No.1 rule of the media?

Sky Sports presenters Andy Gray and Richard Keys were off air when their unsavoury comments were picked up - but it doesn’t matter. The truth is, nothing is ever really ‘off the record’, so if you don’t want something broadcast, don’t say it in the first place.

The number one rule of media handling? ALWAYS assume that the microphone is on.

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/richard-keys-and-andy-gray-stand-down-amid-sexism-row-2192987.html

Rookie business journos: BEWARE!

From Gorkana this week…

The next time a chief executive tells you he doesn’t want to be continually interviewed by journalists straight out of college with no financial or industry experience, you can advise him or her to up sticks and go and work in China.

Flagged up on FT Tilt recently was the news that “China has issued a set of regulations to ban disqualified columnists and inexperienced reporters from reporting on securities and futures”. As of the beginning of next month “Journalists must have either worked in securities and futures organizations or covered finance and economics for at least two years before they report on securities and futures.”

A report on the subject apparently urges newspapers to “take caution” when covering news that may undermine market stability and check their facts when reporting on regulatory matters.

Quite right too!

Putting your best foot forward

There is an argument which says that the media and consumers are sceptical towards stories on the value or ‘good’ work that corporate organisations bring to society. This obviously makes for a challenging environment to pitch this kind of story as part of a communications team. As Bob Diamond, CEO of Barclays, said at the Treasury select committee last week “We’ve done a very poor job over the years in explaining how… investment banks contribute to society”. Is it time for banks and other corporations to shout a little louder about the charitable and other CSR work that they do?

We thought we’d try and find some evidence of these good corporate deeds – here are a few examples:

• Since 2002 HSBC has funded the TEAK programme which supports students from low-income families in gaining access to top high schools. 
• In 2003, IBM contributed $142.8 million, at market value, in equipment, technical services and cash to not-for-profit organizations and educational institutions worldwide. 
• In 2005 alone, the Royal Bank of Scotland Group invested £56.2 million in the community.
• Diageo established and supports the Tomorrow’s People Trust which has helped over 400,000 unemployed and young people in deprived neighbourhoods.
• Tesco dedicates 1% of pre-tax profits to good causes and supports charities as well as staff fundraising.

(Figures taken from www.csrglobe.com)

Unsurprisingly; there are examples of corporations pulling their CSR-weight (not to mention the jobs and tax revenue generated as a result of their operations). Do the wider public know about these good deeds? Do they care? Or do they just see the bonus and profits related headlines and ignore the rest? It may be both, particularly if Bob Diamond is right about banks needing to explain their contribution to society better.

In reality, coverage of CSR activities is often restricted to trade titles (Ethical Corporation magazine is a specific example), so those in the industry are aware but those outside the industry may not be. Of course advertising and sponsorship often highlights CSR efforts e.g. Barclays cycle hire scheme in London, free travel on the tube on New Year’s Eve and Virgin’s London Marathon. 

What can be done to boost public awareness of CSR? The answer has to be PR, but not necessarily just the traditional forms. Aviva recently used a huge social media and online presence to launch their ‘You are the Big Picture’ campaign, which saw participants’ images projected onto iconic buildings around the World. Each picture donated by the public triggered a £1 donation from Aviva to Save the Children.

The above examples reflect a tiny proportion of the companies that undertake CSR activity and yet even this information wasn’t very easy to find. It would seem that more does need to be done to demonstrate the range of ‘extra curricular’ value that corporations, big and small, bring to wider society.

While shouting about the charity work you do or how much money you donate to good causes is not a very English attitude to take it’s probably time companies shouted a bit louder to get this message across to the public. Particularly when the spotlight is being shone on corporate governance and the integrity of public figures.

Will Edwards – www.bluewoodtraining.co.uk – January 2011 

2010: A Year in Comms

PR Week’s look at the biggest communicarions stories of 2010 is worth a read.

It’s easy to forget what a tumultuous year it was. From the tragedy of the BP oil spill right through to the banality of John Terry’s infidelity, it was a tester of a year for many comms teams and media spokespeople.

Some did brilliantly. Take Nick Clegg’s performance in the first live televised debate between the three party leaders – it transformed his popularity rating overnight. Others didn’t fair so well – think Naomi Campbell, Vince Cable and of course Tony Hayward.

Have a read for yourself: http://www.prweek.com/uk/news/1046830/Year-review-2010-year-comms/