBI)
Return on Customer Investment (ROCI) combines attitudinal and behavioral data to predict.

Steve Lubetkin, APR, Fellow, PRSA
Managing Partner
Lubetkin Communications LLC
Professional Podcasts LLC
steve@lubetkin.net
1.856.751.5491 ofc/cell

Jamie Thompson discusses privacy at Social Media Jungle

PodcastSteve — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 21:51:00 +0000

Jamie (@Jamie_Thompson - Twitter) is talking about privacy and
the line between personal and professional.
Steve Lubetkin, APR, Fellow, PRSA
Managing Partner
Lubetkin Communications LLC
Professional Podcasts LLC
steve@lubetkin.net
1.856.751.5491 ofc/cell

Justin Oberman

PodcastSteve — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 22:10:00 +0000

Justin (@JustinOberman on Twitter) was the final Social Media Jungle speaker, on mobile social media.

Thoughts about Podcasting and "Micro-Communities"

PodcastSteve — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 12:49:00 +0000

On November 13, I joined more than 60 social media experts in Melville, NY for the "Social Media Jungle Conference organized by Internet entrepreneur and investor Jeff Pulver.

I was one of 15 session presenters/facilitators for the all-day conference, and I focused on how companies can reduce their marketing expenses through effective use of audio and video podcasting. Much of the conference was streamed live over the Internet through UStream.tv.

You can see part of my presentation in the player below.

You can see the lineup of Social Media Jungle speakers at Jeff Pulver's Blog.

For videos of many other presentations, go to the UStream.tv program page here.

Photo by Jeff Pulver

Free TV : Ustream

The conversations at the conference got me thinking about how we focus on our podcasting activities. Our clients' audiences are very highly targeted niche markets with specialized interests. They are "micro-communities" exquisitely tailored for the niche-based or narrowcasting focus of social media. Social media liberates the "media" distribution platform from the limitations of broadcast networks or terrestrial radio and TV stations dictating to the audience what content they will see.

Nelly Yusupova, ("DigitalWoman" on Twitter) who spoke at the Jungle about how to integrate advertising effectively in social media, coined the couplet, "The narrower the niche, the more you get rich."

That is exactly on point for social media. In my opinion, social media entrepreneurs are often too focused on collecting large numbers of eyeballs -- in terms of page views, clicks, or downloads.

Just as Twitter (I'm "PodcastSteve" on Twitter) gave rise to the concept of "microblogging" because of the short length of messages, Nelly's idea carries heavy freight for me -- and for my podcasting business. We are not particularly worried if our audiences are small, as long as they are self-selecting to gather our content. We are producing podcasts for very narrow niche business-to-business purposes. Our clients want to communicate highly technical business expertise to prospective clients who need to understand how that expertise can help them.

It's long past the time when a business could get its expertise covered in detail -- and effectively -- in the mainstream media so that prospects would knock on the door. And getting a business story covered in depth on radio or TV? Fuggeddaboutit!

Businesses that want to have some level of control over the opportunities to present their expertise to these micro-communities need to consider podcasting as a tool that makes them broadcasters and takes control of the content away from third parties.

But with this control over one channel comes additional responsibility. Corporate podcast users also need to be sure there is a mechanism for passionate believers in their brand to express that passion through conversation, creative activities, even fun and humor -- often at the expense of the brand. It's really OK to not only let that happen, you couldn't stop it if you wanted to, and if you have passionate microcommunity members talking about your brand even when you're not around, isn't that a success?

Walmart Store #5201 Grand Opening, Edison, NJ 11/12/2008

PodcastSteve — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 22:02:00 +0000

Click to Play

Steve Lubetkin reports on the opening of Walmart Store #5201 in Edison, Middlesex County, NJ. The new 141,000 square foot store features environmentally friendly skylights, LED lighting, floors made of recycled materials, as well as one-hour photo, full service pharmacy, and oil and tire express services.

TV News Directors and Online Video News Editors: There is substantial b-roll available from this grand opening if you are producing reports. Please contact slubetkin@successcomgroup.com or (856) 751-5491 to obtain b-roll.

Two decades later and they still haven't learned the lesson of Michael Moore

PodcastSteve — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 13:06:00 +0000

Open letter to auto industry executives:

You guys need a reality check. You have been spending way too much time in your gated Grosse Pointe communities and not enough time experiencing life the way most of us live it.

The Washington Post yesterday reported that despite the 24 daily nonstop commercial flights between Detroit and Washington, the CEOs of the three failing US automakers chose to fly on individual private planes to a hearing where they asked taxpayers to pony up $25 billion to paper over their wretched record of mismanaging formerly great American industrial companies.

There are frequently very good business reasons why it makes sense for corporate executives to use private aircraft to go somewhere. More control over the scheduling, getting somewhere quickly in a crisis, and so on. But this was an incredible display of what the Post politely called "tone deafness" to the climate in Washington, and it may very well have killed the industry's chances of getting a dime from lawmakers.

It is a direct parallel to the disastrous tone deafness of an earlier GM CEO, Roger Smith, when his office was approached by a young unknown documentary film maker from Flint, who wanted to discuss with Smith the impending plant closures and layoffs at GM's Flint complex, which was going to wreak havoc on the Flint economy.

Despite pleas from some of GM's very bright PR counselors at the time (I know this from speaking to them directly), Smith refused -- against PR advice -- to meet with the filmmaker, and Michael Moore's movie, "Roger and Me" went on to launch Moore's career in ambush documentaries.

The whole premise of the movie was "Roger Smith doesn't care enough to meet with me, and he's now trying to hide from me." Smith, with his aristocratic arrogance, played right into the typecasting he was being shoehorned into by Moore.

If he had been honest, met with the filmmaker, explained the difficult decisions, maybe, just maybe, it would have damaged the premise of the movie. Instead, he just helped confirm Moore's worst caricature of the GM CEO, and severely damaged the firm's reputation.

KEY TAKEAWAY FOR CORPORATE EXECUTIVES: Be honest, if you don't know, say you don't know. Stop pretending you have this economic thing figured out any better than your hourly workers. We're all in this together whether you like it or not -- and your behavior up to now is clearly indicating that you don't like it and really do think you are different from the rest of us.

And so today, we have this awful PR disaster that may very well wreck the chances for restructuring this industry any time soon.

You have to think that the veteran PR people at these auto companies MUST have told the CEOs that flying their $10,000/hour jets into DC would be an image problem. It certainly didn't get past the members of Congress who grilled them, according to Dana Milbank's column in the Post. As Milbank reports:

"There's a delicious irony in seeing private luxury jets flying into Washington, D.C., and people coming off of them with tin cups in their hands," Rep. Gary L. Ackerman (D-N.Y.) advised the pampered executives at a hearing yesterday. "It's almost like seeing a guy show up at the soup kitchen in high-hat and tuxedo. . . . I mean, couldn't you all have downgraded to first class or jet-pooled or something to get here?"

If the miserable consequences of this error in judgment weren't so appalling for thousands of innocent auto workers, Michael Moore might even be chuckling, with a slight hint of schadenfreude. But I have a feeling he's punching holes in the wall with his fist.

And probably so are the PR folks at these companies, because saying "I told you so!" isn't a real career option for them right now.

Contextual ads in online communications - make sure the context is right

PodcastSteve — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 13:50:00 +0000

Neville Hobson has commented on work by Niall Kennedy to create a new "front-end" interface for Twitter that allows additional levels of customization to the web page for a Twitter user, to include local languages, different ways of linking, and, perhaps most importantly, serving of Google ads that are relevant to the specific user.

Relevance is a key consideration, because some of the current implementations of ad-supported SMS leave a lot to be desired in that department.

I've been subscribing to several of these ad-supported SMS feeds from the New Jersey Gannett newspapers in the past couple of months. At no cost to the user, the Asbury Park Press, Vineland Daily Journal, South Jersey Courier Post, and some others, have been inviting online readers to subscribe to receive up-to-the-minute headlines.

The service is actually pretty good, you get breaking news heads several times a day, and sometimes it's even traffic warnings -- that could be a whole separate revenue generator if they play it right.

The problem is the juxtaposition of the ads included with the news headlines. The ads are clearly randomized, but the very randomization makes them humorous in connection with the headlines they pay for, often in a dark and certainly unintended way.

Here are some examples.

