“Newsroom Confidential” Seminars
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O'trIV\/YEFI'S - - - --- - [E5 Vo!. 8, No. 1 FIEPOFIT January 1gg4 PR help map trip down Top btz mags are to stung by Rotbart the'information highway' seminar at PRSA The emerging "information highway" Spokespeople for Business Week, that will link television, telephones and Fortune, Forbes and The Wall Street databases offers a potential gold mine to Journal expressed shock and outrage made about their publica- PR firms that can help consumers navigate at remarks tions by journalist Dean Rotbart, who their way through the many electronic of- gave a presentation on media relations ferings, according to Richard Edelman, at the PRSA conference in Orlando, President and COO of Edelman PR Fla., Nov. 16. Among many other deprecating Worldwide. remarks about journalism in general, The job of persuading consumers to individual publications and individual take a "test spin" on the data highway, reporters, Rotbart told a packed room of 250 PR people that the "editorial Edelman believes, is one that is tailor- Richard Edelman panels" of the three magazines named made for PR rather than advertising. PR above "pay a lot of attention...to ad will be the "vital selling tool" that will Continued on page 29 page sales" and if not enough ad pages are being sold, they discuss ways to "mix up the editorial formula to Multiculturalism is debated at Continued on page 16 PRSA meetin$; sides lan apart ForeftF media il1e The subject of multiculturalism was hotly debated at the Public pnme targets for Relations Society of America conference in Orlando, Fla., Nov. 15. T'fio panelists and moderator John Beardsley, 1994 president-elect 4gtessf,vePiHrcs of PRSA, stressed the growth of the non-white U.S. population and Foreign media with offices in the said PR and marketing must make adjustments for such changing U.S. are building staff here and are demographics. open to pitches by U.S. PR people. However, their reporters have Jack O'Dwyer, third panelist and panel) was overwhelmingly pro-multi- demands that are similar to those often Editor of this magazine, took the op- culturalism. voiced by their U.S. counterparts--ac- posite viewpoint, saying that America One woman walked out in the cess to top management and exclusive was created by people who wanted to middle of O'Dwyer's presentation stories or angles. forget their ethnic differences and he and in the question-and-answer These views were expressed by was opposed to anything that magnified period, O'Dwyer was called a three foreign journalists at the the differences or exploited them. "Neanderthal" three times. PRSA/New York International Com- He said the surest route to success in Beardsley was asked by O'Dwyer to mittee lunch Dec. 8, 1993. the U.S. for anyone remains full as- ( ;.ce Robert's Rules of Order, which "Exclusivity is the name of the similation into its Eurocentric culture. remarks in a meeting. ,irlr"irsonal game," said Benedikt Fehr, business The SRO audience of more than 50 ' igt intervene. (a small room had been alloted to th atte704.377.0151 0q Continued on page 8 Continued on page 30 ;.3445 ilew York 800.221.2 i ) -40 619.531.0966 Son [rondrr *# Top btz ma$s stung by Rotbart seminar Continued from Page one s.r".ut" more ad Page sales"' Marshall Loeb, Managing Editor of Fortune, said advertising is "never" discussed at Fortune editorial board meetings and it is "madness" to say otherwise. "How dare Rotbart imPugn the in- tegrity not only of Fortune but some of 50 Airerica's finest business journalists ! " thundered Loeb. 40 30 SReporters'beat uP' n companies that don't pay 'Protection money' 2.7 in the form of news Very Satislied Fairly Satislied Somewhat Dissat'slied 9-Rotbart tips. I tsgz Business Week spokesperson Chris- Thechartsarefrominte]viewsGonductedwithl,4oojournalists.byD.avidWeaverand journatism indiana University' The study was tine Summerson said Rotbart had Cleveland Wilholt, prot"""oi" ine School, the iieerlom Forum,"t a iournalistlc olganization' presented "a cynical and distorted view ;;;i'rslr"d by of no* the business press operates'" Rotbart,whowrotethe..Heardonbartwantsthemtobe..frankand man of retribution from unhap- It is "a disgrace to have this tfr" iii""t'; stock tip column in the Wall without fear passing himself off as a media critic," Street Journal uniil 1987, has been -pyjournalists"' she said. giving his "Newsroom Confidential" i":o ::l"id:::f,:1"-I"?,*i:1": [Rotbart's promotional materials :;'i,i;;".;;ilyears, charging made to sign a "confidentiality agree Reporter covering At aiscltllio11'; say his TIFR Business Nevrs $295 per person. ment ,^, leading gire an h-our-and-a-half^ newsletter is "the nation's ffi;;,:;;ffie been barred from the Rotbart journalists' " o rl()AconlerellUc