It has been a busy week for Scripps, parent company of the Rocky Mountain News. Last Friday, the company announced that its board of directors had approved a plan to spin off its newspaper properties into a separate company. Now, rumors are swirling around town that Scripps has made an offer to purchase MediaNews Group, publisher of the Denver Post and 56 other newspapers across the country.
A Denver PR Blog insider reports that the Denver Post will lose yet another reporter next week when Steve Lipsher departs for the editor position at the Summit Daily News. See, Penny Parker isn’t the only one who can sit on her ass and wait for people who actually know something to tell her what’s up.
UPDATE: A colleague of Steve’s at the Post emailed to say Steve is taking the news editor position, not editor in chief.
Congratulations to GroundFloor Media, which was the only Denver-based agency to make the cut in Lifehacker editor Gina Trapani’s PR Spammers Wiki, a cut and paste Gmail filter that will instantly block hundreds of PR addresses based on their domain name. Trapani is following in the footsteps of Wired’s Chris Anderson in publicly outing those they believe to be spamming. As card-carrying flacks, however, we know what a bunch of complaining know-it-alls reporters can be, so we applaud GroundFloor Media for pushing pitching to the limits on behalf of its clients.
The Rocky Mountain News isn’t the only media outlet in town using reporters outside the realm of their experience. KCNC/CBS4 is getting into the act as well with murder trial news brought to you by the traffic reporter. Westword has the details.
The Rocky Mountain News finally covers some public relations industry news. Unfortunately, it’s about a Baltimore agency.
Denver Nugget Carmelo Anthony has retained Baltimore-based Maroon PR to handle public relations for his charitable foundation. Theresa Tran at Tease Marketing will continue to represent Anthony’s non-philanthropic issues such as DUIs, speeding tickets, bar fights, stop-snitchin’ DVDs, etc.
Having trouble figuring out who to pitch at the Rocky Mountain News? You are not alone. Religion reporters covering Rocky Flats. Entertainment reporters covering politics. Sadly, staff cuts have turned specialists into generalists.
Event alert: The Guerrilla Public Relations: Connecting Business to Media panel is this Thursday morning in Boulder and features a number of local media folks.
The cutbacks at Denver area dailies continue. This time, it is the Boulder Daily Camera making the layoffs. The newspaper announced today that it has let nine of its 155 (six percent) employees go, including one unnamed “newsroom employee.” Alicia Wallace has the details (well, a couple of them anyway).
If you, like me, spend an inordinate amount of time trying to explain to family and friends that public relations is not the same thing as advertising, maybe this will help (courtesy Neutron LLC via Media Bistro):
Denver-based MediaNews Group, owner of the Denver Post and approximately 60 other newspapers nationwide, will outsource customer service calls to the Philippines for three of its California papers. Denver Post customer care services currently are provided by Denver employees of the Denver Newspaper Agency (DNA), the joint venture between MediaNews and Rocky owner Scripps. But if the trial is successful, expect MediaNews to put pressure on the DNA to outsource its customer service.
Among those hiring this week are Arrow Electronics, Colorado State University, DIA, Financial Planning Association, MorEvents, Special Olympics Colorado and Red Robin.
And thanks to Andrew Hudson for the shout-out today.
The good news? Fox & Friends mentioned you. The bad news? Well, uhh, just view the clip.
If you are looking for a pro-bono opportunity, Jeff Peckman needs your help.
5280 has the latest on the news that the husband of the late Kacey Fine Furniture CEO Leslie Fishbein has retained a Denver medical malpractice attorney to investigate whether negligence on the part of the doctor that administered a pain shot contributed to her death. The Denver Post also has the story, while the Rocky will have to play catch-up tomorrow.
GBSM has promoted Miles Graham to associate and named Jessie Roatch as executive assistant. Graham has worked with GBSM clients such as RTD and Aurora Water since joining the firm in 2006, and Roatch will support GBSM principals and client teams with research and project management.
Was KCNC/CBS4’s decision to dump Molly Hughes a mistake? Judging by the massive number of ”what happened to Molly Hughes” search engine queries that have landed people at our site, it seems like the general public is missing her. And we’re not the only ones who have noticed.
A recent study from the National Association of Colleges and Employers shows this year’s college graduates should expect to enter the field of public relations at salaries somewhere between $31,000 and $35,000 annually. So don’t let anybody lowball you.
