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The “story” above was produced using Apester, which is covered in this episode. Our lead story: Company founders are turning up more and more as spokepersons in advertising and marketing. (Have you heard the founder of Third Love or the co-founders of Bombas pitching their products on the radio instead of a paid spokesperson?) On this week’s FIR, hear conversations about this trend with Scott Monty and Gerard Corbett. Also on this week’s episode:

• Facebook tests a downvote option
• Publishers dropped from Facebook’s News Feed are turning to LinkedIn
• Dodge faces backlash for invoking Dr. Martin Luther King in a Super Bowl ad
• Smart speakers are gaining the public’s trust by making mundane tasks easier
• Robots and avatars are starting to replace real people
• Snapchat-like Stories are showing up everywhere
• Three new studies advocate for companies taking stands on social and political issues

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

You can find the stories from which FIR content is selected at Shel’s Link Blog.

About today’s guests

Gerard Corbett is Chair and CEO of strategic communications consulting firm Redphlag LLC., Founder and Partner of Wise Counsel, and CMO of real estate tech startup Producers Forum, Inc. in Palo Alto. He also is an award-winning career coach, blogger and Past Chair & CEO of the 32,000 member Public Relations Society of America, having served as Chair and CEO in 2012. Gerry is a versatile branding, marketing, public relations and communications executive and coach having served four decades in senior marketing and communications roles at Global Fortune 100 firms and earlier in his career in aerospace engineering and information technology with Silicon Valley firms and NASA.

Scott Monty is an internationally recognized leader in digital communications, digital transformation, social media and marketing. As partner in Brain+Trust Partners, he counsels brands and agencies on strategy, executive communications, influencer management, the customer experience, and digital initiatives. Scott spent six years at Ford Motor Company, as a strategic advisor on crisis communications, influencer relations, digital customer service, innovative product launches and more. He is a board member of the American Marketing Association and an advisor for RPM Ventures, My Dealer Service, and Crowd Companies. He writes about the changing landscape of business, technology, communications, marketing, and leadership at ScottMonty.com and is the executive editor and co-host of the Sherlock Holmes website and podcast I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere.

Links from this episode:

• Burger King: Whopper Neutrality
• Everything You Need To Know About The Face-Swap Technology That’s Sweeping The Internet (And Getting Banned Everywhere)
• Facebook is testing a ‘downvote’ button — the next best thing to ‘dislike’
• Publishers eye LinkedIn as Facebook’s reliability falter
• Dodge Super Bowl ad using Martin Luther King Jr’s speech sparks backlash
• Smart Audio Report: Our Growing Trust of Voice Assistants
• Forget the Spokesmodel—Companies Want Real People
• Lifelike robot gets TV news anchor gig
• This Might Be the Most Life-Like (And Creepiest) Robot Ever Built
• Meet Lil Miquela: Fashion’s First Virtual Instagram Influencer
• Instagram tests its version of the retweet but thru Stories
• Publishers and brands are copying Snapchat’s Story feature for their apps and mobile sites
• Apester
• Patagonia Action Works is the new platform for aspiring environmental activists
• Global Strategy Group: Eight in 10 want companies to take a stand on societal issues
• “BUYcotter” activists emerge to support companies and their reputations
• Socially conscious brands have an edge with consumers according to study

Links from Dan York’s Report:

• Facebook creates $10 million community leadership program
• As Twitter stock soars, its video app Periscope is suffering from neglect
• Improving Page Insights to Help Businesses Understand the Results that Matter Most
• John Perry Barlow obituary from The New York Times
• John Perry Barlow’s Declaration of Independence of Cyberspace

About Shel Holtz

Shel Holtz, ABC (Accredited Business Communicator), is director of Internal Communications at Webcor, a commercial general contractor headquartered in San Francisco. Before joining Webcor, Shel spent 21 years as principal of Holtz Communication + Technology. In addition to integrating technology into communications strategies, his expertise includes strategic communications planning, change management, organizational culture, business initiatives and communications research. Full bio