Analysis of "This is PR..." (part 27)

Tactics and Techniques
An Analysis by:
Charles Lamson

Promotions

The notion that media attention follows good promotions is not new. Edward L. Bernays said that the idea is to make news - to create really newsworthy events. Pseudoevents have earned some "bad PR" for promotions. and of course, promotions themselves often earn a bad name for PR. In promotions you see PR's closest ties to marketing - so close that some observers have called promotions "marketing PR." You are even likely to hear a component of makreting described as "advertising selling and public relations." Sometimes you have to sell an idea or concept in order to sell a product. Bernays promoted the "American breakfast" of bacon and eggs to sell his client's product, bacon ("Thid is PR: The Realities of Public Relations 9th ed.;" by Doug Newsom, Judy VanSlyke Turk and Dean Kruckeberg; pg. 284).

When you see an ad that focuses on an event or a problem look for the publicity. And when you see the publicity such as stories about champagne around New York or exotic recipes using particular fruits in newspapers and magazines, look for the advertising. Sometimes there is also direct contact with the product itself such as food samples in grocery stores. It is all promotion (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 284).

Often the only place you have to look is up. The skies are crowded with blimps, including ones you can see at night. The familiar Goodyear dirigible, a 195-foot ship has smaller competitors, the 123-foot long Lightships that American Blimp Association began building in 1990. The design staff works on computers to build the airborn billboards, that are lighted from inside the new ships, compete with the three Goodyear ships that the company made, a Fuji ship, that was made in England and a Florida blimp-builder's ship leased to H.P. Hood a New England dairy products company. At sporting events, the ships have camera platforms for network crews and the networks also insist that the blimp sponsor buy airtime. The floating ads are becoming increasingly popular (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 284).

The Goodyear Blimp
American Blimp Corporation Lightship
Fuji ship

Image Marketing   An image is the impression of a person, company or institution that is held by one or more publics. An image is not a picture; that is, it is not a detailed and accurate representation. Rather, it is a few details softened with the fuzziness of perception.

Image marketing reaches out to publics and tries to build a relationship beyond the product or service, but usually related to it. Sometimes customers develop their own relationships and it is not always what the company had in mind. Examples are the nicknames customers give products or companies. For years Coca-Cola resisted being called "Coke." "Mickey D's" an "FedEx" are two more good examples (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 284).

Publicity Spin-Offs   Whenever a company engages in a conflict, the incident will be covered and the publicity is likely to be negative. A more desirable publicity spin-off occurred when Revlon Inc. introduced a new stock offer at the New York Stock Exchange. The company invited in supermodels Cindy Crawrford and Claudia Schiffer. The two women first toured the trading floor, then went to the press gallery for interviews with the likes of the "Today" show among others. One stock trader told The Wall Street Journal that, "Guys had their suits pressed, they got new shirts, they put on cologne." The traders were also wearing lapel buttons with a photo of the models on them. The spin-off coverage was in the Journal, as well as in a number of other publications and on television (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 284).

Celebrity Spin-Offs   Promotion planners often look for a big name to attract media attention. It is not a novel idea, but sometimes it can result in negative publicity that has nothing to do with the product. For example, the celebrity's private life may make the news in a way that hurts the promotion, such as when athletes are involved in drugs. Advertising has used celebrities frequently enough to have a long history of good and bad experiences. Although celebrities can increase recognition, they cannot rescue a product, and the wrong celebrity, such as one exposed in compromising situations, may actually harm it. (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 284)

End

The Goodyear Blimp

American Blimp Corporation Lightship

Fuji ship

Analysis of "This is PR..." (part 26)

Communication Channels and Media (part 1)

An Analysis by:

Charles Lamson

Publicity Through Mass Media

Publicity prepared for the mass media is totally uncontrolled. Information about an institution, product or person that appears as news in newspapers and magazines or on radio or television is used at the discretion of news editors. Thus it may be used in any context or not at all ("This is PR: The Realities of Public Relations 9th ed.;" by Doug Newsom, Judy VanSlyke Turk and Dean Kruckeberg; pg 247).

