Television is Still King of the Media: Print lags way behind online

Harris Interactive recently conducted a poll of over 2,000 participants that indicated that television is still the king when it comes to news consumption trends.

While social media and the Internet has come on strong over the past 15 years or so, television remains the preferred source of news and information for most Americans.

According to Harris, which conducted the poll in August of this year, 50 percent of participants said they prefer to receive their news via the television.  Online took second place with 36 percent of participants saying that’s where they like to get their news.  And print media took third place with only 10 percent saying that’s where they want to get their news.

Still, Harris reported that 69 percent of participants had a “moderate interest” in the news.  About 18 percent said following the news is something that doesn’t really interest them as something they do with their free time. While 13 percent described themselves as “news junkies.”  

Men are two times more likely than women to describe themselves as “news junkies.” 

For those of us who do call ourselves news junkies, here’s a rather bothersome sign for the future.  Harris said that younger adults are more likely to say they have a lack of interest in following the news at all.  About 31 percent of “echo boomers” or millennials said they’re not interested in following the news.  Gen Xers came in at 23 percent of those saying they don’t follow the news.  Baby boomers came in at 10 percent, which means 90 percent of boomers surveyed said they do care about the news. 

Whether you’re a news junkie or not, it seems online is fast becoming the preferred medium of choice. While TV edges out online media for those who are actively interested in the news, online news consumption habits among news junkies and those less interested is about even – 42 and 43 percent respectively.

Experts say that as we age, we become more interested in news and information, so according to that there is hope that today’s less interested millennials will someday become more plugged in to the news.  If that is the case, it’s good news for online.  Most millennials get their information online (55 percent from the Internet; 34 percent from TV).

Taking a page from print media, a catchy headline is still the main attraction to a story online.  54 percent of participants said a good headline is the top reason they’d read an online or print article in full.  The use of photos and data or research graphics also help.

Did Facebook Jump the Shark?

Back in May when Facebook went public, I posted here that the company would have life a little tougher as a public company.  You didn’t need a crystal ball to see that, particularly if you’ve ever worked for a public company on the investor relations side. 

It’s not enough for a publicly traded company to simply do a good job or even be the best at what it does.  No matter what, if it doesn’t make its quarterly earnings estimate, it fails.  And if it fails, it’s stock valuation goes down and shareholders (owners) lose money.  Since no one likes losing money, that puts management’s job security at risk, particularly if such performance doesn’t turn around.

Looking back, all of this came down hard on Facebook when immediately after the IPO, the stock started to drop and has never really recovered from that launch price.

The other thing I brought up just before the IPO was that Facebook would have to answer the question from investors: ‘What will you do with all that data on those millions of ‘free’ members?’

Actually, as an update, today Facebook announced the company now has over one billion members.  But as impressive as it sounds, shareholders want to see financial returns ASAP, and that's where that data comes in.

Earlier this week, Facebook announced some of its plans for the data.  The company has started to let marketers target ads to its members based on member email addresses and phone numbers, and based on their individual  web browsing habits to other sites.  Yes, other sites, not just on Facebook.

This means that if you are a member of Facebook, you can now be targeted based on your Internet habits and your phone number and email address will be used to identify you.  Now, the company has said it will “aggregate” the data, meaning that your data will fall within groups of targeted consumers, and that you, personally will not be singled out.

But given Facebook’s track record, including here, of never seeking member permission for how it wants to handle data, there are no guarantees as to how your personal identifying information will be used or sold in the future.

The company is also selling ads that will follow Facebook users beyond the boundaries of Facebook.  This idea isn’t totally new. Google does the same thing.  The big difference, however, is Google uses your IP address and doesn’t really know who you are.  That firm just knows the patterns of usage followed by anyone who uses your computer.

Facebook, on the other hand, knows your true identity.  And it knows who you are by your phone number and email address.  The company has instant access to all of the personal information you’ve decided to share on your individual Facebook page.  It has access to content you have deleted.  And it has access to data and information that’s been posted about you so long as you were “tagged.”

