X-Message-Number: 7362 Date: Fri, 27 Dec 1996 10:01:51 -0500 (EST) From: Charles Platt <> Subject: News Management On Fri, 27 Dec 1996, Steve Bridge wrote: > First, I should point out that neither "Synthetic Pleasures" nor > "Immortality on Ice" nor ANY of the other 200 or so media appearances > connected with Alcor in the past 4 years were *controlled* by Alcor. > That's not the way journalism and entertainment work. I beg to differ (slightly) with Steve. First, corporations customarily try to promote their viewpoint with that trusty tool, the press release. Since journalists are basically lazy and almost always working under deadline pressure, they are always happy to transcribe press releases. Even revered papers such as the NYTimes do this constantly. Second, any organization can CREATE news. Suppose a cryonics organization has a research breakthrough; it can choose the mode in which it will allow this news to be disseminated, via press releases, journalists who are known to be sympathetic, videos, carefully controlled demos, etc. (Didn't Alcor itself do something like this with the Visser rat-heart demo?) The Federal Government takes this kind of news management to an extreme, with carefully placed leaks to journalists who know that if they don't cooperate, their sources will dry up. Third, even when the story originates with the journalist (rather than inside the cryonics organization), some management is possible. I experienced an extreme version of this when I wrote a story about Microsoft. A PR person accompanied me during all the interviews that I did at the corporate headquarters, and TOOK COPIOUS NOTES, which was a polite way of indicating that she would be checking my story for accuracy. Her presence also served to remind my interviewees that they too were being monitored; this is standard practice in many corporations. Moreover, I discovered that all of my interviewees were circularized beforehand with a two-page memo listing things that they should talk about, and should not talk about, during my visit. Finally of course a company can promote itself with time-honored "newsworthy" publicity stunts: contests, giveaways, ground-breaking ceremonies, ribbon-cutting ceremonies, and all the rest. The question is whether these techniques are appropriate to cryonics. I used to think they were, but now I am not so sure. Since cryonics, like insurance, sells a promise, not a product, trust is crucial. Do we really want to emulate Microsoft or the Federal Government if we're in the business of creating trust?! Openness, rather than tightly controlled news management, seems more important to me, especially since (at this stage in its evolution anyway) cryonics appeals primarily to individualistic types who think for themselves. After the Discovery Channel show on cryonics, I actually received some phone calls from prospective members--even though CryoCare wasn't included in that program. These people could have just tracked down Alcor (e.g. via 800 number information) but instead they went to their web browsers and visited the web sites of ALL available cryonics organizations. So long as we're selling cryonics to people like these, news management isn't going to be easy or productive. Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=7362