The very basics of PR are built around Media Relations and the Press Officer or Media Speak Person, given the authority to speak on behalf of a company, organization or a celebrity. This role has been taken over by Social Media experts and managers when conversations take place online in the social sphere. And usually they lack PR or media relations experience.

The PR disaster surrounding Bill Cosby and the ongoing rape allegations that actually started out in 2006 already, took a new turn when his Social Media team created the hashtag CosbyMeme# in order for people to start Twitter conversations and sort things out. And people did… But not at all in the way that Cosby’s social media advisors thought.

Here is a moviepilot.com article by Alicia Garuso describing the mistake in a very good way, putting the finger on the problem: Lack of experienced PR advisors in the Digital/Social team planning and managing Cosby’s online reputation. Read the article 

When new faces turn old hierarchies upside down, the press is quick to dub them knights for challenging authorities, although reporters claim to stand in “Third position”, watching the fight from the side, representing his/her readers in a neutral way.

But there is a reason. Another important factor for storytellers is at play: Identification. News editors know there audience extremely well. And most news consumers are easier to identify themselves with the underdog, the rebellion hero. Therefore reporters tend to always favor the challenger. 

The American Taxi app “Uber” has turned the traditional taxi business upside down and earned enormous global media coverage and cool in less than five years. And taxi company owners have fought back of course, trying to win media’s attention and get their story out. But if you can’t beat the new business, beat the creator. Well used method by politicians and lawyers. And in order to survive this public face-off you need to listen to experienced and skilled PR advisors. Unless you are a true asshole using bad methods this battle can only be won if you take the lead, use your media relations with key influencers, and foresee the opponent’s next step.

The Economist is asking the question: Is the founder of Uber, Emil Michael, a hero or a villain? Read the Economist article

The music industry has been on a bumpy journey for many years now. Still some of the artists continue to launch new music with high amount of creative in order to make them relevant in the digital space. PR with high creative is evolving quickly to become the single key method for Pop Music Marketing.

Wu Tang Klan put the one and only album copy in a silver box and sent it off to museums. The next album will be launched with eight songs embedded in 3000 portable loudspeakers.

Things like these make people talk and share. And since the call to action only is a download click, the online space has become the do or die for artists.

Jeremy Wilson at OgilvyOne pulled together the Music Marketing Standouts for 2014 in AdAge: Read the article