Below, you will see the guest post from Philip Murphy, communications chief of a Fortune 100 company. I don’t know Mr. Murphy, and I am not sure I remember which company employs him, but I heartily endorse what he has to say. Writing well requires clarity of thought. Expressing thoughts clearly, working through their implications […]
One of the challenges speechwriters confront is capturing our clients’ voice — at an immediate level, meaning writing in a way that sounds like the client at hand, but also at a meta-level: writing the way real people really talk, and about the things real people really care about. In that regard, I was struck […]
As ads go, they don’t come any slicker than this. An actor who looks like everyone’s country uncle looks up from his morning paper and coffee and says, “I don’t know about you, but I’m getting tired of the Big Oil companies always bellyaching we can’t afford clean energy.” He then goes on to hit […]
Last week, it leaked out that GM is looking to sell Chinese cars in America. Today’s Washington Post headline pretty much sums up the dismal state of affairs, “As Detroit Crumbles, China Emerges as Auto Epicenter.” The Post quoted a China-booster as saying, “When we look back 20 years from now, the year 2009 is likely to be […]
Stories of incredulity, anger, and dismay are rolling in from around the country as Chrysler dealers open up the UPS envelope that tells them whether or not they’ll still be part of the dealer family. Without getting into the rightness or wrongness of the need to shrink the number of dealerships, I’ve been struck by […]
AP relates that Chinese media is reporting that GM plans to begin exporting vehicles from China to the U.S. within two years, ramping up sales to more than 50,000 by 2014. The lack of public and political preparation for this major move by GM is somewhat stunning . . . and somewhat in character for […]
One of the most powerful communication moments during the presidential campaign was when then-candidate Barack Obama, in his extraordinary speech on race relations, told the story of Ashley Baia, a young volunteer who had gotten involved in the Obama campaign because of her experience as a little girl, when she ate mustard and relish sandwiches […]
The White House Writers Group is hiring. Here’s the write-up: A small D.C. communications/PR firm, founded by Republicans, is looking for an entry level associate who is creative, a self starter and good at multi-tasking. A well qualified applicant will be able to handle reporting to multiple people within the firm and juggling several projects […]
Mark Davis’ piece in U.S. News today suggests that the proper historical precedent for today’s crisis may not be the Great Depression of our parents’ and grandparents’ time, but the Long Depression that began with the Panic of 1873 and continued through the remainder of the 19th century. It’s not a heartening comparison, as that […]
It’s usually not a good thing when a member of a royal family has everyone a-twitter, but in this case, we’re not talking about providing tabloid fodder. Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah of Jordan, who last year broke new cross-cultural ground with her “Send Me Your Stereotypes” endeavor on YouTube (and won YouTube’s first Visionary […]
The Wall Street Journal turned the tables on ten college presidents for an article appearing today, asking them to complete one of the essays from their respective schools’ applications: The “applicants” were told not to exceed 500 words (though most did), and to accept no help from public-relations people or speechwriters.* Friends and family could advise […]
Leave it to Forrest Gump to remind us that modern public relations rests on candor. The reality check function of PR has been a truism of management theory from the beginning of the 20th Century. Now actor Tom Hanks is publicly praising his PR agent . . . for simply telling him the truth about […]
When President Obama requested prime network time yet again last week, it meant some TV shows got bumped. Among them, Better Off Ted, a new ABC comedy struggling for ratings. Better Off Ted is a funny look inside the fictional Veridian Dynamics, a mega-industrial company in the GE mold, but with highly questionable ethics. Each […]
April 30, 2009 – 11:29 am
Here’s a calendar-worthy event for Washingtonians and visitors planning to be in the city next weekend: Politics on Film is the first-ever film festival to award jury prizes to movies that focus on themes of politics or policy. And if you think making movies about politics and policy is sort of like dressing up an ugly […]
I’ve posted on Maira Kalman before because I think she’s so clever and creative, and because I love the way she uses her art to illuminate her ideas. Check out her latest piece for the New York Times — a tribute to justice, brave women, spring in Washington, and self-confidence.
