Posted on Seasoned Posts

The Ugly Side of Eastern European PR. I Wish it Were a Joke

Here is an ad that a Ukrainian firm mails to prospective clients. It’s self-explanatory, really. *** SmartManager company offers: 1. Placing PR-materials in the elite pool of publications that usually decline to publish paid-for materials without marking them as advertising. 2. Placing stories in Ukrainian media (television, Internet, press, radio) on the most attractive terms. 3. Producing high quality PR texts effectively forming the public opinion without being identified as paid-for. We write with a...

Posted on Seasoned Posts

Internal communication as part of nationbuilding in government

I was recently summonsed to the Presidency in Pretoria to come and assess their “internal communication”. It struck me – once again – that even in the highest order of government – the concept of internal communication is totally forgotten. Nobody – except for the newly-appointed head of the section – had any idea of the concept of internal communication or why it might be important. The question that came up: If the government of a...