Five PR Lessons from ‘Born to Run’

If you are wondering why Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run album is back in heavy rotation on the radio, the explanation is simple. The Boss’s landmark LP was released 40 years ago this week.

Born to Run is a piece of rock and roll history. The album’s tracks have stood the test of time and remain among the highlights of Springsteen’s live performances. The record also helped turn Springsteen from a popular regional act into a superstar.

Aside from the music, the LP – and the campaign to promote it – provide several important lessons for today’s public relations and marketing professionals.

1. Don’t cut costs

Columbia Records invested $250,000 in a promotional campaign for the album – a small sum by today’s standards, but

The presidential debates don’t need Jon Stewart

I enjoy and admire Jon Stewart immensely, but you will not find my name on the petition urging the Commission on Presidential Debates to select him to host a debate during the 2016 campaign.

It’s not that Stewart lacks qualifications to moderate an exchange between the candidates for the White House. As host of The Daily Show for 16 years, he interviewed some of the most powerful people in the world. He asks insightful, challenging questions that illustrate how well educated and informed he is on domestic and international affairs.

So why is a man with such credentials a poor choice to host a presidential debate?

The Boss, the Gov, Jon Stewart and a ‘Stranger in the Night’

Three Jersey guys were in the national spotlight last night.

Gov. Chris Christie took part in the Republican presidential debate on the Fox News Channel, and his spirited exchange with U.S. Sen. Rand Paul was one of the most talked about moments of the evening.

On Comedy Central, Jerseyan Jon Stewart signed off after 16 years of comedy and commentary as host of The Daily Show.

When it came time to end that final episode, Stewart turned the stage over to the Garden State’s biggest rock star – Bruce Springsteen, who once again showed why he is known as The Boss.

Springsteen’s energetic performance left an indelible mark on the evening that will last longer than Christie’s spat with Rand or any of the entertaining and touching segments of Stewart’s final program.

And it may not be long before New Jersey garners such national attention again. Another entertainer who rose to the top of the music industry and influenced American culture was born in Hoboken, New Jersey, on December 12, 1915. The posthumous celebration of Frank Sinatra’s 100th birthday surely will extend beyond the borders of the Garden State.

Think about it: Chris Christie, Jon Stewart, Bruce Springsteen and Old Blue Eyes. How is that for some real strangers in the night?

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Five questions tonight’s GOP debate may answer

Tonight’s debate among Republican presidential candidates is a benchmark in the 2016 race for the White House, but how helpful will it be for voters who want to make educated and informed decisions when they cast their ballots?

The 2016 election is more than a year away – a virtual eternity in politics, so the landscape may look much different when the campaign heats up and the general public begins paying attention.

Those who do choose to watch tonight’s debate are unlikely to learn substantial information about the candidates and their agendas. With 10 candidates on stage for two hours and with time needed for the panelists to ask questions, each presidential hopeful will be lucky to get 10 minutes of airtime – hardly ample time to make a convincing case for the Oval Office.

But even if the debate is light on substance and policy, it may very well provide some early clues