Is Barbie Lust Right for Your Daughter?

The swimsuit edition of Sports Illustrated is popular for the same reason Playboy is: the pictures. They appeal to men's desires and fantasies (and not the good ones).  

Now Mattel has gotten in on the action by creating the Barbie Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Doll. It was made to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the magazine, and it's an updated version of the original 1959 model. What's interesting is Target, where it's exclusively sold, says it's "For the adult collector" even though they say the suggested age is from six years old. Often "logic" gets lost in marketing.

When I was growing up, six year-olds didn't play with Barbies that looked like that. They were more wholesome-looking, but it seems like Mattel wants to stay with the times by making the doll look more sexy.  

Parents who want to remember how Barbie used to be probably are wondering why they should buy it for their daughters. The image of the doll has changed, and it's been cheapened to be more attractive to men as give girls a false image of beauty. That goal in itself seems disturbing.

The Barbie brand's public image has changed, but that doesn't mean our public relations message should. If there's a central message that made you successful in the first place, don't cheapen it when you post a rude image on Pinterest and other social media. After all, hem lines might rise and fall, but let's keep everything covered and decent. 

Do Lawyers or Judges Get the Last Laugh?

Often, it seems attorneys wished judges would get bad press and get scrutinized by the public, when they make a "bad" decision against their client. Well it looks like Cook County jail is helping them achieve that.

The Chicago Sun-Times has an article by Robert Herguth and Dane Placko about judges getting upset because they have to show their IDs and open their car trunks every time they go in and out of the parking lot at the Leighton Criminal Court Building near Cook County Jail. Apparently, a lot of them are resisting the procedure because the article has a long list of what they've done, such as one calling 911 and others swearing at officers.

You'd think since they're judges, they'd try to be more professional, especially since "judges behaving badly" makes a good story in the media. But they don't seem to care, which is the problem: they should think about their public reputation and be careful about what they say.

Even though lawyers are probably happy the judges embarrassed themselves, the lawyers can learn from the judges' mistakes. When you're in court, you have to be completely professional to win a case and not lose your cool. That's also important outside of court. Wherever you are, the media is watching and ready to record your actions, which also means the public can easily form a negative opinion about you.

Previously, I mentioned defense attorney James Ecker, who developed a style walking to and from court. He got the media's attention, and a lot of people's respect. He won cases and won in the court of public opinion.

So the next time you're facing a situation that's difficult, think before speaking. Don't let others get the last laugh...at you.

Publicity that Gets my "Goat"

You never know what will work with the media. Usually people think of using groundbreaking technology to create attention-grabbing publicity, but here's something that tremendous national and local attention that has nothing to do with tech: goats.

Heather Cherone in DNA Info says that's how O'Hare took care of its weeds. Actually, llamas, burros, sheep, and camels helped the goats out.

It totally worked, not just practically when the animals chomped the weeds away, but in terms of generating lots of buzz. It made O'Hare help counter the negative media coverage it usually gets for cancelled flights and horrible weather, and it helped Butcher & the Burger restaurant, which supplied the animals. The restaurant's business increased, and they also got exposure for Settler's Pond Shelter, which supplied some of the animals (the restaurant made a donation to the shelter, too). It was successful on many levels and is one of the most effective publicity campaigns I've ever seen.

So when you're looking for ways to get publicity for your business, think creatively. It's not just about the latest app or gizmo, but it's how you get media attention with the resources you already have available.

McDonald's Is Now Serving "Egg on Its Face"

McDonald's is a huge, established company, but it's still making public relations mistakes that you would expect from a start-up business. The latest is its internal website for employees, where several posts talked about the negative effects of fast food, the same kind of food that McDonald's has been selling for years. If the company had been paying attention to what it was communicating, it probably wouldn't have let those posts be written. But NBC News says they were created by an outside vendor, so McDonald's wasn't carefully supervising who they hired.

Before that leaked out, there was another publicity gaff that also came from an internal employee site.The company gave advice for tipping au pairs, pool cleaners, housekeepers, dog walkers, and personal trainers. What it failed to notice was a lot of McDonald's employees earn minimum wage, which is what they've been protesting about this year. Again, the advice was written by a third party, which shows a sloppy communication plan and a lack of quality control.

