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chris anderson
Posts Tagged “
Flacks
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chris anderson
flacks
Yahoo's dwindling PR strategy
Is it any wonder why Yahoo's image is so unpolished? The ranks of top PR people available to buff it have been rapidly shrinking. And with CEO Jerry Yang all but hiding in a cave, there's been little for the survivors to do. The latest departure: Joanna Stevens, to parts unknown. That Stevens, an eight-year Yahoo veteran, would leave on such short notice, without another job lined up, is telling. It means, in short, that this ultimate Yahoo loyalist has finally tired of the company's mismanagement. Before new PR chief Jill Nash came on board, Stevens briefly ran the department, and she was close to former CEO Terry Semel (shown here with Stevens and Tom Cruise). When even the company's designated cheerleaders are turning in their pom-poms, you know the team is losing. (Photo by Joanna Stevens) More »
Nominate a "douchebag" in PR for a bona fide award courtesy of public relations blogger Strumpette. Deadline's August 31, and the ceremony is September 20 in Washington, D.C. Oh, and if you need suggestions? Right here. [Strumpette]
bullshit
Why Digg's quiet CEO is suddenly talking
NICK DOUGLAS — The general geek public associates one name with Digg: Kevin Rose. He's the social site's public face, and no wonder: he spent years as a TV show co-host, and he's the younger and edgier of Digg's two co-founders. So in the aftermath of Digg's decision to let users illegally publish a code, why is his partner and CEO Jay Adelson giving all the interviews? He's the one who talked to the New York Times, Fortune, Wired News, and BusinessWeek. Because they got funneled through the same PR firm that I did. More »
diggbait
I'll have what he's having: Specialty cocktails for the tech world
NICK DOUGLAS — Another year and the bubble hasn't popped! Sysadmins and C-level execs alike, you deserve something special, like a drink named after you or your latest achievement. And Yahoos deserve a drink all to themselves. So after the first champagne, order these official cocktails for techies in 2007! More »
flacks
Tip for flacks: Make the journalist want it
As much as journalists hate hearing "This could be a big story for you!" from people begging for news coverage, it's still nicer than getting the same mass message as potential business partners, which only reminds journalists how low they are on the Valley hierarchy. A writer sends in this example: More »
microsoft
Bloggerati: Stalin + Trotsky 4eva
- "So to hear today that Microsoft is partnering with Novell to offer sales support for Novell's Suse Linux AND cooperate with its old rival on Linux-Windows interoperability is ... astonishing — a bit like discovering that Stalin really sent Trotsky to Mexico for a nice vacation or that Itchy has shacked up with Scratchy." [Good Morning Silicon Valley]
- Cynical tech author Nick Carr sees Google's frenetic YouTube deal-making as an effort to repeat what Apple did for iTunes — pull enough media companies on board that the rest have to follow. [Rough Type]
- The outside publicist for a startup named MothersClick disavows any involvement in that company's nasty little spat with the TechCrunch blog (which was escalated by a popular Valleywag post by guest editor Rick Abruzzo). "Our advice to the client PRIOR to the incident was, 'Your judgment is impaired. Step away from the keyboard. Leave TechCrunch alone. Let Arrington run his blog, you should go run your business.'" [PR Squared]
- TechCrunch owner Michael Arrington writes, "Putting journalists up on a pedestal is very old media." This from a man who told the Wall Street Journal, "I want more page views than CNET in two years." [CrunchNotes]
cnet
Loose Wires: But does CNET have virile young pages?
- Is it just me or does CNET's president look like a younger, hipper Mark Foley? If that guy IMed you, would he make you a little horny? [CNET]
- The owner of UTube.com bitches that visitors looking for YouTube are costing him tons of bandwidth — then refuses a million-dollar offer for the site. Says he's holding out for 2 or 3 million. I think I speak for all of us when I say "fuck you." [Mashable]
- Someone's stalking my boss, Curbed blog publisher and Gawker Media managing editor Lockhart Steele. (I found out because I stalk him too.) [NY Observer]
- Flacks will have to pay press release distributor PRWeb to get their glorified spam out to journalists. The system's still broken until they have to pay the journalists. [Online Marketing Blog]
yahoo
Flackspeak: Yahoo's Family 2.0 Values
In a classic "positioning poll" — the official term I just made up for research polls that double up as PR material — Yahoo massaged data about family technology habits to form a concept called — wait for it —Family 2.0. What's new about this family? What stereotypical roles are broken down? More »
flacks
Don't be a flack: Tips for PR workers from the journalists who hate them
Today a flack from public relations firm SS PR sent me yet another piece of spam following up an e-mail pitch I never asked for, proving that PR folks need some guidance in how to avoid being "that annoying flack" that journalists and business development workers gossip about at the bar. Because by pleasing journalists, you don't just help them — you help yourself. More »
spam
Open letter to flacks: I hate you and your followup e-mails
What's the difference between a public relations pitch and spam? More »
flacks
Flacky nominee: PR pro sends a letter to the editor
Texture Media is proud of its "award-winning interactive and marketing" — so interactive that the company can't figure out who to pitch to at a magazine. More »
flacks
Stickam revolutionizes field of annoying journalists
The PR company for Stickam, a video site that embeds flash-based blah-blah-blah-who-cares, sent a "video pitch" to journalists and bloggers instead of the usual text pitch. Most threw it away like any old PR spam. More »
chris anderson
Crash this call: OMG talk to Chris Anderson!
The following press release reads like a Colbert-style parody, but it's a real (and really lame) release for an event with Wired editor and Long Tail author Chris Anderson. Chris's publicist is trying to hype up a glorified free-for-all conference call, headlining the release with "MEDIA ALERT...MEDIA ALERT...MEDIA ALERT." More »
flacks
Valleyspeak: I'm not a hooker, I'm a courtesan
With all due respect to the recently mentioned firm 463 Communications, some folks may have been confused by its name. A Valley vet who's dealt with PR firms for years cleared this up for us: More »
crash this bash
Grease up your analog hole for a PR orgy next week. A naughty invitee forwarded the deets for a party from 463 Communications, the DC tech policy firm.
More »
Crash this bash: 463 Communications Happy Hour
Grease up your analog hole for a PR orgy next week. A naughty invitee forwarded the deets for a party from 463 Communications, the DC tech policy firm.
More »
google
