Question of the day: Can Meghan Markle teach us something about PR? Is Meghan the undisputed empress of reinvention, or merely the architect of strategic bewilderment? One minute, she’s launching American Riviera Orchard, a name dripping with sun-dappled exclusivity. The next, she’s pivoting to As Ever, a brand so nebulous it could be selling artisanal candles or an ethically sourced personality makeover.But let’s be honest—reinvention isn’t a Markle-exclusive phenomenon. It’s the bedrock of modern celebrity. The fame machine demands evolution, fresh angles, and new controversies. It’s the media that needs to keep her in motion, constantly redefining her so they…

Topic of the week the inaugural Musk salute. Oh, the delicious irony of it all. The world’s richest attention seeker has finally jumped the shark, and we’re all pretending to be shocked. About as shocking as a celebrity’s “candid” paparazzi shot. Pure performance, darling, and not even a good one.Look, I’ve spent decades watching the publicity machine chew up and spit out the great and the good, but Musk’s latest performance is something else. It’s like watching a tech genius have a midlife crisis in real time, played out in 280-character bursts of increasingly desperate look-at-me syndrome.Remember when he was…

Ah, the Grammys—where music is an afterthought, and the real winners are those who can manufacture the most viral hysteria. And this year’s undisputed champion? Bianca Censori, Kanye West’s latest human installation piece, who arrived cloaked in fur only to dramatically shed it, revealing… well, almost nothing. Should the City of Coventry be filing a Lady Godiva copyright claim?A bold fashion statement? A feminist reclamation of the female form? Please. Let’s not pretend. This wasn’t about art—it was about spectacle. This was a calculated, algorithm-hungry stunt designed to feed the insatiable tabloid beast.This isn’t couture. It isn’t rebellion. It isn’t…

Do we have a blind spot? Is there a delusion we can’t see? When Trump won in 2016, and Brexit divided the nation, the “experts” didn’t pause to question what they missed. Instead, they cocooned themselves in an echo chamber, stuck in a loop talking about interference and manipulation. Looking back, they were utterly disconnected from Edward Bulwer-Lytton’s “great unwashed.”It’s about time we recognised that Trump and Brexit weren’t random flukes; they were seismic rejections of a system out of touch with the masses. We see more and more polarisation across the media and in our everyday lives, that anyone…

Let’s discuss Gregg Wallace and his white-van-man alter ego. A man who has turned his once reliable MasterChef charm into a full-blown case study in professional implosion. Watching him navigate his downfall has been like observing a soufflé collapse in slow motion: utterly predictable, yet still oddly fascinating.There are issues aplenty arising from the allegations levelled against him of inappropriate sexual banter: issues about power relationships, gender relationships, workplace culture, fame and the media. But from a PR standpoint Wallace has served up a textbook example of what not to do: a misjudged mess of ego, tone deafness and a remarkable failure…

As a showbiz publicist, I know about the Faustian pact between famous people and the public. Stars think they understand it, but they really don’t.As the worldwide tributes continue, the tragic death of Liam Payne at the cruel age of just 31 has shaken the foundations of how we perceive celebrity and fame. As a publicist and strategist who has worked with many famous people, I know something about this. They are just like us – but they are different.Fame is as seductive as it is destructive. It offers an irresistible promise: transcendence from the mundane, and the opportunity to be…

A fortnight ago Rishi Sunak apologised for the damage he did to the credibility of popular trainer brand Adidas Sambas after wearing a pair in a podcast interview, during one of his infinite attempts to appear down with the kids.Adidas were presumably still reeling from the reputation damage caused by a stuffy right wing politician co-opting a product marketed to the hipsterishly progressive when no less an influencer than Nigel Farage poked fun at the incident by posting an Instagram reel of himself in the style of a hashtag#ad wearing adidas Gazelles and stating his preference for Adidas over the…

I’ve been asked by a few people, including the The Guardian, for a communications perspective on reports that Elon Musk’s Barnum-esque page pageantry is having a negative impact on Tesla’s sales and share price. A charismatic figurehead is critical to effectively communicating and ultimately adding value to a business. Still, Musk risks becoming a cautionary tale about what happens to reputations (and, with them, business performance) when charismatic leadership metamorphoses into the cult of personality. Clearly seeing himself as a value-add, Musk has thought to position himself as inextricably linked to his companies, and as a critical driver of their…

I’ve been asked by a few people, including the The Guardian, for a communications perspective on reports that Elon Musk’s Barnum-esque page esque pageantry is having a negative impact on Tesla’s sales and share price.  A charismatic figurehead is critical to effectively communicating and ultimately adding value to a business. Still, Musk risks becoming a cautionary tale about what happens to reputations (and, with them, business performance) when charismatic leadership metamorphoses into the cult of personality. Clearly seeing himself as a value-add, Musk has thought to position himself as inextricably linked to his companies, and as a critical driver of their innovation personally. There’s a…

A few weeks ago in our Media Trends newsletter we discussed Liz Truss’ attempt to crack America by hitching her wagon to the Trumpist juggernaut and concluded: “…she has been assiduous in telling her new target audience exactly what they want to hear. In the braying arena of the American culture wars, any conscript willing to throw themselves unquestioningly onto the frontline will, at least initially, be accepted into the fold. The challenge for Liz is whether she can maintain this with enough zeal to capture the imagination of right-wing America longer term.”This shameless pursuit of the reactionary populist zeitgeist,…