Edelman announced that its in-house staff has completely run out of ideas for clients. Instead, it will consider paying people off the street $2,500 for ideas the agency can appropriate. We submitted the idea to create a fake Wal-Mart blog that chronicles the travels of a “regular” couple across the country in an R.V. We’ll let you know when the check arrives.
The news for the Denver Post and the Rocky Mountain News keeps getting worse. The combined Post/News Sunday edition posted a 14.79 percent decline in circulation from last year, according to the Audit of Bureau Circulations (ABC). The drop (from 704,169 to 600,026) was the largest among the top 25 papers in the U.S.
Weekday circulations at the top 20 U.S. newspapers:
1. USA Today, 2,284,219, up 0.3 percent
2. The Wall Street Journal, 2,069,463, up 0.4 percent
3. The New York Times, 1,077,256, down 3.9 percent
4. Los Angeles Times, 773,884, down 5.1 percent
5. New York Daily News, 703,137, down 2.1 percent
6. New York Post, 702,488, down 3.1 percent
7. The Washington Post, 673,180, down 3.6 percent
8. Chicago Tribune, 541,663, down 4.4 percent
9. Houston Chronicle, 494,131, down 1.8 percent
10. The Arizona Republic, 413,332, down 4.7 percent
11. Newsday, Long Island, 379,613, down 4.7 percent
12. San Francisco Chronicle, 370,345, down 4.2 percent
13. Dallas Morning News, 368,313, down 10.6 percent
14. The Boston Globe, 350,605, down 8.3 percent
15. The Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J., 345,130, down 7.4 percent
16. The Philadelphia Inquirer, 334,150, down 5.1 percent
17. The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, 330,280, down 4.2 percent
18. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 326,907, down 8.5 percent
19. Star Tribune of Minneapolis-St. Paul, 321,984, down 6.7 percent
20. St. Petersburg Times, Florida, 316,007, down 2.1 percent
Source: Audit Bureau of Circulations (reprinted in the Denver Post)
Frontier senior director of Corporate Communications Joe Hodas is leaving the airline to join a private equity firm in Denver. Ironic, given that private equity firm KKR-owned First Data sent Frontier reeling into bankruptcy.
5280 magazine has a marketing/public relations director position open.
Englewood-based Western Union has named Eric Jackson as its senior vice president of global corporate relations. Jackson previously was vice president of global corporate communications at FedEx.
Last month we examined the contradiction between the lip service many PR agencies give to new media tools and their use (or lack thereof) of the most prominent of those tools – the blog. While the results were interesting, they only offered a simplistic quantitative snapshot. What went unexamined was the qualitative aspect. Today, Steven Silvers of Scatterbox fame offered a brilliantly simple post that cuts right to the heart of the quality of blog posts. The Cliffsnotes version: posting vapidity frequently doesn’t get you anywhere.
Editor & Publisher has the details on a new study that contends that the Wall Street Journal has seen “a marked increase in political and general interest coverage and a decrease in business reporting” since Rupert Murdoch took over last December. And things will probably get worse with the departure of the WSJ’s managing editor.
The mayor of Tucson, Ariz., has declared tomorrow “Public Relations Appreciation Day.” Feel free to take the day off to celebrate.
Ed Stein will claim Joe Nacchio was the inspiration, but was it really the Rocky’s own situation that inspired him?
The Denver Post covers Schenkein’s campaign to create awareness for Denver’s new preschool program. The first key message should probably be, “Hey parents, sign your annoying preschool kids up and you won’t have to have them at your house all day.”
Sigh … ancillary revenues and extending the brand, we guess. But this fashion statement is just stupid.
