Publicity stunts are generally regarded as planned events made to gain exposure and get public’s attention. Today’s
media publicity stunts are most often made by
big companies, movie stars, and for launching
new product(s). Publicity stunts can be either professionally arranged by public relations personnel, or set up by amateurs. They can also make or
break someone’s career/product/cause, all depending on the
way they are promoted and the type of publicity
stunt. Based on the examples in recent news I
will explain why entertainment/
media organizations use publicity stunts and what factors cause them to succeed or fail.
Media interest is the goal of most publicity
stunt planners. It is the easiest, fastest, and cheapest way to obtain popularity. Hence, it becomes main objective of public relations to catch
media’s attention. An example of this would be an organization that schedules a press conference to attain a positive buzz and awareness for its
new product. Public relations take care of setting up publicity stunts for everything from movie
star conferences, auto shows, upcoming movies, to gala awards shows. There are also less glamorous ways to situate a publicity
stunt – articles in entertainment magazines about fake relationship troubles, marriages, miscarriages, divorces, fictitious sex scandals, and court trials are most often placed in order to promote actors popularity, upcoming movie, or show(s).These sorts of stunts are set up by actor’s managers, publicity advisors, and actors themselves. It is of no coincidence that “private” family photos of actresses, sex video tapes, and major scandalous behaviors arise near the release dates of most actor/singer/influential figure’s release dates for their merchandise/cd/movies/shows etc.