Now, multiply that by one billion.  And then consider some scenarios where someone is willing to pay Facebook to drill down, not just for marketing, but for any other purpose that you can imagine. That can be a scary thought.

The Electronic Privacy Information Center last week filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission over this sort of thing.  Part of the group’s argument is that while Facebook users may have anticipated receiving marketing messages from Facebook or while on Facebook, they never agreed at the outset to give Facebook voyeuristic access into what they do off of Facebook in “the real world.”  David Jacobs, the group’s lawyer, told the Wall Street Journal, “’Now the rules have changed and this information is being matched or cross-referenced. There is an issue with changing the rules on people.’”

This is all academic now, but as a publicly traded firm, Facebook will be forced to find new and more creative ways to meet Wall Street’s expectations.  The company will continuously run into new ethical challenges.

At the very least, this can be a distraction.  At worse, it could cause competitive problems for Facebook. Sure, it has one billion members today, and its presence on the Internet is everywhere.

But MySpace has recently reinvented itself.  I wouldn’t be surprised if its strategy is to position itself as a viable alternative when millions of users decide they no longer want to put their privacy in the hands of Facebook.

To Tweet or Not to Tweet, Often There is No Question

I’ll never pretend to be an expert on social media, but those of us in the PR business can’t avoid learning a good bit about it if not through effort, maybe through a form of working osmosis.

It’s with that in mind that I do want to touch on a Twitter topic.  The social media site has made more than a few headlines for its role in everything from helping people involved in natural or man-made catastrophes, to being a platform that celebrities and others use to get themselves into trouble.

It seems the topic most people talk most about when it comes to Twitter is about the fiascos people can create for themselves.

I read a blog post recently about “Tweets that will incite a PR Firestorm.”  It was on Ragan’s PR Daily site, and it listed some “real-life” examples of these kinds of tweets.  I’ll list a couple from the blog post here:

“True confession but I’m in one of those towns where I scratch my head and say ‘I would die if I had to live here.’”

That tweet was authored by a Ketchum staffer who was in Memphis for a meeting with Ketchum client FedEx.  According to the report, the client spotted the tweet and didn’t like it.  The agency had to apologize.

As an aside, during my time at Ketchum, I made that trip weekly for a period of time and really liked the people and the town.  Still, if you ever find yourself in town you don’t like, you have to expect you’ll offend your hosts if you tweet about it.

“I find it ironic that Detroit is known as the #motorcity and yet no one here knows how to f*** drive.”

The originator of that tweet was a social media manager from an agency that worked for Chrysler.  He actually tweeted that by mistake, not from his personal Twitter account, but rather from the official Chrysler Twitter page. 

Two lessons here.  If you manage more than one account, keep them straight.  And second, it’s just not a good idea to slam your host city where your client lives (once again).

This one is my favorite.  It’s from a Secret Service employee: “Had to monitor Fox for a story.  Cant’. Deal. With. The. Blathering.” 

First off, according to the blog post, Fox News “had a field day” with that.  The Secret Service had to apologize.  Not sure what happened to the no-longer-secret-Secret-Service-agent.

And that brings me to the master lesson of all these examples.  There are some people who should never tweet.  There are some things that should never be tweeted.  And there are some times when we should never tweet.

I read some of the comments after the blog and the one that stuck out for me was the one that asked why anyone with the word “Secret” in the name of his or her employer would even think of going public with his gripes on Twitter.

I’d take it a step further.  Think of all social media, including Twitter, as your own personal Super Bowl commercial.  Once you tweet the most innocent of things, it has access to millions of people.  Sure, most may not see it, but if it’s precisely stupid enough, it could rival a Super Bowl ad in terms of readership.

So, if you are in a job where it wouldn’t be a good idea to do a Super Bowl ad about it, you may want to avoid Twitter and other social media altogether.  If that’s too difficult, consider a career change. 

