Aprilmagazine:Layout 1 3/31/11 3:52 PM Page 1 Communications & new media April 2011 I Vol. 25 No. 4 Special Issue: Social Media Google wreaks havoc on newswires pg. 12 Should companies create their own social media departments? pg. 10 VNRs get interactive pg. 16 Special Section: Video & Broadcast FCC rehauls rules on closed captioning Using radio during a crisis Local TV news adapts Profiles of video and broadcast service firms April 2011 | www.odwyerpr.com Aprilmagazine:Layout 1 3/31/11 3:52 PM Page 2 D D Leading Feature News Distribution Service X ZH MULTIMEDIA U PH SUCCESS! 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LOCAL TV NEWS REMAINS WHO ‘OWNS’ SOCIAL VITAL FOR COMMUNITIES MEDIA? 28Area TV broadcasters have evolved Different companies implement with technology and the times to deliver quality social media strategies differently, making10 it content. hard to decide which way is “right” for your company. PROFILES OF VIDEO & BROADCAST FIRMS 17 GOOGLE CHANGES WREAK 30 www.odwyerpr.com HAVOC ON NEWSWIRES Daily, up-to-the-minute PR news An algorithm change at Google WASHINGTON REPORT that roots out “low quality” sites has12 sent ripples through the web search industry. 40 INCREASE YOUR INTERNET COLUMNS MEDIA TOUR IQ Organizations are increasingly focused on using video to earn14 PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT media online. Choosing the right IMT is a 36 Fraser Seitel crucial step in acheiving this goal. GUEST COLUMN 37 Arthur Solomon CREATIVITY IS KILLED AT EVERY TURN BY BUSINESS OPINION How most companies squander 38 Jack O’Dwyer creativity in the development and marketing15 PEOPLE IN PR process instead of embracing it. 39 USES, OPTIONS INCREASE PR BUYER’S GUIDE FOR ONLINE VNRs 42 The Internet’s evolution to a video- EDITORIAL CALENDAR 2011 friendly medium has made video16 news releases a vital part of a marketing strategy. January: Crisis Comms. / Buyer’s Guide July: Travel & Tourism February: Environmental & P.A. August: Financial/I.R. ETHICS RULES FOR COLLEGE March: Food & Beverage September: Beauty & Fashion ATHLETES QUESTIONED April: Broadcast & Social Media October: Healthcare & Medical College institutions respond differ- May: PR Firm Rankings November: High-Tech ently when athletes violate school 17policies or break the law. June: Global & Multicultural December: Entertainment & Sports ADVERTISERS Caplan Communications...........................5 KEF............................................................3 Omega Travel..........................................33 Cision...................................BACK COVER Log-On.....................................................29 Ruder Finn...............................................23 Fleishman-Hillard....................................13 MSL Group...............................................11 TV Access..................................................9 Kaplow.......................................................7 NAPS.................................INSIDE COVER O’Dwyer’s is published monthly for $60.00 a year ($7.00 for a single issue) by the J.R. O’Dwyer Co., Inc., 271 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016. (212) 679-2471; fax: (212) 683-2750. Periodical postage paid at New York, N.Y., and additional mail- ing offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to O’Dwyer’s, 271 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016. O’Dwyer’s PR Report ISSN: 1931-8316. Published monthly. Aprilmagazine:Layout 1 3/31/11 3:52 PM Page 5 Aprilmagazine:Layout 1 3/31/11 3:53 PM Page 6 EDITORIAL NPR doesn’t need cash ... it needs a backbone epublicans’ efforts to cut taxpayer funds for National Public Radio is a testament to the EDITOR-IN-CHIEF extraordinarily low value they place on the public’s access to quality information. Jack O’Dwyer R The successful though ultimately pointless March passage of H.R. 1076 was noth- [email protected] ing short of a middle finger to those working in the public broadcasting industry. The bill would take away millions in federal funding to National Public Radio and prevent public ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER radio stations from paying NPR dues with federal money. Kevin McCauley It follows a similar February House vote aimed at eliminating $430 million in planned [email protected] future spending for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the parent organization of NPR. Like the January passage of a bill to nullify President Obama’s Affordable Care Act, H.R. EDITOR 1076 and the CPB bill will probably never see the light of day in the Senate. Jon Gingerich If it’s money they’re after, Republicans are barking up the wrong tree. Granted, there was [email protected] a time when NPR was primarily funded by the government. That ended about 30 years ago. Now, about half of NPR’s revenues — or $63 million — comes from the fees it charges mem- SENIOR EDITOR ber stations for programming and distribution charges. The rest comes from funds through Greg Hazley on-air pledge drives, corporate underwriting, and federal funding in the form of grants by the [email protected] Corporation for Public Broadcasting. In 2009, member stations only derived 6% of their rev- enue from direct government funding. NPR received only about $5 million in federal fund- CONTRIBUTING EDITORS John O’Dwyer ing in 2010. Fraser Seitel Five million? Republicans would save more by slashing a single railroad subsidy. Or — Richard Goldstein God forbid — ending one of our ongoing wars. Granted, it’s not hard to push NPR around. The organization has spent the better part of six months being its own whipping boy. Senior News Analyst Juan Williams was canned in ADVERTISING SALES October for tepid remarks he made about Muslims on “The O’Reilly Factor,” airing person- John O’Dwyer al opinions that recently ousted NPR President and Advertising Sales Manager CEO Vivian Schiller said “undermines [email protected] [NPR’s] credibility as analysts.”