A leader can build goodwill for days... and lose it in seconds.
In #FIRpodcast 503, @nevillehobson.xyz & @shelholtz.bsky.social examine the #IOC press conference moment that turned into a global story about blame, executive readiness & leadership capital.
🎧💻 bit.ly/3OKM3YX
In #FIRpodcast 502, @shelholtz.bsky.social and @nevillehobson.xyz unpacked what happened when an AI coding agent's code was rejected by a human developer – and the AI then published a critique of him and his decision.
Plus 5 more topics in this long-form episode for February.
🔗 bit.ly/46ou3cR
AI isn’t replacing communicators – it may be increasing their value.
In #FIRpodcast 501, @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz explore why companies are hiring “chief storytellers” – and why the shift from messaging to meaning could redefine our role.
🎧💻 bit.ly/4aUFj32
In #FIRpodcast 500, @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz talk about AI-enabled workplace abuse and why it needs to be treated as workplace harm.
For communicators, this is about preparation – what to do before anything happens to prevent silence becoming permission.
🎧💻 bit.ly/4tsVU5w
PRSA says staying “apolitical” protects credibility. In #FIRpodcast 499, @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz ask a harder question: what happens to credibility, truth and standards when ethical leadership goes quiet?
🎧💻 bit.ly/4tmraTN
Thoughtful discussion welcomed.
Most crises aren’t sudden. AI, trust erosion, and compound risks expose how unprepared organisations still are.
@shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz host a new #FIRpodcast interview with Philippe Borremans @riskcomms.bsky.social on crisis communication trends for 2026.
🎧💻 bit.ly/45AKdzn
The 2026 Edelman Trust Barometer warns of a crisis of insularity – trust hasn’t collapsed, but has narrowed. In the lead story in #FIRpodcast 498, @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz examine Edelman’s idea of “trust brokering”, which has attracted critical response.
🎧💻 bit.ly/4q2FIoL
BCG’s latest AI Radar report shows AI has become a CEO-owned issue – not a tech project.
In #FIRpodcast 479, @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz discuss confidence gaps, agentic AI, and why communicators now sit at the centre of trust, meaning, and change.
🎧💻 bit.ly/49tiG5k
On #FIRpodcast 496, @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz unpack the PRCA’s proposed 2½-page new “definition” of public relations. The public debate will be an important conversation. Big questions about clarity, accessibility, and who gets to define the profession.
🎧💻 bit.ly/49AYJrQ
Reddit has overtaken TikTok as the UK’s 4th most-visited social platform.
In FIR 495, @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz talk about why search + AI are now amplifying human conversation, not polished messaging, and what that means for communicators.
🎧💻 bit.ly/49HG3rQ
21 years ago, on 5 Jan 2005, we published the first @firpodcast.bsky.social podcast episode. Yesterday, @shelholtz.bsky.social and I marked the anniversary with a short, reflective conversation. We're grateful to everyone who’s listened along the way. Thank you!
🎧💻 bit.ly/49pBBMY
"PR is dead", says Martin Sorrell on BBC Radio 4, challenged live on air by the PRCA's Sarah Waddington. @shelholtz.bsky.social and @nevillehobson.xyz unpack the fallout.
They also cover the future of news and more in this long-form episode 494.
🎧💻 six reports - Dec 2025
bit.ly/3Yg01Dy
In #FIRpodcast #493, @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz look at how artificial early engagement can trick algorithms into creating visibility that looks like significance.
It's alarmingly easy to do.
🎧💻 www.firpodcastnetwork.com/fir-493-how-...
In #FIRpodcast 492, @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz look at how the story of the Omnicom–IPG layoffs unfolded:
▪️ One official, investor-focused narrative.
▪️ Another on LinkedIn and Reddit.
When people have platforms, the press release isn’t the whole story.
🎧💻 bit.ly/48X038r
In a new #FIRpodcast interview, @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz talk with Josh Bernoff about his major survey of writers and AI – the deep divide between users and non-users, productivity gains, “AI slop,” trust, and why the real story isn’t replacement but re-sorting.
🎧💻 bit.ly/4s3XFp8
FIR 491: One Big Four consulting firm. Two government reports on opposite sides of the world, packed with fake AI-generated citations. Even a CDC-linked study got caught. @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz unpack why “human in the loop” now means “human fact-checker.”
