Archive for the ‘Web 2.0’ Category

Washington Post reports that the issue of transparency and news dissemination is getting a little murky in DC:

The Bush administration, rejecting an opinion from the Government Accountability Office, said last week that it is legal for federal agencies to feed TV stations prepackaged news stories that do not disclose the government’s role in producing them.

That message, in memos sent Friday to federal agency heads and general counsels, contradicts a Feb. 17 memo from Comptroller General David M. Walker. Walker wrote that such stories — designed to resemble independently reported broadcast news stories so that TV stations can run them without editing — violate provisions in annual appropriations laws that ban covert propaganda.

We appear to have a right to do propaganda, but what about covert propaganda?

The legal counsel’s office "does not agree with GAO that the covert propaganda prohibition applies simply because an agency’s role in producing and disseminating information is undisclosed or ‘covert,’ regardless of whether the content of the message is ‘propaganda,’ " Bradbury wrote. "Our view is that the prohibition does not apply where there is no advocacy of a particular viewpoint, and therefore it does not apply to the legitimate provision of information concerning the programs administered by an agency."

GIVE ME A BREAK! They really believe these VNRs – with PR people pretending to work as baggage screeners – and packed full of propaganda – represent pure reporting – by that I mean, the don’t advocate a particular viewpoint. Well, in that case, lets get rid of the media all together.

I need to go cool-down somewhere… the parting quote from the story says it all…

"Whether in the form of a payment to an actual journalist, or through the creation of a fake one, it is wrong to deceive the public with the creation of phony news stories," the lawmakers wrote

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Take a look at the new Java.com from Sun. Great looking site and one of my fave places for free software. Wish the Apple zone was clearer… Here’s my new fave time killer…

Just posted this to Brandshift.

Apple Ruling Has Implications for Brand Communicatiors

Friday’s ruling in favor of Apple has deep implications for brand communicators. Now I’m no lawyer and experience tells me that different corporate legal counsel will come at this one from different directions. So, take this as you will.

AP: Judge: Apple can press Bloggers on sources. A California judge on Friday ruled that three independent online reporters may have to divulge confidential sources in a lawsuit brought by Apple Computer Inc., ruling that there are no legal protections for those who publish a company’s trade secrets.

The Judge seems to have not bought into Apple’s argument that Bloggers are not Journalists, preferring to sidestep the issue all together. As I’ve stated on my blog, I don’t believe bloggers are journalists unless they are blogging to what they regard to be a media blog. But that doesn’t mean we’re not entitled to report and to all the protections of the Fifth Amendment. And, the blogosphere shouldn’t be confined by traditional notions of publishing. Suddenly, anyone who has information in the public interest must check with a company to see if it is a trade secret? To which the response is naturally, yes.

There are so many worrying things about this ruling. The least of which is a Judge ruling on the nature of content. "Even if the
movants are journalists, this is not the equivalent of a free pass."
Kleinberg firmly defined the trade secret information as stolen
property.

Assuming that all information belongs to someone else, where does this one stop?

Anyway, enough of the rights rant. So what are the implications for brand communicators?

1. Communications policy takes a new twist. Most documents carry the line "Company Confidential – Not For Distribution". I suspect many will start to add "Trade Secrets". Dan Gillmor said it well, "Reporting on business, if this bad ruling is upheld on appeal, will be a great deal harder in the future. Companies will simply slap "trade secret" protection on everything they do, and any reporter who gets a scoop on anything the company doesn’t want the public to know about will be under a legal threat."
2. More enforcers raise their ugly heads. In a challenge to independent journalism – and reporting in general – more companies get more aggressive on leaks and use the Apple ruling to aggressively pursue and plug leaks. I’ll be the first to admit to being on the receiving end of leaks. It’s incredibly frustrating. At the same time I always had enormous respect for media who cultivated sources and were aggressive in reporting. I suspect the ruling will open the door to any aggrieved company pursuing journalists it doesn’t like. This is going to get personal.
3. Advances & NDAs are the next to be challenged. For decades companies have attempted to manipulate media coverage via negotiated advances, exclusives and NDAs. Apple is one of the grandmasters at this. So what if the information has been given to a range of selected outlets? Is it still a trade secret then? Perhaps the Judge’s ruling will have the unintended effect of reducing these practices if information is regarded to be fair game once in the public domain? This is one for the Lawyers but its important.
4. New additions to blog policy. I know companies are rethinking blog policies in the light of the Apple ruling. Thou shalt not disclose trade secrets is being added to the list. Very specific language is being crafted into employment contracts related to disclosing trade secrets to non-traditional media sources.
5. Brands will be defined by how they handle the blogsphere. How would you have dealt with the leaks Apple faced? I’m an Apple fanatic. I’ve only bought Apple for years. But all of this has made me much less loyal than I once was. What I’m also surprised at – from a company that is meant to care so much about its community – is the lack of dialog. As far as I can tell there isn’t an Apple blog in sight providing perspective on the issue. Your reputation will be partly defined by how you react and act in relation to leaks. Apple has tarnished it’s reputation.

These are just five of the implications of this absurd but critical case for brand communicators. I’d love to build a list of other implications and then publish them as a whole. Drop your thoughts into the comments section… I’ll leave you with Charles Cooper’s comments from his C/Net column:

The real subtext is this: Apple is directed by a collection of control freaks who would have found themselves quite at home in the Nixon White House. The big difference being that reporters had the constitutional freedom to report on the Nixon White House.

Apple has been an infuriating company for me to cover over the last two decades or so. I adore its technology but can’t stomach its overreaching sense of entitlement. Other tech companies deal with leaks all the time. Nobody’s happy when their discussions wind up as fodder for the rumor mill. But that’s part of the give-and-take that’s defined the technology business for decades.

One of the things I’ve always liked about blogging is that the blog also functions as my virtual scapbook and archive. Benjamin flagged an interesting project to capture the collective memory of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s Gates project in Central Park.

Using Flickr’s unique photo sharing platform, the Institute for the Future of the Book will gather pictures of the Gates from anyone and everyone who wants to contribute. The aim is to harness the creativity and insight of thousands to build a kind of collective memory machine – one that is designed not just for the moment, but as a lasting and definitive document of the Gates and our experience of them.

Tim Bray on why Blogging is good for your career. Here are a couple of the reasons he cites (there are five more on his site).

1. You have to get noticed to get promoted.
2. You have to get noticed to get hired.
3. It really impresses people when you say “Oh, I’ve written about that, just Google for XXX and I’m on the top page” or “Oh, just Google my name.”
4. No matter how great you are, your career depends on communicating. The way to get better at anything, including communication, is by practicing. Blogging is good practice.
5. Bloggers are better-informed than non-bloggers. Knowing more is a career advantage…

To which I would add…

1. It’s a terrific way to converse with people and ignite conversations you’d never have had
2. You’ll improve your thinking in both depth and range
3. You’ll quickly discover what you don’t know
4. It’s actually fun
5. There’s no more efficient way (yet) to communicate with your network, friends and family