I appreciate your response to my comment. When I said that the “social media release SOUNDS like something the PR industry dreamed up to try to take advantage of the tools without embracing the ideal,” I literally meant SOUNDS. It’s the name. It suggests old school release with bells and whistles. It’s not. You’ve clarified that for me.

Please do remember to play think twice and always play nice. (I’ll do the same.) We’ll be in the same room together at some point some day (if we already haven’t been).

Can you point me to some supporting info for this?

Thanks.

The intent was that your post opened my eyes. The comments on your post did so even more. This is a culmination of one week of constant mud slinging between those who didn’t get it and those trying to introduce new ideas.

I cited examples from your post and I also meant to use others….so this is by no means a reflection of you or your views. You opened up the dialog and I engaged. That’s where it should be.

The only part I contest is “The notion of a release just sounds like something the PR industry dreamed up to try to take advantage of social media tools without actually embracing that ideal.”

That’s a pretty quick assessment, which completely strips away something so much more significant and meaningful than you give credit for, yet this one statement rallied support. More importantly, this statement starts the conversation from a defensive angle, not a mutual, leveled discussion. And it’s statements like this that are making my job, and the job of those involved, very difficult. All it took was to read a few posts about its beginning for you to realize that there was something truly genuine behind it.

The point of the article is that your original views made me rethink how I approach this…and fully believe that we all must “learn, practice, and grow together.”

“You can’t help everyone grow; only those that realize they can.”

Wow.

I chose to respond to your comment on my post and to attempt to engage you in a conversation with the very real belief that you would be willing to engage and, because you are committed to promoting the idea of the social media release, help me to see something that perhaps I wasn’t.

“Our message is flying over the heads of the mainstream.”

Wow.

I’m not “the mainstream” of PR if that is what your comment means, Brian. I’ve met them, and they’re not me.

I am someone who works in a PR agency after spending a life working to promote democratic participation — either through independent media (social media before there was social media is how I like to think of it)or through political participation. I am intrigued by social media because I see it as an amazing opportunity to give a voice to those who may not previously have had a platform to be heard.

The notion of a release just sounds like something the PR industry dreamed up to try to take advantage of social media tools without actually embracing that ideal.

I ended my post (honestly) stating, “Tell me if I’m missing something.”

And you did. And I appreciated it.

But I don’t appreciate the fact that you have taken the “they just don’t get us” approach. It comes across as elitist and it shuts down conversation.

You say in your post that there is an opportunity to “learn, practice, and grow together”. Please be willing to do your part to do so.

Thank you.