🎧💻 bit.ly/4puRxV8
AI studies claim to show what models actually “read”. But the sources shift month to month, and many citations aren’t reliable at all.
In #FIRpodcast 490, @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz unpack what this means for communicators trying to stay visible – and accurate.
🎧 bit.ly/48cZLen
In FIR 489, @shelholtz.bsky.social and @nevillehobson.xyz dig into “idea inflation” – when leaders fire off AI-generated thought-leadership ideas and teams are left to clean up the mess. Plus: brand under comms, vibe coding, quantum, and more.
🎧💻 Listen or watch: bit.ly/43AUVoy
#FIRpodcast
Coca-Cola’s new AI-generated Christmas ad trades people for polar bears and pixels – and splits opinion wide open.
In FIR 488, @shelholtz.bsky.social and @nevillehobson.xyz unpack the reaction, and discuss the comms challenges that come with AI-driven content.
🎧 Listen or watch: bit.ly/4qThPl1
In FIR 487, @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz unpack @martinwaxman.bsky.social thoughtful post about pressing pause to make room for curiosity, quality, and quiet.
When the AI conversation turns into a crowded superhighway, this isn't quitting – it’s recalibrating
🎧 bit.ly/4onmHwV
FIR 486 is live. @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz cover rage-bait marketing, Lloyds’ exec GenAI + Copilot rollout, PRovoke’s crisis lessons, Böcker’s Louvre real-time ad, corporate affairs’ new brief, and trust velocity.
👉 www.firpodcastnetwork.com/fir-486-meas...
#Comms #PR #AI
“Going viral” isn’t a strategy – it’s a dice roll. In FIR 485 @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz explain why you should drop it from your objectives and what to measure instead. Plan for compounding attention, not spikes.
🔗 www.firpodcastnetwork.com/fir-485-is-i...
#FIRpodcast
A new #AI tool called #OliviaBrown can create & send entire PR campaigns, even follow up with journalists.
In FIR 484, @shelholtz.bsky.social and @nevillehobson.xyz discuss what this means for trust and the future of #publicrelations.
🎧 www.firpodcastnetwork.com/fir-484-is-o...
Was #Tylenol 's response to presidential claims that the painkiller causes autism in children whose mothers used it while pregnant worth holding up as a case study? @nevillehobson.xyz and @shelholtz.bsky.social break it down in FIR 483
www.firpodcastnetwork.com/fir-483-how-...
Our FIR Interview on Generative Engine Optimisation #GEO is now on YouTube.
@nevillehobson.xyz & @shelholtz.bsky.social talk with Stephanie Grober about the hype, the scepticism, and what communicators can really do to prepare for generative search.
🎥 Watch here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwB1...
In #FIRpodcast 482, @shelholtz.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz dig into #workslop – workplace content that looks good but adds no real value
Also: human-centred organisations, the evolving role of internal comms, Amazon’s AI audience targeting, AI and press releases, and more.
🎧 bit.ly/42i54Wy
#AI can polish our words, but at what cost to authenticity? In #FIRpodcast 481, @shelholtz.bsky.social and @nevillehobson.xyz discuss tone in AI-assisted writing and the 2025 em dash kerfuffle. Plus, Shel’s project to turn 28 blog posts into a new book with AI’s help.
🎧 Listen: bit.ly/42c8n1n
GEO is suddenly everywhere. Is it the new SEO or just a passing fad?
@shelholtz.bsky.social and @nevillehobson.xyz dig into the hype, the reality, and what comms pros should do now in our latest FIR Interview with Stephanie Grober.
🎧 www.firpodcastnetwork.com/fir-intervie...
#FIRpodcast 480 just dropped: a rich follow-up to our July interview with the Vatican's Paul Tighe.
In this episode, @silviacambie.bsky.social & @nevillehobson.xyz reflect on AI, ethics, dignity – and what communicators must do next.
🔗 www.firpodcastnetwork.com/fir-480-refl...
#AI #Ethics #Comms
#SEO vs #GEO.
In #FIRpodcast 479, @shelholtz.bsky.social and @nevillehobson.xyz ask: is generative optimisation the future, or just the latest acronym soup? Spoiler: trust and clarity still win.
🎧 www.firpodcastnetwork.com/fir-479-hack...
