Mario M. Carrera, NACD.DC

STAY ALERT WITH MDI ALERTS Our new MDI Direct media research and informed commentary service puts out a weekly Alert updating subscribers on new developments with our own, special, no nonsense, take on what they do and don't mean. Also included are many special reports with data we develop exclusively on subjects of great interest. You won't find anything like these elsewhere. So what are we talking about? The link, below, takes you to a section on our website that lists all of the recent MDI Alerts in chronological order. If you are really into media and its evolving impact as well as many media planning and buying issues, this list should whet your appetite. Take a look. https://lnkd.in/ezwk3WaF

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STAY ALERT WITH MDI ALERTS Our new MDI Direct media research and informed commentary service puts out a weekly Alert updating subscribers on new developments with our own, special, no nonsense, take on what they do and don't mean. Also included are many special reports with data we develop exclusively on subjects of great interest. You won't find anything like these elsewhere. So what are we talking about? The link, below, takes you to a section on our website that lists all of the recent MDI Alerts in chronological order. If you are really into media and its evolving impact as well as many media planning and buying issues, this list should whet your appetite. Take a look. https://lnkd.in/ezwk3WaF MDI Alerts mediadynamicsinc.com

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The Impact of Rising Healthcare Costs on Concord Business In today's rapidly evolving business landscape, staying abreast of future healthcare costs is paramount for businesses' success. The Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce offers a timely workshop looking at healthcare costs, meticulously designed to equip attendees with insights and actionable strategies. https://lnkd.in/eMZ6-sTZ

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Just came across an article on TVNewsCheck by my friend and former colleague, Dustin Block. It got me thinking about the evolving landscape of local TV. I was part of the last generation that watched local TV religiously because that was the only option we had and it was the closest thing to Hollywood most communities had. Nickelodeon and Disney were not yet household names, syndication was just gaining momentum and family TV time was centered around local channels. But as more options became available and additional TVs entered our homes, the once-loyal audience of local TV started to fragment. Kids made their own choices while parents made theirs. I still value local TV, even if I watch it less frequently now. It fulfills an important place in our community especially during public safety events. It is also a collaborative medium that tells the story of any region from those within those communities. I also know that the future of TV is a never-ending question without a solid answer. Dedicated professionals think about that question at their desks, in the car, in long meetings with consultants and while watching their kid's soccer game. I could wax on for a long time about the past and current challenges, mistakes and opportunities with no silver bullet for a solution to the problems facing legacy media. One key point from this article that resonated with me was about brand loyalty of NPR with younger people. While traditional local TV stations historically had loyal viewership, right now, certain brands like Bravo, PBS, and NPR have cultivated a strong, almost club-like following. People like being a PBS or NPR person. At VVK PR + Creative we even ask new employees if they're "Bravo people" as part of their onboarding questionnaire. It may seem trivial, but it fosters a sense of belonging and connection among our team. The non-Bravo folks talk sports instead. Anyway, I have to get back to today's work deadlines, but here is Dustin's article if you're interested. #TV #broadcast #localtv #detroit #marketing

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👀 Fun truths from Usher Lieberman to start your Monday (💻 + ☕) PR is PR is PR in some ways. Tune in to Coffee with Communicators for some wonderful insights from his 25+ year career in comms. Subscribe here: https://lnkd.in/gBPt76UR #CWC #communications #PR #newsletter

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Media friends! 11Alive FOX5 WAGA CNBC Scripps News CNN There is lots of breaking news to cover today. Here's one more for you. MEDIA ADVISORY INTERVIEWS AVAILABLE: Travis Stone – FODAC Disaster Relief Coordinator Chris Brand – Executive Director of FODAC BROLL- trucks on site being loaded & leaving for FLA, SC & NC URGENT: FODAC Mobilizes Disaster Relief Shipments to GA SC & NC in Response to FEMA Request Following Hurricane Helene WHAT: Friends of Disabled Adults and Children (FODAC) is responding to an urgent request from FEMA for over 1,000 oxygen tanks, concentrators, and other durable medical equipment (DME) in the wake of Hurricane Helene. FODAC is preparing two shipments this morning—one bound for Florida, and the other for FEMA to distribute across South Carolina and North Carolina. This rapid response is part of FODAC’s long-standing commitment to supporting individuals with disabilities during natural disasters. The team is scrambling to prepare and ship equipment to affected areas as quickly as possible to meet the overwhelming demand. WHY: With the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene, many individuals along the East Coast, from South Carolina to North Carolina, are in immediate need of essential medical supplies, including oxygen tanks and concentrators. FODAC is rapidly mobilizing to meet these critical needs, providing life-saving equipment to individuals with disabilities and medical conditions who have been impacted by the storm. WHEN: Shipments are being prepared today for immediate dispatch. One truck will be sent to Florida with durable medical equipment, while another shipment will be picked up by FEMA for distribution across the Carolinas. WHERE: FODAC's shipments will originate from its Tucker, GA facility, with delivery routes spanning Florida, South Carolina, and North Carolina. FODAC is seeking media coverage of this critical relief effort and will provide updates as the shipments progress. For more information, please visit http://www.fodac.org. #FODACRelief #HurricaneHeleneRecovery #DisasterRelief #EmergencyResponse #MedicalAid #DisabilitySupport #FEMAResponse #OxygenForAll #DMEforDisasterRelief #HelpingCommunities #HurricaneRecovery #FODACinAction #SupportTheSoutheast #GAReliefEfforts #SCReliefEfforts #NCReliefEfforts #FloridaRelief