Information reaches the print news media through many routes but three are basic: news releases, coverage of an event and interviews. To be acceptable, a news release must be written in the style used by the particular medium and it must be presented in a form suitable to the technology of the medium. Awareness of the technological demands of each medium and it must be presented in a form suitable to the technology of the medium. Awareness of the technological demands of each medium is also important if you expect coverage of an event. A speech may be an event and certainly a news conference is, but an interview is not. The public relations person may formally arrange for a reporter to interview someone in a position of authority. Or the reporter may interview the PR person as representative or spokesperson for the institution. This informal situation - it may be a phone call or a visit by media representatives - can be an organization's most significant source of publicity. Generally, it is the source preferred and used most often by the media which often ignore events and throw away publicity releases (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 247).

More and more often media interviews are handled by the chief executive officer (CEO) with the aid of the PR person. The PR person's job therefore extends to preparing the CEO to be an effective and efficient spokesperson. Some PR agencies, notably Burson-Marsteller, have become specialists in providing such training for their clients. Much of the bad publicity an organization gets can be attributed to errors by management: poor planning, ineffective communication or bad policies. Not getting any publicity at all however is probably the fault of the publicist. News people say they throw away 80 to 90 percent of the news releases they get , because they are not usable. Not usable may mean the stories are not complete, inaccurate, not timely or just do not fit the news need (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 247).

Getting information to news media in a timely way usually means delivering the news electronically. It also means that the material in the release had better agree with other information on the same topic available to the editors online . To avoid bad publicity and nonpublicity, you should always observe the following six rules:

1. Make sure that the information you offered is appropriate to the medium in content and style, and is timely.
2. Check all facts carefully for accuracy, and doublecheck for missing information.
3. To deal with any questions that may arise, give the name and phone number of the person newspeople should contact.
4. An image, digital or printed, must be accompanied by the name, address and phone number of the supplier; most important, however, is the caption. However, since sending photos digitally has become the norm, the information/caption must be sent in a way that can be easily associated with the correct digital image.
5. Never call to find out why a story or photo did not appear; and certainly do not ask, as you submit an item, when it will appear.
6. Do not send out a note with mailed releases asking for clippings. Newspapers do not run clipping bureaus (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 249).

End

Analysis of "This is PR..." (part 25)

Strategic Management in PR Practice (part 3)

by:

Charles Lamson

Monitoring, Measuring and Reporting

Even when many activities and countless forms of communication occur within an organization the public relations department usually occupies the best position for monitoring what is or is not happening and for evaluating how different publics are responding to various actions, messages and representatives of the organization. Technology is helpful in this process. Email messages can indicate responses as can a look at alternate Websites critical of the company and blogs are another resource.

Many organizational executives have been launching their own blogs to let their feelings as well as reasoning be known. Some of these, like opinion page pieces and letters to the editor, come from the public relations department as a part of managing the institution's message. Checking for responses to these is another aspect of issues or environmental monitoring. Like other units in the organization, the public relations department is responsible for evaluating the results of its own efforts. At budget time, someone will always ask, "What did you do? How much did it cost? What did we get for the investment? How cost-effective was it? How did it contribute to the bottom line?" However, in its evaluations, the public relations department is more interested in answering questions along the lines of, "What do our publics think of us? How does this match with what we think of ourselves? How are events, situations, attitudes, etc. going to affect us in the future?" Both types of monitoring and evaluation need to go on and both help the organization's leadership plan give day-to-day direction to the organization ("This is PR: The Realities of Public Relations 9th ed.;" by Doug Newsom, Judy VanSlyke Turk and Dean Kruckeberg; pgs. 219-220). 

Several commercially available computer software programs can be used to conduct a public relations situation analysis - setting objectives, writing a budget, developing a strategy, deciding on tactics, then evaluating results and reporting them.

In a global environment there is an element that perhaps could be included as part of diversity, but seems to stand alone because it involves understanding and respecting other cultures. That management role is preparing public relations practitioners for international assignments and sending them for long term stays. It is not always easy to send public relations people on long-term international assignments, but these are valuable to the organization in two ways. The person builds relationships with individuals in the other country and personalizes the organization, thereby extending the reach and influence as well as giving it some resources on which to draw. The other benefit is the person comes back to the organization with some real insight into another culture to share internally in the decision-making process. This often prevents some costly errors in judgement. The critical factor in this process is preparation for the assignment and giving the person the long-distance support needed to make the experience a good one for the one assigned and his or her spouse (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 220).

