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November 27, 2006
Impressions of Chicago
It is nearly impossible to be objective about your place of birth. Some Americans get a tingle down their spine when they see the US Capitol. I get mine when I make the approach to O’Hare Airport flying over the Lakefront to the familiar skyline of Chicago. When you come to a city with your children, you see it in a very different way than the usual all-business all of the time schedule of yours truly. Here are some of my observations from the Thanksgiving Day weekend.
1) Millenium Park is a triumph of urban planning. The blight of the former Illinois Central rail yards has been covered over, replaced by an imaginative and inspiring 16 acre park along Lake Michigan, framed on three sides by buildings. The open space is complemented by imaginative and daring architecture, such as the Bean, a reflective giant legume that magnifies as you approach it. The combination of private philanthropy (Harris Dance Center, Pritzker Performing Arts Center) and corporate sponsorship (BP, Boeing, Wrigley) tells you that this is still a city that works.
2) The city is still obsessed with sports. I grew up thinking that Bobby Hull, Ernie Banks and Dick Butkus were more important than the President. It continues today, with “Da Bears” on everybody’s mind. Can you imagine a downtown shrine to physical fitness with 11,000 members? The East Bank Club has an area for exercise machines, about 300 by my count, with every form of self-abuse possible, from the mundane (stairs, bikes) to the arcane (in line skating simulators).
3) There is a much greater emphasis on environment and maximization of the natural assets such as the Chicago River than in New York City, Los Angeles or many other major metropolitan areas. I actually remember as a child the Chicago River being dyed green for St. Patrick’s Day! Today, the green is evident in the renovated parks and flowers planted along boulevards, with Mayor Rich Daley even planting grass on top of city buildings to reduce cooling costs.
4) The Museum Campus, which includes the Field Museum (natural history), Shedd Aquarium and Adler Planetarium, is a tremendous cultural asset and a focal point for tourism. The King Tutankhamen exhibit at the Field Museum was a wonderful example of pedagogy, appealing to children and adults alike.
5) The long tradition of architectural excellence has encouraged preservation of older buildings that might have been destroyed in the name of modernity in other cities. The Chicago Cultural Center, formerly the Public Library, has been restored to its spectacular 1890s glory, replete with Tiffany glass rotunda. There is a sense of continuity and solidity from the retention of such landmarks.
Chicago was given the sobriquet “The Windy City” in the late 1800s by a smart aleck New York journalist, fatigued by the constant self-promotion of the second city’s leading citizens. I would suggest that Chicago now under values itself. It is the most American of large cities, hard-working, self-effacing, creative, a magnet for the best and brightest from the Midwest region. It has confounded its critics, including BusinessWeek, which did a cover story in 2000 on the demise of the city in the post industrial age. As Tony Travers, professor at The London School of Economics and a specialist in city planning says, the importance of “what goes on between the buildings” is critical. He suggests that the key to attracting tourists, who might have had their fill of the “old stand-bys” is to appeal to their desire for discovery, the “magic of the little-known.” Chicago meets that test and more.
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Posted by Edelman at 3:03 PM
Comments
I enjoyed reading your comments about my hometown, Chicago, particularly after a recent fact finding trip to China with officals from the Illinois and Chicago tourism bureaus. We learned that the new, vibrant, cosmopolitan Chicago is virtually unknown there -- to the Chinese, Chicago is still defined as an industrial city that is the home of Michael Jordan. No one there has even heard of Oprah! Mayor Daley told us that he thinks that Chicago has been redefined by Millenium Park, and to many it has, but we still have a long way to go to make the Chicago brand known in many countries and continents. Hopefully, our recent trip there, composed of officials from a cross section of Chicago promotional groups, will be a good start. Even after the spectacle of the endless skyscrapers of Shanghai, I too got a chill when our beautiful skyline came into view on my flight home.
Posted by: Cathleen Johnson at November 29, 2006 2:02 PM
I am a graduate student at Kent State University and we were recently discussing non-profit organizations in one of my classes. This post on the city of Chicago really reiterated what we talked about in class about the positive power of non-profit organizations. Non-profits in Chicago seem to be flurrying in the educational, environmental and architectural aspects and you listed such great examples of what a good non-profit can bring to the table. My class came up with a list of advice for a non-profit organization in the 21st century that included:
1) Be as technologically advanced as you can.
