There has been a lot of buzz today about the Us Weekly covers below vis a vis bias in the media.  Although idealists suggest otherwise, I find the concept of an unbiased media simply impossible.  First, as human beings, we have inherent biases that can’t be discarded on a whim.  Whether political, cultural or simply a level of taste, each of us holds certain ideas closer than others.  Secondly, bias creates tension and drama, which sells more magazines, attracts more viewers, and keeps online visitors coming back for more.  Especially in an age when a new, unbridled media is quickly usurping the old, the rules of objectivity will continue to be a moving target.

Regardless of one’s political stance, bias in the media is a discussion worth consideration by PR professionals, and certainly a topic this PR blog will continue to blog on.  As a student of journalism, I suggest reading Bias by Bernard Goldberg – Certainly will make you think.

Ronn Torossian

5WPR

I (foolishly) spent the day shopping during this major holiday weekend – admittedly at high-end, brand-name stores, and primarily at those establishments that spend a ton of money in advertising in an attempt to draw customers to the stores’ various locations.
 
Earlier in the week, at a major sporting event, I had a similar thought: Why do brands spend so much money trying to draw people to their stores and then so little time and attention once they have people there? At this event, a client and I stood on line for perhaps 15 minutes attempting to buy food and drink — products that cost more than the employee serving the food makes in an hour — and as the line grew to about 10 people, many simply walked away due to the long wait and the employees’ lack of attention to the customers. Why wouldn’t the brand ensure that the site has enough low-wage employees working rather than turn off its patrons?

Although a lot of noise was made some months ago regarding Starbucks training employees and closing all locations for a few hours, after today’s experience, I came to the conclusion that many of America’s retail outlets could use similar training. From a store manager who loudly said to an employee, “Don’t bother answering that question its dumb,” in response to a customer’s question, to stores that allow people to wander endlessly without its employees simply asking, “Can I help you?” one wonders, why spend millions on advertising? Perhaps the money is better spent retraining employees.

True, it’s tremendously difficult for anyone to manage employees — particularly employees in retail who aren’t well-paid — but I can’t help but believe that many people echo my opinion that stores need to focus much more attention on this arena. Without well-trained employees who reflect positively on the establishments they represent, store operators might as well say, “Take my customers, please.” That’s surely PR too.

Ronn Torossian
5WPR

At the epicenter of today’s branded consumer entertainment culture are consumer/corporate brands hiring (partnering with?) celebrities to represent their products. Whenever a brand hires a celebrity, instant brand associations abound, with tremendous potential upsides and downsides. In my career, I have encountered extremes in this endeavor among CEOs and CMOs of clients. I can remember a major consumer CEO saying, “We will never ever hire a celebrity. Ever. I have worked too hard to allow some DWI-prone star or idiot drug-addict celebrity to affect my business,” and regardless of countless opportunities that CEO had, he always said no. He was too concerned about the potential risks. On the flipside, we at 5W have worked with many brands that did hire celebrities for brand campaigns — large and small — and some of those have been extremely successful.

I write this in reference to David Duchovny being instantly fired as the face and celebrity endorser of shoe company Johnston & Murphy due to his “sex addiction.” Duchovny, who plays a sex-obsessed character on TV apparently has the same issues in his personal life. Interestingly, just last month the brand issued a statement saying: “David embodies success and confidence, along with a great sense of style, communicating the ideal image for the Johnston & Murphy brand.”

Anytime I read about issues like this, I wonder if these brands really did the proper vetting vis a vis celebrities. Did they do more than speak to the agent/manager of this celeb? Did they have essential relationships that enabled them to talk to nightclub owners, or find his wife’s best friend? Hire private detectives? Really ask around in the circle of people who knew the truth? These sorts of things (and others) are all necessities for any brand truly willing to “win” at celebrity endorsements/PR.

Steve Stoute, a master at marrying brands to celebs, is rightly quoted in this week’s Adweek discussing how celebrity sponsorship has forever changed. The most successful relationships, he says, come from brands and artists viewing themselves as true business partners.  Proper vetting and planning is required for celebrity endorsers. It’s much more than just taking someone’s picture holding your shoe in the year 2008 and beyond.

Ronn Torossian
5W PR