Issue Monitoring and Managing for Organizations

Watching the global horizons for issues that seem to be developing is one of the most important functions of strategic public relations management. Sometimes it is just a news story about an incident or a proposed policy that catches a sharp practitioner's eye. It could be a rumor in an email or some comments in a chat room. That kind of environmental scanning is both an overwhelming and necessary task. What a practitioner is looking for is something that could affect the company's products, one of the public or the organization's way of doing business. Proposed regulations or suggested policies, sometimes just political "trial baloons" can capture public attention. The PR person needs to notice first before the nugget of information becomes an issue around which public opinion is formed (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 221).

 A public relations practitioner cannot depend on catching each warning, regardless of how sensitive that person's antenna. So PR people work with others in the organization to see the organization from their perspectives. Obviously the risk-management division is helpful because experts there evaluate situations in terms of financial risks and insurance hazards. Attorneys are alert to rulings in new court cases that could affect the organization's regulatory environment. Because the law covers many specialties it is important to touch base with all of the specialties that the company calls on periodically for representation. Marketing is always sensitive to competitive threats and new product challenges. Transportation keeps up-to-date in delivery systems and this is much more complex now since many deliveries cross borders. Human resources is another area because those managers worry about compensation, health costs, policies that affect families, recruiting practices and a host of other things that affect individuals, such as fairness and equity issues. Depending on the organization, research may be yet another place where issues can be identified. Finding the issues is just the beginning. After identification comes monitoring. Each of these issues has to be watched as its potential threat to the organization increases or decreases. once the issue develops, publics line up on different sides of it and even new publics form around the issue. This is a sensitive management area because what benefits one public may be a disadvantage to another. The best management can hope for is some honest brokering with the different publics. So even though one public is not willing to concede a position at least it understands management's position and is sympathetic enough not to actively oppose it (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 221).

The best PR managers keep top managers aware of issues. The balance is to keep management from being blindsided without worrying them with constant warnings that fail to materialize. If PR managers are not judicious in their notices to top management, when they see a really serious issue that could precipitate a crisis, management may consider their warning just another alert with no substance (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 222).

End

Analysis of "This is PR..." (part 24)

Strategic Management in PR Practice (part 2)

by:

Charles Lamson

The Organization's Reason for Being

Mission statements are the origin for what an organization wants to accomplish. Expressing what the organization sees as its reason and its role and place in society. Any organization's public relations efforts exist to support the overall mission of the organization   For that reason any public relations department's development of an annual plan, either for the organization or for the PR department, has to start with the organization's mission statement or organizational purpose. The way the plan develops from there often depends on the nature of the organization, but the elements of the public relations plan remain the same ("This is PR: The Realities of Public Relations, 9th ed." by Doug Newsom, Judy VanSlyke Turk and Dean Kruckeberg; pg. 216).

One role of the public relations department is to assist with the evaluation of an organization's mission. This may include revising and rewriting, or perhaps conceptualizing and writing a mission statement. It must be done as part of PR's policy-making role as counsel to management (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 216)

Most organizations develop their mission statement early in their existence, but at least once every 3 to 5 years, the statement deserves a careful and systematic review by internal and special external publics. While calling for a mission statement review is the prerogative of top management, the PR department is responsible for organizing and planning the review. One outcome of a mission statement review is likely to be a rewritten or modified statement. Even if the mission statement is kept intact, internal publics and critical external publics must agree on this outcome of the review. The mission statement review is generally followed by a review of the long-range objectives by which the organization intends to implement the mission (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 216-217).

Mission statements set the tone for the organization, establish its character and define the parameters of its activities. They may be long philosophical commentaries on the nature of the enterprise or they may consist of one or two simple paragraphs (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 217).

In addition to the mission statement, organizations write vision statements - descriptions about themselves indicating their self-image. These vision statements are the way the organization wants its various publics to see them. Additionally some organizations have core value statements that suggest its ethics. Another statement you will find is an identifying statement that is objective in substance and just tells what the organization is and does. If you are watching public television you are likely to hear this identifying statement; "This is a public broadcast station, funded in part by viewers like you." You will find publicly held companies identity statements in their annual and quarterly reports, and in reports from analysts and brokers, when you inquire about the company's stock. Many organizations use these identifying statements as the last paragraph in news releases, knowing the copy editor will often delete the last sentence, but that sometimes it will appear. The idea is for repetition of this identification to help reinforce knowledge of the organization's role. Look for this in the last paragraph of stories about nonprofit organizations in your local newspaper (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 217).

