All in Media
Mashable is reporting that Vocus, a developer of software for the public relations industry, will acquire Help a Reporter Out (HARO), the wildly popular service that connects journalists with sources.
HARO, which started out as a Facebook group, quickly surged to be a fantastic resource for both PR professionals and journalists. The service caught on quickly because it is free for both journalists and PR types, whereas the leader in the space, Profnet, is subscription based.
With a simple Tweet, the Associated Press changed an argument that has been raging on in newsrooms for years.
Is it web site or website?
Well, it's now officially website.
According to the @APStylebook Twitter stream, "Responding to reader input, we are changing Web site to website. This appears on Stylebook Online today and in the 2010 book next month."
Being that I've been in the news business for about 15 plus years now -- some as a reporter, some as a PR guy for two educational institutions pitching stories and the rest in the agency world developing media strategies -- I always get a kick out of pieces that make fun of the news business.
The industry is not the same as it used to be. However, the way stories are created and how news is developed, reported and delivered (to a certain extend) is pretty much the same.
All the games that PR people and journalists play with each other and against each other still play. If you've ever watched the evening news, especially the national news casts, the pieces always go something like this:
So I've had some time to sit on the ESPN-Twittergate story. If you haven't followed it, ESPN told employees that they were going to prohibit the use of Twitter unless posts served the needs of the network, i.e. don't post about what you're drinking, post about how many K's Beckett had last night.
The guidelines were sniffed out by Mashable; was tweeted by Ric Bucher, a NBA beat reporter for ESPN and ESPN.com with over 18k followers; and was analyzed by a zillion other bloggers/media outlets and tweeted like there was no tomorrow.
To get the word from the horses mouth, read this article on Sports Business Daily. But basically, ESPN.com Editor-In-Chief Rob King, one of the architects of the new plan, said:
Yes, we all know that Michael Jackson died. It's hard NOT to know considering the amount of media coverage the King of Pop's passing has received and continues to receive. Don't worry, I'm not going to write about his music, the allegations, how much of a freak he was or wasn't, etc. This post is about what the media madness around the MJ story has taught me as a PR professional, former journalist and social media hound.
I first caught wind of something being "up" with MJ via my Blackberry Storm by way of a New York Times news alert. The headline read, "Michael Jackson hospitalized with heart problems," or something to that extent. I was hanging out with my co-workers at the time and after I announced that to the group, someone said, "Oh man, imagine if he died?" Within a second of that comment, I received an instant message on my BB from my wife, "OMG...Michael Jackson died!" I turned to the group and gave them the news. We all immediately grabbed our mobile devices and started checking out Twitter and Facebook. We then turned the TV channel to CNN.
I remember when the news broke that Magic Johnson had HIV. I heard a rumor in school and it was that MJ had aids. I was thinking Michael Jordan, not Jackonson or Magic. I got home after school, just in time for the press conference on one of the major networks - think it was ABC at the time. However, from the time I heard the rumor to the time I actually confirmed the news, it was a span of two to three hours. With the Michael Jackson story, I got initial word, rumor confirmation, web confirmation and finally news confirmation all within 20 seconds of each other. That's how fast news spreads in today's internet-based news environment.
For those of you from the Greater Boston area, you might remember the story of a young hoops star from the Fall River area who was so good that they spoke of him in the same vein as The Answer, i.e. Allen Iverson. For those of you who don't remember the story or aren't from this area, the legend of Chris Herren is more from the script of Nightmare on Elm Street as opposed to Hoop Dreams.
Chris was projected to have a great college career and make a splash in the pros. He made it to the pros and even played for the Celtics.
However, Chris carried a lot of baggage with him throughout his collegiate, pro and international basketball careers - baggage filled with drug abuse.