BLOGGERS VS REPORTERS…
There’s been a lot of debate recently about the difference between bloggers and reporters. I, for one, firmly don’t believe that bloggers and reporters are synonymous. Bloggers are biased. (Although, reporters are also. Let’s remember that while both FOX News & CNN claim to be unbiased, one needs only to watch a political report for all of 5 minutes to see that they both clearly “skew.” Right or wrong…)
This morning I read an article where the VP of student affairs at Duke University was quoted as saying, “It’s a world where someone with half a brain, a computer, and an Internet connection can be a publisher.”
Now, clearly this isn’t true for all bloggers, and there are many different types with different levels of objectivity. However, social media or digital PR, Web 2.0 and today’s blogosphere plays by a whole different set of rules, and public relations professionals who want to be relevant need to be prepared and equipped to handle client communications in this era of new media.
As an aside, yesterday’s New York Times included an article about the pressures bloggers face from a 24/7 news cycle, but failed to mention that many reporters now face these same pressures. The news cycle in every outlet – from broadcast to print to online – has become global and continuous, with every outlet competing to break each story the moment it happens.
That’s one of the reasons consistent public relations and communication with the media has become so pivotal. I tell my employees that a good PR professional never shuts off – with an endless stream of changing news coverage, there are countless opportunities to create relevancy.
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