Jonathon Colman   Aug 25 2012   Flag

A disturbing trend in technology PR takes a(nother!) turn for the worse. I know that Rand and others have written about the problems with journalism (e.g., http://moz.com/rand/healthy-dose-fear-appropriate-dealing-with-press/ ), but I'm wondering how to improve this situation. Given the realities of the biz (so much news to cover, not much monefication opportunities for most news publishers, little pay/job security for reporters, etc.), what are some ways we can make it better.

Tom Demers   Aug 26 2012   Flag

I thought it was a bit odd that she singled these guys out just because I think a lot of companies think this is how PR/outreach works, and still aren't interested in having a narrative that they can't control out there, and I'd assume she gets stuff like this all the time (so why not just anonymize it). As a marketer/entreprenuer I think the moral is just to have more empathy for the person you're reaching out to obviously - why would they want to cover/link to this (is the story really inherently interesting or can you give them access to someone on your team with some interesting ideas, can you share some data they'd find interesting (not just your vanity metrics but something their readers might find interesting/valuable/unique)).

Suzi Istvan   Aug 26 2012   Flag

The PR industry in general seems to be obsessed with controlling the story (I hate when an interviewer on TV or radio is clearly being "handled" by a PR team just out of sight of the viewer)- why not just move it to the internet?! Glad she stood up and pointed it out- seems like a way to start towards getting some change.