Whether you're hiring an outside company or you're handling your own publicity, it's important to pay attention to your internal and external communication. The two are connected, and you never know what disgruntled employees will leak to the press. Make sure your message is consistent, because if you present a public image that doesn't match your in-house one, your reputation will be damaged, and you'll have to be even more creative with your crisis communication plan.

What Can Attorneys Learn from "Ground Up Cow on a Bun?"

Recently, prominent Pittsburgh defense lawyer James Ecker passed away. Usually attorneys don't get so much media coverage, especially if they're just known locally. However, Ecker had a long relationship with the media because of the way he communicated with reporters and how he described his high-profile clients who were accused of horrible crimes.

He was effective in presenting interesting visuals for television, such as walking with his clients into police stations and out of courtrooms, and he chose his words carefully. To defend such clients, he had to be a good storyteller, to paint a picture that helped reduce their sentences, which made him even more notorious. His law partner said he "'was the ringmaster' in many high-profile cases." 

Ecker was effective inside and outside the courtroom, but many attorneys are not effective in both areas. However, when communicating with the non-legal media, attorneys should be good storytellers and be able to use effective metaphors. Even scientists have discovered that using metaphors causes the brain to work differently. Salon features an article by Tori Rodriguez from Scientific American about a study that described crime in two different ways. People's decisions on how to fight crime were influenced by the metaphors used.

One metaphor I'll never forget is from my fourth grade language arts class. The teacher told us there are different ways we can talk about something. For instance, you can call a sandwich you eat a hamburger, which for beef eaters is a pleasant experience. You could also say it's ground-up cow on a bun, which groups such as PETA could use to criticize people who eat meat.

Therefore, if you're talking to a reporter, think about if you're telling a story or "painting a picture" that will influence those receiving your message as you intended. 

Does McDonald's Derserve A Break Today?

McDonald's doesn't always get a break. It's been criticized, mocked, and has had its share of controversy, especially when it was featured in the documentary film Super Size Me, which followed Morgan Spurlock's failing health as he only ate fast food every day. 

Well they seem to be doing a good job trying to counter the negativity because recently, they gave away children's books in their Happy Meals. It sounds like a good idea, but Bruce Horovitz wrote in USA Today that when they announced they were planning to do it, they were criticized because the books featured McDonald's animated animals.

McDonald's tried to help kids eat right through the messages in those books, and helped kids learn to read, but the company still got stung.

However, it teaches a great publicity lesson. McDonald's partnered with Reading Is Fundamental, a literacy non-profit, which boosted their image. After all, McDonald's is a huge for-profit company, and working with a non-profit helped to soften their reputation.

That kind of co-branding is what every company should consider. Like McDonald's, think around corners. What organization can you partner with to do something positive in your community? By working with someone else, you can create a kind of safeguard so that you don't have to defend yourself against critics. 

Is a Red Bull Law Suit Full of "Bull"?

The legal website Above the Law can make lawyers laugh about their stories or cry if they're in there when they get bad coverage. The site got my attention when I saw "Red Bull Gives You…Cardiac Arrest?" because of the title and what appeared to be an absurd lawsuit. A man drank a Red Bull then died of a heart attack while playing basketball, and his family is suing for $85 million. It seems like a frivolous lawsuit, and they're asking for what seems like an outrageous amount of money, but in every cloud there's a silver lining.

 In a case like this, there's a potential liability both legally and from a PR point of view. There's the risk of losing the case, and the attorney representing the plaintiff could say something that supports the apparent absurdity of the law suit. Also, third-party attorneys commenting on the case could also negatively affect their reputations if they make comments that are "laughably" too serious or poke fun where a death is involved.

That's where the silver lining comes in: in cases like this where it's tempting to say something dismissive or too critical, it's important to balance it out with a comment that offers a fresh view of the situation. For instance, an attorney can do research to see if there's validity to the lawsuit by citing precedents. Elie Mystal, who wrote that post at Above the Law, mentions side effects of the drink that could give the lawsuit validity. That's an example of showing credible opinions in a peculiar legal matter.

So if you're asked to comment on a case that seems silly and wasteful, share your opinions when you can offer comments that add value. Or just stay away from anything that's "bull."