Intelligence Briefs

Should you reference note cards when you do a presentation? What about using your smartphone or tablet? And if you are presenting online, are you tempted to read a script on your computer screen or notes on PowerPoint’s presenter view? These are frequently asked questions posed to "Zoom expert" and veteran public relations executive Rosemary Ravinal that require context to answer. "It depends on a variety of factors," she says in this column.

When you attend a panel discussion, does the moderator facilitate a smooth discussion or stumble through? Pick the wrong moderator and the audience experience may suffer. Here are nine rules to ensure the best moderation of your next event, courtesy of "Zoom expert" and veteran public relations executive Rosemary Ravinal.

A new Pew Research Center survey of American teenagers ages 13 to 17 finds TikTok has rocketed in popularity since its North American debut several years ago and now is a top social media platform for teens among the platforms covered in this survey. Facebook? Yeah, right ...

It seems there’s an epidemic of filler words in the United States, notes veteran public relations executive and "Zoom expert" Rosemary Ravinal. But, she notes in this column, "is the gaggle of you know, like, ah, uh, etc. that peppers our public speaking a problem in other languages as well?" The answer is yes.

Newly released data from London-based WARC finds that media inflation is driving up the cost of advertising across channels — with Television most affected by the rise.

Recognized "Zoom expert" and veteran public relations executive Rosemary Ravinal found her throat to be a bit raspy and her voice hoarse following a week of illness. As a public speaker and coach, that's a liability. In this column, Ravinal decided to turn lemons to lemonade and use it as a learning moment.

As successive generations of young adults in the United States cope with rising student debt and housing costs, multigenerational living is increasingly providing a respite from the storm. That's the key finding of new data from Pew Research Center that finds 25% of U.S. adults ages 25 to 34 resided in a multigenerational family household in 2021 — up from 9% in 1971.

Does the FCC have the power to adopt “new regulatory fee categories” on non-licensees that nonetheless “benefit” from the FCC’s regulatory efforts? Non-partisan Washington think tank TechFreedom says no, and it voiced its opinion in Reply Comments filed earlier this week with the Commission in opposition to its FY2022 regulatory fee proposal, which the NAB is vociferously against for their substantial rate hike.

Media and tech companies, brands, and advertisers yearn to connect with the elusive Gen Z audience and the generation coming up – Generation Alpha. But knowing exactly how to engage these audiences can be challenging on many levels, especially as there’s so much misinformation and assumptions about how these young people interact with media and content, says Horowitz Research's Adriana Waterston.

"Have you checked your executive presence lately?" asks veteran public relations executive and "Zoom expert" Rosemary Ravinal. As she sees it, "the elusive quality of executive presence is considered by management experts as a make-or-break factor in high-powered positions and promotions. It combines charisma, confidence, and decisiveness with appearance, demeanor and communication skills which together boost positive perceptions of the individual’s competence and credibility."

The House Committee on Energy and Commerce "is sitting idly" on H.R. 7783—a bill that would extend the FCC's authority to conduct radio spectrum auctions, says AEI nonresident senior fellow Mark Jamison. This authority is scheduled to expire on September 30. In this column, Jamison urges Congress to act quickly, as radio spectrum auctions "have improved efficiency and brought money into the U.S. Treasury without raising consumer prices."

The subject line in a new SiriusXM marketing campaign reads as follows: "Don't waste your time with AM/FM radio." Really? We don't think so, and every radio station in North America needs to be aware of the war the home of Howard Stern seeks to wage against an industry devoted to serving every community to which it is licensed. SiriusXM doesn't do that — period.

Election 2022-related advertising dollars are starting to flow to local TV. As activity continues to heat up, Broadbeam Media has examined political local TV spending trends and predictions. What does it have to share? 

Even as the delivery mechanism has evolved to mobile, smart speakers and connected car, TuneIn's Kevin Straley believes "it is still a magical experience when a listener connects with the voice coming out of the speakers." And, it is his view that this experience is made even stronger by the fact that Sports Radio "can bridge where we are now with where we used to be, physically and emotionally."

What does the future viewing experience look like? That was the subject of a globally delivered webinar presented on Wednesday by the data analytics and media research company.