✅ Monday briefing: Socially Mobile, news startup, language test, sportswashing, brand activism, growing pains, childcare crisis, Johnson SEO woe, and more...
Media, best and bad practice, brand activism, research and insight, social media and platforms, and events
This newsletter is crowdsourced each week from my blog and community of practice for people studying and working in marketing, media and public relations. It’s a hive mind, newsroom and source of information, help and support.
Socially Mobile has opened applications for paid and funded places for a new cohort starting in September. The 10-week executive education programme provides managerial and specialist skills. Its goal is to help practitioners realise their earning potential.
Media
🎙️ PODCAST COMMUNITIES: Audio is increasingly being used by media organisations to engage with communities. DC Thomson news brand The Courier has launched a daily audio news briefing to serve local communities in Scotland. It follows Haymarket’s plans to increase investment in podcasts as it shifts from print. Spotted Alan Morrison.
🗞️ NEWS START-UP: The News Movement, founded by former BBC editorial director Kamal Ahmed, has increased its staff to 16 as it readies for launch in the autumn. Its goal is to publish factual news without bias to social media platforms, notably TikTok. Spotted Stephen Waddington.
👔 STANDARD OPPORTUNITY: The Evening Standard’s Simon English is building a roster of up to 20 writers to contribute to a regular afternoon City column. To apply contact Simon via email simon.english@standard.co.uk. Spotted Michael Greer.
🔥 CHEEKY COMMENT: GB News political correspondent Tom Harwood tweeted an ‘ exclusive scoop’ of top-ranking civil servant, Sue Gray singing karaoke in Whitehall pre-pandemic. The Daily Star responded ‘Even we would have turned this down…’ Spotted David Edmundson-Bird.
Best and bad practice
✈️ LANGUAGE TEST: Ryanair is facing accusations of racism for requiring South African customers to prove their citizenship by taking a written test in the Afrikaans language. It claims the test is to avoid transporting passengers on fake passports however the test is not required by UK border authorities. Spotted Jenni Field.
🏌 SPORTSWASHING: Golfers competing in the LIV Golf tournament have dodged questions about the Saudi Arabian Government’s poor human rights record. The 54-hole breakaway series is backed by the Kingdom’s Public Investment Fund. Prize money for competitors ranges from $120,000 to $4 million. Spotted Michael Greer and Julian Christopher.
Brand activism
🍦 BRAND ACTIVISM I: Ice cream brand Ben & Jerry’s has taken a stand against the UK Government's Rwanda immigration scheme calling it cruel and morally bankrupt. A series of posts from the official Twitter account for Ben & Jerry’s UK urged customers to take a stand against the Rwanda plan. Spotted Keith Lewis.
🍕 BRAND ACTIVISM II: Domino Pizza joined the 148 MPs who voted against Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader Boris Johnson this week in a confidence vote. It broke from its usual work managing customer complaints to post that it wouldn’t trust the Prime Minister to deliver one of its pizzas. The tweet was subsequently deleted. Spotted Stephen Waddington.
😂 BRAND ACTIVISM III: How do you manage a communication problem like Troy Hawke? The comedian dons a smoking jacket and welcomes customers to retail stores on behalf of the Greeters Guild. So far he’s hit B&M, B&Q, and Tesco posting the hilarious results on TikTok to promote his new show. Spotted Nigel Sarbutts.
Research and insight
😥 GROWING PAINS: The public relations profession is capitalising on its new found status following the COVID-19 pandemic but it must take a more strategic view of its capabilities. The CIPR State of Profession reports on a growing industry however vacancies remain unfilled due to low numbers of skilled applicants and a fight for talent. Source Stephen Waddington.
👶 CHILDCARE CRISIS: A woman who had her first child in 2010/11 typically suffered a cumulative income loss of £66,434 over the following nine years, relative to what would have happened if she had remained childless. The figures are based on analysis by the Social Market Foundation. Spotted Sarah Waddington.
🔍 SEO WOE: The Daily Mail claims the Google algorithm promotes news stories from left-wing publishers over right. The majority of responses to a search for Boris Johnson were from The Guardian, BBC News and The Independent. Google said the claims are completely inaccurate however Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries promised action in the forthcoming Online Safety bill. Spotted Andrew Bruce Smith.
Social media and platforms
📌 PROFILE PIN: Instagram allows users to pin up to three posts to the top of their profile in the photo- and video-sharing application. Users can pin regular posts as well as Reels. Spotted Alan Morrison.
👀 ACCOUNT TRACKING: LinkedIn has added new tools to help marketers maximise their lead generation and brand building efforts. The Business Manager platform provides a central dashboard to manage people, accounts and pages, and their associated marketing campaigns. Spotted Andrew Bruce Smith.
🎧 AUDIO EVENTS: Twelve-months after launching creator mode LinkedIn has launch tools to help users host audio events. Audio Event Hosting is accessible for anyone who has Creator Mode turned on and meets their community policies. Spotted Andrew Bruce Smith.
🔊 CLUBHOUSE POPULARITY: Social audio app Clubhouse has laid off staff as it refocuses on niche audiences. The app ranks #12 in the Apple app store news category ahead of Google News and Substack Reader suggesting there is still a place for the platform. Spotted Liz Bridgen.
WaddsCon is back at the end of the month (1-2pm, Wed, 29 June) with a session on newsjacking and responsive marketing with Andy Yeti-Barr, Paul Maher, Clara Kelly and Kate Hartley. Sign up here.