Williams Owns Up to Mistake

Williams Owns Up to Mistake
By: Jason Bodin

Women’s tennis sensation, Serena Williams, was recently on the end of a controversial call at the 2009 U.S. Open. Williams was called for a foot fault on a serve, giving her a double fault, which put her a point away from a loss. After the call Williams approached the lineswomen and reportedly said, “If I could, I would take this…ball and… shove it down your throat.”

In a previous set, Williams received a warning after breaking her racket. Thus, the second outburst towards the line judge cost her a penalty point and, in the end the match.

Following the match Williams was fined $10,500 by the International Tennis Federation for “unsportsmanlike conduct” and racket abuse. Many wondered if Williams would lose her sponsorships after the outburst. However, because Williams acted on the change that occurred, due to great public relations work, she was has not seen those ramifications.

This situation is a great example of how people deal with change. Some people do not deal with change well, or at all, while others embrace change and make the best out of each situation.

The book Who Moved My Cheese? written by Spencer Johnson, is a story about how four mice deal with change in their maze. Williams is like the mouse Haw, who faced many challenges but came out on top because of the way in which he dealt with those challenges.

Williams turned a potential crisis on her career into the best situation she knew how. Williams released a statement later that night and again the next day apologizing for her actions claiming, “In the heat of battle I let my passion and emotion get the better of me and as a result handled the situation poorly.”

One little call moved William’s cheese, but she was able to overcome the challenges she created by owning up to her mistake.

Photo received from google images.

Press Releases Are Not A PR Strategy

Press Releases Are Not A PR Strategy

By: Jayse Nelson

This title may be shocking for some of you reading this because for the past four years of college we have been taught, as a Public Relations student, that press releases ARE a PR Strategy. The author of this text, Linda B. VandeVrede, takes a different approach to PR, one that does not focus on using press releases as the main PR strategy.

Throughout the book, VandeVrede shared different communication approaches that have proven to be successful for many companies. She covers everything from hiring a PR professional to writing a blog. The communication approaches she discusses in each chapter are all ethical and, “…do not involve spin, manipulation, or questionable an unethical practices.” She even included the PRSA code of ethics in the Appendix of the book.

What the author means by her title is that press releases should not be used as the official PR strategy. It should be used according to necessity and newsworthiness of the story. Press releases should be apart of PR strategy, but not THE PR strategy. In addition, VandeVrede notes the Webster’s New World Dictionary definition, “A statement or story prepared for release to the news media.” She states that press releases are too often a sales pitch intended for a consumer audience rather than a publication for news media. This is a valuable lesson we all must learn.


VandeVrede concludes her book by discussing the importance of working within an ethical framework. The PRSA code of ethics was updated in 2000 to include examples of unethical behavior. The author suggests that the reader review these examples and the code of ethics. She suggests the golden rule as one of the ethical frameworks that can guide a company, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

The New Press Release

It is 2008, and we are in the age of the Internet. Every commercial boasts a web site address, shopping from the comfort of your desk chair is as easy as the click of a mouse and everyone and their mom (and dad and brother and sister and even grandma and grandpa!) have an e-mail address. Therefore, it is no surprise to find that the days of paper press releases being walked and mailed to newsrooms are on the way out in favor of this high tech option. Public relations professionals can find e-mail an invaluable outlet for their press releases, but with more than 215 million Internet users in the United States alone, it is extremely possible that newsrooms are inundated with information.
According to the Media Relations Maven, also known as Margo Mateas, the president of the Public Relations Training Company, there are several things that will make a press release stand out among the masses. In her February Tactics article, Mateas outlined the basics for submitting e-mail press releases. Prominent use of key words, article and section allusions and links are among the specifics mentioned in the article.
The e-mail press release has far more possibilities than its older paper counterpart. Public relations professionals can absolutely use this technology to their advantage by tweaking some of their basic press release writing tactics. With the ability to embed images, include links for more in depth information and the ease of accessibility, e-mail press releases may soon be an indispensable tool for contemporary public relations.

For further reading:
How To Write An Efficient E-mail Press Release
Sending Press Releases Via E-mail
Press Release Writing and E-mail Tips