WARNING: Don't be sipping a beverage or eating food when you read these or you will either pass it through your nose or spray it all over your monitor.

COURIER-POST

Crash on Rt. 30 E between Ben Franklin Bridge and Federal St. - all lanes closed *Go Acela - Book at Amtrak.com

COURIER-POST

Barack Obama elected 44th President of the United States of America *Talk to your next date! Call 866-228-2164

THE DAILY JOURNAL

FAIRFIELD: Man arrested in September slaying *Feel silly? Reply JOKE

COURIER-POST

Water main break on Rt. 73 N at Rt. 38 - left lane closed. courierpostonline.com *Meet singles near U! Call 866-228-2164

ASBURY PARK PRESS

Aberdeen man admits in court to beating and drowning 19 cats *FREE HBO and Starz! Reply SATELLITE

THE DAILY JOURNAL

FRANKLIN: Three teens arrested in tool-theft case *Protect your family + home 24/7! Reply BRINKS

ASBURY PARK PRESS

Murder indictment of Jersey Shore nurse dismissed *Check out movie listings Reply BIGSCREEN

ASBURY PARK PRESS

Missing Jackson boy found in Brick this morning *FREE info on the best schools! Reply SCHOOL

THE DAILY JOURNAL

Financial rescue bill sails through House *Great deal! Save $$ @ Friendly's! Reply FRIEND

ASBURY PARK PRESS

Man, 88, dies after fatally shooting wife at Community Medical Center *Escape to Myrtle Beach! Save $$$! Reply MYRTLE

America's Most Convenient Bank, Eh?

PodcastSteve — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 21:47:00 +0000

Marketing Daily ran this story Friday:

TD Bank Is 'At Your Convenience' Through January

It just bears remembering that the bank using the tagline "America's Most Convenient Bank" is actually, um, a Canadian bank. The TD stands for Toronto Dominion, okay?

Maybe the tagline should be North America's Most Convenient Bank...

Steve Lubetkin Photo, Montreal, July 2006

Great minds think alike. Florio, Broder, Lubetkin. The Conrail solution may be the right solution to auto industry crisis.

PodcastSteve — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 21:05:00 +0000

Yesterday I tweeted on Twitter (I'm PodcastSteve, if you want to follow me there) about former NJ Gov. Jim Florio's recent appearance on CNBC, in which he advocated a Conrail-like solution to the auto industry crisis. Florio, who was chair of the House Surface Transportation Subcommittee during the original Conrail privatization process, may have an excellent point. And others are starting to think this way too. As I was typing the Twitter message, I started to refer to the solution as "ConCar" (as in Conrail) and then deleted that reference.

Today, former Conrail colleague Bob Libkind points out the op-ed in the Philadelphia Daily News by Jonathan Broder, general counsel at what remains of Conrail, sort of a co-owned switching railroad split between Norfolk Southern and CSX Corporation. What's the headline? "Remember Conrail? Think Concar."

I shoulda left it in the Tweet, huh?

For those of you who want to go into the Wayback machine on Conrail, here's a link to the article I wrote in PR Strategist about the Conrail privatization battle.

As a special treat in advance of the Conrail alumni holiday party later this month, we've decided to bring to our web video platform the 1974 Penn Central video used to convince Congress that the railroad needed saving.

The film is an interesting artifact that shows how the railroad made clever use of the social media of the day; i.e., a corporate film, could be used to educate constituencies about the real day-to-day problems facing the industry.

Now how is Detroit using social media tools to help gain support on Capitol Hill?

I also call to your attention the Middle Chamber Books podcast interview we conducted in February 2007 with Rush Loving, a former associate editor of Fortune magazine, and author of The Men Who Loved Trains: The Story of Men Who Battled Greed to Save an Ailing Industry, about the recent history of U.S. railroads, particularly the Penn Central, its bankruptcy and consolidation into Conrail, and then Conrail's privatization and sale.

Rush Loving steps off
an inspection trip on a Norfolk
Southern locomotive in October 2003.

The Men Who Loved Trains: The Story of Men Who Battled Greed to Save an Ailing Industry (Railroads Past and Present): Rush Loving: Books

ISBN: 0253347572
ISBN-13: 9780253347572

Download the podcast here (Stereo MP3, 50.2 mb, 35:40 duration)

A couple of years ago, when the legendary L. Stanley Crane passed away, I attended his memorial service with many former colleagues. Crane, who as chairman made Conrail profitable and stood up to then DOT Secretary Elizabeth Dole in her ill-advised scheme to sell Conrail to Norfolk Southern, had the perfect model for the auto industry.

In April 2006, I drafted an op-ed article that I submitted to newspapers in Philadelphia, Washington, and Detroit.

No one took me up on it.

I should have published it on this blog then.

It's worth publishing now. Wherever I mention General Motors, you can substitute the entire auto industry. It's understood.

Op-ed for Philadelphia Inquirer

By Steven L. Lubetkin

To Solve General Motors’ Problems Requires Railroading Through A Solution

In the very public debate about how to solve General Motors’ woes, it’s amazing that no one has considered how legendary railroad manager L. Stanley Crane imposed effective and successful strategies that saved Consolidated Rail Corporation (Conrail) from a similar death spiral a little more than two decades ago.

Not satisfied with a mandatory retirement as the close of his highly successful career at the Southern Railway following the Southern’s merger with Norfolk & Western, Crane accepted the challenge of becoming Chairman and CEO of Conrail when the large northeast-midwest rail system was on its knees.

Conrail was the federally imposed compromise solution to the bankruptcies of five northeastern and Midwestern railroads in the 1970s, following the larger collapse of the ill-fated Penn Central.

All these railroads were merged into Conrail after failing to adjust to the economic realities of the railroad industry, which had changed dramatically following the construction of the Interstate Highway System in the 1950s and early 1960s.

The early planners of Conrail had a vision strikingly similar to the strategy currently being employed at General Motors. One is reminded of the catch phrase behind the movie, “Field of Dreams,” which suggests that we should “build it and they will come.”

Conrail’s planners assumed that rebuilding and renovating the decrepit physical plant of the railroad would attract back the traffic that had been lost to trucks because of decades of poor service and track conditions.

To get labor unions to agree to the Penn Central merger, its management agreed to pay union members until age 65 whether there was work for them or not. This made it impossible to change the size of the workforce to reflect the economic realities of the business.

GM is now facing the consequences of agreeing to this kind of guarantee in an earlier labor negotiation.

When Conrail was formed, the labor protection situation got even worse.

“Build it and they will come” thinking led Congress to codify into federal law a labor protection feature of the Penn Central merger that GM seems to have adopted just as the Penn Central did, in hopes of buying labor peace – the “jobs bank.”

This guaranteed wage was written into the Conrail enabling legislation as “Title V,” and tens of thousands of idled rail workers collected annual salaries while Conrail hemorrhaged federal dollars. The hope was that when traffic volume increased, these workers could be productive again.

Stan Crane looked at this issue from a different perspective when he arrived at Conrail in 1980. He argued that the railroad did not have the luxury of rebuilding a gold-plated physical plant in the hope that traffic would return.

Instead, he demanded that his managers size the railroad’s physical plant and staffing for the current level of traffic, enabling him to redistribute and use more effectively such assets as locomotives, rail, and other equipment.

Crane made many unpopular cost-cutting decisions, closing repair shops, unproductive rail yards, and reducing management. He also went after asset utilization.

On one inspection trip, he ordered his managers to rip out two of the four tracks circling the railroad’s iconic Horseshoe Curve in Pennsylvania, a stretch of railroad that some diehards joked “was a four-track railroad since before it was built.”

The expensive specially tempered rail was valuable and could be used elsewhere, and Crane argued that traffic volumes did not justify keeping it idle on the Horseshoe Curve.

He also argued against Title V labor guarantees when there was, for all practical purposes, no prospect of those idled workers ever returning to work on the railroad.

Many railroaders grumbled at Crane’s approach, just as many GM managers seem resistant to making hard decisions today. But these are precisely the decisions needed if GM is to survive.

Crane’s cost-cutting leadership helped convince union leaders to join forces with management and convince Congress that Conrail could be profitable and successful.

This labor-management cooperation convinced Congress to remove the legislative burdens it imposed on the nascent Conrail in the 1970s, and allowed Crane to lead the company to its successful public stock offering in 1987 – the largest IPO in U.S. history up to that time, what was then a stunning $1.9 billion deal (a mere rounding error on the dot-com IPOs of recent memory).

