PR Week in an interesting story shocker

TWL got its wish to be PR Week's featured blog this week.

Does this mean that the editorial team actually reads it, then? And if so, I wonder when they'll use any of its insight to make their stories readable/interesting/relevant.

Oi fatty..have some of this..

Now, while this blog focuses on the gossip and quirks of technology PR, I thought it was worth moving away from home territory to draw attention to this press release from Pegasus PR - promoting its client LIPObind.

While the media distances itself from size zero models - championing the, ahem, larger ladies (think Beth Ditto's positive press recently) Pegasus steams in with a less than politically correct angle for LIPObind's slimming product.

Forget the seven-year itch, it says. Those in relationships are more likely to suffer the ‘two year bloat’. Two thirds of Brits say their partner has put on weight in the first 24 months of the relationship - and half think their partner could 'do with losing a few pounds.'

That got you thinking, readers? Been enjoying romantic meals and fine wines with your loved one, have you? Well fatty, time to stop that nonsense, and lose some weight. Otherwise, they'll dump you sharpish.

Thanks Pegasus/LIPObind - that's helped the self esteem no end.

It's plane wrong

There was a story in the Metro this morning, telling how a hapless passenger on a trans-atlantic flight was traumatised after a corpse was placed next to him in first class.

The traveller woke up to a shock when he found himself sitting near the corpse of an elderly woman who had died during a nine hour flight from London to Delhi.

"The corpse was strapped into the seat but because of turbulence it kept slipping down on to the floor," he was quoted as saying.

Not nice. But it's not the first time that this has happened. Oh no. I can exclusively report that a well known head of a global PR company had the same thing happen to him on a recent jaunt.

I can't reveal who it is -- but he's well known for his no-nonsense, some might say slavedriver esq, approach to his staff. Answers on a postcard, please.

What's wrong with cheese rolling?

A journalist friend drew my attention to this press release from Lighthouse PR - which claims that two thirds of senior PR applicants are 'unable to proof-read or spell.'

Lighthouse has been generous enough to give us an insight into the job applications it receives - to tell us that more than 75 per cent of applications contained basic errors including spelling and grammatical mistakes, formatting blunders and, in the worst case, applications addressed to competitors.

More interestingly, Lighthouse reports that four per cent of applicants admitted that the candidate had either faced disciplinary action or been sacked from a previous role. Peculiar pastimes cited included: ‘Wicka and Occult Magik’, ‘Nudity and Naturalism’, ‘Ferret-legging’ and ‘Cheese Rolling’.

All very nice, and yet another example of the Rainier/Lighthouse/Custard self-promotion which seems to be working rather well. But, Lighthouse says it's on a recruitment drive and is seeking to employ some shiny new PR people, and I doubt this press release is going to inspire people to apply.

Rather frustratingly, I couldn't spot one grammatical error or spelling mistake in the release. Now that would've been good.