Many members of the “elite” media are criticizing Jasper Schuringa, hero of the Northwest flight terrorism attempt, for requesting payment to conduct media interviews. Why is this so shocking? The media is a money-making business (or at least supposed to be). Why shouldn’t its subjects be entitled to monetary compensation as well? This rings particularly true for those who have been thrust into the media spotlight out of circumstance, not by choice—like Jasper.

I, for one, am not surprised by his request. The media will invade his life and make it much more difficult for this hero to regain some semblance of normalcy post-frenzy. PLUS, interviews are very time consuming. Like it or not, it’s the way of the world. He is doing a job and should be compensated accordingly.

Kudos to Jasper Schuringa – I am sure I am not the only one hoping you make millions of dollars.

Ronn Torossian

5WPR

Working day to day with the media is a humbling task. Reporters are very busy, overworked, always stressed, and notoriously impatient.  As PR professionals, we work hard to convince reporters to write stories about our clients’ issues or products– and it’s a tough job.

It will become even tougher with the recent announcement that the Dallas Morning News will now have journalists reporting to sales executives.

This will further blur the lines between advertising and media relations. As it stands now, I often get calls from clients excited about news opportunities. But oftentimes these “opportunities” are just representatives from cold-calling to offer editorial space for a fee, which is all fine and dandy, but it’s called advertising.

At my PR firm, we believe in good old-fashioned media relations.  We build relationships with the media, pitch journalists and place stories. It’s certainly not easy, but now with situations like the Dallas Morning News, it’s going to get harder.  That being said, we will keep pushing, and keep succeeding with the continued hope that this will help clients realize the vast undervalue of PR and PR agencies in general.

“The toughest thing about being successful is that you have to keep being successful,” said Irving Berlin.

Ronn Torossian

5WPR

This weekend I read a very interesting survey of journalists.

Prior to the recession, traditional media had tremendous challenges. Now, with the onset of this economy, things are changing even faster, with mass layoffs and newspaper after newspaper folding. The survey spoke volumes and led me to ask how long it may be before blogs publicly (or privately) sell content to the highest bidder. In a world that — to date — has no established rules, do bloggers have the same ethical responsibilities as traditional journalists?

Anyone with mass traffic and early-mover SEO may eventually be able to do a lot with content. I have very much enjoyed Tina Brown’s new site, and wasn’t surprised to see last week’s announcement re: advertising, nor comments re: “sponsored content.”

For me, there’s a very clear link in terms of the survey item I led with in this post and the concept of sponsored content. The world has changed, and one wonders how traditional journalism schools will adapt in the years to come, as well as how the public relations industry will evolve.

Companies like NAPS have been servicing the PR agency world for years. For a fee, NAPS writes articles and incorporates them into newspapers and magazines. They guarantee hundreds of placements, and the articles they write are rarely labeled as advertising. As their website states, “The CDC and the AMA, for example, contribute timely health stories on food, safety for children, or cutting edge medical technology and techniques; experts write about home maintenance and decor; home economists at General Foods send recipes; and financial gurus at such companies as Primerica (a member of Citigroup) offer advice on investing and money management.” Will someone incorporate this concept for the internet world? Without mass publishing or distribution costs and with simple, smart SEO, it can be done a lot quicker, and a ton cheaper.

Food for thought.

Ronn Torossian

5WPR

Two random musings from a day in the life of the CEO of a PR firm:

1: This morning, I received a standard client request to call a reporter and vet an opportunity he was presented with.  The reporter answered his phone at the designated extension of his major business publication, and proceeded to ask a series of questions.  I found these questions to be quite unorthodox given the usual style and length of articles in this particular publication.  After 10 minutes of prodding and back and forth, I learned that this reporter was working on a book and using this publication’s resources and credibility to call sources for it.

When I established that my client wouldn’t participate in the book, the reporter got very upset and spoke of editorial rules, none of which exist when dealing with a book writer.  Quite simply, remember to always investigate media opportunities; evil may be lurking, and journalists can’t always be trusted.  Don’t be naïve.

2:  Yesterday, I received a package in an expensive bag filled with a great new product – a consumer packaged good.  I received the gift I imagine as part of the target demographic of business owners, or entrepreneurs I imagine, and my estimate is the package cost $75 or so per piece.  I imagine I was gifted with the hope that I’d love the product and tell employees, clients, and friends about it – maybe even purchase it.

And I did love the product.  But when I tried to reach out to the people who sent it to me, I found that they had sent the package without the card of a contact person.  So, after spending all that money to research who I was and then deliver me the package, they overlooked one of the most basic tasks: I didn’t even know who to thank. And it’s far from the first time it’s happened.  Don’t forget the basics.

Ronn Torossian

5WPR

Why is it that so few people, including professionals, and business owners understand media relations and the essence of how the media works?  Conceptually, it’s really not that hard, but every day I’m amazed by the basic questions I receive from smart business people.   Just today, someone with a very successful business asked me how much we pay news anchors to place clients on the air.  (Any PR or Marketing 101 class we tell you in this country, one can’t pay news anchors to book guests. At least not in the publicity business.)

Public relations, particularily media relations, is a fairly easy to understand business: find a story angle, pitch it to the media and open the paper (or turn on the TV) and there’s your story.  Yet one of the reasons PR budgets are so low in comparison to advertising budgets is that so few understand PR.  If they did, you’d see many more businesses spending much more on all aspects of public relations in general.

Ronn Torossian
5WPR