Would you hire the strong-jawed former MSNBC anchor Dan Abrams as your PR pro?
He sure hopes someone will—Abrams has joined the public relations industry. Consider him your colleague.
On Wednesday, media reports said Abrams, former TV anchor and MSNBC general manager, has started a media strategy firm called Abrams Research. Here’s the pitch: your company needs advice, who better to give it than Abrams and a team of journalists?
(Some of those are working, not former, journalists, which raises an ethical flag, but hey, who cares about ethics these days—especially those from the cable TV ranks?)
Abrams Research retains a deep bench of heavy hitters in the media industry, including Former NBC Universal Chairman Bob Wright, Fox Entertainment President Kevin Reilly, HBO's Bryant Gumbel, Former American Media Editorial Director Bonnie Fuller (ahem, the mind behind gossip rag US Weekly’s resurgence), and more.
Abrams stood out slightly among the pack of cable pundits, because he had a sense of humor. His ongoing segment called Beat the Press recalled Jon Stewart’s Daily Show. In that segment, Abrams highlighted some of the more ridiculous media moments.
For instance, in this 1 minute 50 second clip Abrams takes on The View, Miley Cyrus (and her PR team), and The New York Times. He even drops a suggestive remark about CNN’s Anderson Cooper.
But will his jaw line and sense of humor help him in the corporate communications world? He brings a unique skill set to the table: attorney, TV reporter, anchor, pundit, general manager. But will those skills translate?
I suspect he’ll find the communications landscape harder than it appears.
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Comments (4)
May you have enough happiness to make your sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human, enough hope to make you happy!
Posted by NewJordans | February 14, 2011 2:30 AM
Posted on February 14, 2011 02:30
Connected--yes. But will his friends network actually work with him?
Posted by Anonymous | November 21, 2008 2:36 PM
Posted on November 21, 2008 14:36
Michael is indeed so right. When media folks crossover, they think it's all about getting their clients in the news and that's all they need to know. Boy, do they have a lot to learn about this business. Yes, no doubt Dan is well connected but researching, planning and executing the right strategy is everything in this business. Let's hope that he learns fast, doesn't embarrass his clients or the professionals in the PR business with his lack of understanding and knowledge about what it really takes to serve clients with value and integrity.
Posted by Joanna aka Steelady | November 20, 2008 11:03 AM
Posted on November 20, 2008 11:03
You're right Michael. He has no idea what he's getting into, as varied as his background is. I watched his show quite a bit and sense that he will do what many former journalists do at first - assume we've been doing it all wrong and he knows a better way; approach clients with arrogance and condescension; lose a few clients.
After that it will be up to him if he actually wants to learn the profession and stay in it for the long haul, or move on. His career history tells me he's a short-termer. Still, you can't argue with his connectedness.
Posted by Tim | November 20, 2008 9:58 AM
Posted on November 20, 2008 09:58