No more post-season coverage

For the past five years, the media has covered the Phillies post-season appearances from many angles, including anything related to baseball. For instance, in 2009, when the team went to the World Series, Channel 29 sent a reporter and cameraman here to do a story on how many Lasallians were wearing Phillies gear. Or how the Inquirer did a big story on John Rooney, emeritus psychology professor, who had a unique view on baseball from his home (people paid to sit on his home's roof to watch games played at Shibe Park, just across the street). Well, now that the Phillies have conceded the season, I guess there won't be any more post-season stories -- and opportunities for coverage!

37 Minutes

I spotted a media request from one of the nation's largest newspapers for an expert source on a pop culture topic. I had the 'perfect' faculty member for it. I emailed them and got a great quote back; I forwarded it to the reporter and crossed my fingers. A short time later the reporter emailed me back. Great, I thought, they're going to use the quote. Then I read the email: it said Thanks, but they already had enough sources. I looked at the time of the expert request and the time the reporter wrote back to me: it was 37 minutes! In slightly over half an hour enough people like me had sent them what they needed and I was out of the game. 37 minutes! This really is the information age!!

Phillies catcher Carlos Ruiz with La Salle student, alum

Hi,

Check out this picture of Phils catcher Carlos Ruiz between communication major Maryellen Brennan (left) and '90 communication grad Ellen Kolodzeij (right); Kolodzeij works for CCI Communications, which produces the Phillies post-game show and the Charlie Manuel Show for Channel 17; Maryellen is interning with CCI this summer (and has done on-air appearances for another show CCI produces, Inside Golf, which airs on Comcast Sports.

The Philadephia Metro is doing a story on summer interns and has interviewed Maryellen; I was told the story will run possibly 7/31 or 8/7. Before the reporter spoke with Maryellen, I asked her two questions: where you learning anything on the job and were you able to apply what you learned in class to the job. She answered yes to both questions, which was important; I want readers to know that our students are prepared for internships and once they get one they do real work (as opposed to getting coffee or loading film into a camera).

52 minutes left...

A Philadephia Daily News writer has a 4 pm deadline for a story on the Batman films of Christopher Nolen and it is 3:08 as I write this; one of our experts is away on retreat, and another hasn't responded to my email/voicemail. The danger of working PR in the summer is that the faculty are away either on vacation, research leave, etc.

Never give up on a good idea

Philosophy Professor Cornelia Tsakiridou sent me a wonderful oped about the upcoming national elections in Greece.  I sent it to the Inquirer, but they replied that it was too late to publish something in the paper before the election. I asked the editor if they'd be interested in having Prof. Tsakiridou write a piece on a "post" election theme, and they agreed. She was away that week, but managed to write an exceptional piece which ran in the paper. Here is a link to it:

http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/inquirer/20120711_The_inveterate_gamblers_of_Greece.html

Communication major Daniel Kurish received the Harry Kalas Scholarship from the Phillies. An Arizona native (who has family in the Philly area), Kurish was inspired to go into broadcasting when he heard Kalas' call on the final game of the 2007 season, a win that put them into the post-season! The Phils made an announcement about this in May, and will present the scholarship to Kurish in August at Citizens Bank Ballpark. Dan will be invited into the radio broadcast team's booth during the game. I'd love it if the announcers talked to him about the scholarship, how Kalas inspired him, etc., and, of course, mentioning that he is a La Salle student.

Sometimes it's good to be lucky

Contacted Comcast sports with an idea for a story....producer liked it and passed it on to another producer who is a La Salle grad! I won't reveal names (not without their permission), but, as I said, sometimes it's better to be lucky....

