This week's show opens with an announcement on the podcast's future, so give it a listen and see what's coming! We can't wait. For our last show prior to the summer break, we sped through several issues including the White House stepping in to block non-compete clauses, Amazon's backtracking on its dispute resolution process after customers found an innovative way to make the e-commerce giant squirm, and speaking of 'giant', a massive inflatable rat has landed in court in the United States! Tech companies have been experimenting with changes to their working styles, with some opting for more flexibility and others demanding employees return to the office. Twitter is focusing, instead, on the vernacular around remote work. In fact, the social network doesn't even like the term 'remote work' because it's not inclusive enough (which left us scratching our heads). You might be surprised what they prefer instead. In Check This Out, Ewan looks at a documentary that looks back on the disaster that was Woodstock '99, while Cam looks back as well (much further) on the life of Joan Rivers and how she's viewed today in light of the #MeToo movement. Don't miss any future episodes and get updates about the podcast by signing up for the PR & Law Podcast newsletter at PRLawPodcast.club. We promise: no spam. Ever. If you enjoy the show, please tell a friend or family member. It's the best way to get the word out and we are very grateful! We also frequently post updates to the stories we discuss on social media. You can find us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook with the account name PRLawPodcast. You are also welcome to subscribe to our channels on YouTube and Soundcloud. If you have a question we would be happy to answer it on the show! Just post it to social media with the hashtag #PRLawPod. Full links and show notes are available on the PR & Law Podcast official website at PRandLawPodcast.com.

We ran through more topics on Episode 63 than we have in any other previous episode! (And somehow managed to keep it under an hour...) We kicked off the show by mentioning the major anniversaries that are clustered in early July: Canada Day falls on July 1, as does the anniversary of Hong Kong's return to Chinese sovereignty. There's Independence Day in the US on July 4, of course -- and one more: the 100th anniversary of the Communist Party of China. It might not get the same attention in western media, but it might be the most important anniversary among the group. Cam talks about why. Ewan dives right back into the future of work this week with new questions over the value of meeting in person or via chat and video conferencing apps. Is innovation more likely to happen in person? Do we even know? Cam touches on LinkedIn's decision to roll out new pronoun options, and also looks at Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba's decision to call out a reporter in public on its website. It's a power move that we're starting to see done more often. We also get into the fall of Teneo CEO Declan Kelly and how the #MeToo movement has upped the ante on misbehaving executives. In Check This Out, Ewan talks Tarantino (as in Quentin) while Cam carefully wades into the hottest debate happening in the US these days: critical race theory. Don't miss any future episodes and get updates about the podcast by signing up for the PR & Law Podcast newsletter at PRLawPodcast.club. We promise: no spam. Ever. If you enjoy the show, please tell a friend or family member. It's the best way to get the word out and we are very grateful! We also frequently post updates to the stories we discuss on social media. You can find us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook with the account name PRLawPodcast. You are also welcome to subscribe to our channels on YouTube and Soundcloud. If you have a question we would be happy to answer it on the show! Just post it to social media with the hashtag #PRLawPod. Full links and show notes are available on the PR & Law Podcast official website at PRandLawPodcast.com.

It was a busy show this week, with Ewan and Cam discussing everything from Covid vaccinations to Netscape; Christiano Rinaldo to Alexander Hamilton. So let's get started. Paternity leave is a subject people love to debate. Policies on fathers taking leave to help out at home when a newborn comes along vary widely by jurisdiction -- but it could be just another fact of work life that is changing in a post-pandemic world. Millennials and Gen Zers are pushing for more progressive paternity leave policies and seeing some early victories. Ewan looks at the issue in detail, talks about what works and what doesn't, and why it's suddenly getting so much attention. Cam talked about a big step taken by one of the most famous venture capital firms in the world, which decided to forego traditional media coverage and simply build their own tech news website. Tensions have been rising between Silicon Valley and the journalists who cover it, so the decision by Andreessen Horowitz to launch their own site, Future, could be a harbinger of things to come for other firms, too. Cam looks at why a16z felt compelled to build the site, and what it means for both in-house PR teams and journalists. In Check This Out, Ewan debunks the crazy rumor that soccer star Christiano Rinaldo removing a Coke from a table led to a share plunge, while Cam recommends the new movie/musical In The Heights despite its creator, Lin-Manuel Miranda, coming under fire for "colorism" in casing the film. In the Heights was Miranda's first Broadway hit before he wrote Hamilton. Don't miss any future episodes and get updates about the podcast by signing up for the PR & Law Podcast newsletter at PRLawPodcast.club. We promise: no spam. Ever. If you enjoy the show, please tell a friend or family member. It's the best way to get the word out and we are very grateful! We also frequently post updates to the stories we discuss on social media. You can find us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook with the account name PRLawPodcast. You are also welcome to subscribe to our channels on YouTube and Soundcloud. If you have a question we would be happy to answer it on the show! Just post it to social media with the hashtag #PRLawPod. Full links and show notes are available on the PR & Law Podcast official website at PRandLawPodcast.com.

