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  1. May 12, 2009

    The Public Relations Balancing Act: Access Vs. Privacy

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    For public relations professionals, preserving a client’s privacy can be difficult when you’re also trying to cater to the needs of your press contacts. Recently, my employer changed its guidelines regarding how much access clients will have to our products. (Read more…)

  2. Public Relations Basics: Speak Slowly and Carry a Big Stick

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    One of the joys of writing PR Fuel is that it helps me think through my own public relations failings. By putting ideas down on paper — OK, a computer screen — I’ve helped improve my own public relations skills immensely. That’s part of why I’ve come up with a set of rules for dealing with reporters during phone interviews. Hopefully, I can follow them. (Read more…)

  3. May 8, 2009

    Public Relations Basics: Preparing for a Media Interview

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    Recently, I was transcribing a very casual media interview; it was an amiable chat, even when the questions got tough. Listening to the tape, I was struck by my constant “um’s” and “ah’s.” I came to the interview well-prepared, and I still sometimes sounded as if I didn’t know what I was talking about. There are many potential mistakes even a seasoned public relations consultant can make during the most relaxed media interview. Your responses can be too rapid. (Read more…)

  4. May 5, 2009

    Everything the Public Relations Industry Wants to Know About Journalists

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    …but might be afraid to ask. Consider the following list a series of tips and tricks for dealing with intractable or just plain obnoxious journalists. Heeding them may make the public relations process that much easier. (Read more…)

  5. May 4, 2009

    The PR Fuel Mailbag: Dealing with Clients, Analysts, and Journalists

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    Once again it’s time to dip into the PR Fuel mailbag and answer some reader questions. This time around we look at how to climb the public relations ladder, corrections, unethical journalists, and more. (Read more…)

  6. May 1, 2009

    Public Relations Basics: Keep Your List of Press Contacts Updated

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    A few years ago, Wired magazine editor-in-chief caused a ruckus when he announced he was banning public relations consultants from his email inbox. “I get more than 300 emails a day and my problem isn’t spam, it’s PR people,” Anderson wrote. “Lazy flacks send press releases to the Editor in Chief of Wired because they can’t be bothered to find out who on my staff, if anyone, might actually be interested in what they’re pitching.” And that was only the start of Anderson’s tirade against public relations professionals who keep sloppy, out-of-date lists of press contacts. (Read more…)

  7. April 30, 2009

    Maintaining a Healthy Balance in the Public Relations/Journalist Relationship

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    It took me a few months to figure out her modus operandi. For four years, she called me once a month. It was always on the last Friday of the month, and always before lunch. We would chat for a few minutes I would ask a few questions; she would skirt around the answers. She would pitch me a story or two; I would sigh and act disinterested. Maintaining relationships with journalists is critical to long-term success in public relations. The journalist/public relations relationship must be fostered with trust and then fueled with consistent communication. Here’s a case in point. (Read more…)

  8. April 21, 2009

    Blind Dates: Preparing for a Media Interview

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    If you’ve ever been on a blind date, you know it can be a harrowing experience. You’re thrust into a situation — one you may not even want to be in — and the only information you usually have is second hand. You want to make a good impression — unless you’re trying to get home early — so you have to be prepared. A face-to-face media interview or in-person meeting with a journalist is a lot like a blind date. (Read more…)

  9. April 16, 2009

    Turning the Tables: A Journalist Talks Public Relations

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    A while back, a friend who works in the public relations industry cornered me with a few questions. The following discussion about public relations and the media takes a little peek into how the two intertwined industries relate to each other. (Read more…)

  10. April 15, 2009

    Public Relations vs. Journalism: Clashing Agendas

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    It’s perhaps one of the longest running questions in public relations: How do you deal with a journalist who has an agenda? Some journalists do have agendas; columnists are paid to comment on the news and provide opinion, not just report the news. Even in traditional reporting, sometimes a personal agenda seeps into a story. Just as every public relations consultant has their own style, background, level of intelligence, gifts, resources, etc., so does every journalist. (Read more…)