The Flack highlights changes and trends in the news, examples of communications practices, and content we at BYRNE PR thought you might find useful.
We hope you enjoy, and we always welcome your feedback.
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Thank Adele For The Latest Spotify Update — There are dozens of music-streaming services but none are as large as Spotify, which boasts a 30% market share. However, one Spotify feature has baffled users for years. When users play an album on the service, it defaults to playing the songs in random order. But recently this has changed. It seems Adele, like many users, found this feature annoying. But she’s Adele, so she can do something about it! She wanted her new record, and all records, to play the songs in the order the artist intended. It didn’t take Spotify long to listen.
Liquor Company Asks Consumers Not to Buy Its ‘Rittenhouse Rye’ Brand To Celebrate Kyle Rittenhouse Verdict — Sometimes you just have an unfortunate name. A few weeks ago the acquittal of Kyle Rittenhouse was the top story in the news, and it stoked many debates about gun control and self defense. Unrelated to any of this is Rittenhouse Rye Whisky, a brand produced by Heaven Hill Distillery and named after Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square. Once the verdict was read, many who supported the verdict began celebrating with Rittenhouse Rye and posting their celebrations on social media. This put the brand in the middle of a controversy. Heaven Hill decided to ask people not to celebrate the victory with their brand, and that may have made matters worse.
The 3 Biggest Zoom Mistakes People Are Still Making — Many of us have spent much of the past 20 months on Zoom, and, at times, it hasn’t been pretty. Overall, it seems people have improved their skills, learned to consider their background before joining and even managed to dress appropriately. However, there are still some consistent problems. Inc. takes a look at the three most common Zoom mistakes and explains how to avoid them.
Why You Shouldn’t Use Emojis In Work Messages — We’ve all seen them, and many of us have used them — the smiley face, the frown, the eye-roll and so many more. Emojis, once used only in personal chats, have found their way into business communications, and the results aren’t always what the user intended. A recent study found women often interpret negative, neutral and ambiguous emojis more negatively than men. The Wall Street Journal digs into the issue and the dangers of using emojis.
3 Group Presentation Pitfalls — and How to Avoid Them — It seems more executives every day are beginning to appreciate how much time, effort and preparation needs to go into a presentation to make it great. That said, we still see the same mistakes over and over again, and they are easy to fix. Check out this quick guide from The Harvard Business Review to avoid the most common presentation errors.
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Feed Your Head: Jack Dorsey’s Resignation Letter — “Hi, Mom.”
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flack
: one who provides publicity
flack
: to act as a press agent or promoter for something
The word flack was first used as a noun meaning “publicity agent” during the late 1930s. According to one rumor, the word was coined in tribute to a well-known movie publicist of the time, Gene Flack.