And if you feel it would be good to get the kind of visibility a Super Bowl ad would create, then put the same amount of care and caution into the content of your Tweet.  Think of the worst thing that can happen before you click on that blue “Tweet” button.  If you hesitate in any way, delete the tweet.  Chances are you made the right choice. 

Keep in mind, all attempts at humor are just that - attempts.  They often fail, sometimes to disastrous results.  Plus, you weren’t going to win a Pulitzer Prize for your opinion of the local dinner fare anyway.

"Publicity Surveys" Gaining in Popularity

One long-standing PR tactic usually used by advocacy organizations is the use of what has been called the “publicity survey.”  The concept is pretty simple.

You want to draw attention to an organization, an issue, or an organization’s position on an issue.  So, you conduct a survey, compile the results and release them to the media. The goal is to use the results of the survey to generate visibility and possibly persuade the public towards your organization’s point of view. 

We see the results of such surveys in media stories that use terms like, “most Americans think,” or “more Americans are starting to…”

Did you ever wonder where those news stories originate when you read such headlines as, “Most Americans prefer organic foods,” or “More Americans would rather pay more for groceries than use plastic bags.”

To be sure, these are hypothetical examples, and not based on real stories, but I’ve learned that in the case of the example on organic foods, there’s a good chance the sponsor of the survey is somehow in the business of selling organic foods.  And in the example of plastic bags, it wouldn’t surprise me of the sponsor of that survey had some ties to plastic bags' competitors.  Of course, in both cases, the sponsor of the survey could simply be an activist organization with its own media relations objectives.

This tactic of creating publicity surveys has been on my mind quite a bit lately as election season heats up.  It seems that every week, we see stories about the presidential polls, or polls on the economy, or polls on foreign policy.  Many of these polls are from respected, independent media or research organizations which do this kind of thing all the time.

But wedged into this flurry of research-based news coverage are quite a few surveys and polls that are bought and paid for by foundations, political organizations and activist groups.  Not surprisingly, the findings of each survey somehow advance their agendas, yet who is behind the survey receives little to no notice as the sensational value of the survey results garner most of the attention.

As you follow the news over the next month, to be an armed news consumer, I’d recommend a couple of things as you are exposed to stories of polls and surveys.  Find out who is behind the survey or the poll and ask yourself what they have to gain through certain types of headlines.  What you’ll then have is the context you need to determine the credibility of the data.

Bonus Material

To give you an idea of how some publicity survey questions are structured, here are some very common approaches:

1. Of the following issues, which is most/least important to you? (ranking)
2. As you understand it, which claims are true? (can select more than one)
3. Please rank the level at which you agree or disagree with following claims? (ranking)

Ping Pong Tables and Leather Couches

Having been in what is considered one of the creative professions for quite a while now, the idea of having a large ping pong or billiards table in the workplace is not really new to me.  Long before “business casual” and “summer hours,” design firms, commercial printers, audio visual-production houses, and some ad agencies had decided to introduce game room-style creature comforts to their offices. 

The early rationale was that given the long hours typically put in at such places, they wanted to make it as comfortable and relaxed as possible.  Tied to this, the nature of the work done in these businesses often required long waits.  If a client like me was on site to do a press check, for instance, we learned to expect full jars of M&Ms, protein bars and caffeine in just about any form it comes.  We also knew we would wait in between quality checks of print runs on comfortable leather furniture, and perhaps, take part in a game of eight-ball.

Taking a break from the office grind for long days off site at creative shops is always a nice diversion, but not one that I’d want every day. The truth is, I really haven’t seen those ping pong tables get used that much.  If given a choice, most people would rather get the job done and get out of there, I believe. 

Over the past 15 years or so, however, the emergence of the tech sector and its iconoclastic challenge to the traditional corporate culture brought with it an almost uniform informality.  Jeans and hoodies, ala Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook.  Loft-style, open offices with collaborators toting their laptops and iPads from workstation to workstation.  And the ever-present ping pong tables and leather couches.