We have dedicated a whole show to a subject that will affect hundreds of millions of people worldwide: flexible working hours and "work from home". While staff in many Asian countries have been back to the office for a while now, companies in the United States and Canada are now rolling out announcements for an imminent return to the office. The problem? Not everyone wants to go back. Aside from the pandemic, Ewan looks at some of the demographic changes that are giving the WFH movement an extra push, and shares his ideas on how employers and employees can prepare. Then Cam gets specific -- with Apple. The company's CEO Tim Cook told staff last week they can return to the office on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday each week, while granting remote work on Wednesdays and Fridays -- a step widely seen as very accommodating for a company with an old school outlook when it comes to work. But that change wasn't good enough for thousands of employees who penned a lengthy letter taking the company to task for not doing more. We look at this issue from every possible angle and hopefully stumble on some solutions. In Check This Out, Ewan recommends an editorial on a horrific mass grave found in Canada, while Cam has bookmarked a New Yorker piece on the strange radio waves targeting US officials worldwide. Don't miss any future episodes and get updates about the podcast by signing up for the PR & Law Podcast newsletter at PRLawPodcast.club. We promise: no spam. Ever. If you enjoy the show, please tell a friend or family member. It's the best way to get the word out and we are very grateful! We also frequently post updates to the stories we discuss on social media. You can find us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook with the account name PRLawPodcast. You are also welcome to subscribe to our channels on YouTube and Soundcloud. If you have a question we would be happy to answer it on the show! Just post it to social media with the hashtag #PRLawPod. Full links and show notes are available on the PR & Law Podcast official website at PRandLawPodcast.com.

We faced some outright silliness this week. Ewan brought up Amy Cooper, who we discussed way back in Episode #8 after she phoned 911 because a black man in Central Park - who was bird watching - asked her to put her dog on a leash in a section of the park that requires dogs be on leashes. The video left no ambiguity about what happened, but it seems Cooper wants to try her luck anyway: she's suing her former employer, Franklin Templeton, for how the firm handled the case and her dismissal. Does she have a chance of winning? Ewan fills us in. Then Cam looks at how Ryanair, the discount European carrier, handled its communications in the immediate aftermath of its commercial flight being forced to land in Minsk, Belarus so the government could detain a political dissident. Ryanair didn't just mess up, it kicked off an entire new hashtag at #RyanAirSummaries. If you need a laugh, go check it out. Cam talks about what might have happened, and how Ryanair could have done better. Then we touch on the Friends Reunion, a second major embarrassment for a Canadian politician, and how the media is now taking a second look at the lab-leak origin theory for COVID-19. Don't miss any future episodes and get updates about the podcast by signing up for the PR & Law Podcast newsletter at PRLawPodcast.club. We promise: no spam. Ever. If you enjoy the show, please tell a friend or family member. It's the best way to get the word out and we are very grateful! We also frequently post updates to the stories we discuss on social media. You can find us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook with the account name PRLawPodcast. You are also welcome to subscribe to our channels on YouTube and Soundcloud. If you have a question we would be happy to answer it on the show! Just post it to social media with the hashtag #PRLawPod. Full links and show notes are available on the PR & Law Podcast official website at PRandLawPodcast.com.

What a show! We covered a lot of ground this week, including the issue of social media and its impact on people's job prospects. Somehow we didn't touch on this fundamental issue in the previous 56 episodes of the show but certainly made up for it this week. Ewan provides information on how companies use social when screening candidates and Cam provides real examples from the workplace on how social media can also be used to monitor existing staff -- with sometimes disastrous results. Then we dive deep into a lengthy investigative piece by the New York Times on Apple's business in China -- namely the compromises the company is making to protect its multi-billion dollar market. Cam peels back the curtain to shed some light on how Apple may have responded behind the scenes, and looks at three key accusations in the article and how Apple shrewdly addressed them in a statement. If you're a tech or PR nerd (or both), you'll not want to miss this. Then the hosts share a few laughs over the camp Eurovision contest. Don't miss any future episodes and get updates about the podcast by signing up for the PR & Law Podcast newsletter at PRLawPodcast.club. We promise: no spam. Ever. If you enjoy the show, please tell a friend or family member. It's the best way to get the word out and we are very grateful! We also frequently post updates to the stories we discuss on social media. You can find us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook with the account name PRLawPodcast. You are also welcome to subscribe to our channels on YouTube and Soundcloud. If you have a question we would be happy to answer it on the show! Just post it to social media with the hashtag #PRLawPod. Full links and show notes are available on the PR & Law Podcast official website at PRandLawPodcast.com.

