TOUCHDOWN – FORD & DEL GRANDE RE-CAST CITY SPENDING DEBATE

This week's perspective from Bob Reid: By rolling out that series of KPMG consultant reports analyzing city spending and possible areas of savings, Mayor Rob Ford and Budget Chief Michael Del Grande have done what just a few short months ago would have appeared impossible:  they have re-cast the entire debate about the city’s fiscal situation from whether there should be any spending cuts to exactly where they should be made.  Getting taxpayers – and the councilors who represent them – to buy into the notion of making major spending reductions was a fundamental challenge and a seismic shift in traditional thinking at city hall.  And by releasing the series of reports piecemeal and allowing a steady stream of analysis and media reporting, the communications play helped pave the way for the policy decisions which will follow.  It reminds me of Jim Balsillie’s success in redefining the debate about a new NHL franchise in Canada from “should there be one?” to “where should it go?” Here’s hoping the mayor will have more success with his quest.

FIRST DOWN, FUMBLE – MURDOCH & SON BEFORE PARLIAMENT

This week's perspective from Bob Reid: It’s the best reality TV we’ve seen for quite some time.  News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch and his son James appeared before a British Parliamentary committee probing the cell-phone hacking scandal, to take questions (and some lumps) from MPs.  “This is the most humble day of my life,” Murdoch Sr. declared, ensuring that, despite not being permitted to make an opening statement, the quote would be headline material.  For a guy who probably had to look up the definition of “humble” in the dictionary, it was imperative that he show some contrition – but personally, I would have scripted him (and you KNOW he was scripted) something that was about the victims, rather than himself.  Overall, father and son committed no heinous Fumbles during their testimony – even their share price was feeling better afterward.  But the massive Fumble that was committed was that of “Johnny Marbles,” the comic-actor who got his 15 minutes of fame by hitting Rupert Murdoch with a shaving cream pie.  In one swoop, Marbles took Murdoch from the depths of derision to someone people suddenly had some sympathy for.  Hashtag #epicfail, Johnny.

TOUCHDOWN – MILA KUNIS DATES A MARINE

This week's perspective from Bob Reid: What’s not to like about this? Hollywood starlet Mila Kunis was doing the media rounds with co-star Justin Timberlake to promote their new movie “Friends With Benefits” when a reporter told her about the YouTube date invitation a U.S. Marine serving in Afghanistan had put forward to Kunis. Of course she accepted (amid much egging-on by Timberlake), and she will be attending the Marine Corps Ball in November with Sgt. Scott Moore. It looked grim for a moment yesterday, when cyberspace was awash with rumour – and vicious criticism of Kunis – falsely accusing her of breaking the date. She took to Twitter to confirm her planned attendance, and the story once again had fresh legs. Oh, and it assured even more airtime for the latest promotional event for the movie – go figure. The whole thing quickly prompted a similar invitation to Timberlake from a female member of the U.S. military … curiously, no word from him on that thus far. Really, J.T.?!

TOUCHDOWN – HOLYDAY’S VOICE OF REASON

This week's perspective from Bob Reid: One of the most challenging communications jobs is that facing a government on an austerity mission.  It’s always way easier for messages about “slashing and burning” programs on the “chopping block” to get heard and amplified than those about how restraint is necessary.  This is precisely the position the Ford administration is in right now, as city hall has begun receiving the KPMG-produced series of “core services” reports on where the city might be able to save money in its operations.  “Riverdale Farm, zoos targeted” was today’s Toronto Star headline.  But it was Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday who did a pretty fine job on defense, saying “We’re putting everything on the table and it will be up to council to decide what to cut – some things are obviously totally unreasonable.  Politicians are always susceptible to public opinion; that always plays a part in the decisions we make.  But some things will go,” Holyday said.  By elevating the message above the zoos and the petting farm, Holyday brought things back to the big picture issue facing the city and away from the emotion-triggering potential scenarios, reminding people that these decisions have a long way yet to go.  I also give the Ford crew credit for putting the eminently credible Holyday out front on this – the former mayor of Etobicoke whose sterling fiscal management spoke for itself.

