Public Relations – Future Plans

Hey y’all!

Since this is the last week of the semester before finals, I figured it would be appropriate to go over the future and what that means for me.

I’ve learned a lot over the past semester about what being a public relations professional is like, such as how to write various press kit materials like news releases, media advisories, fact sheets, backgrounders and email pitches. I’ve looked at different companies’ press releases to see how they take the basic elements of a release and give it a twist that is purely the company’s. I’ve learned what a journalist thinks of emails from a public relations specialist, and how to best write eye-catching titles and informative emails. I’ve made friends with my peers, friends I can reach out to for commiseration and connection. I’ve learned how much effort goes into social media, from the voice and tone used to the existence of a content calendar to work out what will be posted when.

I’m going to use what I’ve learned to curate my online presence. I’ll proofread chosen samples of my work for errors, correct and post them on LinkedIn as samples of my writing and work. I’ll develop a social media calendar for my public social media accounts, such as Instagram and LinkedIn, and determine what I should post and when. I’ll reach out to some of the connections I’ve made over the past year at my jobs and in my classes and ask for recommendations and write some of my own.

And finally, I’m going to endeavor to keep my skills sharp and to learn more and stay on top of industry changes. I’ll practice writing various elements of the press kit based on news stories I see in the news from the position of the company being referenced. I will also endeavor to continue learning as I go by staying up to date on the current industry standards via memberships to national organizations like PRSA and PRSSA.

I hope all of my readers, however many or little, have learned a lot about the public relations field via these blog posts. I hope you apply this knowledge well!

Public Relations Focus – How to Write a Press Release

Hey y’all!

Over the course of the past few months, I’ve hopefully proved that public relations is essential in practically every field under the sun, from politics, movies, sports, social media and more. And since this is my second-to-last blog post of the year, I thought I should pivot a little from talking about public relations to doing public relations. So this week’s post will be a “how to” that covers a staple of public relations: the press release.

The press release is similar to a newspaper article in that it tries to get all the relevant information about an event in one place and tries to answer all the questions that a person might ask. However, while a news article is intended to be as objective and evenhanded as much as possible, it is expected that a press release will show a positive view of the company. Press releases are also written by the company rather than by an independent writer.

So let’s get to how to actually write a press release, shall we?

There are seven essential parts to a press release. The release template, the headline, the dateline, lead paragraph, body of text, boilerplate about the organization and contact information.

The release template is the header of the press release and contains the company logo, the words “Press Release,” and the date it was written. It can also contain information on when journalists can publish articles using the included information. For example, the White House’s press secretary could send out a press release about a speech by the president the day before to news outlets so that they could be prepared for the speech. And the news outlets wouldn’t publish the article before the time because if something happened and the speech didn’t occur, they would look silly reporting on something that never happened.

The headline is the attention-grabber that stops people from scrolling and gets them to read the article. People will click out of an article that was misrepresented by its headline, so make sure that your headline is accurate. The dateline is the first part of the article that lists off the name of where it was written, the state and the date. Knowing when and where a press release is being published from can help give context to a reader. The dateline should be formatted according to AP style like the examples below. 

CHICAGO (Dec. 1, 2023)

KENOSHA, Wis. (Dec 1, 2023)

Then comes the lead paragraph. Articles are written in an “upside-down triangle” format, where the most important information comes first, so the lead paragraph should answer who, what, when, where and how about the event. 

Then comes the body of text, which is no less important just because it happens later in the article. This allows the writer to expand more on the important information and get into the nitty gritty details. This section also contains quotes that a reporter might want to use to spruce up an article or links that the reader might need if they want to find more information. 

After the press release has said what it needs to, make sure to center three pound signs or hashtags at the end of the document on a new line. This lets the reader know when the body of text ends. 

After the three hashtags comes the boilerplate. This is a brief summary of the company writing the press release and gives the reader basic information like establishment date and annual revenue that would be awkward to try and include within the article. 

And finally, the contact information. This should contain the writer’s name, title, company, email and phone number in case a reporter needs to call and get more information for an article.

Here’s a few examples:

https://systemoffice.kctcs.edu/about/system-office/services-departments/marketing/editorial-style-guide/sample-release.aspx

Examples of Press Releases: one for each type

So how about it? Do you feel capable of creating your own press release now? 

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Public Relations Focus – Politics

Hey y’all!

This week we will be covering the importance of public relations in politics, a topic that gets more prevalent the closer we get to the presidential election. I will be focusing on the third Republican primary debate, featuring Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis, Tim Scott, Chris Christie, and Vivek Ramaswamy. Article linked below.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/09/us/politics/who-won-debate-republican.html

The article summarizes each candidate’s performance at the Republican primary debate held in Miami, Flo. on Nov. 8. It discusses each candidate’s position on major issues, personal campaign promises, and interactions with other candidates, whether they were on the stage or off.

Public relations is important in politics because most people do not want to vote someone who seems like they will misuse power into a position of power. And politicians as a whole tend to have a negative reputation just by virtue of being a politician. After all, it’s much easier to listen to negative things than to listen to the positive. And that’s where public relations comes into play.

A politician’s public relations specialist manages their public image, often having a hand in maintaining social media accounts, releasing statements to the media, and managing crisis situations. Maintaining social media accounts can look like creating and posting content and responding to comments on posts. Releasing statements to the media can look like hosting press conferences or sending out press releases to get the facts out there. Managing crisis situations involves both internal and external crises, and a PR professional usually is on top of whatever situation is unfolding.

But how does this apply to the linked news article?

All politicians have some form of a public relations specialist on their team. Each candidate was likely told about issues that their constituents cared about, what they should wear to best stay within their image, and what tone they should set in the debate to best make themselves memorable.

