Mark My Words Blog
Welcome to ‘Mark My Words,’ the digital sanctuary where insight meets intrigue, and commentary sparks contemplation.
Delve into the dynamic world of PR maverick Mark Borkowski as he unravels the threads of media, culture, and communication. Mark’s blog is a treasure trove of industry wisdom, offering a backstage pass to the inner workings of publicity and the ever-evolving landscape of modern media.
How playboy royals became tabloid heroesA changing of the PR guard at Clarence House has helped to repair the images of Princes William and Harry
Prince Harry and Prince William arrive to the City Salute sunset pageant on May 7, 2008 in London Photograph: Dan Kitwood It is a compare and contrast case study that will no doubt appear in PR textbooks in years to come. Return to the tabloids of three years ago, and Princes William and Harry were not faring well. Here’s a drunken Harry groping a female friend, or sparking outrage by wearing a swastika armband to a fancy dress party. There’s William with his plastered pals falling out of Mahiki, having treated themselves to several £100 Treasure Chest cocktails. Some columnists…
Nazi Loot under Whitton Garden.
I’ve been asked to represent some odd stories in my time but this one really takes the sauerkraut. A man has claimed that his dead parents’ home in Whitton has Nazi treasure buried under a pond in the garden. The man in question, Michael Hurll, a light entertainment producer, told estate agents Anish Gola and Alan Woods about the loot under the pond in his parent’s house on Montrose Avenue, a 1930’s semi, once owned by the German Embassy. The plot thickened as Hurll informed the agents that after his parents bought the house in 1945, random Germans kept offering…
The Fame Formula promotion begins
Spin when you’re winning It could perhaps best be called The X Factor for spin doctors. To celebrate the launch of The Fame Formula, a rollicking history of the Hollywood PR machine by spinmeister Mark Borkowski, booksellers Borders has joined forces with the book’s publisher, Pan Macmillan, to launch a competition to win 15 months worth of representation by the Borkster’s PR agency. From Monday August 4, www.borders.co.uk will be inviting hopefuls to send in their video entries showing off the talent they think deserves recognition. Borders will also be running a series of events with Borkowski, featuring video booths…
Is celebrity headline grabbing antics for fuelling bad behavior and promoting materialism…
I had a challenging hour on Wednesday. I was a witness on BBC Radio 4’s The Moral Maze. The debate was triggered by research from the Children’s Society which blames celebrity headline grabbing antics for fuelling bad behavior and promoting materialism. The panel was Michael Buerk (chair); Clifford Longley, Claire Fox, Melanie Phillips, Kenan Malik. You can hear it online here at the BBC play again facility
Pariah PR
This story on Popbitch demonstrates the damage that entertainment publicists do to sully the name of first-rate PR’s in this field PR pariah lands on feet In 2006 Rob Shuter used to be publicist to Paris Hilton. Until he was hauled before a court in California to explain why a completely made up story about a former love-rival attacking his boss made the papers, along with quotes from three people. Who all turned up to be Shuter. The woman in question sued Paris for $10m. It was “amicably resolved” before trial. Shuter went on to rep Jessica Simpson, and told magazines she was “head…
When John Humphrys was a showbiz reporter
John Humphrys meets Clint Eastwood – oh the shocking passage of time
Ian Usher – the publicity stunt
The lovelorn former rug salesman Ian Usher, who put his life in Australia up for sale on the internet was not leaping for joy last night. I am not persuaded that after months of media and online interest that this life auction was genuine. It has all the hallmarks of an elaborate PR scam. I congratulate who ever cooked up the stunt but what has it achieved? Certainly eBay gained the principal receipts from all the coverage. But the story does not quite add up and there are some tell tale signs that the stunt is struggling to find a satisfactory…
Gordon Brown charisma implant required
Things can only get better for Gordon… here’s how Gordon Brown’s premiership is a year old today. So we asked: what, if anything, can he do to stop the rot? http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/things-can-only-get-better-for-gordon-heres-how-855413.html The PR expert: Mark Borkowski He needs a charisma implant. There was this fantastic honeymoon period where he demonstrated everything that we hoped would be robust about the New Labour project. He sailed in on a wave of “there is something different here” but from the moment he didn’t call an election, it all went downhill. He needs a good line in gags and a lighter approach with the…
Dance Away.
