Know your Audience. In a struggle to re-invent itself, Lands’ End featured an interview with feminist Gloria Steinem (notable for her work in abortion and reproductive rights) in its “Legends” catalog, before considering the audience. The company, popular for its khakis and primary-colored knit sweaters, contracts with many Catholic schools for uniforms and the catalog reached students’ homes. Generating much anti-abortion criticism and many …
Kanye can’t keep it concise
Rapper and entrepreneur Kanye West’s appearance on Ellen had an uncharacteristic start with short answers about his personal life, but he lived up to expectations once asked about his business ideas. Mr. West, who recently tweeted Mark Zuckerberg (the founder of Facebook) to invest $ 1 billion dollars in his ideas, began a 6-minute rant after Ms. DeGeneres innocently asked, “Give me …
Not what you say, but how you say it!
“It’s often not what you say, but how you say it.” Look for yourself. The words in this PSA were reflective and respectful, but Johnny Depp’s and actress wife, Amber Heard’s deadpan delivery was not. In it, they used the medium to show true disdain for Australians and their laws. Video Courtesy The Australian Government Department of Agriculture and Water …
Diversity is not a dirty word
Repetition creates reputation. For Hilary Clinton, her repetition of awkward conversations about racial diversity has given her a less than positive reputation in the Black community. For a female presidential candidate, it is ironic how diversity is a troublesome topic for Mrs. Clinton. In our Los Angeles media training, we teach clients to address a question as a topic (diversity) …
Thank you for this moment
Early in life, we are told that fighting fire with fire will only make matters worse. But the fire of gratitude, diplomacy and goodness will squelch the fire of crudeness and rudeness, every time. Singer-songwriter Taylor Swift proved this useful lesson when she eloquently delivered her acceptance speech at the 2016 Grammy Awards. While the memory of Kanye West’s interruption …
Rubio’s Robotic Repeats
“It’s a good thing to stay on message until it’s not” wrote Forbes’ Magazine contributor, John Baldoni in response to Marco Rubio’s 4-time robotic repetition of the phrase ” Let’s dispel this fiction that Barack Obama doesn’t know what he’s doing. He knows exactly what he’s doing. He’s trying to change America.” Every public speaker should get in touch with …
Trumped Up
In the game of bridge, when you don’t have enough cards in the suit that’s being played, the trump card wins. And Donald Trump appears to be winning in the Republican presidential race of 2016. But he’s not playing well with others or winning the media game that is ultimately required in presidential politics. Following Mr. Trump’s complaints of Fox News …
Republicans as Terrorists?
With the ninety-fifth anniversary of women gaining the right to vote, Hillary Clinton addressed the subject of women’s equality, by comparing her Republican opponents to terrorists. Ms. Clinton said, “Now, extreme views about women, we expect that from some of the terrorist groups, we expect that from people who don’t want to live in the modern world, but it’s a …
A Picture’s Worth a Thousand Words
Model-turned-actress-turned sourpuss, Cara Delevingne, recently flunked an interview on”Good Day Sacramento,” as she promoted her new movie, Paper Towns. The interview had a rough start as one of the hosts introduced her as “Carla.” Her reaction was a scowl and she never fully recovered. At first, she tried to answer their questions with sarcastic humor, but as the interviewers pressed …
When it’s Wrong to be Right
The best intentions can still backfire in the media game. In an attempt to address the issue of race relations, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz faced an immediate and intense social media backlash to his “Race Together” campaign. “Our objective from the very start — dating back to our first open forum in Seattle last December — was to stimulate conversation, …