Two Swedish Eyes on Media and Public Relations
Today I am guest blogging on JKL Blog about the increasing attention for blogging in Sweden. Swedish media has written 81 articles so far this year about blogs, compared to 105 articles in 2003, 56 articles in 2002 and just 2 articles in 2001.
But the debate is mainly in the IT and technology press (two thirds of all articles). Marketing media is yet to discover this new form of communication, probably because of lack of local success stories.
Media exposure has a high value and a spot in a reality show can be a gravy train to fame and fortune. And people are willing to invest heavily in a ticket to fame. A spot in the Danish version of Survivor (Expedition: Robinson) was auctioned off today. The winning bid stopped at more than 10,000 USD. Considering that participants from Swedish reality shows are supposedly making hundreds of thousands of dollars touring the country as guest bartenders, ten grand sounds like a bargain.
When Rebecca Loos showed David Beckham’s SMS on tv, she also gave mobile phone company Sony Ericsson publicity worth millions.
– This might increase the sales of T610, said Ericsson’s chief information officer Peter Bodor. Of course I was happy when I saw the phone all over the front page. It is better that it is our phone than a competitor’s, he adds.
Maybe it’s just me, but I think it is improper behaviour for an official spokesperson to enjoy publicity in a sex scandal, no matter how public it is. It’s ok to be happy, but keep it to yourself.
Here’s a book that I want to read. Spinsanity will publish a book this fall called All the President’s Spin: George W. Bush, the Media and the Truth.
“All the President’s Spin will provide the definitive non-partisan account of the Bush administration’s unrelenting dishonesty about public policy. The book will demonstrate how the White House has broken new ground in using misleading sales tactics to promote its policies and manipulate the media.”
According to Advertising Age some people in the American PR business look upon Janet Jackson’s exposed nipple at Super Bowl as a stunt that will be hard to top, in a positive way (!). I am convinced that most PR professionals do not agree, showing body parts does give you ink, but what will the effect be on your brand in the long run?