We've talked a lot on the show about how the workplace is changing, primarily due to demographic shifts as well as the pandemic. This week, Ewan goes into some detail about how confused managers or executives can navigate this new world and advance their workplace culture. The steps aren't easy -- though they aren't too hard, either -- and definitely worth considering. Then Cam dives into the wonderful world of news monitoring. Staying on top of news, social media, online sentiment, and industry news is critical for most companies, but what's the best way to do it? Cam walks through some examples and even offers up a few recommendations -- including some powerful searches that are entirely free. In Check This Out, Ewan talks death (in a good, inspiring way!) and Cam pays tribute to a man who clearly has the right PR skills: Jeff Bezos. He recommends a Bloomberg Businessweek story that looks at how the Amazon CEO beat the National Enquirer. Don't miss any future episodes and get updates about the podcast by signing up to the PR & Law Podcast newsletter at PRLawPodcast.club. We promise: no spam. Ever. If you enjoy the show, please tell a friend or family member. It's the best way to get the word out and we are very grateful! We also frequently post updates to the stories we discuss on social media. You can find us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook with the account name PRLawPodcast. You are also welcome to subscribe to our channels on YouTube and Soundcloud. If you have a question we would be happy to answer it on the show! Just post it to social media with the hashtag #PRLawPod. Full links and show notes are available on the PR & Law Podcast official website at PRandLawPodcast.com.

Peloton, that premium brand that makes pricey exercise equipment for wealthy urbanites, has a knack for finding itself in the news for the wrong reasons. You may recall a television commercial that featured a man buying his wife a Peloton for Christmas, which thrust the company into social media wars. Now the problem is much worse: a six-year old child died, and dozens of others were injured, from the Tread+ treadmill marketed by Peloton. The company denied any problems at first, which wasn't exactly smart. It got a lot worse after that, giving us an excellent "what not to do" case study. It's these ones that we love to get into! Ewan raises the issue of women in the workplace, and how they have suffered much more than other groups during the pandemic. He brings up some potential solutions to the problem, one of which could be opening the door to more remote work. The hosts also discuss Cam's second Pfizer shot, which was given about an hour before recording, Ewan's recommendation of a television commercial, and a darkly funny comedy called "Why Women Kill." Don't miss any future episodes and get updates about the podcast by signing up to the PR & Law Podcast newsletter at PRLawPodcast.club. We promise: no spam. Ever. If you enjoy the show, please tell a friend or family member. It's the best way to get the word out and we are very grateful! We also frequently post updates to the stories we discuss on social media. You can find us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook with the account name PRLawPodcast. You are also welcome to subscribe to our channels on YouTube and Soundcloud. If you have a question we would be happy to answer it on the show! Just post it to social media with the hashtag #PRLawPod. Full links and show notes are available on the PR & Law Podcast official website at PRandLawPodcast.com.

It's probably happened to you: a work or school meeting held virtually over Zoom when your boss or instructor asks you to turn on the webcam. Everybody seems to have a different take on whether this is okay, but Cam and Ewan stand firmly in the camp of not wanting to turn on their cameras -- but it might not matter. Can your boss ask you to turn it on? Are there any circumstances where you might be able to defy your boss? The answer to both questions is 'yes'. Ewan breaks it down. Then the hosts get into a topic that dominated the socials last week -- the case of productivity software maker Basecamp and its founders' decision to halt any discussion on politics or 'societal issues' from official workplace communications channels. The blowback was swift, but was it deserved? Ewan argues the founders are within their rights to run the company this way, but others also have the right to criticize them or resign (which many have). Cam looks at the PR side of things, dissecting the blog posts by each founder and what may have led to their decision to make such a public declaration. It's a fascinating case. In Check This Out, Ewan looks at a journalism scandal at the New York Times while Cam argues Pfizer is cool and Moderna is... not. Don't miss any future episodes and get updates about the podcast by signing up for the PR & Law Podcast newsletter at PRLawPodcast.club. We promise: no spam. Ever. If you enjoy the show, please tell a friend or family member. It's the best way to get the word out and we are very grateful! We also frequently post updates to the stories we discuss on social media. You can find us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook with the account name PRLawPodcast. You are also welcome to subscribe to our channels on YouTube and Soundcloud. If you have a question we would be happy to answer it on the show! Just post it to social media with the hashtag #PRLawPod. Full links and show notes are available on the PR & Law Podcast official website at PRandLawPodcast.com.