2) Be as creative as you can, especially when planning fundraisers.
3) Collaborate within the organization and network outside of it.
4) Be conscious of branding. Be consistent with your message and recognizable to help build your image and credibility.
5) Have the ability to adapt to changes.
6) Join the Chamber of Commerce.
7) Recruit volunteers from local colleges and make internships available.
8) Be strategic about your board members.
9) Only send press releases when the item is newsworthy.
10) Recruit prominent people in your area to support your causes, such as local celebrities.
11) Stay in touch with the public, not only when fundraising.
12) Seek out corporate partners who fit with your cause.
I was curious if you would add anything to this list, from your observations about Chicago and non-profits in general. With the 1.8 million non-profits in US alone and the 400 million volunteers they utilize, it seems as though non-profits are holding more of a share of power than people may realize.
Posted by: Laura Andrews at November 30, 2006 12:28 PM
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| TrackBackNovember 21, 2006
A Thanksgiving Reverie on the Fork in the Road
I want to comment on this week's article in the Holmes Report by Paul Holmes, titled “Anti-Social: Is Public Relations Messing Up in the Blogosphere” and a companion piece written by Jeff Jarvis in Buzzmachine 12 days ago titled "PR and the New Architecture of Information." Both Holmes and Jarvis contend that the public relations profession has an important new opportunity to establish a dialogue with stakeholders directly based on credible information. Both of these wise observers are concerned about the seeming inability of PR people to perform in this expanded role. Holmes concludes that PR people “are in danger of becoming pariahs in the social media realm.” There is a paradox: clients recognize PR’s unique abilities in this dispersed, democratic, multi-stakeholder communications environment, but there is a nascent rebellion in the blogosphere rejecting PR-spawned material as invasive and inherently false.
We are now at the fork in the road, where we will be able to say that we moved forward after an awkward start in our rookie year on the field, or can look back wistfully at what might have been.
Our clients must participate in social media. There is no intelligent strategy in corporate reputation that suggests leaving the field to those who would put a company in an entirely negative context. In the marketing arena, brands can harness the enthusiasm and expertise of avid consumers, while engaging passionate advocates on issues of social importance. For instance, GE used a blog to showcase innovative technologies that were on display at the recent NextFest technology festival, which it had sponsored.
There is a way forward for PR people in the world of social media. It is credible advocacy, a phrase that stems from a recent conversation with David Weinberger. We have to move beyond a position of agent or broker. We are now responsible for the quality of the information and the integrity of the vehicle, because our content may be going directly to audiences, as well as through the filter of independent media. We should offer access to data on both sides of an issue. Content needs to be real. Authenticity and attribution are expected.
What does this mean in practice? Paid spokespeople in marketing, such as the women in the Dove Real Beauty campaign, can participate credibly in social media only if it is entirely clear that their work is sponsored by a client and that their comments are not edited by the client or PR firm. Corporate spokespeople, whether agency or internal, should identify themselves, their interest in an issue and their funding source.
Much has been achieved in the past year by PR people in social media. Our own agency has made bloggers an important aspect of launch campaigns for XBOX 360 and for Nissan’s new trucks, listening to their critiques, helping them gain equal access to possible stories. We have worked with companies such as GE, to persuade them to have top researchers blog on environmental and scientific advances. We have created social media programs for Axe and Trojan. We need to promote these success stories as part of our continuing effort to educate our colleagues and academia about best practices. We’ve also committed to showcasing best practices with such organizations as the ANA and WOMMA to ensure that all social media participants are aware of the rules of engagement.
Last night, in helping my teenage daughter prepare for her history quiz today, I read an excerpt from philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau’s The Social Contract. He says, “The problem is to find a form of association which will defend and protect with the whole common force the person and goods of each associate, and in which each, while uniting himself with all, may still obey himself alone and remain as free as before. This is the fundamental problem of which the Social Contract provides the solution…Each man, in giving himself to all, gives himself to nobody. . .” In he blogosphere, we must rely on the integrity and intelligence of each participant who seeks truth and a better world.
