Stories by Matthew Schwartz

“Duty,” the new memoir by former Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates, was officially released on Tuesday. To plug the book Gates has been making the rounds on the TV talk shows, and then some. His book is a reminder of what communicators need to know about how to conduct an effective media tour.

It’s a classic in internal communications: Two people are sitting not five feet from one another, but still feel compelled to email each other all day. Can you say “time suck?’ The syndrome is one of the more frustrating aspects of internal emails, according to an informal poll of PR News’ readers.

Two separate crises, two separate responses. There are some stark lessons for communicators stemming from how Southwest Airlines and Freedom Industries have reacted to recent events that go to the heart of brand reputation.

When police officers leave for work they literally put their lives on the line. Ditto for military personnel and firefighters. When PR pros leave for work they may face a manager unhappy with the results from the latest branding campaign or have to engage in interoffice politics that few companies and organizations are immune from. […]

Talk about a bad scene. Michael Bay stormed off the stage in Las Vegas Monday night after a faulty teleprompter couldn’t show his speech. The Hollywood director of Transformers and other blockbusters was about to speak at the Consumer Electronics Show with a Samsung executive to promote the company’s new 150-inch curved television. The episode raises some key questions for communicators.

Jerry Doyle, principal of CommCore Consulting, deconstructs the PR elements of a video interview with the CEO. It’s not pretty.   In our second edition of Clip Critique, we see the CEO of RIM Inc.,… Continued

For brands that want to build up their audiences via social media, look no further than “Downton Abbey,” the PBS series about the British aristocracy that returned last night after being on year-long hiatus.

For teenagers, Facebook is “dead and buried.” That’s the conclusion from one of the authors of the recently released Global Social Media Impact Study, which showed that teens are abandoning Facebook for rivals such as Snapchat and Whatsapp. But when it comes to adults, Facebook is alive and well.

Come on, vogue. If you’re looking for some guidance when it comes how to leverage your Facebook pages, you may want to consult with the fashion industry.

I’ve never had much luck with New Year’s resolutions. Whatever the resolution I always seem to capitulate a week or two into the endeavor. Oh well. But like Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster, New… Continued