w[IUu uE authority on business sessions^:^-^ because,L^^^rr.a a flyerrt,arawnleins explains, Rot-Ror- sesslonsesstonatthePRSAconferencewhichhe atthe sard was based on his Newsroom Con- fidential series (which he is scheduled to give 27 times in 22 cities in 1994)' He Ild ,ot ask the audience to sign such confidentialitY agreements. Re porters are PodraYed as highl selfish peoPle, thinking of themsel first, tlr:ir. sources" second (for w they will do manY favors including rc covering "minor neg ative ne items" ), and their bosses, third" 30 Failure to paY " protection money in the form of news tiP w company being "beat uP' ' by vindic m tive ieporters, Rotbart said. 10 SurveY misquoted AFreedom Forum survey was incor- rectlv ouoted as saying that three- 0 reporters dislike their jobs 1971 1 982-83 ouarters'of *d .o*" of those who want to leave I Very Sat'rslbd don't have the courage to do so' [The survey actually found three-quarters ,.very slipped above show that jou]nalists who ale satisfied'' Cotrtinued on next Pag,e The chart he]e and the one satisfied" in 1ee2' irii-isi" ir-r gtt to zt .ii" ffi;;t: il ;noiirer so.g",t remain "fairlv 16 O'DWYER'S PR SERYICES REPORT/]ANUARY 1994 are "fairly satisfied" with their jobs.l He said the biggest bar to good media Lissauer said BW only helped Rot- Rotbart says that the business side relations is the CEO. There would be a bart promote attendance at the semi- has great influence on the news side "dramatic improvement" if CEOs nars and neither supplied money to these days and that, "If you are an would empower PR people "to do what Rotbart or his organization nor advertiser, and have lots of money, you their executives know is right." received money from it. have a lot of power in dealing with Michael Lissauer, VP-Marketing of news organizations." Business Wire, said BW had severed its PRN rethinks deal PR people are given numerous tips Ian Capps, President of PR on winning coverage including advice Newswire, which is owned by United to speak at seminars thrown by busi- sRotbart shoutd get his Newspapers of London, confirmed that ness magazines, allowing reporters to on Dec. 3 PRN signed an agreement attend intimate company events facts right before giving it the right to co-sponsor many ("you'll get a lot of wet kiss stories"), of the 27 Rotbart "Newsroom" semi- and becoming personal friends with criticizing anyone.e nars in 1994. reporters. Another company that was ap- One piece of advice was: "Marry a May, Director of Cor- -Roger proached by Rotbart said that payment journalist. guarantee you...whoever I of money by the sponsor was required. you marry give you better news porate Relations, Dow Jones will Capps would not discuss terms of coverage. The bad news is, you're mar- the deal and said PRN only had the ried to a journalist." audience [The "opportunity" to sponsor the seminars laughed heartily.l relationship with Rotbart. and was not required to do so. Rotbart also gave some traditional Previously, BW had been listed as a Capps, whose PRN has co-spon- media relations advice, including ask- co-sponsor of the "Newsroom" semi- sored the Business News Confidential ing the PR people to be sources of in- nars, recommending them to clients of directory of 5,000 journalists for formation--not barriers--to reporters. BW as being of "value." several years, said that thus far PRN has been "perfectly comfortable" in its dealings with Rotbart. The directory, which sells for $249, says on the cover that it is "A service of PR Newswire." press A PRN release dated May 23, \ 1991. announcing PRN's partnership in \ the directory, said, "TJFR represents the \ highest levels of editorial quality and I integrity in financial media relations." PRN clients like seminal "Our clients seem to like Newsroom Confidential," Capps said, adding that PRN organizes or co-spon- sors more than 100 media or other seminars each year. "We have not [co-sponsored a semi- narl with TJFR for approximately two years, although others have," said a PRN statement. It continued: "We now have an understanding with TJFR which gives us the opportunity in the future, at our discretion, to co-sponsor seminars with them. If these are of in- terest and value to our clients, we shall take advantage of that opportunity as appropriate." Other TJFR services Besides the twice-monthly newslet- ter, directory and seminars, TJFR provides what the May 23,1991 PRN release described as a "dossier service" on reporters. This directory, lastang names, addresses, phones, etc., of more than 4,000 journalists, For per "profile," as a TJFR was first published by PR Newswire and TJFR Publashing Co. in 1991. The directory, which $49.95 sells for 5249, was published "in partnership with PR Newswire," says a statemcnt in the book by Dean Rotbart, its Editor.