Larry Moskowitz, universally regarded as "Architect of Video Public
Relations" founded Medialink in 1986 and steered the innovative startup
to its current status as a leader in providing news and marketing media
services for its 750 communications clients worldwide.
As
President, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of Medialink, Larry was
voted one of the most influential communications executives of the 20th
Century by PR Week magazine following his being named New York
Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young LLP. He established key
standards for video news releases, television station usage monitoring
and the modern paradigms for domestic and international distribution.
Soon after Medialink's inception, he worked closely with the
Radio-Television News Directors Association to establish a code of
ethics based on full disclosure for broadcast PR video.
He guided the Company through its Initial Public Offering in 1997.
Larry led Medialink’s subsequent expansion into public affairs news
distribution through the acquisition of U.S. Newswire prior to its
acquisition by an international newswire company. He shaped the
decade-long development of Medialink Public Relations Research into
Delahaye Medialink, before its purchase in 2004 by a leading media
intelligence company.
Moskowitz began his professional career as a reporter and editor
at United Press International. He later served as a foreign
correspondent before starting his first business, a newswire service
later acquired by a large media company.
Married to a deaf professional actress, he is fluent in American
Sign Language, which helps him "feel words in my hands and see phrases
in the air." A graduate of the Journalism School at Pennsylvania State
University and a former professor of investigative journalism at Temple
University, he is a frequent speaker in the United States and Europe on
topics including the emergence of new marketing paradigms,
communications technology and global news broadcasting.
Medialink helps professional communicators and the media engage their
intended audiences with compelling video and audio distributed via the
Web, television and radio.
Companies and organizations trust
Medialink to provide sound counsel and effective solutions that
anticipate and address the growing demand for multimedia news,
advertisements and information.
We produce award-winning video and audio content that is promoted
and distributed to broadcast and broadband media outlets on behalf of
our 750 clients, which include Fortune 100 corporations,
business-to-business firms, associations, and not-for-profit
organizations.
The audio and video messages offer insights into a broad array of
topics, including new products, technical and healthcare innovations,
public issues, and mergers and acquisitions.
Through Mediaseed™, our powerful suite of digital services and
robust Web 2.0 platform, Medialink also facilitates the exchange of
content between communicators and the media.
Mediaseed’s Client Control Room enables clients to manage and
track the results of their rich media campaigns with ease and impact.
Content may be published on Mediaseed.tv, which is accessed directly by
19,000 registered media professionals around the world.
Armed with our diverse skills sets and broad imaginations, we
strive to continually deliver business innovation to help our clients
achieve their goals.
Fast facts:
Medialink is headquartered in New York with U.S. offices and
representatives in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, San
Francisco, and Washington.
Teletrax™, a one-of-a-kind digital video watermarking
technology, was developed by Medialink in concert with Royal Philips
Electronics. Teletrax is so precise that it can even report when a
single second of your video has been used.
The Teletrax broadcast intelligence network monitors nearly
1,500 channels around the world in more than 50 countries, including
all 210 U.S. markets.
Our employees offer wide-ranging expertise in journalism;
international, network and local television news production;
editorial services; content management and distribution; media
buying and planning; media research; and graphic design.
Industry honors received and competitions won by Medialink
include: the Public Relations Society of America’s (PRSA) Silver and
Bronze Anvils; Superior Achievement in Reputation and Branding (SABRE);
PRWeek Awards; Publicity Club of New England Bell Ringer Awards;
Telly Awards; Latino Marketing Award; and Houston Worldfest.
Laurence (Larry) Moskowitz is the President, Chief Executive and
Chairman of the Board of Medialink Worldwide. Moskowitz owns over
551,089 Medialink shares, representing 8.88% of the company stock.
According to corporate reports filed with the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission in 2004 Moskowitz was paid just over $334,000 as
salary with a further $15,000 in shares. [1] Moskowitz is a
graduate of the Journalism School at Pennsylvania State University
and was a professor of investigative journalism at Temple
University. Moskowitz worked as a reporter and editor at United
Press International and later as a foreign correspondent. In 1986 he
founded Medialink. His biographical note states that "soon after
Medialink's inception, he worked closely with the Radio-Television
News Directors Association to establish a code of ethics based on
full disclosure relating to the production and distribution of VNRs
and other broadcast publicity tools".[2]
•Director, Jewish Community Federation
Reaction to controversy over VNR's In response to a major New York
Times article on U.S. government use of VNR's the PR trade
publication, O'Dwyers PR Daily, convened a teleconference of leading
VNR company representatives to discuss "what the industry can do
about the torrent of negative publicity". [3] In his opening
comments to the teleconference Moskowitz stressed that in his view
"the government has a responsibility to advise, educate, inform and
warn the public and that it has every right to communicate as any
other entity would". [4]
Moskowitz also revealed that in the aftermath of the New York Times
story Medialink had had discussions with "former GAO officials" and
with the White House. Medialink, he said, had adopted the position
of staying out of the debate between the Government Accountability
Office and the Justice Department over disclosure standards that
should apply to VNRs preferring instead "to just say whatever the
highest standard is we're happy to meet".
Moskowitz was dismissive of the media and public reaction to the New
York Times story recalling that it reminded him of when TV Guide
featured a story on its cover in the early 1990's. "...This is kind
of like people walking into a big building that's labeled casino and
being shocked to find out there's gambling going in there," he said.
As for the best strategy for the industry, Moskowitz was determined
that any concessions in increased identification in VNR's should be
confined only to government funded VNR's. "Let's remember this
debate, from everything I've seen, read, heard, and talked to, is
purely the government ... And I'm glad the story is kind of focused
there, because I would hate to see it broaden," he said.
The issue as Moskowitz saw it was whether there should "be
identification within the body of the narration, and/or the script,
and/or super?". Moskowitz stated that VNR producers already
identified the sponsor of the project in the text advisory that was
sent to producers and on the slates incorporated at the beginning
and end of each release.
The question was what else should be done. A Council of Public
Relations firms suggestion that each frame of the VNR should include
an identifying logo in the botton right hand corner (referred to in
the industry as a 'bug') he dismmissed as "totally and completely
impractical".
"I think it would diminish the use by broadcasters. I think it would
be pointless to viewers, and if any broadcaster wanted to use the
thing, they probably cover it over with their own bug and might
automatically do so," he argued.
Another possibility, he noted, was to ensure that the concluding
comments by the 'reporter' identified the sponsor possibily in
conjunction with an intermittent on-screen identifier. Moskowitz was
equally sceptical about this too dismissing it as "practically
impossible".
Reporting on a a September 2005 seminar on new media, Media Daily
News noted that VNRs "which can look like regular news stories to
the unaided eye--can be placed in local or national newscasts.
Moskowitz told the seminar that "If there is news in your brands
we'll find a way to put your brands in your news. In a sense, it's
product placement, but it's earned a place on the shelf." [5]
Other SourceWatch resources
•Video news releases