The lesson for GM from Crane’s Conrail experience is that GM can’t afford to size its facilities for future hoped-for sales.

It needs a physical plant that matches its current level of sales, and a workforce that matches.

GM also needs its leaders to speak honestly about getting rid of the burden of its unrealistic “jobs bank.”

It can’t continue to pay full salaries and benefits for workers who have little hope of returning to work for the auto maker.

Whatever the mistakes of GM’s past, management and union leaders need to collaborate in a solution that helps the auto maker survive in some smaller form.

That would be far better than a solution that wrecks the company completely.

That’s the lesson Conrail learned from L. Stanley Crane, and GM should call its next series of plays from Crane’s playbook.

del.icio.us Tags: conrail,stanley crane,railroad,auto industry,chrysler,ford,general motors,gm,detroit,philadelphia,washington,elizabeth dole,penn central,consolidation,bankruptcy,privatization

They just don't understand, do they?

PodcastSteve — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 01:06:00 +0000

This was on the sign at The Mansion, a lavish catering hall in Voorhees, NJ. Let's give these guys some taxpayer money so the can have a good breakfast out, right?

Yeah, I'm in favor of that.

Penn Central 1974 - The Movie

PodcastSteve — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 01:52:00 +0000

This is the movie commissioned by the Penn Central Railroad bankruptcy trustees to try to convince members of Congress that the railroad desperately needed a cash infusion or some other federal intervention if the railroad were to survive.

Think of it as the social media of its day, a corporate movie commissioned as a way of educating elected officials who had little time or inclination to actually visit the railroad to find out what was going on.

In fairness, there are some anecdotes I've heard about the making of this movie, including the fact that some of the really bad conditions just wouldn't cooperate with the filmmakers. So instead of showing actual "standing derailments" (derailments caused by crossties so rotted that the rails just spread apart under the weight of the freight cars), they actually had to stage some of them.

There is a scene of a car derailing as it moves down the "hump" track in a classification yard, and I'm told it took more than one take to get it to derail.

Despite these moviemaker tricks, the facts were pretty bleak for Penn Central.

And the movie did help convince Congress to do the only right thing.

Take control of the company and the other bankrupt railroads, and make something new. Conrail. And considering what the car companies are asking for as an INTERIM solution for just the next three months ($15 billion), Conrail was a bargain at $7.6 billion -- all in.

That's pretty much where the auto industry should be headed. Even as I was preparing this blog entry, I came across the daily agenda in the previous entry showing that GMAC is still taking folks out for expensive breakfast meetings, even as its owners go begging the taxpayers for a handout.

Enough bailout money, we need to nationalize these turkeys and impose a Conrail style solution once again.

del.icio.us Tags: conrail,penn central,railroad,auto industry,general motors,ford,chrysler,bailout,federal intervention,bankruptcy

Post to claim new Technorati blog listing

PodcastSteve — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 20:59:00 +0000

Need to claim this new location on Technorati.

Technorati Profile

MediaBistro panel on social media and traditional media focuses on “monetization”

PodcastSteve — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 10:59:00 +0000

MediaBistro.com held a conference panel on “Journalists and Social Media” this week. You can read Paulina Reso’s summary of the event at the Fishbowl NY blog. They included this post-game analysis video with people who attended the event, and the theme of their comments seems to be “how the heck do you make money off of this stuff?”

Take a look at the video and add your comments and suggestions for how to “monetize” social media…

La Nueva Frontera Digital, multimedia conference for journalists, 1/31/2009

PodcastSteve — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 20:03:00 +0000

Click to Play

Steve "PodcastSteve" Lubetkin of Professional Podcasts was a panel presenter at La Nueva Frontera Digital conference at Temple University on Saturday, 31 January 2009, sponsored by the Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. This short video report contains scenes from the conference including excerpts from presentations by Ju-Don Roberts of WashingtonPost.com; Bill Rowland of the Philly Food Guys Podcast; Dan Levy and Nick Tarnowski of the On the DL Podcast, and interviews with Sarah Glover, staff photographer of the Philadelphia Daily News and Regina Medina of the Philadelphia Inquirer, co-chairs of the conference.

Jeff Pulver Welcoming Remarks, Philadelphia Real-World Social Media Tagging Breakfast, 2/5/09

PodcastSteve — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 04:05:00 +0000

Click to Play

Jeff Pulver's Real-World Social Media Tagging Breakfast in Philadelphia on February 5 included short remarks by Jeff about why he began creating opportunities for social media participants to meet each other in the real world, and the tools he thought might be helpful to get people to engage each other in real interactions and conversations.

Weighing in on Facebook's Terms of Service

PodcastSteve — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 10:43:00 +0000

Since yesterday's firestorm of opposition to the recent changes in FaceBook's terms of service (TOS) agreement, the social networking website has recognized its error. They've rolled back the problematic legal agreement that very clearly claimed perpetual ownership of content produced by Facebook users, even if they deleted their accounts. They are now rewriting the TOS. We'll be very interested in what they come up with.

Much of the commentary from Facebook supporters focused on the myth of online privacy. Many of us who were unhappy with the change of terms were not worried about privacy, we are content producers who zealously protect our copyright and the copyrights of our clients, and the changes were problematic for that reason. And the problem with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg's "clarification" of what they meant to do is, it's not a legal agreement, it's his interpretation. But what he said they meant to do is NOT what the TOS change said. The change said they had a license to use everything you posted any way they wanted.

This is NOT about privacy concerns. I gave those up long ago when I embraced online life.

We understand that if you post something online it is pretty much there forever -- I wrote an email post in a USENET Group in 1992 that still seems to be the earliest online use of the phrase "e-business." It's there for anyone who wants to Google it. Forever.

This is about who owns what I create -- and what you create. Just because it's "only a photo of Aunt Tillie" doesn't mean you should give up your rights to that photo. You made it, you own it.

Like many independent consultants, I make my living from the content I create for myself and for clients. That means podcasts, video podcasts, photos, writing articles, anything else I can sell as part of my services. It's valuable to me and my company's brand to share a lot of this content online, on sites like Flickr, Twitter, and Facebook.

I am willing to have my content promoted, distributed, highlighted, shared on these sites. I am not willing to allow these sites to say they own my content and can sell it without sharing those proceeds with me in a reasonable way.

When George Lucas was asked about YouTube (whose users seem oblivious to its similarly confiscatory TOS claiming ownership of every video you post there), Lucas responded "I'm always amazed at how many people are willing to work for nothing."

That's what you do when you post content to sites that claim ownership. You work for nothing. They grow and gain in advertising value with the content you create. Advertisers want eyeballs, and sites get eyeballs by having content people want. They should share that revenue with the content creators in a meaningful way. Not "if we get 10 million hits on your content we'll give you $20."

Here's the content of a note I posted to Mark Zuckerberg at FaceBook this morning:

Mark, thanks for having second thoughts about listening to the lawyers on the TOS. The clause they wrote was a clear rights grab from the perspective of those of us who create content intending to profit from it, like podcasts I produce for clients, videos I produce for profit, and my writing. That's how I make my living. I don't give anyone perpetual rights to anything without compensation, and despite your "clarifications" of what you intended that isn't what your legal terms stated.

The problem is that we live in a world where it's not your intentions that govern the relationship, it's the legalese. People can try to diminish the importance of the TOS any way they want, but that is the governing agreement. If you don't intend to own our personally generated (and copyrighted) content forever, then you have to say so in the TOS, not let the lawyers write a perpetual license that gives you effective control over that work product.

I suggest you get input from intellectual property experts outside your law department -- especially from professional writer groups, professional photography and video trade associations, and other trade groups interested in protecting the copyrights of their members. There ought to be a reasonable middle ground in which content producers can be comfortable that posting a link to their work product on FaceBook doesn't strip them of their rights to profit from their work.

Just because millions of people give up the rights to their videos by posting them on YouTube doesn't mean all of us want to work totally for free. We display our work to you and our friends because it's part of the overall online strategy for our personal brands, and so people know what we are working on. But things change. As the commercial says, "Life comes at you fast," and we need to know that if we change our minds and part ways with FaceBook, we really part ways.

Looking forward to continuing the dialogue!