Nielsen Online/E&P Rankings for Newspaper Web Sites
Site — Unique Audience (000) — % Change (YoY)
NYTimes.com — 18,869 –30%
USATODAY.com — 10,709 — (-2%)
washingtonpost.com — 8,929 — 13%
Wall Street Journal Online — 6,850 — 99%
LA Times — 5,729 — 22%
New York Post — 4,677 — 31%
Boston.com — 4,184 — (-1%)
Chicago Tribune — 3,825 — 31%
SFGate.com/San Francisco Chronicle — 3,793 — (-10%)
Daily News Online Edition — 3,314 — 54%
Newsday — 3,240 — 44%
Village Voice Media — 2,814 — 139%
DallasNews.com - The Dallas Morning News — 2,727 — 96%
The Houston Chronicle — 2,690 — (-26%)
International Herald Tribune — 2,587 — 33%
Atlanta Journal-Constitution — 2,384 — 28%
Chicago Sun-Times — 2,206 — 8%
The Politico — 2,095 — 58%
Azcentral.com — 2,016 — (-4%)
Seattle Post-Intelligencer — 1,967 — (-8%)
tampabay.com — 1,908 — 6%
Star Tribune — 1,763 — 18%
MercuryNews.com — 1,662 — 36%
Orlando Sentinel — 1,642 — (-31%)
Philly.com — 1,554 — (-12%)
Sun-Sentinel — 1,524 — (-9%)
Detroit Free Press — 1,484 — 38%
Cleveland.com — 1,460 — 89%
MiamiHerald.com — 1,451 — (-17%)
The San Diego Union-Tribune — 1,432 — (-19%)
Venture capital investment in Colorado companies rose to a seven-year high in the first quarter of 2007. A total of $297.7 million was invested in 26 companies in Q1, the highest level since 2001.
Denver entertainment agencies can stand down … Eliot Spitzer’s hooker has officially selected PR representation.
CTA has picked up banking software provider FIMAC Solutions as a client.
GroundFloor Media has introduced a social media offering that “is aimed at helping … clients expand their audience reach by leveraging the inherent viral capabilities of popular social media mediums like blogs, social networking sites, podcasts, vlogs and more.”
Then spend some time creating your own church signs. Hat tip to Pure Thinking.
After a string of high-profile gaffes (sleeping technician, comcastmustdie.com, etc.), Comcast is going on the PR offensive. The Philadelphia Inquirer has the details.
Sen. Ken Salazar’s former press secretary, Drew Nannis, has been named director of media relations for AARP’s advocacy team. He will be responsible for promoting the legislative media strategy, serve as a national spokesman and direct media efforts.
Former USA Today reporter Patrick O’Driscoll has landed in Lakewood as a public affairs specialist with the National Park Service. O’Driscoll was one of 43 employees to accept a buyout from the paper in late 2007.
If you had to pick a time NOT to have the IRS move 800 employees into new offices in Denver, you would probably pick tax time. Not the IRS.
Water finds its own level, and apparently so does “journalism.” YourHub arrives at the perfect intersection of medium and message.
9News sports anchor Drew Soicher calls Carmelo Anthony out for his DUI arrest. Amazingly refreshing to see a hometown sports guy criticize a local sports hero rather than pander to him. 5280’s Daniel Brogan has the details.
The newspaper industry took a double hit today as The New York Times Company posted a Q1 loss — “one of the worst periods” the company has seen — and new Chicago Tribune Co. Chairman and CEO Sam Zell disclosed that revenues are down so far (double digits) this year that the company may be forced to sell newspapers and other properties.
Despite the earnings news, at least Sam Zell is trying to keep things interesting.
Denver Nugget star Carmelo Anthony is having a little trouble getting the love — and endorsements — that his NBA classmates LeBron James and Dwyane Wade get. While Wade has won an NBA championship and LeBron has taken his team to an NBA Finals series, Carmelo only seems to be able to top them in area of off-court incidents. There has been the recent DUI arrest, the Manhattan bar fight, the DIA marijuana incident, the anti-drug snitch video, the second marijuana incident, and the debacle against the New York Knicks when he threw a weak punch and then ran away like a scared kindergartner).
Like a lot of athletes and celebrities, though, Carmelo is looking to assign blame elsewhere. Taking the fall this time is his marketing firm BDA Sports, whom ‘Melo has fired and replaced (at least temporarily) with Theresa Tran of Tease Marketing.
The best part of being a lawyer? You know all the inside tricks.
Not everyone believes that journalism is dead. Forbes details how eliminating the printing part of print journalism ultimately will save reporters’ jobs.
It looks like Rocky Mountain News publisher John Temple agrees with us that journalism awards are a bit of a racket, but that still hasn’t stopped him from being a willing participant.
Denver Post publisher William Dean Singleton has a very public Obama/Osama moment.
