In June, PRovoke Media and Purposeful Relations released the Global CommsTech Report. In addition, CARMA expanded geographically, AMEC had a slew of post-Summit announcements, and AI continues to be the focus from media intelligence.
Global CommTech Report reveals commstech competency
PRovoke Media and Purposeful Relations have released the Global CommTech Report. The result are based on an online survey of 329 PR and communications professionals in Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Middle East, North America and Latin America. The results are very interesting. More than half (56%) of PR professionals globally believe they are extremely competent or competent in their use of communications technology. However, that is contrasted with the continued high use of spreadsheets. There is a big difference between the self-perceived competency of agency practitioners compared to those that are working in-house. It’s a valuable report to learn more about the end users of commstech, and is a great read.
CARMA expands in Asia
CARMA, the Dubai-headquartered media intelligence provider, has announced its launch in Indonesia as part of its ongoing expansion in Asia. CARMA Asia Managing Director, Andrew Nicholls, described Indonesia as both an important market for existing CARMA clients, and a key growth opportunity with “a vibrant media and PR industry”. The Indonesian business will be based in Jakarta and lead by Amira Kanifah, who has previously held roles are Nielsen and Kantar.
AMEC follows up on Summit
Following on from the AMEC Summit in May, the organisation has released an agency white paper. The paper was created by AMEC’s Public Relations Agency working group, which includes leading practitioners such as FleishmannHillard’s Ben Levine and Jonny Bentwood from Golin. It provides best practice and guidance for measurement practitioners in agencies everywhere. It’s a great read even if you’re not in an agency. AMEC has also announced a scholarship programme. The recipient of the SAREC scholarship each year will be invited to give a 30-minute main hall presentation to the AMEC Global Summit and will receive $USD5,000 towards travel and accommodation costs. Finally, if you’re not aware, it is time to complete those AMEC Award entries. The early bird entry closes on Monday, 3 July and the final deadline is 26 July.
Media monitoring criticised in the UK
Occasionally, I highlight stories that misunderstand the world of media intelligence because our collective reputation is important. This month we have two stories from the UK. In Scotland, the National Health Service trust from Greater Glasgow and Clyde admitted paying Meltwater £15,000 to monitor the online presence of some individuals. Scotland’s First Minsiter, Hamza Yousaf was “disturbed” by the reports. Meanwhile, The Daily Mail has criticised the UK’s Conservative government for a £20,000, 12-month contract with Signal AI to monitor global media coverage of the monarchy. The contract was awarded in the week following the Queen’s death. Signal AI is chaired by a former Conservative MP. The media monitoring services in both cases was to understand reputation, which is a common use case. However, both stories are reported in a rather critical tone.
AI in Media Intelligence
Generative AI is reshaping media intelligence at speed, and we have been looking at it over the past couple of months. Here are some of the stories that caught our attention in June:
Following on from the AI principles released by the News/Media Alliance last month, Cision has released a code of ethics for AI. Cision’s principles include commitments to:
- Rigorous testing, validation, and ongoing monitoring to minimize potential harm
- Privacy protection and security of client information
- Transparent documentation and explanation of AI objectives, potential risks and mitigations
- Commitment to maintaining human oversight while targeting and eliminating bias where possible
The principles are well-stated, but not particularly revolutionary. They cover what would ordinarily be expected from a services business delivering solutions supported by AI.
Announced last year, Hypefactors has confirmed that it’s New Print PDF Processing Program is complete and will launch at the end of July. The company claims that its AI is uniquely superior for its multi-lingual and multi-modal qualities and “includes an encoder design also found in modern generative AIs like ChatGPT, and is combined with computer vision algorithms and an automated reasoning engine”.
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