A week ago, I liked to a Talking Points Memo item regarding former George W. Bush press sectretary Ari Fleischer taking on public relations work for the oft-ridiculed Bowl Championship Series. Today, Rob Warmowski supplies a link to a followup tale that suggests (in Rob’s words), “nobody told Ari Fleischer that social media is like a room full of caffeinated Helen Thomases with no escape door.” From AdAge’s Rich Tomaselli :
On the very first day of taking to Twitter, @insidetheBCS was quickly beset by those comparing it to everything from Balloon Boy to the KKK.
According to social media/new business consultant Michael Gass, president of Michael Gass Consulting, Birmingham, Ala., “If they are genuinely searching for ways the BCS can improve through dialogue, that will be evident. If they try to use social media as a propaganda platform, you will know it soon enough.”
Part of the early problem with the BCS Facebook page is that although Mr. Hancock was quoted as saying he wants to create “a two-way conversation,” the only thing posted on the page’s wall is from the BCS itself. And the early tweets seemed to be a stream of pro-BCS talking points.
Within the week, however, @insidetheBCS began responding with reasons why a playoff system might not work. Such explanations are what the BCS set out to do with the social-media tools, and they may be better than nothing.
But they’re unlikely to do much to assuage fans who won’t settle for anything less. Fans such as Jody Garrett, who commented on Facebook: “The BCS is the most-hated institution in the country. The IRS is a distant second with the KKK running third.”