How social media and transparency relate

February 1, 2011

How social media and transparency relate

There’s an assumption with social media that new technologies inherently open up organizations to increasingly public discussion. This is  true to some degree. While social media allow for increased public discussion, this does not always translate to increased organizational openness. Social media have in fact been ample ground for more spam, something predicted years ago [...]

Gun violence and media hype

January 15, 2011

Gun violence and media hype

And, what Judas Priest and Sharron Angle have in common Sooner or later a case like this will win. It’s just a matter of time. It’s always tough when you do a new thing, but this case will not be new five years from now. Everyone will know then that music like Judas Priest’s causes [...]

How to scoop the media by going social

January 6, 2011

How to scoop the media by going social

It’s 8 a.m. Monday. I get a Facebook message from a friend: “Bob, I heard the Shoe Tree was felled and didn’t want to react until I could confirm. I checked This Is Reno and RGJ.com over the weekend and didn’t see a report. Do you know if this is urban legend?” I couldn’t remember [...]

The best of 2010 at The Good, The Bad, The Spin

December 27, 2010

The best of 2010 at The Good, The Bad, The Spin

Year four of the The Good, The Bad, The Spin is now a wrap. It’s been an ample year for taking on both top PR issues and many topics ill-addressed by mainstream media, and others. As always, this blog is committed to shooting through hype and moral plays in both the PR and news journalism [...]

The “On the Record” podcast with Eric Schwartzman

November 27, 2010

The “On the Record” podcast with Eric Schwartzman

Earlier this year, my friend and colleague Christel Hall hooked me up with Eric Schwartzman for an “On the Record” podcast. A few notes: Information presented in this interview was gleaned from a number of sources. The first was a story by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, which had compiled records on the top water users [...]