Steve "PodcastSteve" Lubetkin

As a free society, we've always placed value on the creative energy of content producers -- whether they are superstar blockbuster authors or just ink-stained struggling wretches who celebrate the $25 stringer fee they earned from filing a story with a wire service.

Do we really care so little about the rights of content creators that we want them to shut up because being able to Poke and SuperPoke people is a higher priority?

What do you think?

Compuschmooze columnist "PodcastSteve" seeking r

PodcastSteve — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 17:11:00 +0000

My March column is about audio and video social media tools. How do you use Utterli? Do you use any others?

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterli. Replies.

Thank you, Rick Derringer. Now I know I’m on the right track…

PodcastSteve — Fri, 15 May 2009 11:07:00 +0000

Rock legend Rick Derringer told BlogTalkRadio that Internet radio was the future of radio. Phew! I have been telling that to clients and audiences for months. I feel vindicated. I don’t think satellite radio will ultimately survive. It’s too expensive to keep sending the Space Shuttle up there to change the blinking red lights on the satellites. (OK, I’m kidding. But it is way too expensive to pay for transponder space to beam words and music back to earth.) Once someone figures out the WiMax issue of making it as easy to tune Internet radio coast-to-coast in a car, no one will want a sat radio. Not with 10,000 streams of all kinds available from all over the world.

Yes, Sirius/XM will keep its beautiful studios and still produce programming, but without the crushing financial burden of those satellites. (Dave Bowman, Star Child? Need you to do a little house cleaning please.)

Some quotes from the BlogTalkRadio Blog…

“Those days of radio, people figure, are gone because radio is so controlled and it’s so big – Clear Channel and all those stations – it’s programmed and it’s so controlled that that can’t happen anymore.

“Radio stations, no matter how big they are – the terrestrial stations, we call them – are limited by the output of their transmitter, which means they can only be heard within a certain given metropolitan area,” he says.

“These stations, like the one we’re on now can be heard everywhere in the world.”

To head Rick’s full interview, click here.

Rock Legend Rick Derringer: ‘Internet Radio Is the Wave of the Future’
Philip Recchia
Thu, 14 May 2009 23:04:19 GMT

Family Continues Search and Rescue Effort for NJ Man, Joe Dunsavage

PodcastSteve — Tue, 19 May 2009 04:05:00 +0000

Click to Play

Joe Dunsavage, an Edison NJ resident, remains missing at sea since disappearing off Roatan Island, Honduras a week ago Sunday. Military search and rescue efforts have been called off, but Dunsavage's family continues to pay for search efforts out of their own pocket, appealing for donations and information from the worldwide Internet community. Steve Lubetkin of Professional Podcasts interviews Joe Dunsavage's brother Jeff, and father Ed, who are spearheading the search efforts.

Drexel University PRSSA Panel: Breaking Boundaries, The Revolution of Social Media

PodcastSteve — Thu, 21 May 2009 03:04:00 +0000

Click to Play

The Drexel University Chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) presents "Breaking Boundaries: The Revolution of Social Media," a panel discussion held May 5, 2009 in the Bossone Auditorium at Drexel University in Philadelphia.

Panelists

Gloria Bell, Red Stapler Consulting
Steve Lubetkin, Managing Partner, Professional Podcasts LLC
Valeria Maltoni, ConversationAgent Blog
Scott McNulty, Chief Blogger, Comcast
Katie Shields, Vice President and Managing Partner, Vault Communications

Moderator
Rick Alcantara, Tara Communications

Videography

Juán “Chedigitz” Vazquez

Post-production

Professional Podcasts LLC

PodcastSteve — Tue, 26 May 2009 09:42:00 +0000

is recording client pods in Lower Manhattan this am, appearing on Social Media Hour on BlogTalkRadio @ 1pm EDT http://is.gd/uVtt

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterli. Replies.

PodcastSteve — Wed, 27 May 2009 10:02:00 +0000

is in the studio today, editing audio, burning DVDs, great day of meetings in NYC yesterday.

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterli. Replies.

PodcastSteve — Thu, 28 May 2009 10:08:00 +0000

is finishing up production on some pods today.

Mobile post sent by stevelubetkin using Utterli. Replies.

Bankers conference highlights opportunities, pitfalls of social networking

PodcastSteve — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 19:45:00 +0000

Bankers conference highlights opportunities, pitfalls of social networking

Shared via AddThis

Leadership NJ Press Conference 6/22/2009

PodcastSteve — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 02:47:00 +0000

Click to Play

Leadership New Jersey held a press conference at the New Jersey State House to announce a partnership with News 12 New Jersey TV to produce a debate between candidates for the new lieutenant governor position created by New Jersey voters. Tom Dallessio, executive director of Leadership NJ, hosts the presentation. This video was produced by Professional Podcasts LLC.

Sustainable Jersey Green Grants Press Conference, 6/22/2009

PodcastSteve — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 18:50:00 +0000

Click to Play

This is the complete Sustainable Jersey press conference held June 22, 2009 in Trenton, NJ to announce the awarding of $200,000 in Green Grants funded by Walmart Stores, to 14 NJ municipalities. Four towns received $25,000 grants for sustainability projects, and 10 towns received $10,000 grants. The video includes remarks by New Jersey sustainability leaders and state officials, and the annoucements of the specific grants. Produced for Walmart Stores by Success Communications Group (successcommgroup.com) and Professional Podcasts LLC.

Hey, Where Did That Book Go?

PodcastSteve — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 02:50:00 +0000

I’ve been having some back-and-forth debates with folks about certain rock musicians exercising their rights to protect copyrighted music that people have expropriated for their YouTube videos and other uses where they didn’t get permission or pay for the privilege. But this move by Amazon defies all logic.

Big Brother: Amazon Remotely Deletes 1984 From Kindles
Pete Cashmore
Fri, 17 Jul 2009 22:57:30 GMT

Twitter Chat about Podcasting

PodcastSteve — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 11:11:00 +0000

Last night, I appeared as the guest on #SmallBizChat, a weekly chat session that uses Twitter.com as its channel of communications. I interacted with the two hosts and the guests by "tweeting" my responses to questions about the value of podcasting for small businesses.

It reminded me of the very old days of "online" when members of the PRSIG group on CompuServe would fire up their dial-up modems and connect to a "CO" or "conference" and chat over very slow speed connections. Except Twitter is a rapid-fire universe of multiple comments and questions coming at you nonstop. It was a very exhilarating but exhausting hour. Here's a link to the transcript of the chat.

SmallBizChat_7-22-09.pdf (application/pdf Object)

Posted using ShareThis

LOC Podcast #39: A conversation with Rebecca Timms, 2009-2010 National President of the Public Relations Student Society of America

PodcastSteve — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 20:35:00 +0000

We have renamed our podcast to match the new branding of our blog. “Lubetkin on Communications” better captures the goal of our blog and podcast series, which is to provide a forum for discussion of important communications and public relations issues with newsmakers in the field.

In this episode of the “Lubetkin on Communications Podcast” we present a conversation with Rebecca Timms of Haddon Heights, NJ, a Rowan University junior who is serving as 2009-2010 national president of the Public Relations Student Society of America. Read Rebecca’s official biography on the PRSSA website.

Listen to the podcast here:

Download the podcast program here (stereo MP3 file, 24.6 mb, duration 00:23:40.)

Subscribe to the RSS feed for the “Lubetkin on Communications” podcast series.

Apple iPod owners, subscribe to the “Lubetkin on Communications” podcast series in the Apple iTunes Music Store.

Keywords: lubetkin, rebecca timms, prssa, public relations student society of america, rowan university, nj, new jersey

Technorati Tags: lubetkin,rebecca timms,prssa,public relations student society of america,rowan university,nj,new jersey

del.icio.us Tags: lubetkin,rebecca timms,prssa,public relations student society of america,rowan university,nj,new jersey

Produced in the studios of Professional Podcasts LLC, Cherry Hill, NJ.

Integrated newsroom at Canadian Broadcasting Corporation is a long way from my radio news days…

PodcastSteve — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 11:25:00 +0000

Tod Maffin of the CBC, who is an internationally known keynote speaker on how social media is changing the mainstream media – and other companies too – has posted a fascinating video tour of the new CBC integrated newsroom in Vancouver, BC.

Behind the Scenes at CBC Vancouver's new "integrated newsroom" from Tod Maffin on Vimeo.