This is not good news...for me, anyway

This is Dr. Richard Goedkoop's last semseter before retiring. He has been a stalwart media contributor. A professor of communication with a specialty in broadcasting, he's been quoted in USA TODAY, the Philadelphia Inquirer (one writer there said, "I love him!"), the Christian Science Monitor (on many occasions) and plenty of other media outlets. A resident of Lancaster, PA, and a Licensed Battlefield Guide at Gettysburg National Park, I will miss his expertise and willingness to chip in to help the University. This of course will make my job harder....maybe I should get him a smart phone and tell the media he is now an "emeritus" professor of communication????? Any way, best wishes for a happy retirement.

The Plays the Thing

La Salle's student theatre troupe, The Masque, is presenting Shakespeare's Macbeth, with a slightly untraditional approach. Don't know if any pr will result from photos we took, but I will send them to the students' hometown papers. Attached is a picture of Gavin McLaughlin (as Macbeth) surrounded by the three witches (L to R): Erin Collington, Emily Caine, and Katherine Zini ).

Graduation stories trickling in...

So far, here are some of the stories we'll be distributing around commencement time:

Nutrition major Matthew Kavanagh: when he was three years old, he was hit by a car and remained in a coma for almost one month due to severe brain trauma. His family, including mother Denise, a nurse (and nursing professor here), was given very little hope for a recovery. He miraculously survived, slowly recovered, and eventually came to La Salle where he participated on the track and field team and has done well academically.

Accounting evening student Gina Sacco: Gina originally began as an accounting major at La Salle in 1991. After completing one semester, she had to withdraw due to family issues and began working full-time. Gina returned to La Salle again, taking classes from 1998 to 2003, but now married with a family and financial obligations, she withdrew again. She returned to La Salle in 2010 as a full-time evening student. Having earned a 4.0 GPA in her major, Gina is two-time recipient of the Charlotte Newcombe Scholarship, a recent inductee into Beta Gamma Sigma, and she has achieved a cumulative GPA that will award her the distinction of Maxima Cum Laude upon graduation. Gina is also a recent recipient of a 2012 Becker CPA Review Course Scholarship; she intends to sit for the CPA exam by year end and plans to continue coursework at La Salle University towards earning both an MBA in Finance and CPA licensure.

Finance professor Joshua Buch has taught three generations from one family.

A mother/daughter pair are receiving their graduate degrees together.

The oldest grad I know of is 70 years old: he served 39 years in the Army and his four children, who graduated from Penn, Drexel, Johns Hopkins and Oxford told him, Dad, now it's your turn. He's majoring in Criminal Justice.

Titanic Coverage

So far, Br. Ed Sheehy has been quoted in the Gloucter County (NJ) Times and the (Philadelphia) Metro about the ill-fated ship that sank 100 years ago this Sunday, April 15. I knew this anniversary was coming, but what surprised me is how many media did their stories months ago -- so often things are left to the last minute.

Senior Queen Muse is Interning at the White House

Finally got the approval from the White House to make this announcement! Queen is graduating in May; her internship is the final "class" she needs to finish and earn her degree. She's had numerous other internships in her time at La Salle (including the Philadelphia Daily News) and Scholastic Press (publishers of the Harry Potter books). Now the hard part: getting external media to tell her story.

Scary thought (for me, anyway)

Learned at a conference that 18% of children in grades K, 1 and 2 have a smart phone. Why is that scary? Well, while I believe that the smart phone is how people will get news in the very near future, I wonder: who will be sending it out to the smart phones? Will there be neutral "third party" organizations that gather and distribute "news" information? From a PR point of view it's even scarier: with everyone sending info out on the web, how does an institution such as La Salle connect with students in teh future: what will make them read "our" material and not another school, or for that matter, how can we make them read our info and choose to view it when everyone else in the world (well, almost) will be trying to communicate with them, too?

Retirement: Not mine

Richard Goedkoop, professor of communication here at La Salle is retiring in May; bad news for me: he's been one of the most quoted professors in my time here. Rich studies/teaches broadcasting and comments about the media. He was recently in The Christian Science Monitor and USA TODAY.

Rich is a Licensed Battlefield Guide at Gettysburg National Park. I hope he'll keep his smartphone with him at all times so I can send him media questions.