I’m honoured once again to have been included in the PRWeek hashtag#powerbook2024 alongside illustrious industry humans I hold in high regard James Herring Sarah James James Gordon-MacIntosh Warren Johnson Graham Goodkind Julian Vogel Julian Henry Gary Farrow Alan Edwards Fenella Grey Farzana Baduel Paul Charles Fergus Lawlor Jo Carr plus my wonderful MD Lucie SpecialeOne of the most interesting aspects of industry shindigs is the consistent level of curiosity (sometimes even discomfort) about Borkowski reluctance, and mine personally, to pursue industry recognition by ‘blowing our own trumpet’ via the usual means of prolifically entering awards, hard-selling our creds on social…

The push for a ‘Smartphone-free childhood’ is the latest chapter in an evolving narrative that the overwhelming avalanche and decreasing reliability of the information we are presented daily is not just distracting us but harming our mental health and not simply curtailing our attention spans but affecting our cognitive abilities. Contemporary media channels are saturated with content, struggling to balance quality with commercial viability, culturally and politically riven, and evolving at a speed that bamboozles those responsible for regulation and safeguarding. So it’s understandable that a growing segment of the population are talking about switching off completely. There’s the challenge for professional communicators….

Given the small budget relative to the extensive publicity the move has received, some have written it off as just another virtue-signalling (or vice-signalling if you disagree) stunt in the government’s ongoing struggle to address this complex issue. But its origins and implications raise some critical questions. The whole campaign comes hot on the heels of New Zealand’s right-wing National Party victory in the country’s 2023 elections, where a savvy digital campaign proved essential to their success. Influencers, viral videos and gamified messaging helped the party resonate with younger demographics on their turf, propelling the party to victory. As we…

In the life of King Charles, a man overshadowed by his existence, the recent revelation of his battle with cancer is another step on an enigmatic journey. It also demonstrates his wish to be open in a world clamouring for authenticity. The previous monarch would not have declared a serious health issue. Stoicism and distance would have reigned supreme.Charles is a different beast. Raised in aristocratic isolation, he often grappled with his identity, once admitting, ‘I wish I knew’ when questioned by a curious child on a royal tour. His constitutional role demanded forbearance, awaiting his mother’s passing like a…

People are asking me what possessed Rishi to announce his proposed vaping ban exclusively on LadBible. It’s such a baffling comms strategy that I can only guess. Despite serious concerns about the health hazards of children vaping, the policy itself isn’t an easy sell. Before becoming mired in culture war skirmishes, Rishi had signalled a return to laissez-faire pro-business conservatism; it’s hard to see how this policy, which has prompted a surge in ‘nanny state’ headlines, is consistent with that approach. The comms strategy hasn’t made the job any easier. LadBible’s social-first transition and editorial expansion to politics, sports and…

My old mucker and ex Borkowski pixie, Paul McEntee, posted something that sparked a reflection on the ever-evolving world of comms. In today’s dynamic realm of hashtag#PR and media, the magic recipe for success isn’t found in a PRCA handbook; it’s crafted with equal parts creativity, agility, and a dash of maverick spirit. While taking risks and breaking the rules have always been important, they’ve become even more crucial in the digital age.Think of your uniqueness as the secret sauce in this recipe. Nurture that point of difference, the essence that makes you stand out in a crowded arena. Embrace…

Navigating public challenges and conflicts requires a pragmatic mindset, especially in the spotlight. I’ve witnessed the power of practical solutions and compromise in my 40-year career in the media and public relations industry.Like any of us, even those in the public eye, we sometimes find ourselves entangled in prolonged disputes. Embracing pragmatism means prioritising resolution over ego and being open to compromise. As Sun Tzu wisely said, “In war, the way is to avoid what is strong and to strike at what is weak.” This profound statement reminds us that in the face of adversity, true strength lies in strategic…

These days, it’s not uncommon for corporate entities to issue apologies and admit mistakes, but the statement from Fujitsu’s European boss, Paul Patterson, is significant. It explicitly acknowledges their involvement in errors and their impact on innocent individuals. This could be considered a notable ‘mea culpa’ in the context of corporate PR.

Accountability seems swift and relentless in the era of cancel culture, where reputations can crumble at the speed of a tweet. A single misstep, a whispered rumour, and one can be brought down in seconds. No one is too big to fail, no mistake too small to go unnoticed.The Post Office Ltd scandal paints a starkly different picture. For nearly two decades, a faulty IT system wreaked havoc on the lives of hundreds of postmasters. Accused of financial discrepancies based on its unreliable data, real people faced wrongful prosecutions, bankruptcies, and even suicide. Despite relentless campaigns by Private Eye, the…

In a world rife with political intrigue and controversy, this morning’s news serves as a stark reminder of the ongoing debate around U.S. immigration challenges and the disqualification of the former President from the Colorado presidential ballot under the 14th Amendment. What’s striking is that despite these legal actions and establishment decisions, Donald Trump’s popularity continues to ascend.Have you ever wondered why Trump’s popularity defies conventional expectations, persisting even in the face of legislative challenges? The paradox lies in several key factors. Trump’s outsider image resonates deeply with those disillusioned by traditional politics. Moreover, his direct communication through social media…