In multiple ways, Artificial Intelligence is redefining the role of the public relations professional. Some of that change is the result of new tools that automate processes that once consumed copious amounts of time. One such tool reviews services that solicit expert commentary at journalists’ requests, then crafts responses. The marketing of this tool, dubbed Synapse by its Lithuanian founders, has sparked a considerable amount of controversy over ethical considerations. Neville and Shel discuss the pros and cons in this long-form FIR episode for July 2025.

Communicators are now also supposed to be able to detect phishing attacks disguised as media inquiries, to abandon age-old metrics in favor of meaningful outcomes, and overcome old tropes, like one wheeled out by former communicator Melinda French Gates, who claimed without evidence that tech executives like Mark Zuckerberg have aligned themselves with the Donald Trump Administration only at the behest of their communication teams.

Also in this episode:

• AI is driving a change in the way we craft press releases, drawing the Social Media Press Release to mind.


• PR is at the heart of AI optimization, since third-party sources are a vital factor in determining what finds its way into AI answers.


• Social media has transformed from a means of connecting with others to a platform for streaming entertainment. What are the implications for brands?


• More and more brands are launching Substack newsletters as a way to control the message and engage directly with customers.


• In his Tech Report, Dan York reports on media companies erecting paywalls to prevent AI models from harvesting their content. The consequences could be enormous.

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Links from this episode:

• PR agency sells AI tool which sends out automated expert comment to journalists


• HOLY MOLY: a PR firm just introduced an AI tool which sends out automated expert comments to journalist requests.


• Wellstone Public Relations


• PR pros face new wave of phishing attacks from fake journalists


• No, Modern PR Does NOT demand another metric


• Melinda French Gates says some tech titans siding with Trump are doing ‘what some comms person’ tells them instead of living by their values


• Sarah Evans on the New Way to Write Press Releases in the Generative AI Age


• What is a social media press release and why should you use it (a bit of nostalgia)


• Why PR is becoming more essential for AI search visibility


• How You Can Track Brand Authority For AI Search


• In the Age of AI Search, PR Holds the Keys to Visibility


• AI search is upending the PR industry—how brands and agencies need to adapt


• How AI Is Reshaping SEO: Insights from Search Engine Land and Fractl


• Why PR Is Your Brand’s Best Defense in the AI Search Era


• How to Optimize Your Press Releases for AI Search


• What’s Really Changing with Social Media? Start with These 10 Trends


• Social Media is Dead. Here’s What’s Next: Mark Zuckerberg Unleases His Vision for the Future of Human Connection Online


• Welcome to the brand newsletter era


• Why More Brands Should Bet on Substack


• 5+ Best Practices for Award-Winning Brand Newsletters


• Extra! Extra! Brand Newsletters Educate and Entertain

Links from Dan York’s Tech Report

• 
  
  How Google’s A.I. Search May Kill News Dead
  
  


• AI is killing the web. Can anything save it?


• What happens to the news business when people stop clicking?


• The Age-Checked Internet Has Arrived


• Tea App Hacked: 13,000 photos leaked after 4chan call to action


• Archive Today

The next monthly, long-form episode of FIR will drop on Monday, August 25.

We host a Communicators Zoom Chat most Thursdays at 1 p.m. ET. To obtain the credentials needed to participate, contact Shel or Neville directly, request them in our Facebook group, or email fircomments@gmail.com.

Special thanks to Jay Moonah for the opening and closing music.

You can find the stories from which Shel’s FIR content is selected at Shel’s Link Blog. Shel has started a metaverse-focused Flipboard magazine. You can catch up with both co-hosts on Neville’s blog and Shel’s blog.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this podcast are Shel’s and Neville’s and do not reflect the views of their employers and/or clients.

Raw Transcript:

Shel Holtz (00:02 )

Hi everybody, and welcome to episode number 474 of For Immediate Release. This is our long-form monthly episode. For July 2025, I’m Shel Holtz in Concord, California.

@nevillehobson (00:15 )

and I’m Neville Hobson at Somerset in England.

Shel Holtz (00:19 )

And as always, we have six really fascinating reports for you addressing the intersection of communication and technology. Dan York is here with a terrific report on the growing number of paywalls and what the impact of that will be on news on the internet. And before we get to all of that, as always, we do have some housekeeping to take care of.

Starting with a review of the episodes since our last monthly. Neville, you want to give us that rundown?

@nevillehobson (00:50 )

Yeah.

Yeah. So starting with the last monthly, 469 on the 23rd of June, the story that featured in the show notes was, is internal communication failing? And that topic was on a growing body of research suggesting that employees are more disconnected than ever. It was a good discussion. Other topics?

of the of the six we cov