The week in PR

Usually Kate Moss says nothing and just looks the part – that’s the secret to her seemingly endless appeal. This week we found out why talking is not great for Kate. She apparently thinks “nothing tastes as good as skinny feels”, provoking the predictable outrage. Come on Kate, hanging around with Beth Ditto isn’t going to get you anywhere if you start saying stuff like this. Try “I eat like a horse, I’m just naturally skinny,” or “cigarettes and vodka, that’s how I do it.” That’s the usual model mantra, isn’t it?

Girls – thought you could have it all? Forget it. You’re a worker or a breeder, simple as. OK, that’s not quite what Jill Berry, president of the Girls’ Schools Association (GSA), said (although it’s not actually that far off), but we’re not really sure what Berry was thinking of by announcing this in the Daily Mail of all places. Coverage has generally been quite angry and puzzled. Even if she is right, why not say “having a career and a child is difficult, let’s make it easier”, a point made by Ceri Goddard of the Fawcett Society.

Cyber bullying is something that keeps both kids and parents awake at night, and a very real and growing problem. So it’s surprising to us that both Facebook and MySpace refused to follow Bebo’s example, and install a safety button, or even entertain the idea. In fairness, Facebook has already made moves to increase safety, and its defence is that it already employs staff to actively support and protect users. But why not link to external experts? What harm could it do? From a PR perspective alone a blank refusal is madness.

Here at PN we classed this story as ‘bad press for Top Gear’. Is it really? The Lib Dems have discovered, under the Freedom of Information Act, that the Ministry of Defence has been wasting huge amounts of money and time on helping Top Gear out with its usual grown-up Scalextrix stunts (eg, trying to hit a car with a missile). We suspect, despite the outrage that resources are being squandered, that more than a few people are thinking “hey, that’s pretty cool.” Bad press for the MoD, great press for Top Gear.

Top Gear - wasting your tax dollars

Mmmm, Greggs (sorry, we only had fruit for breakfast). Greggs has been all over the place recently due to the announcement a few weeks back that it’s the UK high street’s favourite food outlet, with double the stores of ubiquitous mega chain Starbucks. Surprisingly, the response had been pretty positive, despite the food faddy hysteria that usually reigns in the British press. Typical of the breathless coverage is this piece from the Times. As we pointed out a few days ago, McDonald’s should take note.

Apple to force you to watch ads? Let’s not get too upset yet, this story is purely based on a patent filed by Apple – the company has announced nothing. But if the Independent’s worst fears are realised, customers after a cheap iPod or Mac could end up watching compulsory ads. Who would choose this? No one we reckon. But still, this story nicely feeds the fears we all have that by 2020 every single thing we see, hear, touch or smell will contain an ad.

Nintendo has been pushing the Wii as the answer to all the world’s fitness and obesity problems for a while, but it gained a major coup this week by receiving official Department of Health endorsement. Does that mean we all now have to get one? Oh well.

Who felt a shiver run down their spine when they saw Dame Vera Lynn at the top of the album charts earlier this year? Well, now Shirley Bassey is in on the act. She got the front cover of The Guardian this week, illustrating a story about supermarket music sales attracting older shoppers. You made this happen, downloaders.