All these public statements guide what the organization presents as what it wants to accomplish. The terms, goals and objectives are defined as synonyms in the dictionary but are not used interchangeably by organizations. The origins of using goals as long term and objectives as short term and measurable came from advertising, the widely used Colley DAGMAR process. You find this in advertisement managing texts (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 217).

Organizational management books are a little less clear on whether its goals or objectives that should be measured. The aspirations of individuals and different units of the organization are the collective from which organizational goals are agreed upon, set and achieved. The success of individuals and units is compared to how much each contributes to the organization's achievement of the tasks it has set for itself (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 217).

The objectives element came from revising a 1950s concept of "management by objectives" that mixed up the two terms. The 1980s revision includes the notion of setting goals that are worked toward as part of the process of arriving at some final assessment of accomplishment. While admitting that the terms are often used differently by different organizations, the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) has concluded that goals should come first with objectives following as a simplification for use of the terms in its accreditation examination. In either case, the subset is what must be measurable. Generally, long term efforts are the strategic ones while short term represents the tactics (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 217-218).

With the integration of advertising and public relations efforts on the rise, to keep out of the conflict, think about what you want to have happen in the long term and about the short-term efforts that will get you there. The long-term measurement is obvious. You either get there or you do not. However, how much you fall short has some qualities of measurement to it. Computer models often help organizations determine what the major contributing factors might be. Models are also useful in helping to determine what factors need to be considered in taking the steps to get there, because they can weigh different variables in different ways (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 218).

PR in Practice

When Johnson & Johnson turned up at the top of the heap in a 1999 article in The Wall Street Journal titled, "The Best Corporate Reputations in America," the company credited its mission statement "Our Credo," created in 1943 by chairman Robert Wood Johnson (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 218).

If you have read about the Tylenol crisis, then you know "Our Credo" was also cited as being what governed the company's response in picking up all of the product in a massive and costly recall. It is posted on the website and hangs in all corporate offices in 52 countries. At the corporate headquarters it is etched in an 8-foot high limestone carving. The Credo says: "We believe our first responsibility is to the doctors, nurses and patients to mothers and fathers and all others who use our products and services. In meeting their needs, everything we do must be of the highest quality" (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 216).

As The Wall Street Journal stated: in 1943, putting customers first and employees second was innovative. In an accompanying piece The Journal also cites "trust" and "reliability" as the major ingredients in building and keeping a good reputation (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 216).

End

Analysis of "This is PR..." (PART 23)

Strategic Management in PR Practice (part 1)

by:

Charles Lamson

Role and Character of the Organization

To simplify today's issue of The Rant with Charles Lamson. let us consider organizations falling into one of three categories; government, profit and nonprofit. Of course there are many variations in each of these. Dramatic differences are found in the levels and branches of government, the profit-making organization that deals directly with consumers versus one that does not, the nonprofit organization that is strictly charitable such as a foundation versus one that provides services. ("This is PR: The Realities of Public Relations, 9th ed."; by Doug Newsom, Judy VanSlyke Turk and Dean Kruckeberg; pg. 216).

Government at any level is always involved with the public agenda because it serves a constituency. In democracies it serves at the will of the people which means power and politics are a part of all decisions for profit-making companies. The key word is profit. The bottom line is always important, because making money is the reason the company exists, and investors depend on getting some returns, if the company is publicly held. There is a big difference though because of laws affecting the public obligations of these companies. If a company is a nonprofit it is subjected to much more scrutiny than either of the other two types because people have contributed out of trust alone, without any expectations of /services or products in return. Violation of public trust always damages an organization but especially nonprofits (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 216)..

The communicators climate within each of these organizations  is significant too. The communication climate is tied to top management style rather than to the type of the organization. Some top managers operate on a need to know basis and are reluctant to have open communication within the organization. They know information is powerful and want a tight hold on it. Other top managements want information shared throughout the organization so informed decisions can be made individually and collectively. Communication at the first extreme is very top down with little communication coming from employees back up. Policies are likely to be strictly enforced. In the open communication environment, information comes from internal dialogue facilitated by management. Employees are empowered to make independent decisions. and although they are expected to report these decisions, management supports employees in taking the initiative (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 216).

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The communication climate is effected by the organization's core values, usually set forward in its mission statement. The corporate culture comes from this, again attributable to top management. The corporate culture affects everyone in the organization. Even the lowest level employee is likely to be told "this is how we do things." What that may mean in a rigid communication system is, "Don't deviate." In a looser corporate culture, it might mean, "Go for it" (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 216).

