Category: ideas

Memo to POTUS: There is no such thing as ‘off the record’

So, President Obama was off the record when he called Kanye West a “jackass” — a comment that was overheard and tweeted by ABC News “Nightline” co-anchor Terry Moran, and subsequently retweeted, Facebooked and otherwise spread virally throughout the social mediasphere.

Um, excuse me, but: Since when is a president — or any public figure — ever off the record?

Media Relations 101, Rule No. 1: There is no such thing as “off the record.” This goes for presidents of colleges and universities as well as presidents of the countries. It goes for any public figure. (This means you, too.)

Never assume you are ever off the record when talking to a reporter, a blogger, a tweeter. Never assume anything you say while prepping for an interview will not become the story.

This lesson is more important in today’s always-on mediasphere than it’s ever been.

Higher ed PR colleagues: Please make sure your university’s most visible, high-profile employees learn this rule. If you aren’t teaching it to them, then start. Use President Obama’s off-the-record gaffe as a teachable moment.

(Thanks to @SashaWolff for the L.A. Times story link.)

Friday Five: places to go, people to see

It’s Friday Five time:

  1. As reported here earlier, Elizabeth Allen (@lizallen on Twitter) is now blogging. Huzzah! Liz’s blog is called Adaptivate, and it should be on everybody’s blogroll, RSS feed, delicious faves, whatever you use to manage your required reading resources. Liz is associate director of alumni relations at the Caltech Alumni Association and is one of the best around when it comes to integrating social media tools with traditional alumni relations practices. Her blog may be new, but Liz is no stranger to the craft of blogging. She’s guest-posted here a couple of times — first, about her lessons learned from a CASE conference we attended in April 2008, and more recently some good insights about working with unofficial Facebook groups.
  2. Another newcomer to the higher ed blog scene is Davina Gould (@davinagould), who started her graduate/professional school marketing blog in August. Davina is a marketer at a law school somewhere in Florida, and her blog (so far) offers practical and thoughtful insights on such topics as promoting social media on your campus, using Google Documents as a productivity tool and handling the death of a campus public figure. Welcome aboard, Davina!
  3. Have you tested Facebook Lite yet? It’s got a third less sidebar gunk than the regular Facebook. Great taste, less filling. Here’s a review of the new interface.
  4. The CASE website has a new look. The site also provides a nifty section to guide you through the changes.
  5. Remember what happened on this date eight years ago. Here’s a video to help you remember: 9/11: Stories of Survival and Loss, from the National September 11 Memorial and Museum. Or if music’s more your thing, listen to Bruce Springsteen’s Into the Fire, from his album in memory of 9/11, The Rising. I think I may listen to that entire album today.