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Posted by Edelman at 12:17 PM
Comments
In my law of advertising and public relations class at Kent State University, we have learned that corporate speech hasn't historically been held to the same legal standards as advertising. You said, "Corporate spokespeople should identify themselves, their interest in an issue and their funding source." Do you believe that with more companies becoming transparent, corporate speech will have more legal restrictions placed on it?
Posted by: Lauren Polly at November 26, 2006 1:14 PM
The more things change, the more they stay the same: PR needs better PR. Another way to frame the situation we find ourselves in, is derived from the remarks of Rev. Jesse Jackson, who distinguishes one's description from their definition. The history of PR and the actions of each practitioner undoubtedly describe the profession—for better or worse. But we will forever have the opportunity to define the practice of public relations in a new media horizon by respecting our new responsibilities with diligence. You have outlined those responsibilities well and defined them through citing the cases that Edelman developed for clients. Let's hope the discussion continues.
Posted by: Eric Hansen at November 26, 2006 11:25 PM
Thanks for your comment. We need to tell more stories of successful social media programs.
Posted by: Richard Edelman at November 28, 2006 8:46 AM
There is legal standard and then there is social expectation. We need to comply with both of these. Thanks
Posted by: Richard Edelman at November 28, 2006 8:47 AM
Richard - Sounds like Edleman has done some very innovative work in the space. Would you consider a couple of 'case study' posts?
By the way, minor detail but I couldn't find the link from the NextFest website to the blog. Wondered how the blog was promoted. Thanks.
Posted by: Toby at November 29, 2006 11:53 AM
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| TrackBackNovember 13, 2006
Hanging With the Future Leaders of PR Field
I am returning from a day in Salt Lake City at the PRSSA (Public Relations Students Society of America) Annual Conference. I was asked to be the keynote speaker for the event at the surreal hour of 8:30 AM on Saturday morning. At least I was on East Coast time-it looked like more than a few of the students were a little worse for the wear from the previous night’s festivities. Good for them - wish I was their age! Here are my remarks to the group.
I also went to the social hour on Friday night and then on to dinner with the fifteen leading lights of PRSSA. Here are a few interesting conclusions from my discussions with the students:
1) Diversity - Progress is being made. The latest survey by PRSSA indicates approximately 9% of members are African-American and 8% are Hispanic. The same survey shows that 78% of the members are female, a small increase in the male population from previous periods.
2) Where They Want To Work - In my own survey over dinner, I was interested to learn that most wanted to work in Chicago, New York or Atlanta. Only one wanted Silicon Valley. Nobody mentioned working outside of the US.
3) Language - Most have taken French or Spanish but are not even close to fluency. One young man has been an intern in China and has perfected his Mandarin.
4) Course Work - They take between four and six courses a semester. Class work is 4 hours a day, homework is three hours a day. The extracurricular load is quite substantial, particularly for those working part-time to pay for school or at a PR unit organized by the school for hands-on experience with clients.
5) Journalism and PR as Separate as Church and State - Nobody I met works on the school newspaper. The journalism departments have succeeded in keeping PR students out of their hallowed halls.
6) First Job, Agency or Corporate - Almost universal preference for agency over corporate, on the basis of broader experiences, more young people as peers.
7) Media Choices - Over dinner, I was amazed to learn that 14 of the 15 students read print versions of newspapers. Relatively few of them read blogs - in fact they wanted my advice on which blogs to read. The consumer facing magazines were very popular, as were shows like America’s Top Model or Project Runway. Only a couple of them were YouTube fans. They preferred Facebook as their social media.
8) Social Skills - generally incredibly good. Several students walked right up to the microphone after my speech to ask questions. They seemed to be having a great time at the social hour. As one of the students noted, "Yeah, we can party. This is one skill we all have."
I was genuinely touched by the warmth of the reception and the real interest in our profession. Our profession has a bright future if we can continue to attract students of this caliber.
