WHAT IS NARRATIVE GRIDLOCK? When your own key messages back you or your organization into a corner. The worst part? Getting out of that corner without reputational damage. Here in Ontario (Canada), the province’s teachers unions continually doubled down on the “it’s not about the money, it’s about the children” narrative in their grievances with…
I was wrong. The press release IS dead. I’ve often been asked this question over the years – and each time I would vehemently defend the need of the press release. “It represents the organization’s message!” “It’s the official statement of record about an issue!” “Reporters depend on it!” The press release is still all…
Enter Doug Ford and his ready-made news stories featured most prominently on his own social platforms and campaign website. They look like news. They feel like news. And they sound like news. Except that it’s not news reported by a known media outlet – it’s a carefully crafted narrative the campaign wants the general public to hear. Some…
THE POWER OF THE PERSONAL STORY to highlight the importance of a narrative can take a media pitch from good to great. I recently worked on a media relations strategy for Prostate Cancer Canada highlighting the number of Canadian men who do not get the PSA (prostate specific antigen) test. A strong human-interest component was…