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Podcasting is a unique and personal medium for public affairs communicators. Unlike TV, radio, or social media, podcasts engage listeners more deeply and make them more receptive to messaging, including advertisements. With over half of American adults listening to podcasts in the last month and nearly four in ten in the last week, podcasting has become mainstream. Podcasts present a significant opportunity for public affairs communications. #Podcasts #PublicAffairs #Audience #Advocacy

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Here's a quick overview of some reasons why #Podcasts are a great option for #PublicAffairs.

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Friends and colleagues – it’s been an eventful and productive week here at History Factory What a thrill to share that History Factory has been named Agency of the Year for the 2024 PR and Marketing Excellence Awards from the Business Intelligence Group! 🏆 It’s an honor to be recognized by an organization that values creativity, storytelling, and data-driven insights - principles at the heart of our approach to helping brands tell their stories. From discovering and re-imagining brands’ stories to shaping strategies for the future, we continue to demonstrate that an organization’s history is infinitely useful in their marketing and communications. Thank you to our team, clients, partners, and everyone in the History Factory community. The best is yet to come! Speaking of data insights, today we launched History Factory’s new report: The Heritage Gap—our latest look into how companies can leverage their history and institutional memory to drive performance. This report is a tool designed to help organizations turn untapped heritage into advantage. Access a link to the report in the comments below. But wait, there’s more! History Factory has also developed a first-of-its-kind Archives Management Capability Model. The model is a tool focused on developing and measuring the capability of an organization’s archival program. We collaborated with a diverse group of corporate archivists who provided input on a framework that enables decision-makers and their teams to assess their programs and prioritize what they seek to improve in support of their business priorities.  A link to the model is also below in the comments. Follow History Factory and stay tuned for more soon! #brandheritage #archives #HeritageGap #HistoryFactory #BusinessPerformance #InstitutionalMemory #MakeHistory #ArchivesCapabilityModel

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🎙️ Ready for some more thought-provoking conversations with Adam Stoker and a few laughs at my expense? Check out these two episodes of *Destination Discourse*—available now in both video and audio formats! 1️⃣ **Are Residents a DMO’s Most Important Stakeholder?** Featuring Amir Eylon (who’s name I totally butcher in the opening minutes 🤦 —sorry, Amir!). We dive into why residents are critical to destination success and how DMOs can engage them effectively. 🎥 Video: https://lnkd.in/ehnHQShk 2️⃣ **Is It Ethical for DMOs to Use AI?** With C.A. Clark we tackle the tough questions around AI in destination marketing. From ethical dilemmas to practical applications, this episode is a must-listen for anyone navigating AI’s role in the travel industry. 🎥 Video: https://lnkd.in/eMmxiC9X Both episodes are packed with insights for DMOs and travel professionals—and yes, you can choose your format: 🎧 Audio: https://lnkd.in/e_YDk--M What do you think? Are residents your most important stakeholder? And where do you stand on AI ethics? Let’s talk about it in the comments!

