"I am not a crook!"

"Blago Hires Drew Peterson's PR Firm for Media Blitz"      Source

It's old news that Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich is under investigation for federal corruption charges regarding the appointment of President Obama's vacant Senate seat, as well as several other related charges.   There was a unanimous vote by the committee to recommend impeachment, and the Illinois House voted to impeach him on Jan. 9, 2009.  The impeachment trial began January 26 in the Illinois Senate.  Blagojevich has since boycotted attending his own hearings.  Where is he now?  

The governor is rounding up some horses for a media blitz that will include several TV appearances.  Among his stops are:  CNN's "Larry King Live," and ABC's "The View" and "Good Morning, America."  So, who's helping drive these horses?  A Tampa-based Publicity Agency, which is eerily the same public relations firm that represents Drew Peterson.  Peterson, the former suburban Chicago police officer is a suspect in his wife's disappearance.  Blagojevich has been seen on several other TV outlets, playing the victim card, and undoubtedly trying to save face.   

According to the article, the PR agency is responsible for dealing with the media on personal matters related to the governor.  The article also states that it still remains to be seen whether hiring the PR firm will help him.  Peterson, along with the firm's help, embraced the media spotlight last year.  He has yet to be charged with his wife's disappearance.   

I've tried to look at this case objectively, and honestly it's been quite difficult.  When your own party turns against you, it's bad. I'm interested to see if the governor will receive a summons to appear in court, or whether the victim card will be played out outside the court room.  Tell us the real story, governor.  If you're innocent, tell us what happened.  

Remember in Bob Lee's Intro to PR class?  He told us one of the best examples of PR came when Tylenol came out and admitted there was a problem.  Tylenol didn't play the blame game and say, "Someone ELSE tampered with our bottles!"  Instead they found a solution.  Shouldn't the governor, guilty or not do the same?  If he shows up for his hearings and tells his story, I'd be more willing to listen to it.  Not hearing it makes listening so much harder.  (Yes, that was sarcasm) 

Ooooh, how I love a good scandal in politics!  (That wasn't sarcasm...) 

Facebook and Twitter and LinkedIn, oh, my!

"Challenge your mind in 2009 with professional development: the stepping stone of your career"  January 2009 

In an article from "TACTICS," the PRSA periodical, Mara Woloshin, writes about how to challenge your mind in 2009 with adding different elements to your PR lives.  

One of the things I found most interesting about the article is a quote by the 2009 PRSA Chair and CEO Michael Cherenson.  He states, "Get on Facebook, LinkdedIn or YouTube.  Make a commitment to retooling."  

The reason I found this so interesting is because Dr. Miller is asking us to expand our social media to include Twitter and LinkedIn.  I'm just now getting on Twitter, and have yet to use LinkedIn.  

I also really liked how Woloshin said that experience is part of the learning process and challenged the readers to commit to a professional development in 2009.  She said you can make it similar to a New Year's resolutions list.  Her suggestions are: read, take a workshop, study and learn about Twitter.  

Again, this is making me realize what we're doing in class isn't because it's the curriculum and "required."  What we're doing in class is actually what real PR professionals use and do!  

So, what's my list?  

- Get AP style down!

- Learn Twitter

- Learn LinkedIn 

- Create a professional resume