Journalists’ Right vs. PRs’ Might

In the past few days there has been quite an uproar from the media due to the McCain campaign’s continued sheltering of Vice Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin. On Tuesday and Wednesday she met with world leaders from the United Nations for the first time, and her campaign attempted to only allow photographers into the meetings. The journalists involved refused to take pictures if there was not an editorial presence there. They compromised at allowing the editorial presence, but only for mere moments.

Is it OK for Governor Palin’s public relations representative to say no to the press? The campaign has allowed for almost no questions from the media. Is that their right? As public relation’s people, how do we balance the need to be in control of certain things while still being ethical? And couldn’t this type of “hiding” cause a backlash from the media, who we need to have good relations with? It may have already caused ripples with some news outlets, but perhaps the campaign decided it was worth it.

Thursday, Governor Palin opened up questions to four reporters, so I thought maybe they decided to let her show a bit of herself. Then I realized that she only answered questions of her choosing. Is this all an ingenious strategy or do you think that the public will eventually get tired of it? I don’t mean to be picking at Governor Palin, I think many in the field of public relations use this strategy, but does that make it right?

Effectively Engaging Employees

I think an important area often overlooked in PR is internal communications. This is crucial because if the employees are not happy, then business is not going to run smoothly. Employees need to be informed, they need to have an open two-way communication with their employers and most importantly they need to be on board with the company mission.

I found this article about an international company, GolinHarris, that developed an intranet site similar to YouTube, where employees can upload their own videos to share their stories on inspiration, ideas, employees and office experiences. I found this idea to be incredibly creative and useful. With close monitoring of course, employees can speak their minds, express their individualism and connect to others all around the world. It engages employees and encourages idea sharing. Making someone feel part of something bigger is important for a lot of people and can create a better work environment, therefore creating more productivity. At the same time, management is able to reflect on these videos to learn more about their employees. It is a win-win situation on both sides!

-Cast Communications