Social media newsroom: a blog by a different name
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Today Bulldog Reporter’s Daily Dog, a nice little PR-biz news site, brings us a story about Eastwick Communications’ new “social media newsroom.”
Where to start? Well, I’m not Todd Defren of SHIFT Communications, but if I were, I’d be throwing heavy objects at people. Two and a half months ago, Todd wrote about SHIFT’s social media newsroom template, another positive kick in the ass to follow up SHIFT’s sharp little social media news release template from a year ago.
SHIFT’s social media newsroom is awesome. Eastwick’s is weak. Eastwick got a nice little write-up from Bulldog Reporter (”republished news release,” anyone?) that included not even the slightest reference to SHIFT’s template and, more importantly, without any mention of the overall lame-itude of this “newsroom.” It’s just a collection of links presented in a blog-like style. In fact, it appears to be a simple WordPress installation (don’t try breaking in; that’s not nice).
Now, that’s not a bad thing. In fact, it’s great. A slick, easy, cool way to post, archive and share Eastwick’s clients’ coverage and its own. My problem is this (and maybe I’m expecting to much of the world, here): They wrote a big, fancy (traditional) news release about this “newsroom,” and that news release only contains one hyperlink — at the end, in the boilerplate, to Eastwick’s home page. Not even the “newsroom.” Then they use the phrase “By utilizing the Eastwick service…”
“Utilizing”? “The Eastwick service”? Holy self-importance, Batman. What’s ? God forbid we write like real people talk. And “Eastwick service”? What exactly is the service? Remembering the WordPress login info?
I’m not saying that anybody who doesn’t anything “social media” needs to tip his or her hat to SHIFT communications. Nor am I saying this “newsroom” of Eastwick’s is a bad idea. They’re right when they say it will increase visibility and provide RSS capability and all that jazz. But the blow-hard news release, the focus on the allegedly new “service” rather than the strategy behind it, the entirely unjournalistic effort by the Bulldog “Reporter”…it’s a bit much.
Maybe my frustration boils down to this: This is a social media newsroom. This is just a link blog.
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I have a long, slow fuse, Mike - but thanks for spotting this, and for your advocacy. I will think about how to respond (if at all).
O, this makes me want to cry. I love what Tod has done, and have been building a SMNR for a client based on his template for days now. This is the saddest thing (even for a wordpress blog) I have ever seen. Can’t wait to launch mine. One little beef though: Tod’s is a pretty standard WP install too, just FYI…nothing wrong with that, though.
To be clear, I have no problem with WordPress (um, note that I use it here), even “pretty standard installations.” My problem is with some group taking that standard installation, calling it something it’s not, and then touting it like they’re the best thing to hit the Web since broadband.
You mentioned that you’re working on an SMNR for a client. Please share it and/or its results when you can; I’d love to hear about your experiences producing it and using it.
[...] Mike Keliher, a public relations practice manager at St. Paul, MN Provident Partners, recently took some potshots at Eastwick and our Social Media Newsroom. While I don’t have the time here to respond to all of the substantive issues Mike raised, like Eastwick’s lameness, (Are not! Are! Are not! Are! I’m telling mom!), or to the suggestion that our conduct is so outrageous as to justify “throwing heavy objects at people,” I would like to clarify a few things. [...]
Hi Mike,
I posted a response to this on my blog:
http://blogs.eastwick.com/mediaartifacts/2007/05/31/all-the-worlds-a-social-media-newsroom/
Cheers,
Joel
Eastwick Communications
Comment-tag, you’re it!
http://blogs.eastwick.com/mediaartifacts/2007/05/31/all-the-worlds-a-social-media-newsroom/#comment-27
Thanks, Mike!
I am sorry it came across that I thought you had a problem with WordPress - guess I just wanted to point out that SHIFT’s was a WordPress install as well - as mine is.
I will be launching my client’s SMNR in the next couple days, and will definitely keep you guys abreast!
Mike,
Keeping you in the loop on the SMNR I am developing:
http://www.empoweredbywp.com/2007/06/03/building-a-social-media-newsroom/
Appreciate any feedback you may have!