Which side prevails in the U.S. government shutdown public relations battle depends to a significant degree on how well each side successfully frames their stakeholders’ sacrifices as sacred. rimtailing.blogspot.com/2023/03/sacr...

"Direct communication from CEOs builds more trust" This is actually not new, but every time I see a story like this with data that might help coax reluctant executive clients into proactive leadership communication, I like to share it for the purposes of inspiration. www.axios.com/2025/10/02/t...

This company has been a blight on the profession of public relations forever, and is apparently using AI to scale up its awfulness. (It’s not just UK media they bombard, though I’ve long tried to block all contact from them.) pressgazette.co.uk/news/automat...

An article about President Eisenhower's press secretary, James Hagerty, who set the stage for modern presidential media coverage. www.college.columbia.edu/cct/issue/fa...

"Canadians Firmly Reject Idea of American Statehood" canadianpolling.substack.com/p/canadians-...

Yep. We're at 20-plus years of social media. It's a massively important part of marketing & public relations, and it requires a broad range of skills. Often it's a team of people. The "intern" thing hasn't been true for a long time, if it ever was. --someone who was part of a social media team

Pulling the plug on an interview in progress is seldom a good look. In this case, the impression left concerning temperament is not ideal. Petulance doesn’t promote a positive image.

98% of modern politics regardless of the country is performative public relations that people devour like beer commercials.

The best examples of emotional contagion is infants starting to cry when they hear another person crying (knowing nothing about the context). But could it simply be an aversion to noise? And is contagion stronger for neg emotions than for pos emotions? onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Smoky clouds incoming

Dome Tower (1977)

"Karoline Leavitt is one of the most trustworthy human beings I know" = Pam Bondi must therefore be one of the least trustworthy human beings we know

The Palliser Hotel (1914) The Calgary Tower (1968)

The door to the ‘Communication Room’ is locked tight.

Eighth Avenue Place (2011) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eighth_...

“Climate misinformation is spreading wildly – aided by public relations firms – even as climate change worsens and the risks mount” theconversation.com/pr-firms-are...

Today is the 100th anniversary of the first transmission of a recognizable moving human face on television (October 2, 1925). 📺

Bow Valley Square (1982) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bow_Val...

Today is our first day without federal funding. Our commitment to providing trusted, objective journalism hasn't wavered. For 50 years, PBS News has helped you understand the world and make informed decisions. This mission drives our work every day, and your support of PBS News makes it possible.

This current American presidential administration is run by people who are quite obviously mentally ill, and we need to start talking about that.

Only 29% polled have a positive view of the “Advertising and PR” business sector. That’s not good enough for an industry that promotes image and protects reputation for its clients. The lack of ethical standards, spineless leadership and too much dishonesty may help explain this sad situation.

With the realignment of the U.S. military to the western hemisphere, Trump’s 51st state rhetoric is back. After more domestic suppression using the military occurs in America, will Canada remain on his annexationist wish list? Regardless, economic coercion and political undermining will continue.

“We can do this the easy way or the hard way” – American FCC Chair Brendan Carr, September 18 “This can be done the easy way, or it can be done the hard way” – Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, September 29 #easywayorhardway

Scientists say X (formerly Twitter) has lost its professional edge — and Bluesky is taking its place

Flags of freedom

This day is done

Closed captioning on? It’s a generational thing: A third often use subtitles or closed captioning when watching movies or television. Younger adults are more likely than older adults to regularly do so. (AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research) apnorc.org/projects/clo...

A very Canadian highway sign

Some photos from my day of discovery exploring the Athabasca oil sands.

Structure of social media sites 'inherently lead to something problematic' www.cbc.ca/radio/quirks...

Global public relations agency We. Communications lays off staff in Singapore

Western Canadian Place (1983) www.skyscrapercenter.com/building/wes...

They're calling it the smartest public relations campaign of all time

As a comms pro and as an autism parent, I was curious about Tylenol’s PR response in light of Trump's comments today and see they are succinctly addressing this on their website in FAQ format. "Have questions about recent media coverage of TYLENOL®? Click here..." www.tylenol.com/frequently-a...

Anyone who has ever taken a public relations course has read a case study about how Tylenol responded to the tampering. Think there is gonna be a new one after today.

Cool and crisp nightfall

JPMorgan’s alleged relationship with Jeffrey Epstein illustrates why it’s a bad idea to hire lawyers to handle an organization’s reputation instead of public relations professionals -- Fraser Seitel odwpr.us/4mqCUzK

Slightly smoky city skyline view

Calgary Tower (1968) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calgary...

The blandness of algorithmic TV: “How entertainment produced by streaming giants is quite nothingy these days” Enshittification also applies to services which, like Netflix, are awash in forgettably mediocre programming. www.thenewworld.co.uk/contributor/... @thenewworldmag.bsky.social

“Journalism is printing something that someone does not want printed. Everything else is public relations.” ― George Orwell

Hewlett Packard Tower (1975) www.skyscrapercenter.com/calgary/hewl...

A complaint is not supposed to be “a public forum for vituperation and invective” or “a megaphone for public relations.” www.cnn.com/2025/09/19/m...

This kind of insanely restrictive policy sounds familiar from my days doing media relations in the People’s Republic of China.

First Canadian Centre (1982) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_C...

"Governments may be underestimating how much their authority is constrained by citizens’ desire to stay online. Social media has become crucial for activism and expression — youth-led riots in Nepal last week toppled the gov’t in part over an unpopular social ban.” www.semafor.com/newsletter/0...

The story says "Stagwell declined ADWEEK’s request for comment" (ironic for a PR group), but I wonder if the group's apparently pro-Trump founder Mark Penn will ultimately need to address this publicly?

Tech companies have, without permission, downloaded 15.8 million videos from more than 2 million channels to create AI products capable of generating video.

Altius Centre (1972) www.skyscrapercenter.com/calgary/alti...

For most of my career, I’ve been a commentator – including as a media pundit – on crisis communications. Reminder: most PR disasters are not caused by disastrous public relations. What does cause them? Arrogance, disrespect, ego, entitlement, greed, hubris, incompetence, narcissism and selfishness.