I don’t know Matt Harding, the bloke who quit his job in Australia and I dont know anything about Stride gum, who sponsored him to travel the globe to film himself dancing in 39 countries. Thanks to http://www.adgabber.com for enlightening us about a brilliant sponsorship. Matt visited 42 countries over a 14 month period and, in addition to filming himself dance, filmed the people of each country dancing along with him. I love the feel-good video that spreads a little joy and because of the intent it makes us aware of a brand on the other side of the world….
Stunt or Prank?
The man behind the photos from a supposed “undiscovered” Amazon tribe that were sent around the world, has admitted that it was a publicity stunt. The indigenous tribes expert Jose Carlos Meirelles said the tribe had been photographed to show that uncontacted tribes did exist in an area that was endangered by logging. I suppose I shouldn’t find these stories amusing. Meirelles described it as stunt but it was more of a prank really, something that perhaps Joey Skaggs might be proud of.
Boobs for Barack
I have found the secret viral marketing tool that the Barack team used to win the Democratic nomination. I think Gordon Brown should set up something similar . http://www.boobsforbarack.com/
50 Cent and the sleazy Taco Bell PR scam
,Curtis, 50 Cent, Jackson is said to be furious about a challenge posed by fast food chain Taco Bell, who has offered to donate a fee of $10,000 to charity if he changes his name from 50 cent to 79, 89 or 99 cent as part of a value meal promotion at the chain. The rappers representatives told Ok Magazine.com that the offer was a sleazy and ill conceived publicity stunt by Greg Creed, Taco Bell’s President. The offer had apparently been leaked to the press before it was even presented to 50 Cent’s agent. Stick to the old ad…
Lame show from Playboy
A couple of weeks ago, I commented on the Youtube video clip of a cute girl hoola hooping to Nintendo’s Wii Fit video. Well it looks as if Playboy has entered the Youtube arena by jumping on the Wii Fit viral bandwagon. Playboy has admitted to releasing a series of clips showing a half naked woman playing Wii Fit on Youtube. The woman in question is Jo Garcia, Playboy’s 2008 Cyber Girl of the year and she appears on two clips that copycat the original viral uploaded on May 25th. It’s a very lazy marketing executive at Playboy who has…
A day in the life of a bounty hunter..
A bunch of surfers go mad as a bunch of paps try to take photos of Matthew McConaughey. Who would want to be a paparazzi..
Old Borkowski interview goes online
Meet the modern-day Barnum The minute Mark Borkowski steps in at the door, his mobile rings insistently. As he answers it, it becomes clear that on the other end is a celebrity in trouble. “Look,” he tells the receiver, in common sense tones. “Don’t worry about it. It’s no big deal. We’re all human – it happens to everyone.”
Poncy Little Masturbators part 2
Holy Moly has an observation on Chris Martin’s antics in their newsletter this week. Methinks it is another giant slice of PR hubris. “VIVA LA BEEB-A – OR THE DEATH OF ALL THEIR FRIENDS Just a bit of a shout out to EMI’s press dude – next time you want to use an excuse for Chris Martin’s miserable behaviour, don’t blame us! You know who you are… Anyway – this conversation ACTUALLY took pace this week (and people wonder why Coldplay are up their own arse more than a piece of sweetcorn). After the Radio 4 interview (which Chris stormed out…
Plurking…
Although I am commmited to Twitter I am unable to jump into “plurking” . Its microblog congestion time folks. If anyone needs to know why its a waste of time PLEASE watch this clip.
"Poncy Little Masturbators"
Coldplay have gone through the usual modern mechanics of releasing a record, giving away their first single as a free download – pretty obvious stuff really. In fact the whole promotion feels lightweight, polarizing critics and fans. It feels as if it’s more about attempts to make Chris Martin become an edgy pop star with the publicising of a series of angry walkouts. First, he dropped out of some innocuous newspaper interview without any reason and the record company promoted it. Then, on the day that Viva La Vida went platinum, Martin walked out of a Radio 4 Front Row…