Posted by Edelman at 10:35 AM
Comments
Mr. Edelman,
I really enjoyed your comments on Saturday. I too agree with your assessment that this is a fascinating time in public relations. Like never before, we are truly able to have a two-way relationship with our publics through social media and other Web 2.0 principles. I believe that this will revolutionize PR in the next few years.
Thanks for coming to SLC and letting the next generation learn from your experience.
Jarrod Morgenstern
University of Kansas PRSSA President
Posted by: Jarrod Morgenstern at November 13, 2006 6:46 PM
Sounds like a good time. I can echo many of your observations. Here are a few thoughts on two of them. Media consumption: I still see a lot of newspapers in the hands of PR students as well, but these papers are made available to us at no cost and students are not at a computer for most of the day as they are in class and may not want to lug around a laptop. Journalism and PR: At Syracuse I find there are many opportunities for PR students to perform journalism for various campus publications. The real divide comes from the curriculum which, in the interest of focusing on teaching more PR skills, only requires a basic news writing course. This of course varies by program. But if I wanted to write for the campus newspaper, my major would not keep me from doing so.
Posted by: Eric Hansen at November 14, 2006 12:22 PM
Thanks for having me out to SLC. I enjoyed my time with the students.
Posted by: Richard Edelman at November 14, 2006 3:40 PM
Good that you are writing for the newspaper at school. So should all of the PR students at other universities.
Posted by: Richard Edelman at November 14, 2006 4:02 PM
I was delighted to hear you speak at the PRSSA conference, since I could not meet with you when you visited Ball State University.
As you mentioned in the diversity section, I could see the progress at the conference, too. I was pleased to see quite a few Asian and Asian-American students at the conference. As a graduate student from Japan, I hope the diversification helps the future PR professionals understand international/diversity issues that the U.S. faces.
However, I’m not sure if I can agree with your comment, “The journalism departments have succeeded in keeping PR students out of their hallowed halls.” After receiving an undergraduate degree in journalism, I started my M.A. in business public relations. So, I believe that I can see the both sides. I feel that PR classes and PR student organization are not opening its doors to journalism folks as well.
Thank you for speaking at the conference. I’m sure everyone enjoyed your speech.
Posted by: Yoko Kandori at November 15, 2006 12:28 PM
Mr. Edelman,
I really enjoyed the comments that you made on Saturday to the PRSSA students. The take home message that I received was the importance of transparency. I would like to make two comments on your observations from dinner with the 15 students. I wish that I was one of the 15 students, but I had the wonderful opportunity to eat lunch with your brother at BYU yesterday and that was a pretty incredible experience. For starters, I feel that working for the university's paper has really helped me understand how the media thinks and opperates. I really value the time that I have in the newsroom and the important messages that have changed my perception of media. Finally, I consider myself fluent in the Spanish language. How useful is Spanish in the US markets? I realize how many Latin Americans live in the US, but I also realize the future of business is moving into the asian market, therefore the future of PR is moving in that direction as well. How useful will my spanish really be in the future? What kind of things can I do now with my Spanish skills?
Again, thank you for your remarks on Saturday. You are an amazing bank of knowledge and experience.
Joseph Tateoka
President, Bradley PR
Brigham Young University
Posted by: Joseph Tateoka at November 15, 2006 12:34 PM
I too really enjoyed and appreciated your comments at the PRSSA National Conference. I was impressed that you have such an understanding of our generation - many of us do, in fact, get our news from the Daily Show rather than from the CBS Evening News. After your address and some of the others during the Conference, I've had somewhat of a paradigm shift about public relations -- the idea that we should be directing conversations rather than sending messages. The peer-to-peer communication model is so interesting - and quite different than what I'm learning in the classroom. Speaking of the classroom, at Brigham Young University (Provo, Utah) our public relations curriculum includes an entire semester of writing for the school's daily newspaper. During the semester I wrote for the Daily Universe, I wasn't thrilled to be a reporter, but looking back, I feel the experience improved my writing and gave me a better perspective and understanding of journalists - and I believe it will make me a better communicator.Many thanks for coming to Salt Lake City!