The world Tod and his guest, Johnny Michel, regional news director, CBC Vancouver, describe and tour in this extensive video is a far cry from my own experiences in the nearly integrated radio and print newsroom of the Asbury Park (NJ) Press and its “Radio Voice,” WJLK-AM & FM, in the 1970s.

The WJLK radio newsroom was in a small cubbyhole adjacent to the newspaper’s main newsroom on the second floor of Press Plaza in Asbury Park. The newspaper has since moved the newsroom to a more modern facility on Route 66 that’s technically in Neptune Township, not Asbury Park. The privately held newspaper sold out to Gannett when the owning families discovered just how much those estate taxes were going to be, and the radio station was sold years ago.

Print reporters were instructed to provide “carbons” of their stories to radio news for rewrite into broadcast form.

Later, when the paper became one of the first in New Jersey to computerize in the mid-1970s, the Extel dot-matrix printers connected to the newsroom computer system were loaded with rolls of yellow paper/carbon sandwiches, and reporters continued to dutifully provide the carbon copies to radio news.

But unlike the close collaboration among online, TV and radio news gatherers at the CBC that Johnny and Tod describe in the video above, the print editors and radio news apparently didn’t keep in close touch at the Press/WJLK.

In the 1960s, the radio station had been a sort of sleepy programming backwater populated with locally produced programs like “Alarm Clock Club” and “The Bird Watchers’ Club.” They even substituted a daily recap of the obituaries from that day’s Press instead of a 2pm newscast.

The newspaper obits carried a slugline promoting the reading of the death notices on the radio.

In the mid-1970s, new programming management at the radio station replaced the local programs with automated top-40 music from the legendary Drake-Chenault music syndicator. The obits were no longer read on the radio at 2pm.

But apparently, no one ever told the print newsroom. For years after the obit-cast was cancelled, we still had to plow through piles of carbons of obits dutifully provided by the print newsroom.

No one ever wanted to tell them to stop providing them, for fear that they would withhold real news stories too!

LOC Podcast #40: A reminiscence of the GG-1 Locomotive, with David Kwechansky

PodcastSteve — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 16:05:00 +0000

Editor’s Note: We have renamed our podcast to match the new branding of our blog. “Lubetkin on Communications” better captures the goal of our blog and podcast series, which is to provide a forum for discussion of important communications and public relations issues with newsmakers in the field.

But in this episode, we depart from our coverage of public relations to chat with an old friend, David Kwechansky of Toronto, about the most famous electric locomotive in railroading history, the GG-1.

David commissioned Grif Teller, the Pennsylvania Railroad’s legendary calendar artist, to paint the image above for David’s personal collection.

Then he got a bright idea.

Wouldn’t it be cool to ask NJ Transit for a ride on that exact GG-1 locomotive?

I was doing public relations for Conrail. Conrail was the contract operator of commuter rail service for NJ Transit in New Jersey when I was assigned to make the arrangements for David’s engine ride. David’s journey to New Jersey to ride GG-1 #4884 and pick up his painting from Grif Teller’s Little Falls, NJ, studio were the subject of an extensive article in Trains Magazine in December 1981.

Three years later, “PodWife” Judy and I got to ride in the cab of GG-1 #4877 when NJ Transit sponsored a special railfan excursion to celebrate the retirement of the last GG-1 from regular rail service. There were several railfan rides on October 29, 1983, but Judy and I were lucky enough to be in the cab on the very last run of the day…and I had a microcassette recorder with me to capture some of the sounds – decades before podcasting became available.

Listen to the podcast here:

Download the podcast program here (Two-channel mono MP3 file, 54.3 mb, duration 00:43:22.)

Subscribe to the RSS feed for the “Lubetkin on Communications” podcast series.

Apple iPod owners, subscribe to the “Lubetkin on Communications” podcast series in the Apple iTunes Music Store.

Keywords: lubetkin, nj, new jersey, gg-1, railroad, loewy, locomotive, electric, penn central, nj transit, prr, kwechansky, trains magazine, grif teller, painting, trains, railfan

del.icio.us Tags: lubetkin,nj,new jersey,gg-1,railroad,loewy,locomotive,electric,penn central,nj transit,prr,kwechansky,trains magazine,grif teller,painting,trains,railfan

Technorati Tags: lubetkin,nj,new jersey,gg-1,railroad,loewy,locomotive,electric,penn central,nj transit,prr,kwechansky,trains magazine,grif teller,painting,trains,railfan

Produced in the studios of Professional Podcasts LLC, Cherry Hill, NJ.

LOC Podcast #41: A conversation with Don Middleberg about the Second Annual Middleberg/SNCR Global Survey of Media in the Wired World

PodcastSteve — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 20:35:00 +0000

In this episode of the Lubetkin on Communications Podcast, we present a conversation with Don Middleberg about the Second Annual Middleberg/SNCR Global Survey of Media in the Wired World.

A press release about this year’s study is on the SNCR website.

Don broke new ground in the early 1990s surveying journalists about their use of the Internet and the emerging technology of the World Wide Web. For years, his Middleberg-Ross Survey, conducted with the Columbia School of Journalism, provided important information on how journalists were using these new tools.

The survey was revived under sponsorship of the Society for New Communications Research last year. Results of last year’s study are available here.

Journalists can complete this year’s study at http://www.sncr-middleberg-2009survey.com.questionpro.com/

Listen to the podcast here:

Download the podcast program here (Stereo MP3 file, 14.2 mb, duration 00:14:33)

Subscribe to the RSS feed for the “Lubetkin on Communications” podcast series.

Apple iPod owners, subscribe to the “Lubetkin on Communications” podcast series in the Apple iTunes Music Store.

Keywords: lubetkin, cherry hill, sncr, middleberg, study, journalists

Technorati Tags: lubetkin,cherry hill,sncr,middleberg,study,journalists

del.icio.us Tags: lubetkin,cherry hill,sncr,middleberg,study,journalists

Produced in the studios of Professional Podcasts LLC, Cherry Hill, NJ.

Why is YouTube the only video site clients ask about?

PodcastSteve — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 11:57:00 +0000

Since we began producing video podcast content for clients four years ago, I’m often asked about posting the content on YouTube.

I usually try to persuade my clients NOT to post their content there, for two reasons.

First, the YouTube Terms of Use agreement that no one ever really reads too carefully contains what I regard as confiscatory claims of ownership of the content.

Despite what they say in public statements and news releases, the actual legal agreement claims ownership of pretty much everything you post there.

What that means is that – absent a separate, superceding legal agreement with YouTube -- a company with valuable intellectual property is in danger of losing ownership of processes or procedures they discuss, trademarks, service marks, logos, taglines, etc., if they post the material to YouTube.

Yes, I know it hasn’t been tested in court, but what company would volunteer to be the test case if they truly understood the exposure they face?

It also means that YouTube owns anything slightly newsworthy that you post, like video of President Obama visiting your neighborhood restaurant. So, if CNN decides to use that footage, they pay YouTube a license fee for the broadcast, but you get nothing.

In addition to these legal and financial concerns, PR people and others who make YouTube central to a social media strategy need to get the “viral video” stars out of their eyes and think more like brand owners.

YouTube is full of a lot of nonsense video, people whacking themselves with rubber chickens, inappropriate videos of kids waking up from anesthesia after oral surgery, celebs behaving badly.

It strikes me as being mainly a collection of the worst excesses in amateur video.

To me, it's a mostly honky-tonk neighborhood where professionally produced videos designed to promote businesses almost always get lost -- because most of YouTube is obsessed with the wild chase to be the next "viral" video showing something silly.

Let’s face it, you cannot deliberately create a viral video, like the spontaneous one of the little girl who threw the foul ball back onto the field.

Despite all of these problems, many people think YouTube is the "go-to" place for distributing any kind of business videos.

As a PR professional, I always try to counsel my clients to consider and use the most appropriate communications channel for their business outreach.

My questions to all my clients are these:

1. Does it really advance the brand of your organization to have a house in the same neighborhood as all that other stuff?

2. Is it because YouTube is the video platform with which you are most familiar, and therefore the one you think you need to be on?

3. What exactly are you trying to achieve by thinking about having the video on YouTube? Is it just because you think it makes it easier to send a link to other people, which we can already help you do, or is there some other reason?

