SocialTimes AgencySpy UnBeige TVNewser more TVSpy GalleyCat AppNewser 10,000 Words FishbowlNY FishbowlLA FishbowlDC MediaJobsDaily AllFacebook AllTwitter semanticweb.com

Tech Roundup: Milano Tweets for NHL; Balloonduck is Officially Live

-From the “I’m not sure I like this” file:  The National Hockey League allowed Who’s The Boss? actress Alyssa Milano to take over its Twitter handle during a Stanley Cup playoff game between the Los Angeles Kings and Phoenix Coyotes. The one-time Charmed witch is supposedly a perfect fit for celebrity Twitter takeover, because, um … she likes hockey?

Read more

MEDIABISTRO EVENTS

Launch a Marketing Campaign Across Social Media Platforms with Experts

Create a social media strategy and learn from the biggest names in social media in our online Social Media Marketing Boot Camp starting June 7. Speakers include Jen Brown (TODAY.com), Alex Leo (Thomson Reuters Digital), Jim Tobin (Ignite Social Media), and many more. Read the reviews.

The Ticker: Zuckerberg’s hacks; Diet Pepsi & Weber; Twitter privacy; Arby’s rep; Female CEOs

Bloomberg BusinessWeek: How Mark Zuckerberg Hacked the Valley

Ad Age: PepsiCo Taps Weber Shandwick for Diet Pepsi PR

AllTwitter: Twitter Helps Users Protect Privacy, Supports ‘Do Not Track’

USA Today: Finger incident places Arby’s reputation in jeopardy

Wall Street Journal: How Women Can Get Ahead: Advice From Female CEOs

Hearst Seeks Associate Director of Public Relations

Job seekers, listen up! Hearst is hiring an associate director of public relations (or senior manager, depending on experience) to join its New York team. In this role, you’ll head up business and consumer publicity for three of the company’s titles, as well as other executive initiatives.

Naturally, you’ll be expected to promote editorial achievements, brand extensions, digital initiatives and partnerships and events, but you’ll also serve as a spokesperson for individual titles when necessary. Press releases, statements, briefing material for the executives, pitch letters and other communications will also be on your plate, while you supervise a small staff. Read more

Cubes: Check Out IPG’s ‘Desk of the Future’

In this episode of “Cubes,” we tour the worldwide headquarters of IPG Mediabrands, the media holding company responsible for $34 billion in global revenue from advertising agencies such as Universal McCann. IPG’s work includes the Geico Gecko and Volkswagen’s pint-sized Darth Vader.

The IPG headquarters is home to a cutting edge media lab full of “Minority Report”-esque marketing technology, and the office includes a high-tech workspace dubbed “the desk of the future” and a skyway stretching over 32nd Street that was once used by the Gimbels department story, the building’s previous tenant.

For more mediabistroTV videos, check out our YouTube channel, and be sure to follow us on Twitter: @mediabistroTV

MSLGroup Adds Two Digital Execs

MSLGroup has hired Adam Mirabella (left), the former global director of social media and digital marketing at Nokia and global director of Nokia Music Services, to serve as SVP of the firm’s digital and social media practice. He’ll be based in New York. (Sidebar: Nokia has problems.)

And MSL Washington D.C. has named Shonali Burke VP of digital. Burke was previously the VP of media and communications for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA). During her time, she worked on the comms response to the Michael Vick dogfighting scandal.

Burke is also the blogger behind Waxing Unlyrical.

The two new hires free the practice director, Steve Marino, to focus on capabilities across the firm network. Marino joined the firm in 2010 from Ogilvy, and worked with BP on its Gulf oil spill response.

Donna Summer Remembered By Her Former Publicist

Donna Summer’s family has confirmed the death of the disco great at the age of 63 after a battle with cancer. In a statement, her family said, “Early this morning, we lost Donna Summer Sudano, a woman of many gifts, the greatest being her faith. While we grieve her passing, we are at peace celebrating her extraordinary life and her continued legacy.”

Much of her legacy is rooted in the sexy sound of her music, which first hit the airwaves more than 30 years ago. A publicist who worked with her more recently says she wanted to move away from that.

Read more

Buffett Buys 63 Newspapers

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has purchased 63 newspapers from Media General, a $142 million deal that includes the Richmond Times-Dispatch and the Winston-Salem Journal. Berkshire Hathaway isn’t new to the newspaper business. It already owns Buffalo News (New York), has a stake in the Washington Post, and owns the Omaha World-Herald.

Berkshire Hathaway has also extended a $445 million loan/line of credit to Media General, which could lead to a 20 percent stake in the company. Media General still owns its Tampa, FL papers, including the Tampa Tribune.

“In towns and cities where there is a strong sense of community, there is no more important institution than the local paper,” Buffett said. But he’s also looking at the bottom line. With the diminished sale price, Berkshire Hathaway could also make a pretty penny on his investment.

One analyst, Barry Lucas from Gabelli & Co, says the deal is “certainly in keeping with the type of financial transaction Warren’s known for.”

Berkshire Hathaway is also the parent company for news distribution company Business Wire.

To Promote ‘The Dictator,’ Should Sacha Baron Cohen Just Be Himself?

The Daily Beast takes a closer look at the publicity for the new Sacha Baron Cohen movie, The Dictator, which, like the PR for his previous films, is being handled by the main character.

Admiral General Shabazz Aladeen has made a red carpet appearance at the Oscars, where he spilled Kim Jong-Il’s ashes on Ryan Seacreast; inspected Jon Stewart’s crotch on The Daily Show; and told Matt Lauer he knew about his affair with Ann Curry during a TODAY show interview. He’ll also be making a Cannes Film Festival appearance.

The Daily Beast ponders whether it’s too much of a gimmicky thing. Some say yes, Cohen should just appear as himself and really shock us. Others say it’s shrewd. We agree with the latter.

Read more

Spin the Agencies of Record

Mozilla, the nonprofit behind Firefox, has chosen Bite Communications as U.S. AOR after a competitive review. Work — media relations, content creation, and more — starts June 1, led by SVP Bill Danon. [via]

The Susan Magrino Agency has added three new clients: New York furniture company Castro Convertibles, which is launching a new convertible ottoman; loungewear brand Sophia Graydon, which is launching its first collection in August; and Elad Yifrach and his home decor brand L’OBJET (sample at left).

Read more

Research: U.S. Adults Feeling Recession’s Impact, But Optimistic About the American Dream

PR firm Solomon McCown & Company and Anderson Robbins Research partnered to poll 1,009 U.S. adults about their values and outlook on life, finding that the country has developed “A New Normal.”

According to the survey, 74 percent of Americans feel they have achieved the American Dream, but that realization takes a better work-life balance and overall happiness into greater account.

Read more

NEXT PAGE >>