Posted by: Sarah Heitman at November 15, 2006 1:21 PM
It was truly a unique experience to join Richard Edelman for dinner at the PRSSA 2006 National Conference. It was interesting to listen to him ask questions of all of us as we sat around the table. I was fascinated to learn of PR's new role in social media. As budding PR professionals we have a lot of work ahead of us. It's a great time to be coming into the field.
Posted by: Adam Denison at November 15, 2006 6:27 PM
It was an immense pleasure to meet and hear you speak at the national conference this past weekend. Your speech Saturday morning helped me obtain a better grasp of the past and future of public relations and how I need to progress to avoid being swallowed by it. Your discussion of the paradox of transparency was especially intriguing for me, as I've been monitoring your blog this past semester for an online tactics course I'm taking. Reading your posts has given me incredible insight not only to the public relations field, but the world around me as well.
Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to attend the conference and answering everyone's questions so thouroughly.
Amanda Vasil
Kent State University PRSSA Vice President
Posted by: Amanda Vasil at November 15, 2006 6:27 PM
Mr. Edelman,
It was great to meet you in Salt Lake City at the Friday night social. I also enjoyed your comments on Saturday. You pointed out how the media world is changing. You mentioned how those who were once the consumers of the media are now the producers. You referred to them as "Prosumers."
Prior to the conference, I learned a concept similar to "prosumers" called citizen journalism in my Online PR Tactics class at Kent State University. This concept can be extremely useful to pr professionals because messages are considered more credible if they are objective or unbiased. However, content produced by "prosumers" or citizen journalists can inhibit our ability to control the messages published about our company. What I would like to know is: Is it ethical for pr professionals to pitch "prosumers" or citizen journalists? If so, what are the ethical guidelines for pitching them? and are there any advantages or disadvantages to pitching a "prosumer" that are not apparent when pitching a professional media source?
Posted by: Dana Rader at November 15, 2006 7:39 PM
Mr. Edelman:
Thank you for taking your time to speak at the conference this past weekend. Your advice was some of the most valuable I have received in my three years in college, and I will take it with me throughout my public relations career.
Public relations professionals walk the line between being an advocate for their company and aiming for a "journalistic level of accuracy." Thank you for being a role model for public relations students and setting high standards for the future professionals.
Posted by: Olivia Mihalic at November 15, 2006 8:45 PM
Mr Edelman;
I am both amazed and shocked to learn about nos. 2 and 7. As an American, I meet few Americans abroad. I can theorize why. But it amazes me that someone who works in PR would not even consider getting some experience overseas. I may be biased, as I have lived a total of 5 years overseas, but still...
And as for no. 7. I'm incredulous. Is it possible? When you say relatively few, I am assuming under ten said they don't read blogs. Many graduates and young people I know in the States grew up (professionally-speaking) reading blogs and learning how to deconstruct theories and spin and offer opinion through blogging. How can it be that PR-savvy people don't expose themselves to blogs?
What is your theory on that, Mr. Edelman?
Posted by: Doug Crets at November 15, 2006 10:40 PM
Many schools may have kept Public Relations out of the Journalism department. At Kent State University a PR major can't graduate without writing for the school newspaper. We are also encouraged to read blogs. Bill Sledzik, one of our professors, has a blog about PR education. (The link is to Bill's Blog)
Posted by: Timothy Feagles at November 16, 2006 12:37 AM
Hello again Mr. Edelman,
Thank you so much for speaking to our membership at PRSSA National Conference. I asked several of our members about your speech. Each member cited a different media trend that surprised them, including the daily 25 percent of high school graduates that don't receive any news at all.
One trend that does not surprise me is the migration to online resources for news. I was surprised at our dinner to hear that 14 of 15 students regularly read a print version of their local newspaper. I will go on record as the odd man out. I do, however, check a list of Web sites daily for news and know that many other students do the same. To summarize, I felt our group at dinner was somewhat of an anomaly for the college student demographic. I later spoke with a representative from your Seattle office who agreed.
