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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All They Want For Christmas Is to Stop That Mariah Carey Song – It’s the most wonderful time of the year…until you hear the opening bars of Mariah Carey’s 1994 mega hit, “All I Want for Christmas is You.” What was once just mildly annoying is making some retail workers’ days a living hell. And now there are several petitions on Change.org asking the FCC to ban it from radio. The Wall Street Journal has the story.
A Psychologist Spent Five Years Studying World Cup Penalty Shootouts – If you’ve paid any attention to this year’s World Cup, you’ve probably seen some shootouts. When games are tied after regulation and overtime, teams each get five penalty shots to determine their fate. Talk about pressure! Psychologist Dr. Geir Jordet has spent the past five years studying penalty kicks, and what he learned might surprise you.
Curse Words Have Something in Common Around the World (We Swear) – Holy sh*t! It turns out curse words around the world kinda sound the same. A study published last week found curse words in several unrelated languages have many things in common. For example, curse words are less likely than other words to include consonant sounds L, R, W or Y. In English curse words are often short and punchy and commonly include P, T or K. These are called stop consonants because they interrupt airflow when speaking. The New York Times has the f*cking details.
How a Blank Piece of Paper Became a Symbol of Protests – In China, Russia and other countries around the world, protesters have been seen holding up blank pieces of paper. Where did this trend come from, and what does it mean? Axios has the full scoop on blank-page protests.
How Great Leaders Communicate – If a person has great ideas but can’t convince others to follow them, their influence is greatly diminished. In recent years, more organizations have come to realize the ability to communicate effectively is paramount for leaders. Carmine Gallo, a Harvard University professor and author of several books on the topic, offers some key tactics for leaders to utilize when communicating to their teams.
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Feed Your Head:
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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.