Mark Borkowski on role of a publicist
Last Wednesday Heather Mills, estranged wife of Sir Paul McCartney, undertook a series of media interviews presumably designed to defend her own position against an almost universally hostile tabloid media in the UK.
She kicked off her day with a GMTV interview featuring a fair selection of claims, including comparisons between her treatment by the media and those experienced by Princess Diana and Kate McCann. This interview generated subsequent coverage itself in other news outlets throughout the day.
During the day it also emerged that she had parted company with her publicist, Phil Hall, over a disagreement on PR strategy. Basically it seems he didn’t want her to take the GMTV approach, advising her to “keep your head down and let’s wait until the divorce is over, and then rebuild your career “, while she wanted to go public as she eventually did.
I’ve always been interested in the role of publicists in managing celebrity reputations. While much of their work is generating coverage for their clients, publicists, probably more than any other PR practitioners, do much of their work behind the scenes keeping clients away from the media and managing reputations skilfully.
If you want a really interesting insight into this, it’s worth checking out this post on publicist Mark Borkowski’s blog. Mark talks in depth about the Heather Mills GMTV meltdown and the role of a publicist when dealing with a client in that kind of situation.
[tags]heather+mills, GMTV, mark+borkowski[/tags]
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[...] http://www.simonwakeman.com/2007/11/05/mark-borkowski-on-role-of-a-publicist/ [...]
The publicist or PR person moves in the shaddow of his clent celebrity. At the heat of the moment the press & media frenzy build up, can be one quite an instance making, as if at the flick of a switch, or more like these days the click of a mouse a hoard of press & media surround the celibrity’s chosen hole. However what can be of worry for the likes of Heather Mills or McCann’s or the latest pop girl or boy band is the thought of ‘No Publicity’, remeber the old PR man’s addage ‘Any Publicity is good Publicty.’ Its the same today as it was yesterday.
Mark Borkowski can pontificate, he has done his time in this fast track industry that provides a none stop source of news to the press & media from the their clients. In their ‘Shaddows’ might be a good titel for a book. Harry Cichy is publicist to Terry Lubbock who lost his son Stuart Lubbock at entertainer Michael Barrymore’s home in 2001.
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I'm Head of Marketing at Medway Council in south east England, as well as a communications consultant.
I've had my own website here since 2001 and since early 2006 I've been writing a blog about communications, marketing and public relations with a focus on the public sector.
I'm married with two young children and live in Whitstable, Kent. Outside work I enjoy running, cycling, caravanning and generally being outdoors.
The content and opinions expressed on this website are not endorsed by nor reflect the views of any company or organisation I work with.
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