Internal public relations people as employees are most affected by the tone of management, but outside public relations practitioners working under contract are too. Even when a public relations firm has been hired at great cost it may find it nearly impossible to get the information they need in a closed information system. If the PR firm is going to do the job, it has to depend almost entirely on outside information. In a more open communication climate. The firm can bring outside information inside for verification, and find employees in all areas accessible and willing to say what they think. Needles to say, both planning and troubleshooting are much easier in that situation. The advantage the outside firm has comes from having more independence. Although no firm wants to lose a valued client, an outside firm can "walk away" from a bad situation more easily than an employee can (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 216).

End

Analysis of "This is PR..." (part 22)

PR and the Law (part 4)

by:

Charles Lamson

Right of Privacy

The right of privacy applies only to people, not to organizations. Violations of the law take four forms (1) intrusion into solitude, (2) portraying someone in a false light ; (3) public disclosure of private information and (4) appropriation - using a person's name or likeness for commercial purposes without the person's consent). Unlike the other three appropriation does not have to breach decency or cause mental anguish or ridicule. It is the privacy violation that causes most PR problems. Model and photo releases are usually obtained in order to avoid these problems ("This is PR: The Realities of Public Relations, 9th ed."; by Doug Newsom, Judy VanSlyke Turk and Dean Kruckeberg; pg. 203).

Photos taken at an event for publicity purposes may later be used innocently or ignorantly in a brochure about the event. The photo might even be used in an ad perhaps because it just happens to be available. Using such photos in an ad can lead to legal problems. Furthermore, in a publicity situation, people may not be aware that their picture is being taken and for any number of reasons may not wish to have their photograph used (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 203).

Most attorneys for public relations people advise that releases should always be obtained. In most states, consent is the best defense; typically newsworthiness is a more difficult rationale to defend. For example, employee pictures and names can be used internally but if distribution is external newsworthiness is lost as a legal defense. Even photos for internal use must be germane to the job - for example, giving information about promotions - or an employee who has not given consent may sue for violation of privacy. Furthermore, use of an employee's name or image must end when the person leaves the organization's employment (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 203).

Employees must be treated both as employees and as private individuals who should not be forced to pose for annual report pictures if they do not want to. The company does not have the right to use their photo without permission. Furthermore, if they leave the organization and have not signed a permission form for the use of their picture, using it anyway can create a serious legal problem (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 203).

What is of increasing concern, though, are efforts by law enforcement to get records of what people read. Many states have laws that protect librarians, although not booksellers, who can be subpoenaed.

End

Analysis of "This is PR..." (part 21)

PR and the Law (part 3)

by:

Charles Lamson

Defamation, Libel and Slander

There are two kinds of libel: civil and criminal. Libel (written or otherwise public defamation) was originally confined to statements made in the print media. However, now it applies to statements made in the broadcast media as well. The courts have interpreted libel as a more serious offense than slander (spoken defamation).

Civil Libel

Civil libel is defined as tortious (non-criminal) defamation of character by malicious publication tending to tarnish the reputation of a living person so as to expose him or her to public hatred, contempt or ridicule. It also means injuring the person in his o her trade or profession. Use of alleged or other subtle qualifications offers no protection. Civil libel law encompasses all forms of defamatory communication about a person's  character including headlines, taglines and all artwork, photography, and cartoons). It also applies to errors that may result in libel such as incorrect initials or the wrong name with the wrong photo If the defamation occurs in an accurately quoted statement that contains a libelous statement, the person or medium publishing the statement may still be held responsible ("This is PR: The Realities of Public Relations, 9th ed.," by Doug Newsom, Judy VanSlyke Turk, Dean Kruckeberg; pg. 200).

In libel cases involving public officials and public figures, "actual malice" must be proved. However, do not count on plaintiffs being held to that standard proof  Definitions of all three designations - libel, malice and public figures - remains subject to individual interpretation in the courts (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 200).

Office memos, letters, telegrams and broadcasting scripts are subject to libel laws just as newsletters and brochures are. Anyone who takes part in the procurement, composition, and publication of libelous material shares responsibility for the libel although the original publisher is not responsible for subsequent publications by others. Even persons who bring the matter to the attention of anyone connected with possible publication are subject to being sued for libel copying and distributing libelous piece can result in additional action against the person or persons responsible in the organization (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 200).