Last week Cam talked about preparing for his first Pfizer shot in Hong Kong, and this week we find out that both hosts got their first dose last week after Ewan secured an early appointment as well. Ewan had some side effects with the Astra-Zeneca vaccine while Cam had no trouble with the Pfizer-BioNTech one, but the second dose might not be as easy. The pandemic is still ravaging many countries around the world, but that hasn't stopped employers and employees from trying to influence the workplace in a post-pandemic environment -- namely how and whether remote work should be a part of this new era. Ewan shares a survey on the question and some interesting anomalies in the results. Then Cam checks in with an article looking at five key things to consider to improve public relations in 2021, tips that he thinks have merit and encourages PR practitioners to consider. They range from commissioning white papers to paying more attention to Google Maps. If you want an edge on your competitors, don't miss this segment. In Check This Out, Ewan recommends an unabashedly 90s group's new album, while Cam looks at the mysteries of typing -- yes, typing.

We made a full year! What better way to mark the first anniversary of the PR & Law Podcast than with another humiliating story of a bumbling, high-profile individual and his lack of computer skills. No, it's not Jeffrey Toobin redux -- it's a federal politician in Canada who went out for a jog, returned to his office, launched Zoom for a high-level government Q/A session, shed his clothes, popped into the shower, and then got dressed. It's all pretty routine except for the fact his camera was on the entire time. It's embarrassing, of course, but what should be done? Should anything be done? How does this compare to the Geoffrey Toobin case we discussed in Episode 32? Ewan gives us some answers. Then Cam, primed and ready for his first dose of the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine, discusses the mess Johnson & Johnson has found itself in. The drugmaker had its vaccines suspended in the United States after six women were found to develop blood clots after receiving the jab. It's not the first time a vaccine has run into PR problems (see: AstraZeneca in Episode 48), but the issues facing these companies might be larger and more complex than companies in other sectors. Cam explains some of the psychology behind resistance to the vaccines and how the drugmakers can try and extricate themselves from the powerful news currents that have put their brands at risk. If you enjoy the show, please tell a friend or family member. It's the best way to get the word out and we are very grateful! We also frequently post updates to the stories we discuss on social media. You can find us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. You can also subscribe to our channels on YouTube and Soundcloud. If you have a question we would be happy to answer it on the show! Just post it to social media with the hashtag #PRLawPod.

This week we learned that the strongest push yet for a union inside e-commerce juggernaut Amazon fell short. Ewan sifts through the wreckage to try and find the way forward for both the company and its staff. We also discuss how labor unions have fallen out of favor and might need an image overhaul. "Cancel culture" seems to be on everyone's lips these days. When you combine it with severe political and cultural polarization, the result is companies being squeezed in the middle, often forced to take sides. The most recent example was Major League Baseball's decision to pull its all-star game from the US state of Georgia in opposition to new voting laws that could make casting ballots more difficult. Cam looks at the tough choice companies have to face, and provides a few examples from China, where local brands have faced similar pressure for many years already. Plus: a dive into the world of Biggie and Tupac and the rap war of the 1990s that left both talented artists dead. You'll also be surprised to learn where the term 'cancel culture' came from. Don't miss any future episodes and get updates about the podcast by signing up to the PR & Law Podcast newsletter at PRLawPodcast.club. We promise: no spam. Ever. If you enjoy the show, please tell a friend or family member. It's the best way to get the word out and we are very grateful! We also frequently post updates to the stories we discuss on social media. You can find us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook with the account name PRLawPodcast. You are also welcome to subscribe to our channels on YouTube and Soundcloud. If you have a question we would be happy to answer it on the show! Just post it to social media with the hashtag #PRLawPod. Full links and show notes are available on the PR & Law Podcast official website at PRandLawPodcast.com.

