Two Swedish Eyes on Media and Public Relations
Laura Ries has never been a fan of brand extensions. Read her views on what Google’s business strategy does to the Google brand.
“No brand can stand for everything and dominate every market. Today, Google is a great search engine. Tomorrow, Google might be octopus sushi for another new brand.”
Swedish tabloid Expressen is closing down several of its blogs, reports Dagens Media. The political blog penned by Niklas Svensson and Cecilia Garme was shut down on Wednesday and Per Svensson decided to quit blogging because of lack of time. Expressen’s editor in chief Otto Sjöberg says that the paper has revised its blogging policy so that news reporters can’t blog.
– We want news reporters to focus on working with news, Sjöberg tells Dagens Media.
PM Nilsson hasn’t blogged since the end of July (due to a longer vacation). And since Ebba von Sydow will quit to take on a the role as editor in chief of Vecko-Revyn, her blog will not continue to be under the wings of Expressen.
Update: Niklas Svensson has already launched a new private blog about politics (looks a lot more like private stuff and gossip to me, but that may of course change). Via Nya Ordlekar. More at Dagens Media.
Footnote: The Swedish blogosphere invented the epithet “Expressen blogger” this summer and it represents a journalist that starts a blog to keep ut with things, but hasn’t grasped what it’s all about.
Norwegian defender André Bergdølmo blaims the press for Norway’s defeat against Scotland in Wednesday’s World Cup qualifiers.
– Skottene var gode. De visste hvordan vi kom til å spille, mye takket være norsk presse. Åge (Hareide) har prøvd å holde lagoppstillingen hemmelig. Likevel får dere rede på det gjennom ulike kanaler. Og når dere trykker det, føler jeg at dere dolker landslaget i ryggen.
– Det er illojalt, sier Bergdølmo.
The national coach wanted to keep the line-up secret until the very last moment, but the Norwegian press found out and printed it. Bergdølmo means that the Scots took advantage of the information and that it was illoyal of media to reveal what they knew would damage the home team. But it is not the duty of media to censor information because it would harm the national football team.
A common term in Swedish when describing media policies regarding this issue is that journalists should be “konsekvensneutrala” which means media must be neutral to the consequenses of an article. If a story is relevant from a news perspective, the fact that one party might suffer is not reason enough to stop the article. Like in this news policy from Swedish Radio “Ekot”.
Vår grundregel är att nyhetsförmedlingen är konsekvensneutral. Att en part kan vinna eller förlora på vår publicering är inget skäl för oss att avstå. Vi sänder det som är viktigt enligt relevans- och saklighetskraven. Det är inte nyhetsförmedlarens sak att ta hänsyn till vem som gynnas eller missgynnas av en viss nyhet.
Support for the home team is great, but it’s by no means mandatory. Or maybe Bergdølmo expected the same support as the Sun gave the English team before the historic 5-1 win against Germany. The paper hired a bus with a band that went to the German team’s hotel in the middle of the night and woke them up.
PS. Never forget – what Carew does with a football, Zlatan can do with an orange.
Geez, when will the hype end?
Top searches on Technorati this hour:
1. “Ipod Nano”
2. Katrina
3. Apple
4. “Impeach Bush”
5. Ipod
6. “Barbara Bush”
7. “Itunes 5”
8. Itunes
9. “Kanye West”
10. Rokr
If you can read Swedish and are able to pick up a copy of Nöjesguiden, please check out the anti-iPod column in the beginning of the paper. It’s brilliant. Then rant or rave, depending on your preferences for little expensive white gadgets.
SR (Swedish Radio) will start a weekly show reviewing the blogosphere. The first one will be broadcasted on Saturday, 10 Sept in Lunchekot at 12.30. Podcast, please?
Link via Medielandskapet and Researcher.
Sweden’s football team faces Hungary tonight in an important World Cup qualifier. Hungary’s national coach Lothar Matthäus is not a shy man, and why should he be, considering his outstanding career? His advanced website includes a wide range of information for his fans, including a gallery of current and previous wives/girlfriends. Does the current Mrs. approve, one wonders. The layout of the gallery is also unfortunate, almost implying there’s room for one more…
