The media is changing, are you changing with it?
By Dennis Rutzou

Business people need to know what bloggers are saying about their organisations.

John Croll highlighted that there are plenty of organisations which are harnessing the power of the Web and blogging. Tesltra has set up a specific website called 'Now we are talking' where they invite customers and other stakeholders to comment on any aspect of Telstra's business, which is a pretty gutsy move.

He predicted that the pace of change in the Australian media is set to continue. It will be driven by the increased speed and penetration of broadband Internet and the use of mobile phones as multimedia devices," he said.

John Croll had this warning for business by saying that breaking news, which was once the domain of radio stations, is now chiefly carried by the Internet. The speed at which stories reach the headlines has cut down dramatically and businesses can't afford to not keep pace.

We have worked on the presentation with John for several months and although we can hardly be described as experts, we have a reasonable handle on the main changes that have happened, and will happen, as well as what is driving this revolution in media.

Technology is certainly a part of it - and much more is in the pipeline - but there is also generational change. The media giants have embraced the Internet and most have, or are in the process of integrating their newsrooms with journalists who have been re-trained to write for print and online platforms.

But what does all this mean for public relations and how can the new means of communication be used most effectively to project the messages of our clients?

Well, towards the end of the RCG presentation a friendly competitor leaned over towards me and said: "What do you think all these changes will mean to the PR business?"

I replied: "It will be bloody marvellous. We are in the box seat. We have a highly educated workforce and we are used to developing PR programs to cost-effectively reach niche audiences. In my view, it will be the greatest stimulus that the PR business has ever encountered."

Note: The full text of John Croll's RCG presentation is available at this link.

August 2007

***