While vaccinations are happening and people are itching to get out from under the year-long COVID-19 pandemic, some parts of life may never go back to normal -- such as remote work. Ewan and Cam have a spirited debate on the merits of remote work, why some people thrive and others have problems adjusting. The discussion is against a backdrop of a Goldman Sachs deck with analysts complaining of a poor work-life balance. We try and get to the bottom of it. Then we take aim (again) at Facebook. The MIT Technology Review published a lengthy article on Facebook's failures around AI and combatting disinformation -- particularly around the January 6 insurrection in Washington -- which triggered a multi-pronged response from Facebook PR. We talk about Facebook's tactics and debate what might work, and what just seems sleazy. You'll want to stay right to the end for a hilarious story about 90s muscle man and "I can't believe it's not butter!" spokesperson Fabio, who had a rather unfortunate and bloody incident involving a goose and a rollercoaster. Yeah, you'll want to hear it. Don't miss any future episodes and get updates about the podcast by signing up for the PR & Law Podcast newsletter at PRLawPodcast.club. We promise: no spam. Ever. If you enjoy the show, please tell a friend or family member. It's the best way to get the word out and we are very grateful! We also frequently post updates to the stories we discuss on social media. You can find us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook with the account name PRLawPodcast. You are also welcome to subscribe to our channels on YouTube and Soundcloud. If you have a question we would be happy to answer it on the show! Just post it to social media with the hashtag #PRLawPod. Full links and show notes are available on the PR & Law Podcast official website at PRandLawPodcast.com.

Workers often suspect their bosses may be spying on them, either via security cameras or software that can track their internet use. But as Ewan explains this week, it's gotten much, much worse than that. New, more invasive technology is driving a boom in companies surveilling their staff with tools like real-time monitoring of staff computer screens, keystroke logging, and more. Ewan details what's going on and how workers can try and protect themselves. COVID-19 remains a dark cloud over most of the world, but there's genuine excitement about the ramping up of vaccinations -- with the possible exception of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine. There is so much public skepticism about the British vaccine that even several European governments suspended its use last week. It's an excellent example of how trust can be lost, and how providing facts and reassurance usually aren't enough to rebuild it. Cam also talks about his experience taking COVID tests in Hong Kong and shares news that he's already got an appointment to get the first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in the next 10 days. In Check This Out, Ewan recommends a particular artist and song, despite his description on the show (you'll have to hear it!). Then Cam talks about the controversial four-part docuseries Allen v. Farrow on HBO which looks at accusations that famous film director Woody Allen sexually abused his adopted daughter, Dylan. Don't miss any future episodes and get updates about the podcast by signing up for the PR & Law Podcast newsletter at PRLawPodcast.club. We promise: no spam. Ever. If you enjoy the show, please tell a friend or family member. It's the best way to get the word out and we are very grateful! We also frequently post updates to the stories we discuss on social media. You can find us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook with the account name PRLawPodcast. You are also welcome to subscribe to our channels on YouTube and Soundcloud. If you have a question we would be happy to answer it on the show! Just post it to social media with the hashtag #PRLawPod. Full links and show notes are available on the PR & Law Podcast official website at PRandLawPodcast.com.

Sometimes companies inadvertently draw media attention for a mistake -- or gaffe -- in their communications. Amazon is a great example, which just had to change its new phone icon because people felt it resembled Hitler's mustache. Burger King has a different story, though -- it walked itself right into a crisis. Five controversial words landed the company in a boiling vat of vegetable oil. Cam and Ewan debate how the ominous Tweet should have been considered, and Cam explains why ultimately it doesn't matter when planning communications campaigns. The workplace has already changed since COVID-19 hit a year ago, but more changes are coming. Ewan mentions a clause that companies are beginning to put into employment contracts that could leave the employee high and dry. He explains what to look for and why it's a problem. We also discuss late-night HBO host Bill Maher, Professor Scott Galloway, and the beautiful film Nomadland. Don't miss any future episodes and get updates about the podcast by signing up for the PR & Law Podcast newsletter at PRLawPodcast.club. We promise: no spam. Ever. If you enjoy the show, please tell a friend or family member. It's the best way to get the word out and we are very grateful! We also frequently post updates to the stories we discuss on social media. You can find us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook with the account name PRLawPodcast. You are also welcome to subscribe to our channels on YouTube and Soundcloud. If you have a question we would be happy to answer it on the show! Just post it to social media with the hashtag #PRLawPod. Full links and show notes are available on the PR & Law Podcast official website at PRandLawPodcast.com.