4. What is the real "value" to you of YouTube specifically?

Again, the reason I raise these questions is because I want clients to put the best foot forward for their businesses, and without knowing why YouTube is on their radar, I can't give the best advice.

My gut instinct is that most businesses are better served having their carefully produced videos available on a different, less comic/less unprofessional platform.

What do you think?

Do you think YouTube is a good (or bad) place to post business video? Why do you feel that way?

Comments please!

Facebook Guantanamo

PodcastSteve — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 22:58:00 +0000

Last November, we essentially threw out our government for a new one, and one of the main reasons was that we didn’t like that they were holding people in secret prisons without telling them why they were detained, or the charges against them.

But boy, when we get stars in our social media eyes about some darling of the networking space, no matter what they do, it just rolls off them, doesn’t it?

Let’s see. Facebook shuts down your account without warning or explanation. They ignore emails. They don’t even provide a phone number to call them.

And we continue to love them? Why?

Facebook gets the Guantanamo award from this blog for its ham-handed approach to alleged violations of its rules.

Here’s an excerpt from the email I just sent to the Electronic Frontier Foundation asking for help. I will let you know if it does any good at all.

Good evening. I'm a 53-year old former corporate PR executive, running my own social media consultancy for the past five years. I have used Facebook to promote my expertise and activities, until 20 days ago when Facebook, without any warning or explanation, disabled my account.

I'm not sure, but I suspect that some idiot playing one of those insipid "Mafia Wars" games somehow injected it into my contact list (despite my previous configuration of my Facebook profile to ignore all of those games) and it may have spammed a bunch of people. I don't know for sure, I can only speculate, because I haven't been able to get into my account.

But hey, I am a grown up, you know?

That's not how I would operate my business, and I shouldn't be penalized because Facebook allows its users to play those stupid games.

And if any company that we depended on for mission critical business applications treated its users with this much disdain, people would be outside corporate headquarters with torches and pitchforks. Can you imagine what Michael Moore would do if they disabled his account?

Repeated emails from me to disabled@facebook.com have been ignored or received auto-replies that promise a response that never arrives.

This is like a Kafka novel. I don't know why they disabled my account, they won't tell me anything, they won't reply to emails, and there's nowhere to call.

I know Facebook is a "free" social networking site, but it seems a bit lopsided that they get to make these arbitrary decisions without explaining themselves or offering recourse, and meanwhile they get to collect billions of dollars in advertising revenue by selling the knowledge they've collected from us "free" users.

Why are we treating Facebook with such kid gloves?

Don’t assume that social media is an age thing, it’s a knowledge thing

PodcastSteve — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 17:11:00 +0000

I was meeting a new business connection for coffee in the Barnes & Noble store near Deptford, NJ a couple of weeks ago, and while I was waiting for her, I saw a father and his young son in the cafe taking their food order to the table.

It was a mid-week morning, and on their tray was a toasted bagel and butter and a chocolate cupcake with chocolate icing.

It reminded me of when my dad used to go to the bakery and the newsstand on weekends and come home with hard rolls for him and my mom, and chocolate cupcakes for me.

Do not ever assume you know what is happening.

When they sat down, the dad passed the bagel across the table to his son, who started munching happily while the dad enjoyed the cupcake.

It continues to disturb and frustrate me that people who position themselves as experts in something get press coverage or blog space and then use it to completely misunderstand the space in which they claim expertise.

There have been lots of blog posts and even some news articles recently suggesting that only people in their 20s understand “social media” (you know, the online networking sites like Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, and the blogs, and Twitter,and all that other stuff.)

I am really offended by the theme of these blog posts and articles. In the Chicago Tribune piece, some young professional suggested that younger people can teach older professionals about social media because, for one reason, they use AOL’s Instant Messenger client eight hours a day.

What?

I’m going to say it explicitly here. I posted these comments on both the PRSA blog post and on the Chicago Tribune site, but I think I need to say it here too.

Just because someone is young does NOT mean they understand “social media” or some other technology better than someone with a few more years in the business.

I’ve had an email address on my business card since 1988.

I started participating in online conferencing and networking through CompuServe in 1984 when high-speed connections were 1200 bps modems.

I’ve been counselling my various senior managements and clients about the Internet since the early 1990s.

Did I mention that I graduated from the University of Phoenix’s online MBA program in 1994, long before any major university even considered having a course or two online?

Even earlier than that -- possibly even before the parents of some of these 20 somethings were out of diapers -- in 1977 I was one of two reporters (for the record, Bob Williams, still an editor at the Asbury Park Press was the other one) who lugged a 60-pound “portable” computer terminal onto a helicopter to be flown into a Grateful Dead concert where we filed our stories by connecting that terminal to an acoustic modem coupler and then placed the telephone handset into the coupler to do the transmission.

I also remember mimeographs and Group 1 fax machines that took 6 minutes a page and you had to manually insert the thermal paper one page at a time.

The leading technologies of their day!

We used to hate it when Congressman Jim Howard’s press secretary would call the newspaper to fax us a three-page press release that would tie us up by the machine for 20 minutes – if all the pages came through on the first try without disconnecting.

Rep. James J. Howard, second from left, greets teachers and students from Oceanport, NJ schools during the 1970 8th grade class trip to Washington. With Howard are Clement Jablonski, left; Rosemary McCartney, and Donald Byrne, teachers chaperoning the trip.
(Steve Lubetkin photo. Copyright ©1970, 2009. All rights reserved.)

My age doesn’t make me incapable of understanding new communications channels when they come along.

My 20-something children make fun of me because I use Twitter — they don’t use it at all, and my youngest daughter (age 20) has very little interest in posting on Facebook.

And if these so-called social media experts would bother to do a smidgen of research, they would know that the fastest adopting demographic on Facebook from September 2008 to February 2009 was overwhelmingly women over 55.

Do you really think the best equipped group to communicate with that demographic are 20-somethings?

So much for the millenials being the key to PR nirvana in the social media, huh?

People we’ve photographed named to Governor-Elect Christie’s transition team

PodcastSteve — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 17:19:00 +0000

We’re pleased that a number of political and business leaders we’ve photographed have been named to Gov.-Elect Chris Christie’s transition planning teams. Including the Governor-Elect:

Of course, we’d like to think that the images we made impressed the governor-elect and his team enough to name these folks, but that probably isn’t what happened.

Joseph Corbo, Jr.
Vice President and General Counsel
Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa

Emlyn Koster (second from left)
President/ C.E.O., Liberty Science Center

Koster is posing during a 2002 reception for the opening of the exhibit, “A Question of Truth,” exploring bias and prejudice in scientific inquiry. At the ceremonies, Fleet Bank donated $100,000 to the Liberty Science Center. In photo with Koster are (from left): Alan Respler, executive director emeritus, Jewish Community Relations Council of Southern New Jersey; Koster; Lucia DiNapoli Gibbons, then president of Fleet Small Business Banking, now President-Northern New Jersey, Wachovia Bank; Fr. Joseph Wallace, co-chair with Respler of the Catholic Jewish Commission of Southern New Jersey; and Jack Collins, then vice-chair, Fleet New Jersey.

Dennis Bone
President, Verizon New Jersey Inc.

Bone is second from left in this 2003 photo that also includes Bruce Wheeler, then president of Fleet New Jersey.

The Honorable Bob Franks
Former United States Congressman and President of the Health Care Institute of New Jersey

Rick Lloyd
Executive Director, State Government Affairs
and Community Relations
Johnson and Johnson

Peter Spirgel, Esq. (left)
Managing Shareholder, Flaster Greenberg

Debra P. DiLorenzo
President/CEO, Chamber Of Commerce Southern New Jersey

We’d love to help you make dramatic images of your executives too. Keep us in mind for your event photography, especially during the holiday season, huh?

PRSA Philadelphia 2009 Pepperpot Awards Music Video

PodcastSteve — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 18:58:00 +0000

Click to Play

This music video from the PRSA/Philadelphia 2009 Pepperpot Awards Dinner December 3, 2009 includes photos of award winners, scenes of the dinner and candids from the social hour. Individual images available for purchase at http://lubetkin.eventpictures.com.

Globalization casts a long eye on US news media’s world language skills – or lack thereof

PodcastSteve — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 12:42:00 +0000

There’s an old joke that goes like this:

Q: What do you call someone who speaks three languages?