TOUCHDOWN – NEWS CORP. FINALLY COMES THROUGH

This week's perspective from Bob Reid: Last week in this space, my colleague Joe Chidley gave Rupert Murdoch and his News Corp. a Fumble Recovery for shutting down scandal-battered News of the World amid the ongoing probe into hacking of cell-phones belonging to crime victims, fallen soldiers and now even high-ranking government officials and members of the royal family.  In an interview with Canadian Business (http://www.canadianbusiness.com/blog/business_ethics/33682--news-corp-s-self-inflicted-pr-nightmare) magazine earlier this week, I said News Corp. hadn’t yet gone far enough in showing proper contrition for the acts of those responsible – but it seems they finally got the message.  Rebekah Brooks, editor of the now-shuttered News of the World, resigned her position with News Corp., while Murdoch himself had a private meeting with the family of murdered 13 year-old Milly Dowler in a London hotel, to personally apologize for the conduct of his staffers.  Murdoch still has some prickly moments about the whole thing – something he had better dial back – but today’s actions coupled with this week’s withdrawal of News Corp.’s bid for British satellite TV operation BskyB has significantly upped his game as the damage control continues.

TOUCHDOWN – ARGOS SPIKE AD CAMPAIGN

This week's perspective from Bob Reid: I feel for the Toronto Argonauts on this one. Their new print ad campaign, featuring one of the boatmen looking formidable as all get-out in the double blue, was definitely eye-catching. The trouble, such as it was, lay in the tag-line: “Home is where the heart is. It’s also where we hurt people.” Get it? Home turf? Football team? Gonna open some whoop-ass on the visitors? Everybody did, except apparently for five people who complained to the TTC and Toronto city councillor Mike Layton, who bizarrely said he totally got the point of it all at the same time as he was publicly suggesting that the ad implies domestic violence is somehow OK. But with that, the fuse of controversy was lit, and the Argos were suddenly playing defense in a way they never counted on. Quickly, they decided to change the ads, and in doing so, ended the story and with it the potential for any damage to their overall brand. It was really the only choice; otherwise, they would have had to continue to defend something to which at least a handful of people had taken offense. I think they were dealt a bad hand, but at the end of the day, the Argos quickly dispensed with a headache they don’t need, and did so on the high road.

FUMBLE RECOVERY – RUPERT MURDOCH SHUTTERS NEWS OF THE WORLD

This week's perspective from Joe Chidley: This week, News of the World was the subject of headlines nearly as sensational as the ones the controversy-loving British tabloid has long been infamous for. For weeks now, the paper – Britain’s best-selling – has been under attack from politicians, media ethicists and just about everybody else over revelations that its reporters employed phone-hacking not just as a means to dig up dirt on the rich, powerful and famous, but also on murder victims, fallen soldiers and their families. The paper also allegedly paid police for stories and tips – to the tune of 100,000 quid. In response, this week Rupert Murdoch’s News International announced it was shuttering the tabloid as of this Sunday, July 10, after 168 years in print. To some, that might seem a radical step, but reverse-engineering the decision suggests News International did a pretty astute cost-benefit analysis – the core of effective issues management – and came to the right conclusion. For one thing, the scandal gained momentum just as the parent company was in the process of trying to buy BSkyB, Britain’s largest satellite TV company; that acquisition is politically sensitive, and killing the bête noire of News of the World certainly won’t hurt its chances of gaining regulatory approval. In other words, a necessary sacrifice. And it could well be a sacrifice that doesn’t hurt that much in the long term. Already, media-watchers in Britain are half-expecting Murdoch to relaunch the Sunday tabloid after an appropriate cooling-off period – albeit under a different banner. Whatever happens, silencing the scandal sheet looks like a smart move.

TOUCHDOWN – WILL & KATE’S EXCELLENT CANADIAN ADVENTURES

This week's perspective from Bob Reid: OK, let me be blunt: I’m a communications professional. I develop strategies, plan photo ops, and I can see through the veneer of any PR strategy. I know there’s a proverbial man behind the curtain. So let’s just call a spade a spade and cut to the chase with respect to the royal visit: I LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF IT!! For the past week plus I have found myself lingering by TV monitors and poring through the newspaper photos, enjoying the spectacle, charm and warmth surrounding every step of the journey across Canada by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Prince William and Kate never set a foot wrong, from their grace and genuine enthusiasm at events and walkabouts, to the terrific photo ops (William piloting the Sea King helicopter, Kate dragon-boating, the missed shot on goal in Yellowknife, and on and on it went) to even a downright warm reception in Quebec where the Duke spoke entirely (and wisely) en francais. This was a brilliant branding exercise, and an entirely successful shakedown cruise for monarchy 3.0 – sparking interest and genuine affection for the House of Windsor from an entirely new generation of Canadians. Now, if we can only figure out how to get Charles out of the way …