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Worth reading from NiemanLab: Readers prefer to click on a clear, simple headline — like this one By David Markowitz, Hillary Shulman and Todd Rogers In an era when people trust news less than ever, how can journalists break through and attract the attention of average people to provide information about their communities, the nation and the world? By not complicating things. Our research, published in Science Advances, shows that simple headlines significantly increase article engagement and clicks compared with headlines that use complex language. In our research, typical news readers preferred simple headlines over complex ones. But importantly, we found that those who actually write headlines — journalists themselves — did not. We first used data from The Washington Post and Upworthy to see how language features, such as word length and how common a word is, changed how many people clicked on an article’s headline. These datasets included over 31,000 randomized experiments — also known as A/B tests — that compared two or more headline versions of the same underlying article to determine which one generated the most clicks. Headlines with more common words — simple words like “job” instead of “occupation” — shorter headlines, and those communicated in a narrative style, with more pronouns compared with prepositions, received more clicks. For example, The Washington Post headline, “Meghan and Harry are talking to Oprah. Here’s why they shouldn’t say too much” outperformed the alternative headline, “Are Meghan and Harry spilling royal tea to Oprah? Don’t bet on it.” This example illustrates how sometimes a more straightforward headline can generate more interest. In follow-up laboratory experiments, we found that typical news readers focused more on simple rather than complex headlines because the writing was easier to understand. When journalists participated in the same experiments, they didn’t show any preference for simple headlines over complex ones. Put differently: Those who write the news appear to be less responsive to simple writing than regular audiences. Generations of communication consultants have advised that communicators follow the rather crass acronym KISS: Keep it Simple, Stupid. We suggest a modified version applied for journalists. Since KISJ isn’t all that simple, we propose: Keep It Simple, Staffers. Simplicity increases the number of people who click on a news story headline and improves reader recall of the material in the article. Most importantly, simplicity boosts reader engagement, such as how much attention they pay to the information.

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"...The CEO should come into those conversations with candidness and tact, asking clarifying questions. What I suspect may happen is that an incoming CEO may discover themes within the organization to address. The communication strategy may not have cascaded down. How decisions are made haven’t cascaded down.” Any big change, strategy, campaign should begin with a listening tour. It's the only way to understand an audience/audiences and what matters to them. From there, a strategy and tactics can be developed/executed, and buy-in is much more likely. https://lnkd.in/etGnq3yW

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We applaud Outlier Media's Candice Fortman (she/her) for her decision to pass the Executive Director torch to Orlando Bailey. Transitioning leadership allows leaders to grow and develop while avoiding stifling their own paths. Plus, the diversity of thought that new leadership brings can be transformative. The power-sharing that Candice exemplified (vs the long-term power-hoarding we often see) is a cultural value that many others should adopt. #blackleadership #genxleadership #millenialleadership #whatupdoe

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Build Resilience from the Inside Out. What separates the good from the great in high-pressured careers like PR? According to research, 75% of performance is determined by character - not competence. In this episode of #imPRessions, Peter Rea shares how developing virtues like courage, compassion and hope can help you thrive under uncertainty. If you want to boost your ability to perform under pressure, stream this episode. The Pollack Group

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Listening To Audiences Is Key To Local TV’s Survival... Dustin Block - TV Newscheck The industry’s “gut” instinct for news must replace the audience’s actual information needs. During a recent family gathering, an uncle ambled up to me with a serious look in his eye and leaned in close. “You work in the media?” he asked during a party on a beautiful summer day. I nodded. He continued. “How much of what you report is made up?” Tense moment. I tried to lighten the mood. “About 50 percent,” I said, “but we’re never sure what half.” He stared me down, and I could see this was the wrong approach. As I tried to backpedal out of my joke, I’d locked in his belief that news was made up. One uncle a world doesn’t make, but this isn’t the first time I’d heard this profound doubt in the veracity of journalism. My rock-solid foundation of belief in local news as a force for good is not shared by all, perhaps even most. In a research project, I observed, a room full of young professionals expressing outright distrust for local TV news. One participant bluntly said, “If I see it’s a local news reporter, I don’t trust it.” They would rather get their news from their neighbors or the social accounts they follow. The toughest habit for local TV news leaders to break is the belief that they alone should decide what their audiences see. For years, high lead-ins and limited competition allowed this flawed approach to persist. But the landscape has changed, and it’s time for a fundamental shift in how local news directors operate. Many still rely heavily on “gut instinct,” believing it provides a mystical connection to the truth. However, the reality is that cognitive biases are real, and gut-driven decision-making is often dead wrong. As the Local Media Association’s Frank Mungeam wisely observed; “If you win with a 5 share, remember 95% of the market chose not to tune in.” Clinging to this instinctual, inward-facing mindset has led local news to its current predicament. News directors often claim they are data-driven, but the data is insular. Ratings, market research, and talent studies only scratch the surface, failing to paint a complete picture of their evolving audiences. These limited data points have become the walls of the local news prison, constraining innovation and keeping audiences at arm’s length. The problem is compounded by news leaders and producers living in hyper-informed environments, making coverage decisions for audiences with very different lives and concerns. Their “gut” is out of sync with the audiences they serve. Reaching the next generation of local viewers requires a fundamental shift: We need to listen. There are practical and painful, lessons that come from acting without actively listening. The recent, sad demise of Scripps News is one example. Many wonderfully brilliant minds worked on this service. It was an achievement in many ways, but likely fell apart when it came to meeting audience needs.

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