tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-840930092789285091.post8311318061538475589..comments2024-03-19T20:31:23.141-05:00Comments on The Chuck Cowdery Blog: Who Actually Wrote that Story You're Reading?Chuck Cowderyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12191121480961526039noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-840930092789285091.post-77967794056865397112017-05-14T20:27:57.533-05:002017-05-14T20:27:57.533-05:00Apparently not.Apparently not.whistlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00278970352458017764noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-840930092789285091.post-42242177512618434872017-05-14T20:02:56.327-05:002017-05-14T20:02:56.327-05:00Does your friend have any moral qualms about doing...Does your friend have any moral qualms about doing that sort of work?Chuck Cowderyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12191121480961526039noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-840930092789285091.post-9853784545935842722017-05-14T19:49:28.601-05:002017-05-14T19:49:28.601-05:00It can get even more murky than that. In addition ...It can get even more murky than that. In addition to press releases, some producers are responsible for many of the "articles" that you happen across on Facebook, Buzzfeed, etc, and the producers pay ghostwriters for these. I have a friend who uses a pseudonym for freelance ghostwriting work (a funny double anonymity), some of which was for a whiskey company. He didn't know much about their product except what they told him and what he researched in 24 hours, but inserted their product into a brief travel story as a sort of covert ad.<br /><br />I understand that the original post was about "legitimate" publications shamelessly reprinting verbatim press releases, but the markets for mass produced products now depend on the social media universe, and the producers likewise benefit from shady practices there as well.whistlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00278970352458017764noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-840930092789285091.post-5599768037102203232017-05-14T11:50:48.567-05:002017-05-14T11:50:48.567-05:00So wait a minute. You're saying that big ethan...So wait a minute. You're saying that big ethanol makes stuff up ? No way. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-840930092789285091.post-31385347671462551952017-05-14T11:24:48.932-05:002017-05-14T11:24:48.932-05:00WhistlePig LLC -- the premier FAUX whiskey company...WhistlePig LLC -- the premier FAUX whiskey company.MadMexnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-840930092789285091.post-7131362708504074502017-05-12T20:00:25.253-05:002017-05-12T20:00:25.253-05:00A third target of the PR release is the client. Ev...A third target of the PR release is the client. Every release is subject to approval by tiers of people in the company that is paying for it. Therefore we get phrases like "the premier rye whiskey company." The writer doesn't believe journalists will buy or repeat the hyperbole. He is simply stroking the egos of those who are paying him. Hence we get releases that begin: "Joe Blow, CEO of Yoyodyne Corporation, stated today that blah, blah, blah relevant information..." Mr. Blow wants to see his name right away even though even a simple rewrite of the release with no other critical analysis would turn the sentence around. That CEO Blow said something isn't a lede or headline. What the company is doing is.<br />Jack Bettridgenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-840930092789285091.post-38687184898560719112017-05-12T14:43:59.491-05:002017-05-12T14:43:59.491-05:00Thanks, Fred. I'm sure Amy appreciated the com...Thanks, Fred. I'm sure Amy appreciated the compliment.Chuck Cowderyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12191121480961526039noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-840930092789285091.post-58712838596596823532017-05-12T11:53:37.393-05:002017-05-12T11:53:37.393-05:00C'mon Chuck. If one person in California and o...C'mon Chuck. If one person in California and one person in New York has heard of Justin King, we have widespread recognition. The same goes for Diageo and their Orphan Barrel.... thing/project; it's all true.Crown Point Marchttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11954073193405396961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-840930092789285091.post-42740840490129367762017-05-12T08:15:33.234-05:002017-05-12T08:15:33.234-05:00Love it, Chuck.
Like you, I get thousands of press...Love it, Chuck.<br />Like you, I get thousands of press releases a week. If something's important, I'll condense it, cut most of the spin words and post it. Some, I'll use to frame my narrative. While press releases are important for media, all media is beginning to use them fully, and it's a shame. But it's a part of the greater problem of staff cuts and the decline of good media organizations. <br />In our world, I tell one PR woman she's one of the best whiskey writers in the business, because half the writers just copy and paste her releases. <br />Cheers! Hope to see you soon. Fred Minnickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06916035456029512709noreply@blogger.com