Birthdays–at least the ones I have had since turning 40–have a way of prompting deeper reflection and re-examination. Each year brings a reminder of those who did not get to celebrate another birthday or whose chances of reaching their next one are bleak. These are morbid notions, perhaps, but motivational also. These ruminations last week […]
If you were an underpaid and overworked reporter (yeah, that’s redundant), which of these pitches do you suppose would move you to action? Pitch A: Joe, Wondering if you would you be interested in looking into a story suggestion involving the village of Anywheresville and its (mis)handling of a garage construction approval process for a new […]
About a decade ago, a friend was a featured guest on a television program. He told me that he got excellent reviews from friends who caught the segment. But, he noted, he wanted to hear my “expert” opinion, too. Put yourself in his shoes, wiggle out of them, and then try mine on for size. […]
Six years ago, at the behest of an employee at Volvo of Oak Park who had heard me speak at a public relations workshop, the dealership’s vice president met with me at the business, 1140 Garfield St. At my suggestion, he agreed to bring me onto the iconic seven-car tower that the dealership built in 2006–at a […]
“Denny Hastert is on the phone from Peru! Who wants to talk to him?” An editor made this proclamation one afternoon in late-May 1997, in the newsroom of The Beacon News in Aurora. Because the Beacon’s sister paper in Elgin was my home base as a reporter back then, it was just a quirk of timing that […]
“Who says?” With those two words, Dorothea Mae DeLoskey Baron sparked my journalism career. It was April 1984 and toward the end of my sophomore year of high school in the south suburbs of Boston. Reading Sports Illustrated for six years had been the primary catalyst that stoked my desire to write, eventually, for the weekly newspaper […]
With public relations and marketing, it’s crucial to keep the bottom line in mind. For most any enterprise, the overarching goal isn’t to write a news release or to secure media coverage or to do any of those activities that people put under the heading of “getting our name out there.” Instead, those are all […]
Over the years, as I have hired people to work on client projects, one of the quickest ways I can weed out weak story-tellers from the strong is to see what they do with “a layup.” In other words, when there’s an easy shot at exploring a creative way to tell a story, does the […]
It’s open season on embattled, suspended and bound-to-be bounced outright NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams. Among the latest to take a swipe at him was actor Jim Carrey. Though Carrey’s remarks on the Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary special were relatively tame, by the reaction of Matt Lauer and others on-camera you would think he […]
The other day, Brad Farris of Anchor Advisors made a strenuous argument against leaving voicemails. Brad’s very smart, exceedingly accomplished in business, and someone I hold in high regard. But take his advice at your own peril, particularly if you are in the media relations/public relations game. The key is not to avoid the specter […]