Enough Already: Categorical Social Media Statements are All Wrong

I paid a quick visit to Techmeme tonight just before bed.  Mistake.  Now my mind is churning the future of the press release because of a lament-fest by Stowe Boyd, Robert Scoble, and Brian Solis. 

Essentially, Stowe and Robert both are annoyed with the idea of PR refactoring - creating a new wave of PR robots whose sole mission is to exploits social media and social networks with their stereotypically less-than-ethical aesthetic.

Brian says, we're not all totally evil!

He says:

the need for a tool that provides information in a way that works across a spectrum of applications, while getting us one step closer to creating a closer relationship between producers and consumers, companies and customers, and most importantly between THE people that comprise all of the above segments.

The truth is that the wires are getting it all wrong as the IR Web Report points out. And, it’s polluting the intention behind this movement and stripping away credibility away from those of us who are diligently working on fixing something that has been broken for a long, long time.

So the message here is that perpetual conversation is the future of what was the press release.  And no one is upset to see any evolution. Go pick up any book written on writing a good press release and you'll find dull, formulaic, perfunctory rules to follow.

The press release is right behind an IRS form in terms of soul crushing monotony.

So even PR people want something else.

Ragging on PR people is dull and pointless as well.  It's right up there with lawyer jokes.

Some PR people are actually good at what they do.  Others are not.  And what they are good at is helping refine a message. 

This is still necessary because even though we've now reached the age of conversation, most people are not skilled in the art of conversation.  In the rugged wild-west those people are on their own, if they put their feet in their mouths that's their own damn fault.  But, you know, there are people out there with worthwhile messages - with significant value to the conversation - who are really horrible conversationalists.

I can see good PR people being immensely helpful for these people.  And, thus, I can see social media and the "future of the press release" being a valid concept.

Now I'm going to bed.

Technorati tags: scoble, stowe boyd, brian solis, PR 2.0, press releases, social media, social networking

Blogged from the Sai Oak in Ocean Shores, Washington

Comments

[Brian Solis]

Great post...and your comment, "The press release is right behind an IRS form in terms of soul crushing monotony" is frightfully true!

It's time to do something about it, and this is the first time where this discussion will actually raise the level of urgency.

The only problem is that most offenders in PR probably won't even read these blog posts. Hence why we're trying to bring them into the conversation.

[Jim Benson]

Thanks Brian,

Your comment was thought provoking enough to cause a whole new post.

I replied in the following post "Social Media is a Zombie."