PRSA published a dialogue in the fall edition of The Public Relations Strategist titled, "The Paper Chase: What Lies Ahead?" A panel debates the future of newspapers and elaborates on several of the points you discussed Saturday morning. Take a look if you get the chance.
Thank you once again for reaching out to our students.
Sincerely,
Kevin J. Saghy
National President
The Public Relations Student Society of America
Posted by: Kevin Saghy at November 16, 2006 1:57 AM
I understand your point and agree with it. I just thought it was such an anomaly that it was interesting.
Posted by: Richard Edelman at November 16, 2006 5:48 PM
That is a really good thing. Bravo Kent State.
Posted by: Richard Edelman at November 16, 2006 5:48 PM
It is an amazing time for Americans to work overseas. It should be seen as a smart “to do” also to study overseas for a semester
Posted by: Richard Edelman at November 16, 2006 5:49 PM
Thanks for the warm reception in Salt Lake City. I enjoyed preparing for the speech and my time with the students.
Posted by: Richard Edelman at November 16, 2006 5:49 PM
Of course we should be in touch with "pro-sumers." They are the citizen journalists who are most vocal about specific brands. Just tell them who you are and why you are contacting them.
Posted by: Richard Edelman at November 16, 2006 5:50 PM
The Kent State crowd gets my vote for most active in posting comments to my blog. Thanks for coming to my speech.
Posted by: Richard Edelman at November 16, 2006 5:51 PM
Don’t direct conversations, participate in them. Really important distinction for you to remember.
Posted by: Richard Edelman at November 16, 2006 5:52 PM
Spanish is very important in the US market, especially in key cities of NY, Miami, LA, Chicago, Dallas, Houston. Keep up the studies.
Posted by: Richard Edelman at November 16, 2006 5:53 PM
Fair comment. But I still think that PR folks should be on their school newspapers. Maybe I am old generation but it certainly helped me!
Posted by: Richard Edelman at November 16, 2006 5:56 PM
Mr. Edelman,
I am the BYU chapter historian, and have been organizing some Conference feedback with our members and some outside the chapter as well. It's amazing how many of them are referencing your messages, either directly or indirectly, in their responses about their Conference experience. Thank you for your address and down-to-earth connection with our organization - you are making quite the impact on PRSSA.
Sincerely,
Brooke Eddington
Brigham Young University PRSSA Historian
Posted by: Brooke Eddington at November 17, 2006 2:28 PM
Mr. Edelman,
Thank you for these very interesting notes, it is worrying to me to read that YOUNG future PR professionnals in the US are not aware of major trends such as blogging when you would expect them to be ahead and guide their future clients through them. The lack of international skills is another problem, knowing they will probably face clients who expect them to have some basic knowledge of the outside world.
Posted by: Genevieve at November 18, 2006 2:45 AM
Mr. Edelman,
I wanted to thank you for taking the time to speak with our membership on these important issues for young professionals. Many of our members said that meeting with you and hearing you speak was the pinnacle of their pre-professional careers. I couldn't agree with them more.
I was also amazed to hear that so many students are taking an eager interest in reading print media. It certainly shows that our pre-professionals are already strong, knowledgeable advocates for public relations and its future.
Thank you again for taking the time to speak with us.
Sincerely,
Jessica Randazza
Vice President of Chapter Development
2006-2007 National Committee
The Public Relations Student Society of America
Posted by: Jessica Randazza at November 21, 2006 12:21 PM
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| TrackBackNovember 7, 2006
Observations on the Chinese and Korean Blogospheres
I have just returned from a two week trip to Asia. Among the most interesting discussions were with blogging experts, Jeremy Goldkorn in Beijing and Juny Lee in Seoul.
China's top portals are Sina.com, Sohu.com, Bokee.com and MSN Spaces. Sina was clever in reaching out early on to Chinese celebrities, encouraging them to post their blogs there. Technology is the number one subject for Chinese bloggers. There are also thousands of high school girl diaries, really personal journals. Group blogging is quite popular. One example is MindMeters.com, a group of reporters including the editor of Life Magazine. Another well known media blogger is WangXiaoFeng.net, who writes about government regulation of the Web in an outspoken way, for instance--Chinese Government trying to force bloggers to use their real names. Consumer generated content is rapidly expanding. Regular people have become stars in this manner. Sprite Fairy Sister posted photos of herself as a simple country girl dressed in traditional outfits; this led to her being retained by Sony Ericsson as spokesperson for its "simple phone."