Does Penny Parker even understand how insulting it is to label a professional woman who is the Denver Convention Host Committee’s event director ”the biggest party girl in Denver?” Our favorite is the juxtaposition between Penny’s characterization and event director Jenny Anderson’s quote:
“The host committee is keeping a master calendar and working closely with the Denver Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau. We are sending out feelers to hotels, restaurants and various venues. We want to try and capture parties during that week to track the economic impact.”
Linhart PR client Crocs’ stock continues to fall, this time on the company’s announcement that it has reduced its earnings forecast for Q1. The stock, which peaked at $75.21 less than six months ago, is at $12.60 in after-hours trading today.
PR Newser picks up yesterday’s Denver Post Q&A with PRSA chair Jeff Julin, and in a stroke of pure karma manages to spell reporter Steve Raabe’s name wrong.
Amid the Olympics torch run debacle, The New York Times praises the pro-Tibet forces for their public relations savvy:
“Soon after China was awarded the Olympic Games seven years ago, a series of public relations strategy sessions were held. But it wasn’t the Chinese government holding the sessions: it was grass-roots Tibet support groups in the United States and abroad. The protesters quickly established a communications plan, focused their message and ran camps where they taught members interview skills and even rappelling — as they showed off last week in hanging banners on the Golden Gate Bridge. As a result, the protesters have pulled off a publicity coup.”
Denver-based Atkins Nutritionals selected Minnesota-based Kohnstamm PR as its new public relations AOR following a three-round selection process.
Rudi’s Organic Bakery has tapped Linhart PR as its national public relations firm following a competitive selection process. Linhart will help educate consumers about the importance of including certified organic baked goods in their diets.
This morning’s Denver Post has a Q&A with Jeff Julin, president of Denver-based MGA and currently chairman of PRSA. Credit reporter Steve Raabe for asking some tough questions about how the public relations industry is perceived and why PRSA has been accused of staying on the sidelines in the Edleman/Wal-Mart debacle. Unfortunately, in the abbreviated Q&A format, the responses are mostly just sound bites.
The Pure Brand blog has the details on Starbuck’s latest marketing coup — customer engagement and transparency.
The airline business continues to grow more cutthroat. If it isn’t your financial partners trying to screw you against the wall, it’s your own pilots. We bet Andrew Hudson thinks ARCADIS is looking pretty good right now.
Westword pays tribute to Denver Post entertainment editor Ed Smith, the latest casualty of the declining newspaper industry. His new job will be editor of the National Conference of State Legislatures’ magazine.
Sure, Oprah gets 15,000 pitches per day from companies that want their products on her show, but Harrow Communications gives Marketing Sherpa the insider tips on “How to Get on ‘The Oprah Winfrey Show.’ “
9News has a little scheudenfraude going on this morning after a Fox31 videographer was arrested early this morning for interfering with police. This 2 a.m. arrest occurred as videographers from several stations were trying to get footage of an SUV that had plunged onto the banks of Cherry Creek.
Rendall Ayers tells us he has no intention of leaving public relations, and that he will continue to run Ayers Strategic Public Relations. Both of which are great news for Ayers PR’s clients.
Remember the good old days when parents would argue over whether their children would be raised Protestant or Catholic, or whether they would root for Michigan or Ohio State? Here’s a lovely 21st Century twist.
PBS’s MediaShift jumps on the Tom Foremski/Press Releases Suck bandwagon. They are completely right, of course.
If you have been wondering what former KCNC/Channel 4 anchor Stephanie Riggs has been up to since she left the station, the Rocky has the details of her latest project.
If your pitch to a Denver Post reporter is being ignored, you might try sweetening the deal by offering to buy a couple dozen subscriptions.
The bad news? We didn’t make Time’s list of the Top 25 Blogs. The good news? We didn’t make the magazine’s Five Most Overrated Blogs either. (Hat tip: Elaine Ellis at Tracked Changes).
Colfax and Broadway was abuzz this afternoon as the 2008 Pulitzer Prize winners were announced. While the Denver Post was shut out, the Rocky Mountain News learned that reporter Kevin Vaughan was a finalist for his series titled, “The Crossing.” And incoming Rocky photographer Preston Gannaway won “on her first day as a Rocky Mountain News photographer” for her work at her previous newspaper, the Concord Monitor.
