A weekly roundup of media news and talking points, sans effort

Quote of the week

“Frankly, we’ve got Bill Somebody, have we got anyone else?” Newsnight’s Emily Maitlis giving Ed Balls a grilling on Newsnight after he forgot the name of a Labour-supporting business leader he had just finished having dinner with before the programme was filmed. Which doesn’t bode well for the party’s reputation, at all.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSxp0dlhlBA
 

Weekly High

Al ‘The Pub Landlord’ Murray has begun his campaign for election in the South Thanet constituency, where his main aim is to beat Ukip. Here’s his first poster, which we thought rather amusing, and the national papers jumped on with gusto.
o-AL-MURRAY-CAMPAIGN-POSTER-facebook
 

Weekly Low

After last year’s Ebola party in Birmingham you would think nightclubs would have grown more cautious when it comes to controversial promotional stunts. This doesn’t seem to be the case, though, as this effort from an Aberdeen establishment goes to show. Honestly, can you imagine receiving this text and realising it was a ploy to get you out on Sunday night?
Underground-text

Stories to keep an eye on

Not only has Twitter just announced that ads will now begin appearing on Flipboard and Yahoo! Japan, the social networking giant has also just confirmed that tweets will now begin be visible via Google searches.

MediaWeek turns 30 on Sunday, and will mark the occasion with a London party come April, and a return of the print magazine.

Just in case you missed it

The best performing British firms on social media, according to an Investis survey, are oil and gas producers, with UK firms overall under-performing digitally in comparison with their U.S. counterparts. Read our take on the news here.

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Rick Guttridge

Rick Guttridge

Founder and CEO

Rick Guttridge is the Founder and CEO of Smoking Gun, the PR, influencer and social media agency built around a clear belief: communications should not just create noise, but prove measurable business impact. With more than 25 years’ experience in PR, Rick has helped major brands improve visibility, likeability and memorability through ingenious communications across sectors including FMCG, pets, homes and interiors, mother & baby, health and wellbeing, and personal finance.