In the years I’ve visited firms with such amenities, I have noticed that managers love to give visitors a tour of the offices and brag about the loose and relaxed atmosphere, then point to a dart board or Nerf basketball hoop.

But as you would expect during these tours, most people were working and not playing.  I’ve made it a habit to ask people in these kinds of workplaces if they ever used the recreational items.  Almost always, the response is something akin to, “Yeah, if I’m working late, or if I’m waiting for a coworker or a ride.”

But usually when I asked the bosses the same question, the response was most often that they would prefer to see their people working rather than “goofing off.”  The unsaid rule seems to have been that these things are more for after-hours than the regular work day.

So why work in an office around such procrastination temptations?  I don’t know.  Maybe it helps in the hiring process.  Maybe it’s a corporate culture message the firm wants to send to visitors.  Maybe at the time the items were purchased, it was just wishful thinking, best of intentions, centered on morale-building. 

What I do know is that at some point, lots of people will get a great deal on a “hardly used, like new” ping pong table on eBay.

The “Walk-back” is a New PR Trend: Don’t try this at home

The term is relatively new to the PR business but it’s ‘gaining traction’ to the extent it’s almost as cliché as “gaining traction.”  I’m talking about “walking back.” 

Here’s how it’s used.  Some public figure, usually a politician sticks his foot in his own mouth and wishes he could delete it from the public domain, but it’s too late.  The Tweets are out.  The articles are all over the Internet or in newspapers.  The nightly news readers are already quoting the misstep on the evening news or shows like Entertainment Tonight.

That’s when the PR counselor tells said public figure that there’s a new tool in the PR toolbox.  It’s called the “walk-back.”  All you have to do is “walk back” the comment by telling the public you really didn’t say what you said, or at least you didn’t mean what you said, or what you said wasn't really what you meant to say, though you really mean what you’re saying now.  Unless, of course, you have to walk this back later.

In golf they call it a Mulligan.  You can elect to erase a bad shot from your score card, but it’s not cheating because you’re openly telling your golf partners you’re doing it.  By the way, the PGA doesn’t allow Tiger Woods to resort to Mulligans.

I did a quick Google search of the term, “walked back his comments,” and found 977,000 mentions.  Here are a few:

·         This headline from the Huffington Post on May 6, 2012 – “Joe Biden Gay Marriage Reaction: Frustration As Officials Walk Back VP's Same-Sex Marriage Comments .”

·         This line from the online site MediaITE on August 6, 2012 – “In an exclusive interview on Sean Hannity’s show tonight, former vice president Dick Cheney partially walked back his comments referring to the choice of Sarah Palin for John McCain‘s vice presidential pick in 2008.”

·         This one from Spokesman-Review on July 29, 2012 regarding the Chick-fil-A story – “(Chicago Mayor) Emanuel eventually walked back his comments, saying he never intended to prohibit the chain from doing business.”

·         This from ABCNews.com earlier this year – “Hours later, (Newark Mayor) Booker walked back his comments on Twitter and in a Web video and said he agreed with the Obama campaign that Bain was fair game.”

 

According to the Google stats, apparently female public figures have to do a lot less walking back.  There are “66,800” Google references to “walked back her comments.”  But in the interest of fairness, here are a couple of examples of female public figures taking a PR Mulligan:

 

·         From The Daily Caller on July 24, 2012 – “(Senator) Feinstein walks back claim that White House is behind national security leaks.”

·         And on June 7, 2012, The Daily Kos featured Debbie Wasserman Schultz – “The Congresswoman from Florida walked back her comments a tad, calling Jim Crow "the wrong analogy to use".  

 One thing to take from all of this is it’s never a good idea to assume you will be allowed by the media to “walk back” anything you say.  They may not always be so generous.  But for politicians, who oftentimes simply ignore proper media etiquette, it looks like the “walk-back” is here to stay.

