In a country in which school budget cuts have cost districts everything from paper to teachers to entire programs, fundraising efforts need to go a lot further than local bake sales.

In an effort to boost revenue for New Jersey school districts, Gov. Chris Christie signed a bill into law in January that would allow advertisements on school buses. Half of all revenue generated will be used by to offset transportation costs, while the other half will be spent at the discretion of the Board of Education. The bill’s sponsors called it “an easy way for schools to generate additional revenue to help keep programs running.”

While ads promoting alcohol, tobacco, and political advocacy are prohibited and the ads are technically targeted to passing motorists (not the kids themselves), the whole idea of monetizing school buses doesn’t sit well with everyone. And one town’s proposal to allow ads at the school track and sell naming rights to libraries, cafeterias and classrooms has some up in arms. An editorial published on nj.com voices concerns about the messages such ads might send to children:

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Isn’t it interesting how branding and advertising strategies converge around the Super Bowl? No matter how what kind of products they’re promoting, companies and agencies seem to play copycat in the run-up to the big game. This year it’s all about teaser leaks and hashtags.

The game has changed: two days ago NBC already had a post up ranking the leaked clips, and most marketing execs “don’t see any downside” to releasing ads ahead of time, thereby foregoing “the ‘aha’ moment” when viewers see future classic commercials for the first time. Their theory: all buzz is good buzz, and social sharing could make their ads even bigger. Just because people have seen or heard of them before doesn’t mean the public response will be any less positive.

Not everyone agrees, though: a marketing professor tells the New York Times that leaks only work for particularly “dynamic, innovative or exciting” ads, while “old school” ad execs prefer the “element of surprise” that comes from making the public wait. The Bleacher Report blog even theorizes that the leaks will lead to decreased viewership since so many Americans are more interested in watching the commercials than the game itself.

So let us know, readers. Click through for the poll.

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There’s been a bit of a back-and-forth online today about whether this famous photo—which turned 80 today—was a classic example of in-the-moment photojournalism or a well-executed PR stunt.

The pic, titled “Lunch atop a Skyscraper”, depicts a crew of laborers in the process of building New York’s Rockefeller Center in 1932; it originally appeared in the New York Herald Tribune, and it remains Corbis‘s top-selling historical image. We mostly remember it from its prominent place on the ceiling of our high school dentist’s office. (Here’s the trailer for an upcoming documentary on the photo session.)

The Daily Mail used the occasion of the photo’s “birth” to question its authenticity–and The Independent quickly jumped on board. Their smoking-gun evidence of fakery? A second pic from the same set in which some of the workers pretend to nap along the same beam and a quote from Corbis archivist Ken Johnston saying, “The image was a publicity effort by the Rockefeller Center…the event was organized with a number of photographers.” Hmm…

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Yesterday we talked about Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s assault on the beloved “I ♥ NY” logo with the state’s request for new ideas to replace the heart that brings it all together. We asked you whether the logo needs a revamp, and nearly half of respondents, about 46 percent, said the logo should “never” be changed. Wow. You guys really love New York.

Nearly the same percentage, 42 percent, said simply “no,” which could leave open the possibility that one day, it could undergo a change. Perhaps it’s a thought too heavy to deal with during the first official week of summer.

The 12.5 percent of respondents who said “yes,” the logo should be revamped, are right now packing their bags and being run out of town. Bye haters!

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BBH Labs caused quite a stir at SXSW with its “Homeless Hotspots” campaign, which turned some of Austin’s homeless into paid sources of Wi-fi service. The marketing firm said it was a way to raise awareness about the issue of homelessness while offering the participants a chance to earn money. Others thought it was degrading.

We asked for your opinion in the latest PRNewser Poll and 57 percent said though the firm had good intentions, the campaign was “misguided.” Nearly 30 percent said the campaign was “great,” raising awareness about the issue in an edgy way. And about 13 percent said it was a “horrible” idea.

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Marketing firm BBH Labs has kicked up some SXSW controversy for its “Homeless Hotspots” test program. Homeless people have been at the conference wearing t-shirts that announce they are “a 4G hotspot” in order to sell a connection. The seller keeps the proceeds.

According to the firm, the “charitable program” is an extension of another, Underheard in New York, which gave four homeless men prepaid cell phones in order to tweet their stories. In media outlets all over the world and comments on the BBH Labs blog, it has been criticized, with Wired writing, “It sounds like something out of a darkly satirical science-fiction dystopia.”

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The results are in and 50.6 percent of respondents to our PRNewser Poll think that creative alternatives that Google and Zagat used to announce their acquisition news were “great.” We saw lots of people giving the creative “review” and haiku tweet the thumbs up and otherwise endorsing it on Twitter.

But interestingly, nearly 38 percent were simply neutral about the alterna-releases. For all the never-ending calls for the end of the press release, it looks like many people still like a well-written release that gets to the heart of the news at hand, including journalists. An overwhelming number of them said in a survey this summer that they appreciate a “targeted” release, and we offered a few tips to achieve that here.

A little creativity goes a long way to driving attention and media hits when making a big announcement. But even as people continue to rail against them and offer ways to improve them (don’t get so “excited”), press releases aren’t going anywhere just yet.

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Google made headlines last week when it announced it was acquiring restaurant guide Zagat.

Rather than go the traditional press release route, both companies decided to have a little fun with the announcement: Zagat wrote a Zagat-style review of the news (with lots of quotation marks) and Google’s Marissa Mayer said she wrote a Twitter haiku with the news after her press release was called “boring.”

The debate over the death of the press release rages on even as the physical form and various uses of it continue to change. The New York Times says the most creative alternatives are coming from tech companies, but clever announcement-making is something that lots of companies are using in order to grab some attention in an attention-deficient world.

Click through for today’s poll, which takes a closer look at these two methods from Google and Zagat. Polls are open until Friday at noon so be sure to vote.

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A recent campaign from InternMatch.com found that those who used Facebook and other social networking sites fared better in their internship search than those who went the traditional route with a cover letter and resume.

But according to our latest PRNewser Poll, internship seekers shouldn’t sell the power of the resume short just yet.

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Last week’s PRNewser Poll asked “How creative can publicists be with staff titles?” The votes are in, and the majority said, “Somewhat.”

Nearly half, about 48 percent, said PR firms can add a touch of whimsy to PR titles, going a little farther than the traditional account executive and VP labels we’re used to.  One comment on Twitter said titles could have a little imagination, but should stay “professional sounding to outsiders. Perception ≥ Reality.”

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