A: Tri-lingual.

Q: What do you call someone who speaks two languages?

A: Bilingual.

Q: What do you call someone who speaks one language?

A. American.

In their unceasing efforts to prove they are cosmopolitan and global, the US news media have once again demonstrated their ignorance of foreign languages and pronunciations.

In all the stories about Tiger Woods’ troubles, the media continue to mispronounce Tiger’s wife’s first name.

This is almost certainly an effort to show how worldly they are when they encounter a name that doesn’t follow the ridiculous spelling conventions we’ve grown up with in American (and British) English.

Thanks to Hjörtur Smárason for confirming my suspicions about how silly the American broadcasters all sound.

Let’s take a closer look at this unreported aspect of the Woods story.

The woman’s name is spelled Elin.

The English version of this name would be Ellen, just Ellen.

But because it looks DIFFERENT, they insist on pronouncing it EE – lin, with an English “Long E” sound. They think that makes it foreign sounding. It makes them sound, well, stupid and ignorant, and Swedes must be chortling every time they hear an American reporting on this story.

Unfortunately, you see, Scandinavian languages, just like other European languages, don’t follow the pronunciation the American journalists are ascribing to it.

If these journalists had bothered to ask someone, they would have found out that the “e” in European languages has more of an English “long A” sound, making the name’s correct pronunciation more like “AY-lin.”

But let’s take it a step further.

The “I” in Elin should be pronounced more like an English “long E” so the actual correct way to say the poor girl’s name is “ay-LEEN”

It reminds me of the sportscaster who couldn’t quite bring himself to commit to the correct Spanish pronunciation of a jockey’s first name Jorge.

The correct pronunciation in Spanish makes the J sound like an H. But most Americans don’t realize that a G before an E or an I is ALSO an H sound in Spanish.

So the correct way to say Jorge is HOR-hay.

Almost certainly uncomfortable allowing his audience to hear what he thought sounded like the word WHORE, he couldn’t bring himself to pronounce the G correctly.

The best sportscaster could say was HOR-gay.

Yeah, that was real better. (Mucho mejor, in Spanish, and that J is pronounced like an H.)

Over to you, EE-lin.

Open Inversions: Getting paid – and doing online things right

PodcastSteve — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 13:29:00 +0000

I’ve been getting very irritated lately by what people are passing off as “edgy” or “raw” social media content.

When my Dad was alive and playing the vibes, he played with four mallets (see photo), and sometimes hit what you could politely call “a clinker.” He liked to call them “open inversions.” That’s a euphemism for hitting the wrong notes.

You hear a similar euphemism when someone doesn’t know how to manage their content properly, doesn’t want to admit they don’t know it, and doesn’t want to pay someone with the appropriate skill-set to do it correctly for them. They tell you that it is the style of social media to be raw and unedited.

That means we have to suffer through unedited, shaky, badly focused, badly lit handheld videos and indecipherable audio because of this social media “open inversion.”

Sorry, I just don’t buy it.

And neither should companies with social media stars in their eyes, simply because their PR department just met someone who owns a cheap pocket video camera.

I decided to rant about this in some detail because the excerpt of Jaron Lanier’s new book (subscription may be required), You are not a gadget, which appeared in the Wall Street Journal, hit a chord with me.

To anyone who’s been online for more than 10 years, you may recall that Lanier was one of the leading rock stars of the virtual reality developers in the early 1990s. He was often pictured in news stories with his wild dreadlocks, wearing a VR glove on one hand, a la Michael Jackson. VR was going to be used in all sorts of applications including visualizing opportunities in foreign currency markets.

What Lanier now thinks and writes, well, it just hit me between the eyes.

…I was also part of a circle of friends who tried to imagine how computers would fit into the peoples' lives, including how people might make a living in the future. Our dream came true, in part. It turns out that millions of people are ready to contribute instead of sitting passively on the couch watching television. On the other hand, we made a huge mistake in making those contributions unpaid, and often anonymous, because those bad decisions robbed people of dignity. I am appalled that our old fantasies have become so entrenched that it's hard to get anyone to remember that there are alternatives to a framework that isn't working.

Here's one problem with digital collectivism: We shouldn't want the whole world to take on the quality of having been designed by a committee. When you have everyone collaborate on everything, you generate a dull, average outcome in all things. You don't get innovation.

It’s mostly in the emerging online video area where this trend to collectivism and dull outcomes bugs me.

A lot of people have bought Flip cameras and know how to push the big red button. Most of them know very little about what should come next, and so they upload raw, unedited footage on the web, to the applause of their even-more-clueless friends who don’t know how easy pushing the buttons is.

A few weeks ago I got a blast email from a very prominent social media monitoring firm announcing that they had posted on their beautifully designed website some videos they shot at the PRSA International Conference in San Diego.

On this beautiful website, there were two videos, one of a panel program and the other of interviews recorded at their exhibit booth.

The panel program began with nearly four minutes of people sitting, saying nothing, and shuffling papers. At about 2:30 of the video, someone walked to the podium, dropped his papers, and sat down.

Alongside the interview video, there was a notation that the interviews begin after 9:48.

Let me make that clearer.

This company thinks it’s your responsibility to bypass nearly ten minutes of video showing nothing but two empty chairs before you see the interviews.

In an era when every Mac comes with iMovie, and Windows editing software for video can be had for $100 or less, this is appalling laziness. No titles, no voice over telling you what you’re going to watch, ten minutes of empty chairs.

I didn’t immediately blog-to-embarrass the company. I wrote to the company president and suggested they could do better.

He bucked it to his marketing person, who immediately got defensive and said they were filming in what she called a “feet-on-the-street” style, and they were working with an outside multimedia company to produce it this way. She accused me of suggesting they produce a television commercial.

What we did must be the right thing, she suggested, because we are getting lots of visitors to the page. (She didn’t tell me how many visitors actually had the patience to watch the videos.)

Here’s an excerpt of my response to her.

I'm absolutely not advocating that you should make your videos look like heavily produced commercials or network content. But I do think it is appropriate to take some professional pride in how the finished product represents your brand, and frankly, these videos don't represent your brand well at all.

First of all, I strongly disagree with your perception that a "feet on the street" video should have no postproduction editing at all.

Think about your audience. They want your content because you have some unique content that no one else is providing. So sure, of course you have a lot of people visiting the page. That doesn't mean your videos give them a good end-user experience. That doesn't mean they went away with a good impression.

Why do you think it's appropriate to make your audience work so hard to digest your content? Some social media guru pontificated to you that social media videos need to be "raw and spontaneous."

Even if you don't want to pay a professional to clean it up properly, fix the color balance, contrast, focus, etc., it's very simple to throw this video into a cheap nonlinear editing package costing less than $200 and edit out the beginning of the panel where no one is talking for nearly four minutes.

Why do you think it's OK to force your viewers to fast-forward through the dead space? Why not just cut it out?

You can put a simple title up that tells people what they are going to see, who is in it, and when it was recorded. Make it easy for the audience to engage.

You could even put a voice over on it to say "Welcome to our video of the PRSA panel, blah blah blah" and at least they would not have to work so hard for the content.

Same thing on the second video.

Why in the world do you think it is acceptable to throw completely raw video on your site and tell people, oh, just fast forward through ten minutes of empty chairs (it's "feet on the street style" -- no one will care that we didn't even edit it.) This is the difference between professionalism and not knowing how to manage the medium properly.

You are lucky that the content is useful to people and they are willing to put up with all the dead stuff to get to the good stuff.

It's just very surprising to me that a company like [name redacted] would spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on your products, your marketing materials, your website, your logo, your branding, and then have such a casual attitude when someone questions the quality of your videos.

Whether you believe it or not, these give people an impression about your brand, and the raw, unedited nature of them makes them look slipshod.

Take a look at the PR videos that Ragan Communications produces. They have a beginning title and an end title. They do not look like commercials, but they are polished.

I can only imagine that the multimedia firm you're working with is doing very well from your business, since you apparently don't ask them to do much except point the camera (from strange angles) and press record.

I got irritated again by a similar series of unedited videos posted this week by a major nonprofit journalism seminar organization, one that’s supposed to be helping business journalists become better business journalists.

In an era when starving journalists can’t afford NOT to learn how to shoot, edit, and post-produce video, this respected journalism organization posted videos from its seminar shot by automated cameras in the classrooms set to start recording at a specific time whether anyone was speaking or not.