A reminder that the Colorado Municipal League and DRCOG are sponsoring the two-day Colorado Communicators Conference April 10-11. Speakers include Andrew Hudson, Ed Sardella and Steve Silvers.
Vicorp Restaurants, parent company of Village Inn and Baker’s Square, has filed for bankruptcy protection. The company lists $37.7 million in outstanding loans and $15 million in unpaid debts to suppliers and other vendors. Let’s hope GroundFloor Media, which won the Vicorp business a few months ago, demanded payment upfront.
Sigh. Penny Parker’s sighting today: Broncos cornerback Dre Bly at ESPN Zone. Once again, any Denver athlete seen at Denver’s ESPN Zone is lame.
Last week, we chastised Bill Husted for his lame sightings around town. Well, this week 5280 shows him how it’s done: porn king Larry Flynt at Del Frisco’s.
The Colorado Tourism Office takes a direct hit from Patty Calhoun at Westword for its lame (and error-filled) “Let’s Talk Colorado” campaign. So who created it? Fort Collins’ own MMG Worldwide.
Our sympathies to Andrew Hudson and the entire Hudson family. Andrew’s mother, Julie, passed away yesterday. Penny Parker at the Rocky has the details.
PR Week (with PR Newswire) has issued its first annual Media Survey, which arrives at the stunning conclusion that “the constantly evolving media landscape has created both challenges and opportunities for today’s journalists.”
Ken Barber at Pure Brand brought to our attention this blog post. As Ken notes, “It drives home the point that PR people can’t just apply their age-old, journalist-outreach tactics to the online world, especially bloggers.” We agree. Journalists have come to accept that being spammed comes with the job, and usually they aren’t in a position to hammer you publicly if you annoy them. But bloggers are different, so spam them at your own risk.
If you had Randy Holtz, Travis Henry and Ryan Stark in the “Who’ll Leave the Rocky Next” pool, it’s time to collect.
The only thing newspapers have been shedding faster than reporters is paying subscribers. With free Web sites, it’s hard enough to get twentysomethings to pay for a newspaper subscription, but what happens when you can’t even keep subscribers who are in their fifties and used to be copyeditors at your publication? The Boulder Daily Camera is finding out. (Hat tip to Daniel Brogan at 5280.)
GBSM today announced that it will reduce its focus on large, reputable, corporate clients and instead target Denver-area, consumer public relations by creating a new division called “GBSM | YourHub.com.” The new division will identify enhanced strategies to place articles in the YourHub franchise.
“We got the idea when we read about Edelman consolidating its digital practices and enhancing its focus on ‘authentic’ communications,” said GBSM principal Steven “Steve” Silvers. “We immediately convened our principals and held a staff retreat to ponder the question, ‘What is next in public relations?’ Then it hit us! YourHub is the pinnacle of what the public relations experience should be. Not quite journalism, not quite user-generated content, not quite reputable, but fully billable!”
The strategy has already delivered several success stories, and helped the agency land several new clients, including Lil’ Angel Pet Boutique & Gallery and Ladies En Confidente, according to Silvers.
Congratulations to Denver-based VisiTech Public Relations, which is a finalist for a PRSA Silver Anvil award for its work with Polycom. It may be a bittersweet honor, though, because we hear Polycom dropped VisiTech a couple of months ago as part of an agency review.
In the spirit of equal time, Michelin’s director of Public Relations for North America has responded to our post on the company’s RFP:
“I know the RFP process can be long and involved. However, we at Michelin believe it is very important to be thorough. We seek long-term partnerships, not short-term programs. Finding the best fit — from a corportate culture, ability, creativity, mindset, etc. etc. perspective — takes time. We very much appreciate each agency who participated and we are confident that this thorough process has brought the best result. And, perhaps if RFPs are to be “hated” the best solution is to make sure that they don’t have to be repeated anytime soon. Taking the time to make the right choice for a long-term partner, as Michelin has done, is for us the best option.”
— Lynn Mann
Director of Public Relations, North America
Michelin
KCNC/Channel 4 reporter Arturo Santiago was among six employees caught up in a layoff at the station this week. The station said additional cuts in the engineering ranks may soon follow, and that other open positions will not be filled.
Bill Husted may have the lamest “Sightings” subject in the history of his column today: “Adam Foote at ESPN Zone for lunch Wednesday.”
Newspaper advertising suffered its biggest dec
