Cleveland Cavaliers “Watergate” may be dumbest business/PR move ever; I’m calling bullshit

You may have heard by now that the Cleveland Cavaliers have turned off the drinking water at the Q. That’s right, if you attend a Cavalier’s game you won’t find a water fountain anywhere. Team management has ordered them removed.

According to this piece from the Plain Dealer, the Cavs’ maternal instincts kicked in, so team management has pulled the drinking fountains to save us all from H1N1 and other furry boogers that might make us really sick. Thanks, Mom!

That what he said. Cavs’ PR man Tad Carper, quoted in the PD, said his team gets its health-related advice from the NBA and the International Association of Assembly Mangers. So I guess we shouldn’t blame the team for this policy, right.

Wrong!

Turns out, the NBA and the IAAM have issued no recommendations about drinking fountains in arenas. PD reporter Gabriel Baird — being a realworld journalist and all — actually called to verify this fact — or non-fact, as it were. He also learned that no other NBA arena has shut off the water.

Yeah, I know. This one’s starting to stink.

Need water at a game? No problem. You may 1) purchase bottled water for $4, or 2) ask the concession stand for a complimentary 9-oz. cup. To put that size in perspective, my urologist uses 9-oz sample cups.  No kidding. I was there last week!

So whom do we believe? Is closure of the drinking fountains really a benevolent gesture by a team management? Or is it just another way for a big sports franchise to pad concession revenues?

Even if the policy was well-intentioned — and I’m having trouble swallowing that — it’s being perceived and portrayed as pure corporate greed. And yep, I’m doin’ my part to stir up discussion! It’s what I do.

I don’t pay much attention to the NBA, or basketball in general. I do watch Cavs games on TV just to see the super-human work of LeBron James. But I’ve never been to a Cavs game at the Q and have no plans to get there anytime soon.

And I have my reasons. You see, I drink a whole lot of water, and I’m not about to pay $4 a bottle when I have this perfectly good tap. And at and my age, I hit the bathroom a lot. Just ask my urologist.

Wait a minute. If the Cavs really cared about diseases transmitted in the arena, they’d close the public crappers. They’re a whole lot more germ-invested than the water fountains.

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P.S. I’m scrambling to get this post up before Cavs owner Dan Gilbert orders the drinking fountains reinstalled. If he doesn’t do that by the end of the week — well — I’ve already called bullshit. What more can I do?

Groundswell of oppostion greets company’s support for animal-rights group

Unless we’re friendz on Facebook, you probably didn’t notice the recent dustup involving Yellow Tail wine. It emerged a few weeks back when the Humane Society of the United States announced a Yellow Tail promotion designed to generate $100,000 for the Washington-based animal-rights group.

I should tell you now that I don’t care for Yellow Tail wine, but sometimes serve it at parties after my guests get into the 3rd or 4th bottle. At that point, who can tell the difference? I should also tell you I don’t care for the Humane Society of the United States much, either.

How can I dislike folks who rescue homeless cats and dogs? I don’t. And they don’t. Like many of you, I long believed the HSUS and my local humane society were one in the same. Turns out, we were victims of brand confusion.

The world is getting dumber, or there’s something in the water in Northeast Ohio

If Jim Traficant wins a seat in Congress this fall, I may have to move. How could I live in a state of collective stupidity? That we’re even discussing “candidate” Traficant is downright crazy, and it has me wondering what’s happened to critical thinking.

Jim Traficant

You remember Jimbo, don’t you? He’s the former congressman from Ohio’s 17th District who spent the past 7 years in federal lockup, convicted of bribery and racketeering. He’s back, and a cadre of loyalists want to send him back to Washington.

Can PR fix the scandal at Scripps? I doubt it

Update: Seems that U.S. News reporter Jeff Greer has published a blog post (at the U.S. News site) about the Scripps/Reader dust-up. I suppose this raises the PR stakes a bit, since the story now has a broader potential audience. Unfortunately, the reporter relies entirely on the Ohio University Post (the student newspaper) for his information. In that sense, it’s pretty shoddy journalism. But then again, my own post here also relies on secondary sources. So I’d best not throw stones.

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If you don’t live and work in academe, the scandal brewing at Ohio University’s E. W. Scripps School is inside baseball. And because it centers on universities granting lifetime job security (aka, tenure), it’s sure to piss people off even more. No one likes tenure except for those of us who have it.

Background. Last semester, the powers that be at Scripps recommended denying tenure to Bill Reader, a faculty member since 2002. The s#&* has now hit the fan, and the pro- and anti-Reader forces have gone to war.

As always, there are two sided to every story. If you want details, check the account in Inside Higher Ed. For the lazy among us, here’s my summary:

‘Ethics’ and ‘trust’ are driving readers to my blog. There’s an SEO lesson here, I just know it!

I’ve come to a fork in the road in my blogging life. Should I optimize this site, or should I just focus on content and let growth come organically?

When you come to a fork in the road, blog about it!

Why ask this 3.5 years into the game? Check out the Top 4 search terms that brought people to ToughSledding in the past 12 months:

Our PR classrooms need a few more grizzly bears

On Twitter last week:

Me: Is gender balance coming to PR? 5 of 20 in my PR Case Studies class are male. 75/25 is way better than the 90/10 we’ve been seeing.

Rebecca (current student): The question is: How many men will remain after you return their first assignment?

Jackie (former student): I just don’t think the guys could stand the criticism. And we all know you have no problem shredding crappy writing.

Me: Are you saying I’m not nuturing?

Jackie: Baha! You’re as nuturing as a grizzly

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Can you recommend some books on social media? Advice for the late adopters

While some of us are  a little tired of discussing “the conversation” about the conversation, others are just now beginning to examine potential of social media. For example, a former student called last week asking me to recommend social-media books that would get her up to speed. “Jessie” graduated before SM made it to our classrooms and was busy starting a family while the phenomenon was unfolding

I chuckled at first, remembering this tweet from Paul Baker. Ain’t it the truth? But late adopters are a sizable group, and as I told Jessie, books are a good place to begin the catch-up process.

Because I’m an educator, people pose the cursed “book question” all the time. It sucks, because it means I have to read a lot of books that do little to expand my knowledge base or worldview. But reading the literature, for me, is sort of an occupational hazard.

Facebook Flashback has me smilin’, and remembering home

Soon after my son Chris turned me on to Facebook in Jan. ‘05, I became an early adopter. It was easy, as I had the “edu” address, the passkey that let me enter Zuckerberg’s little college orgy.

I was out of place on Facebook ‘05, and students weren’t pleased to find the old professor lurking in their milieu. Things worsened when I counseled a graduating senior about her online presence: “Ah…that profile picture of you smoking the cigarette and drinking a martini? It just might turn off a potential employer, you know.”

Based on her reaction, I should have just told her she looked fat in the dress. Sheesh!

Stating the obvious? Professional communicators need business skills

I’m not part of the online debate about who is or is not a “social-media expert.” I leave that topic to the leaders of the echo chamber. I real life, no one really cares.

What clients and employers care about is how we use the tools of communication to make their organizations more successful. Clients and employers expect us to understand the business proposition. The C-level folks look to us to help change attitudes and behaviors, because that’s what drives the bottom line.

Back in balmy Ohio

Ham Lake Trail, about 40 miles north of Grand Marais, Minn. (1/6/10)

Regular visitors here know that my favorite time of year is when I’m offline and in the woods. It’s even better when my favorite lady comes along, as she does on most trips when I’m not shooting at God’s creatures.