The NFL has Two Brands of Football

There is an NFL most Pittsburghers don’t recognize.  Yes, we see it in passing when visiting teams come to Pittsburgh.  And yes, we see it on television if we watch any of the national telecasts and sports coverage of the NFL, but even there, it’s not the same because Pittsburghers watch such coverage through the prism of being a Pittsburgh Steelers fan.

What does that mean?

It means when we think of NFL football, we think of the Steelers and the team’s rivalries.  We think of defense and power offense.  We harken back to a blue collar fan base that has since evolved and expanded, covering an entire country under the “Steeler Nation” banner.  The iconic Terrible Towel and those black and gold uniforms are a unifier.  We think of sold out stadiums and a waiting list for season tickets that is so long, many fans are more likely to inherit their tickets rather than simply purchase them outright. 

In Pittsburgh, the NFL means no cheerleaders or excessive glitz on game day.  No need for giveaways or fireworks displays to get fans to come to games.  No need for good weather as well.  In fact, as the temperatures drop and the weather starts to make life otherwise miserable, Steelers fans flock to the stadium in their own black and gold attire. 

When Pittsburghers think of the NFL, they remember seeing some of the league’s most dominant stars and Hall of Fame players as kids, playing in high school or college right here.  It seems rare these days to see a pro game without some Pittsburgh connection. 

What all of this adds up to is that collectively, Pittsburghers aren’t your typical casual football fan.  They know the game in ways most other NFL cities can’t relate.

This is why the NFL has done much to market itself as a sort of real-life comic book, complete with “superheroes” in spandex-style costumes thanks this year to Nike. Other NFL teams fill their stadiums with sights and sounds designed to capture and hold the most disinterested fans, from cheerleaders and pounding music, to super-sized inflatable football helmets to serve as “tunnels” for the players to emerge from before the game starts.  Of course, entrance wouldn’t be the same without the fog machine, and players customizing their entrances for full entertainment effect.

In Baltimore, aging linebacker Ray Lewis is known for his signature entrance dance.   Just yesterday, Antonio Smith of the Houston Texans made a statement of his own wearing a Spiderman-like red mask as he entered the stadium following a Ninja theme.  And then there are the wide receivers, each with his own way of celebrating a touchdown with moves and spikes and not uncommonly, violations of the league’s sportsmanship rules.

That is the NFL most Pittsburghers don’t know.  Yes, they see it on TV and on the Internet, but it’s not what attracts them to the game. Those are side shows, not the main attraction.  The main attraction is James Harrison sacking a quarterback five yards deep in the backfield.  Or nose tackle Casey Hampton playing the role of brick wall on third and short.  Or tight end Heath Miller making a name for himself as both a blocker and a pass receiver.

In short, the brand of football Pittsburghers like is a traditional one.  A more pure one, one that’s all about physicality and domination at the line of scrimmage.  One of incredible strategy that’s not beyond striking from the air as well as the ground, but always moving forward.

This is in contrast to the other brand of football NFL fans around the country seem to want.  The glitz.  The show.  The passing and the speed, and the occasional helmet-to-helmet collision that’s banned by the league but not from highlights reels.  They like the high impact and the high energy even if they don’t understand the actual purpose of playing tough within the confines of the game.  These kinds of fans tend to come and go, which is why stadiums in places like Tampa, Jacksonville, Atlanta and Phoenix don’t always sell out, and why when the Steelers play in those venues it can look like a Steelers home game.

To be sure there are a few other cities that see football the same way Pittsburgh does.  There’s Baltimore, of course.  Green Bay, Philadelphia, Chicago, Cleveland and Dallas.  These are towns that show up win or lose, regardless of the weather.  The fans are often smarter about the game than some of the TV network personalities on the sidelines.  And while Dallas is famous for the iconic Cowboys cheerleaders, something tells me if they weren’t at the game, the stands would still be full.

There are two brands of football, one that is real, and one that is rooted in marketing to hold the attention of large media markets with only a superficial interest in the game.  Pittsburghers are fortunate enough to live in one of the few towns that when it comes to football, gets it.

It’s September.  Football season has started.  Have a great one.