The third weekly FIR Zoom Chat hosted by Shel and Neville on April 9 got off to a promising start and continued with great discussion with a handful of FIR listeners on preparing now for communicating return-to-work when coronavirus lockdowns are lifted or relaxed. It lasted 21 minutes or so until we were hijacked by a coordinated zoombomb attack featuring many simultaneous zoombombers that ended our discussion. The clue to what was coming, unbeknownst to us, is the unknown fella who joined … [Read more...] about FIR ZoomChat 3: Zoombombed!
For Immediate Release
For Immediate Release 134: We start with Starbucks and end with drones
In this April edition of The Hobson & Holtz Report, Neville and Shel talk about… Starbucks’ response to a racial incident in Philadelphia that went viral and sparked protests In an effort to reduce “noise pollution,” Ghana wants Muslims to issue the call to prayer via WhatsApp The line between earned and paid media is blurring and consumers don’t care which is which There’s a reckoning coming for terms and conditions Augmented Reality is making huge inroads (except in … [Read more...] about For Immediate Release 134: We start with Starbucks and end with drones
For Immediate Release 109: CEOs Torturing English
Shel and I recorded the October edition of the monthly Hobson & Holtz Report. This month’s topics: Three distinguished PhDs propose a Magna Carta for Artificial Intelligence. Too soon? Research establishes a connection between CEOs who mangle English during analyst calls and falling share prices. What can PR agencies and associations do to build a reputation of trust in the wake of the Bell Pottinger scandal? New data points reinforce the importance of companies taking … [Read more...] about For Immediate Release 109: CEOs Torturing English
For Immediate Release 105: Centre Stage for Credible Sources
Shel and I got together for the September edition of The Hobson & Holtz Report to talk about these topics: The self-inflicted downfall of the UK PR agency Bell Pottinger (and kudos to the PRCA for putting teeth in its ethics code) How various fields will be affected by speech recognition (including PR and communications) Mitch Joel’s open letter to the advertising industry: Let’s not mess up ads for voice The proliferation of fake scientific journals (and what it means for the … [Read more...] about For Immediate Release 105: Centre Stage for Credible Sources
For Immediate Release 100: Locked and Loaded
In the August episode of The Hobson & Holtz Report, Shel and I talked about these topics: The Society for New Communications Research has launched an initiative to assess options for the communications industry to address fake news. An artificial intelligence bot can detect plagiarism (85% of the time). Supporters of US President Donald Trump are amplifying their tweets through a little-known Twitter feature that lets you create and name a Direct Message group. And let’s talk … [Read more...] about For Immediate Release 100: Locked and Loaded
For Immediate Release 96: The crisis that keeps on giving
In the July installment of The Hobson & Holtz Report, Shel and I talked about these topics: A 15-year-old participating in a work experience program took over the Twitter account of the beleaguered Southern Rail in the UK. The response to #AskEddie was undoubtedly a welcome break for Southern Rail’s social media team, but what did it ultimately accomplish? The online publication Quartz experiments with display-type ads in the text of stories that let users ask an artificial … [Read more...] about For Immediate Release 96: The crisis that keeps on giving
For Immediate Release 92: Marketing failures of the UK’s Conservative Party
We said we'd do one episode together of the For Immediate Release podcast as a 'limited return engagement,' emulating The Hobson and Holtz Report that Shel and I did for ten years. We did do that with episode 84 in April. We enjoyed it so much we decided to do another one, and so we recorded episode 92 yesterday. In keeping with our 'hefty but good' slogan, Shel and I enjoyed a conversation over an hour and forty minutes that covered a big agenda: There’s a new mobile-based social … [Read more...] about For Immediate Release 92: Marketing failures of the UK’s Conservative Party
For Immediate Release 84: the ‘limited return engagement’ episode
Recording episode 84 of the For Immediate Release podcast with Shel Holtz yesterday evening was like stepping into a new - but, at the same time, familiar - room to start a friendly conversation. It was The Hobson and Holtz Report again as we discussed a handful of highly-topical issues: Will social media will be a significant factor in the snap election called for by UK Prime Minister Theresa May? We also considered the role of social media in the French presidential election. Social … [Read more...] about For Immediate Release 84: the ‘limited return engagement’ episode