Bulletin boards are very important in China. In fact, 110 million Chinese are regular participants on bulletin boards. According to Goldkorn, bulletin boards are more influential than blogs. Tianya.com, Qihoo.com and Xici.net are the top three bulletin boards. The People's Daily newspaper has an on-line forum which emphasizes a "strong China" policy, leading to nationalist posts throughout the day.
For companies considering how best to manage corporate reputation in the Chinese blogosphere, remember this story. A supplier to Apple, a Taiwanese company named Foxconn, was attacked for tolerating sweatshop conditions in China. The large British newspaper, the Daily Mail ran a story about these conditions and a reporter working for The China Business News (a large circulation Chinese business daily) covered the story soon after. Foxconn sued the reporter in Chinese court. Sina.com set up a blog for the journalist to defend herself and the Chinese blogosphere came to her defense, even adding further facts on the company's poor behavior in the factories.
In general, there appears to be quite an active anti-corporate, anti-multinational voice on the blogosphere in China. The average blogger is a 30 year old male, of modest means, venting resentments. Japanese companies are the #1 target, with US companies just behind.
Korea has an incredibly robust blogosphere, with an estimated 7 million active bloggers and over 20 million people participating in social networks such as Cyworld. The number one reason for blogging is commenting on technology. There are several food bloggers, including NaChoCho. Also there is a unique trend in Korea, the wife-bloggers, such as NaMuline, who share recipes, provides information on baby care, best schools and stores. PR companies engage these social arbiters on behalf of clients.
Koreas's top portals are Naver.com, Empas.com and Daum.net. Naver's strategy is reminiscent of Yahoo, aggregating stories from other media, while Naver determines the top-ranked news providing top-billing to sports and entertainment stories. Daum's strategy is to create its own content. It is becoming a media company, hiring its own technology reporters. The portals set up on-line clubs for major areas of interest, such as cars. These community sites often organize events.
Our Asian network released findings from Edelman's third annual Stakeholder Study two weeks ago and found that in Korea, on-line media is now exactly equal in trust to newspapers at 41% while in China, stories on the Web are the #2 source of credible information about a company behind television.
Overall, I am also struck by just how much Korea stands apart from the global conversation. Its most popular blog platforms do not even ping Technorati with information about posts. This makes it difficult to rate the authority of its bloggers and track conversations, which is unfortunate the given the size of the Korean blogosphere.
This trip reinforces my conviction that blogging is as much a local phenomenon as a global one. Therefore, there is a need for companies to participate in the blogosphere in a respectful manner with knowledge of cultural and language differences where appropriate.
Posted by Edelman at 11:57 AM
Comments
Richard;
A while back I sent in a request to interview you about your recent statements on trust in business, after your talk in Hong Kong. Your pr group seems to be pretty slow on getting back to me.
Do you think we can spend some time talking on the phone?
Thanks.
Posted by: Doug Crets at November 8, 2006 5:04 AM
Some very interesting and useful observations on the Chinese and Korean blogosphere. I just got back from a trip to Beijing and Shanghai - a 'fact-finding' visit to learn about the key challenges the public relations industry was facing over there - the main one being staff recruitment and retention. I found it fascinating to talk with practitioners (who were very generous with their time) and discuss the similarities with the practice in the UK. My main reason for this interest is that we have an undergraduate degree programme that's based in Shanghai (Shanghai Institute for Foreign Trade) for two years and the final year is with us in the UK so it is crucial for us in education to keep up dated about the trends and issues in the region. I've been visiting China regularly since 2003 and see vast changes each time I'm there.
From my perspective there are some great opportunities there for our graduates but also some major challenges for employers and practitioners. Next time I'm out I'll try to arrange a meeting at your Edelman offices there as I'd be very interested in their perspective...
Posted by: Julia Jahansoozi at November 8, 2006 10:05 AM