Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. I intended to slide into the holiday on a happy note. But I can’t leave alone the White House statement on Saudi Arabia and the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. It turns out that Trump didn’t care whether Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, was behind the murder or not. He …more
Roughly two years ago, I wrote a post about then-candidate Trump and how he used conversational language as a differentiator. Given his communications since moving into the White House, I decided to dust off the point of view that riffs on a Wall Street Journal column. Unfortunately, skipping to the end, bombastic did win the …more
As explained on Monday, I’m behind schedule in publishing the best posts of H1 this year. Here’s the second half of the list, and two posts related to President Trump made the cut. I believe the word you’re looking for is “restraint.” . 1. Will the Communications Industry Change Because of President Trump? Since …more
The Hill, the beltway publication on politics and other sundry occurrences in D.C., was one of the first to report on then-candidate Trump’s comparison to Ernest Hemingway. Covering a Trump rally in South Carolina on Nov. 20, 2015, the publication captured this soundbite from Mr. Trump: “Somebody said I’m the Ernest Hemingway of 140 characters.” One …more
The key to branding isn’t just knowing who you are and what you stand for. It also calls for communicating those very qualities to the outside world. Take the Singaporean store in the picture. Is there any question about its value proposition? Closer to home, everyone seems to think there’s a deep lesson in Donald …more
By my count, 42 high-profile individuals have left the White House, most in a huff. And that’s not counting Omarosa. . Whether they were fired or they resigned, the outcome is the same with Trump finally landing on a metric where he can claim the No. 1 spot — senior staff turnover in the …more
Before addressing the question, let’s consider the high-level objectives of the typical communications campaign. Increase awareness, often in the form of media coverage. Strive to fortify the brand. Of course, the ultimate goal is to win people over to your way of thinking so they “buy.” By this definition, Trump’s unconventional approach to communications has …more
It seems like 90 percent of human beings aspire to: Lose weight Get rich Tell stories Of course, such aspirations bring the purveyors of snake oil. “Hey mister, step into my tent and see how storytelling can change your life.” Yet, there’s a small cadre of storytelling advocates who actually know what they’re talking about. …more
The countdown continues. On Monday, I published the first half of the best posts of 2017. The rest of the list follows. 6. Trump’s Job Description for Press Secretary: Make Communications Great Again Given President Trump’s penchant for throwing Sean Spicer under the bus during his tenure as press secretary, I took the …more