Slander is spoken defamation. It does not always apply to broadcast. It does not always apply to broadcast defamation however because multiple copies of a script may have been produced. Thus, even though the copy is eventually spoken, the offending scripts constitute publication and are therefor libelous, not slanderous (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 200).

Criminal Libel

Criminal libel (breach of peace or treason) involves inciting to riot or some other form of violence against the government or publishing an obscenity or blasphemy (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 200).

Defense Against Libel Charges

1. Truth: substantial proof that is admissible in court.
2. Privilege: A fair and true report of a public official or judicial proceeding.
3. Fair comment: statements made in an honest belief that they are true; also statements with some  element of exaggeration or irony in them that nonetheless do not overstep the bounds of reasonable civility. However it is up to the jury to decide the issue of "fairness." Guidelines are (1) sufficient public interest in the subject addressed by the author, (2) Intent to serve a just cause; (3) a reasonable and supportable conclusion drawn from the reported facts (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 200).

A constitutional protection, if not a defense, is provided by the Supreme Court's 1964 decision in New York Times vs. Sullivan. which involved publication by the The New York Times of a political advertisement that made various false allegations about a sheriff. The newspaper did not attempt to verify the substance of these allegations prior to publishing the ad. The Supreme Court's opinion in the case held that a public official must prove malice in a libel suit rather than some form of negligence. Trial court decides the question of "malice" but basically it involves an intent to harm. The primary significance of the The New York Times vs. Sullivan case  lies in its implication that the Supreme Court may look at libel judgments to make sure that constitutionally guaranteed freedoms have not been denied in addition because the defamatory statements in the case were contained in an advertisement. The court's decision signaled that the standard of proof it was imposing applied to commercial speech as well as to noncommercial speech  Finally the Supreme Court said it was limiting the power of all states to award libel damages for statements about public officials. In the court's opinion, actual malice was defined as either knoowledge that the libelous statement was false or a reckless disregard for whether it was true or false (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 200).

A subsequent case extended this requirement to "public figures" other than government officials - that is to anyone who has put him or herself in the public areana. 

To Be Continued...

End

Analysis of "This is PR..." (part 20)

PR and the Law (part 2)

by:

Charles Lamson

Copyrights

Copyrights cover written and recorded (audiovisual and photographic) work and are an intangible property right that begins when an original work is created. Copyright protects the specific expression of the idea. A person who wishes to copyright an original work must use the copyright symbol (c) on a substantial number of copies that are publicly distributed. In addition, two copies must be sent within three months of publication or recording to the Copyright Office of the Library of Congress with a request for an application for registration for copyright. Fees vary with the size of the work being copyrighted. The copyright owner has exclusive rights of reproduction, adaption, distribution, performance and display. Copyrights that were secured prior to January 1, 1978 are protected for 28 years and may be renewed during the 28th year for an additional 47 years. Public law 105-298 increased protection by 20 more years so new copyrights can extend for 95 years. Individual works not done "for hire" are automatically protected from the time of creation until 70 years after the author's death. Company publication copyrights are good for 75 years from the year of first publication or for 100 years from the year of a publication's creation if it is never published. When copyrights expire the words they covered enter the "public domain" and become available to all for any of the previously restricted purposes (This is PR: The Realities of Public Relations, 9th ed by Doug Newsom, Judy VanSlyke Turk and Dean Kruckeberg; pg. 197).

In 1983 to 1994, news media contended that video tapes of news broadcasts constitute a copyright infringement. Some companies regularly supply clips of television exposure to clients and other PR people capture their own. Implicated in the same issue is the legality of home video taping with VCRs. The same issue was resolved in 1984 when the Supreme Court ruled that Sony was not directly contributing to copyright infringement by making and selling VCRs since VCRs have substantial noninfringement uses (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeber; pg. 198).

The Copyright Office in 2000 approved protection of creative material on the Internet (companies have the right to limit access to their content when it is offered on the internet) and made illegal hacking around those protective barriers. At issue still are situations on the Internet where one website traps another's site in its site, known as "in-lining." The argument is that the presentation is not what the author intended (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeber; pg. 198).

Another protection has been developed in the digital age. Thirty nations have signed a treaty that protects written works and are close to agreement on a second treaty that will protect artists and musicians (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeber; pg. 198).