The resulting series of videos is accompanied by web notes saying things like “this lecture starts after 22 minutes and 48 seconds.”

So when I saw Jaron’s excerpt in the Journal, I posted a short rant on Facebook in support of his philosophy. I suggested that too many people wanted too many other people to work for too little money, or for free.

One of my friends commented that “it depends.”

I partly agree.

I'm all in favor of giving advice, help, pointing to resources. That's an important part of the ethos of cyberspace since the days of shareware distributed on BBSes.

But too many people expect too many other people to produce work for little or no compensation, for the glory, to be known as a social media “rock star.” That doesn’t pay the bills.

There are tons of freelance writing "websites" where you have to write three posts a week , but they don't pay you anything unless you get 1,000 page views.

There are podcast advertising "buys" that require three or four hours of production work in each episode for about $20 per quarter in total revenue. You’d be better off flipping burgers at McDonald’s.

Everyone has a cell phone camera, and no one wants to pay a professional photographer a living wage. Look at the unrealistic ads on Craig’s List asking for someone to shoot a wedding for eight hours in return for $50 and food.

The worst part is that if you don't want to do it for free or low pay, they do it themselves – badly -- and then call themselves "experts."

Just like the multimillion-dollar social media monitoring company and the journalism seminar that can't be bothered to edit the videos they post.

LOC Podcast #42: Ethical Public Relations Practice, a conversation with Ann Subervi of Utopia Communications, 2/17/2010

PodcastSteve — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 17:09:00 +0000

Some critics of public relations practice suggest that it’s an oxymoron to mention ethical behavior and public relations in the same sentence. Our guest on this episode of the Lubetkin on Communications Podcast disagrees with that criticism – vehemently and successfully.

We present a conversation with Ann Subervi, president and CEO of Utopia Communications, a public relations agency dedicated to the proposition that public relations can be practiced “ethically, transparently and with the highest of principles.” Ann is the 2010 chair of the PRSA Counselors’ Academy, and a leading advocate of principled, socially responsible public relations practice. She blogs about ethical issues in public relations at The Ethical Optimist Blog.

Listen to the podcast here:

Download the podcast program here (Stereo MP3 file, 35.0 mb, duration 00:31:45)

Subscribe to the RSS feed for the “Lubetkin on Communications” podcast series.

Apple iPod owners, subscribe to the “Lubetkin on Communications” podcast series in the Apple iTunes Music Store.

Keywords: lubetkin, cherry hill, ethics, subervi, utopia communications

Technorati Tags: lubetkin,cherry hill,ethics,subervi,utopia communications

LiveJournal Tags: lubetkin,cherry hill,ethics,subervi,utopia communications

del.icio.us Tags: lubetkin,cherry hill,ethics,subervi,utopia communications

Produced in the studios of Professional Podcasts LLC, Cherry Hill, NJ.

LOC Podcast #43: PRSA/Philadelphia Panel Discussion “Meet the Media,” recorded 3/11/2010

PodcastSteve — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 20:08:00 +0000

In this episode of the podcast, we present a panel discussion, “Back to the (New) Basics: A Media Panel,” recorded live at the PRSA/Philadelphia luncheon at the Union League Club in Philadelphia on Thursday, March 11.

The panelists were (from left): Berlinda Garnett, Planner, Fox29's Good Day; Harold Brubaker, business writer, Philadelphia Inquirer; Michelle Durham, Anchor/Reporter, KYW Newsradio 1060; and Bernie Dagenais, Editor, Philadelphia Business Journal.

More photos from the event are here.

Listen to the podcast here:

Download the podcast program here (Stereo MP3 file, 59.7 mb, duration 01:02:06)

Subscribe to the RSS feed for the “Lubetkin on Communications” podcast series.

Apple iPod owners, subscribe to the “Lubetkin on Communications” podcast series in the Apple iTunes Music Store.

Keywords: lubetkin, cherry hill, prsa, philadelphia, media, panel, luncheon, union league

del.icio.us Tags: lubetkin,cherry hill,prsa,philadelphia,media,panel,luncheon,union league

Technorati Tags: lubetkin,cherry hill,prsa,philadelphia,media,panel,luncheon,union league

LiveJournal Tags: lubetkin,cherry hill,prsa,philadelphia,media,panel,luncheon,union league

Produced in the studios of Professional Podcasts LLC, Cherry Hill, NJ.

PRSA Tactics Video: Tips on Creating Good Web Videos

PodcastSteve — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 16:10:00 +0000

Click to Play

Steve Lubetkin, managing partner of Professional Podcasts LLC, offers tips for improving the quality of your web videos for social media campaigns and other online uses. This video supplements Steve's article on the topic in the latest issue of Public Relations Tactics, the monthly newsletter of the Public Relations Society of America.

This blog has moved

PodcastSteve — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 23:47:00 +0000

This blog is now located at http://blog.lubetkin.net/
You will be automatically redirected in 30 seconds, or you may click here.

LOC Podcast #44: A Conversation with Robert Frye, International Protocol Expert

PodcastSteve — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 23:50:00 +0000

In this episode of the podcast, we present an in-studio conversation with Robert W. Frye, CPP, former director of international client relations and chief of protocol with AT&T and Lucent Technologies.

Bob’s 25+ year career includes planning and directing more than 4,000 senior level marketing and government visits to the United States involving CEOs, boards of directors, ambassadors, ministers, current and former heads of state, and royalty. In 2003, he served as head of the office of protocol for the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq following Operation Iraqi Freedom. In that role, he coordinated fact-finding visits to Iraq by members of the US Congress and Senate.

In 1995 Bob was selected to conduct protocol and cross cultural training for the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games, The State of Georgia, and the Atlanta City Council in connection with the 1996 Olympic Games.

Bob currently conducts International Protocol and Cross Cultural workshops for Saint Joseph’s University Executive MBA Program, The American University Business Council for International Understanding, Washington, DC, and the United States Air Force Air University, Maxwell AFB. He also delivers numerous protocol lectures and speeches to corporations and associations including the Los Angeles and Philadelphia World Affairs Councils, The Southern Center for International Studies, as well as multiple engagements for Delta Airlines and Motorola.

Bob, a Certified Protocol Professional and Certified Meeting Professional, has been featured in articles in the New York Times Sunday business magazine, The American Express Travel and Leisure Magazine, and The Philadelphia Inquirer. He is a member of the board of directors of the Philadelphia International Visitors Council and the New York Council of Protocol Executives.

Listen to the podcast here:

Download the podcast program here (Stereo MP3 file, 29.5 mb, duration 00:33:45)

Subscribe to the RSS feed for the “Lubetkin on Communications” podcast series.

Apple iPod owners, subscribe to the “Lubetkin on Communications” podcast series in the Apple iTunes Music Store.

Keywords: lubetkin, cherry hill, protocol, international relations, diplomacy, robert frye

Produced in the studios of Professional Podcasts LLC, Cherry Hill, NJ.

Hello world!

PodcastSteve — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 09:46:19 +0000

Welcome to WordPress.com. This is your first post. Edit or delete it and start blogging!

About

PodcastSteve — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 09:46:19 +0000

This is an example of a WordPress page, you could edit this to put information about yourself or your site so readers know where you are coming from. You can create as many pages like this one or sub-pages as you like and manage all of your content inside of WordPress.

Jeff Pulver kicks off Sociak Media Jungle

PodcastSteve — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:17:48 +0000

Dean Landsman presenting

PodcastSteve — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:17:49 +0000

Jeff Sass speaks @ Social Media Jungle

PodcastSteve — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:17:49 +0000

Howard Greenstein

PodcastSteve — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:17:49 +0000

Nelly Yusupova discusses monetization

PodcastSteve — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:17:50 +0000

Oz Sultan discusses social networking stes

PodcastSteve — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:17:50 +0000

Brett Petersel @ Social Media Jungle

PodcastSteve — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:17:51 +0000

Jonathan Yarmis discusses getting out of the Kumbaya zone with corporate clients

PodcastSteve — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:17:52 +0000

Ben Grossman discusses ROI

PodcastSteve — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:17:52 +0000

Jamie Thompson discusses privacy at Social Media Jungle

PodcastSteve — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:17:52 +0000

Justin Oberman

PodcastSteve — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:17:53 +0000