The PR role is a perfect example of a corporate function that has been challenged and stressed by blogging. All too often, we hear stories about news (crisis or otherwise) that races around the globe before the PR exec gets a sip of his/her morning Low fat, half-decaf mocha latte with non-fat whipped crème, cinnamon and chocolate on top. PR folks have started to get the message—there's no escaping blogs. "There have been many posts out there talking about how PR folks will kill the authenticity of blogs. I don't buy that. At the same time, I don't think PR should regulate executive blogs." –Active Voice I don't buy it either, but I do think PR has every right to get involved in the process and management of the CEO's blogging message because its their job. This is not a question of invalidating the authenticity of a blog;—it's entirely possible to strike a balance of insightful thought leadership without actually disturbing the balance of the corporate message. PR folks will simply adapt and learn how to do this while embracing blogging as a useful message vehicle, and blogging tools will also come to the aid of the PR staff. Here at MyST Technology Partners we are busy building new reporting and metrics that assist the PR and corporate communications role. Imagine a report that critiques the CEO's blog posting frequencies. On this issue alone, the PR expert will have information to better guide the CEO to produce a higher quality blog. "In many more cases, the CEO in question will not be a natural. While he or she is eloquent in person and passionate about the business and the problems its products solve, maybe they aren't very good at writing. In this case, I think that there is nothing wrong with the PR person vetting the piece ahead of posting. (Notice, I didn't say writing it ...the first draft should always come from the CEO.) A good PR person can edit a post so that it is understandable without changing the meaning or sense of the piece—without even changing the CEO's 'voice'. This can also be valuable if the CEO is trying to blog in a language other than his or her native one." –Elizabeth Albrycht (CorporatePR) Couldn't agree more and this is why we're building tools that will help the PR staff achieve operational efficiency when dealing with CEO's that need assistance in their blogging efforts. Elizabeth describes a realistic view of the issues and useful ways to deal with the issues. "I just do not think that training people to blog is something that most PR people are knowledgeable enough to do. Yes, there are some who completely understand blogging, but in my experience they are rare." –Jackie Danicki Perhaps, but there was a time when CEO's had to be coached in how to use instant messaging (some still need it), how to write email, and how to use a telephone (hard to believe, but true). The CEO's involvement in blogging, and PR's need to assist, is simply evidence that blogging has become an extremely important strategic and [sometimes] tactical marketing and communications tool. My experience indicates that public relations people are taking to blogs like a duck to water. "I think that teaching people to blog is best left to experienced bloggers with a proven track record." –Jackie Danicki This is unrealistic—experienced bloggers typically lack other skills like an awareness of SEC regulations, the laws or rules of multi-national corporations, and sensitive corporate relations and legal affairs. Perhaps an experienced blogger that used to be a CEO might be able to help, but even that would be risky. "If nothing else, why not let PR get on with its core competencies." –Jackie Danicki The world of corporate communications is the core competency of PR and CEO's. Blogging just happens to be a useful technology to accelerate and improve the flow of information. | 
