media & PR archive
How The Times has left me worried I’m hallucinating
Here’s the email I’ve just sent to The Times. Let’s hope it doesn’t turn out I’m hallucinating and saw 175 mentions of Christmas where in fact there were none.
I’m really confused.
In your story “Christmas lights switch-on ceremony renamed ‘Winter White Night” (http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/scotland/article6915007.ece) you report that, “Christmas will not be Christmas in Dundee this year. All [...]
What drives traffic to news websites?
Cross-posted from the Mandate blog: The Newspaper Marketing Agency’s latest (September) figures (PowerPoint slides) for the sources of web traffic to newspaper websites paintsa useful picture of which social media sites really matter – and which don’t. The top ten domains that referred UK traffic to newspapers during the month were: Google Yahoo MSN News.bbc.co.uk [...]
When is it ok to ban a journalist?
Portsmouth FC have banned a local newspaper journalist from their ground after taking dislike to a piece that he wrote. Although the club has neither suggested the article broke any law nor is libellous, it has decided to ban Neil Allen for an “indefinite period” from home matches, press conferences, speaking to the players and [...]
David Wooding vs The Guardian: do you think they're talking about the same story?
David Wooding (Whitehall Editor, The Sun): “News of the world cleared by PCC of hacking into thousands of phones to get stories. The Guardian stories were wrong, it ruled.” The Guardian: “The [PCC] report confirms the central allegation made by the Guardian and has not produced any independent evidence of its own to contradict a [...]
Newspapers should worry more about trust and less about technology
I’m increasingly of the view that much of the debate about the future of newspapers is far too much about technology and far too little about trust (click on link for MORI data). The technological changes and challenges are certainly big, striking and interesting – but when it comes to addressing the question of people [...]
"National newspaper websites need just 5% of readers to pay"
So says Dharmash Mistry of private equity firm Balderton Capital: National newspapers need to convince less than five per cent of their current online readers to pay for access to content to make a move away from an advertising revenue model successful, a private equity financier told the Guardian. (The Press Gazette) That estimate fits [...]
Should it be illegal to publicise someone else's products?
Supposing someone decides – openly and honestly – to publicise your products. They point people at your products and they are a reputable outfit themselves. What are the circumstances in which you send them a threatening legal letter demanding the cease, er…, providing you with free advertising for your products? It’s pretty hard to think [...]
Should journalists be learning from politicians?
For a long time, the contest to be the least trusted profession in the UK has been a tussle between journalists and politicians – with the occasional strong showing from estate agents. The latest MORI annual reputation survey shows that, in the wake of the expenses scandal, politicians have pipped journalists to the least trusted prize (net [...]
The curious case of Iain Dale, the Daily Mail and the missing comments