Copying or "copycatting" is a common problem in advertising; but because ideas cannot be copyrighted, there is seldom a legal case in this area. The form that ideas take, not the ideas themselves, is entitled to copyright. However, a 1989 Supreme Court decision enables advertisers to copyright individual ads separately from the copyright that covers the publication. The advertiser owns the copyright unless there is an explicit agreement to the contrary (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeber; pg. 198).

However, if the staff of the newspaper or magazine prepares the ad, the periodical owns the ad and can copyright it. Such an ad cannot be published elsewhere without permission from (and compensation to) the publication that created it. Of course, for the copyright to be enforceable, the published ad must carry a copyright notice (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeber; pg. 198).

End

Analysis of "This is PR..." (part 19).

PR and the Law (part 1)

by:

Charles Lamson

Ways to Stay Out of Trouble

Maintaining a good relationship with the organization's attorney is one of the best ways to stay out of trouble, but attorney Morton Simon identifies five others:

1. Know your business.
2. Ignore the vague line between advertising and PR, because the law often does.
3. Decide how far you are willing to go to run a risk of jail, fine, a cease and desist order or a corrective order.
4. Know your enemy, especially which government agency is likely to go after you. It helps to get on the agency's mailing list and read all speeches its administrators give. Often these provide the first hint of troubles for your company or industry.
5. Recognize your individual responsibility for your actions - none of this "I only did what the boss said." The law will not look at it that way,

Simon notes three general types of legal involvements. The first consists of meeting federal, state and local government agencies' regulations on everything from antitrust matters to building permits  (This is PR: The Realities of Public Relations; 9th ed.; by Doug Newsom, Judy VanSlyke Turk and Dean Kruckeberg; pg. 178).

The second consists of government related activities - activities that hinge on laws or regulations such as those governing libel and slander; right of privacy; contempt of court; ownership of ideas including copyright, trademarks and patents; publicity; political views, registering political activity as lobbying and representing foreign governments; contract disputes; stockholder actions; fair trade problems; use of photos of individuals and groups; preparation of publicity releases; advertising copy; games and giveaway promotions; and financial collections (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 178).

The third type consists of contracts with clients and suppliers of goods and services. These deal with such matters as who owns the music for a commercial jingle if a client moves his or her account from the agency that created the commercial (This is PR: The Realities of Public Relations; 9th ed.; by Doug Newsom, Judy VanSlyke Turk and Dean Kruckeberg; pg. 178).

End

Analysis of "This is PR..." (part 18)

PR Ethics and Responsibilities (part 3)

by:

Charles Lamson

Reciprocal Trust

 An area of major importance in PR involves keeping confidences with the media and with other publics. For example, a reporter on the trail of some story deserves the exclusive he or she is ingenious enough to identify and develop. A PR practitioner should not pull the rug out by offering a general release before the reporter has had an opportunity to. Also, a news medium has the right to expect a practitioner to be entirely above board in offering information. Feature ideas, suggestions and pictures should be offered on an "exclusive use" basis. Magazine editors expect stories and pictures submitted to be exclusives. A magazine editor who finds the same or similar story in another magazine will never trust you again (This is PR: The Realities of Public Relations 9th Ed. by Doug Newsom, Judy VanSlyke Turk and Dean Kruckeberg; pg. 168). 

A story issued in printed form for general release notifies an editor that other news media have the story. However, a story marked "Special to the Des Moines Register" should be just that. No other news medium in that circulation area should receive the story. The quickest way to destroy your welcome in the newsroom is to plant the same story all over the place. Even if the same story is given to the morning and evening editions of the same newspaper, you are in trouble. Each deserves different stories with different approaches. The best way to do this is to take separate stories to one person at each newspaper. Decide where each story would most appropriately appear, or who on the paper would most likely be interviewed. If it is a column item and more than one newspaper is involved, you determine which columnist would be more likely to use the piece and "plant" it there, and only there (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 169).

News media should also be able to trust you to have cleared publicity pictures submitted to them by securing a release from all those that posed. They should also be able to trust you will protect them from copyright troubles, not to mention libel (Newsom, Turk, Kruckeberg; pg. 169).

In Sum

When you supply news to the media you are bound ethically and morally, just as they are, by the codes to which their members subscribe. By the same token, the news media owe public relations practitioners a responsibility to honor agreed upon release dates and times. 

End