For example, the article notes how DeSantis made more of an effort to show empathy with voters, something that he was likely advised to do by a PR specialist. The article also includes several quotes from experts, like Alyssa Farah Griffin, a former director of strategic communications in the Trump administration. Any missteps that the candidates made will likely be reviewed and advised against for their next appearance. Of course, that doesn’t always mean that politicians listen to their PR specialist, but it does help.

As the presidential race ramps up, many will be looking to see how the candidates fare and who they can put their trust in. They’ll look to see which candidate has the platform that they agree with and has the reputation they can trust to get the job done.

So, if you are an American citizen who is able to vote, make sure to keep up to date on the news and register to vote in your home state. Your vote matters.

Public Relations Focus – Social Media

Hey y’all!

This week we are going to be focusing on how social media can play a part in public relations.

It doesn’t matter whether it’s for a major corporation, a small business, or even a church, having a social media presence is important for public relations. It expands the reach of your company to new users, informs current followers about new updates, and allows the company to stay in touch with the younger generation through the various platforms and types of media.

The examples I will use and go over will be on Instagram. This platform was chosen mostly due to the number of people who use it, from regular consumers to major retailers and small businesses alike. I will be focusing on the major retailers: Walmart, Target, Amazon, and Kroger, and include a screenshot of and link to the post. There will be an analysis for each post on whether it was effective for the company, and how it did well or how it could do better.

The first post is an Instagram video from Walmart. Link here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/CzMX0KEOXQ1/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA%3D%3D.

I would say that this post is effective because it works to inform current consumers about how Fire Dept. Coffee is going to be sold at Walmart. It also promotes the concept of Walmart Open Call to other small businesses who want to start selling at Walmart by showing a successful entry. It also works to reach the younger generation via an entertaining video rather than a potentially boring post.

The next post is an Instagram video from Target. Link here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/CzMezPluWHK/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA%3D%3D.

I would say that this post is effective because it uses an influencer to promote Target and its products. Target tries to expand its reach by collaborating with an influencer. By collaborating with an influencer, Target also shows off how it pays attention to its consumer base. The video caption informs current consumers about a deal that’s available for a short amount of time. It also works to reach the younger generation by filming in an entertaining way.

The third post is an Instagram video from Amazon. Link here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/CzK6Bx2stjH/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA%3D%3D.

I would say that this post is effective because it works to expand Amazon’s reach by speaking to a specific consumer audience, cat owners. It also works to inform current consumers about what is available on the website. Due to the popularity of Amazon, they don’t really need to convince consumers to buy from them, but they need to inform consumers about what they have available. They reach the younger audience by using a short video with trendy audio.

The final post is an Instagram video from Kroger Co. Link here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/CzMTvHXsOxI/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA%3D%3D.

I would say that this post is effective because it works to inform new users about Kroger’s pharmacy inside the grocery store. It works to remind current users about the feature and the potential uses, like getting the family vaccinated against the flu. Kroger also works to expand its consumer base by working with influencers. Kroger reaches the younger audience by having a young mom as an influencer in their video. It also helps them show off their target audience of families.

As you can see, social media can be used in many different ways. It can be used to expand the reach of the company to new users, like with Walmart’s and Target’s posts, and it can be used to inform current users about new developments, like with Amazon’s and Kroger’s posts. It also allows companies to stay in touch with the younger generation through entertaining videos.

How have you noticed social media being used by companies on your feed?

Brain Break – 8 Things to Do in the Fall

Hey y’all!

This is a bit of divergence from my usual posting schedule, but considering it’s midterm season for many students, I decided to make a brain break post and cover some fun things to do this fall.

1. Drink Apple Cider

Whether you like to drink it hot or cold, apple cider is one of the most popular fall drinks, and the most common.  Apple cider can likely be found at your local grocery store, and there are also apple cider mixes that can be made by just adding hot water. So go grab a mug and take a break for a bit. That homework will still be there. (Bonus if you grab some apple cider donuts to dip in the apple cider.)

2) Jump in a Leaf Pile

One of the best activities to do this fall is jump in a leaf pile. No matter how old you are, jumping in leaf piles can be an enjoyable experience, from the crunch of the leaves to the joy of the jump. It gets a little difficult on college campuses, but it is possible. And if you don’t like jumping in leaf piles, going out and seeing the beautiful colors of the leaves is definitely on the autumn must-do list.

3) Visit a Pumpkin Patch

An essential thing to do this fall is to visit a pumpkin patch. Pumpkin patches are a cute, low-budget way to participate in the season, and can be a fun experience for the whole group. It doesn’t matter whether you’re going to pick the most perfect and roundest pumpkin for the best carving, or just for the experience. Going to a pumpkin patch is essential to celebrate fall, especially if you do want to participate in pumpkin activities, like roasting pumpkin seeds, carving pumpkins, or participating in a pumpkin smash.

4) Watch a Halloween movie

There gets to be an age where it’s just weird to go trick-or-treating. Sorry, had to say it. But there’s more things to do on Halloween night than trick-or-treating. My personal favorite is to watch spooky Halloween movies and eat candy I bought ahead of time.

5) Bonfires

Whether at a fall harvest party or a casual get-together with friends, nothing would be the cherry on the top more than a bonfire. Bonfires are nice to gather around as the weather gets cold, and there’s tons of things you can roast over the fire, like marshmallows for s’mores.

6) Warm Soup

As the weather starts to get colder, warm food gets more and more appealing. The best of the warm foods to have in the fall is soup. No matter whether a soup made from a can or from scratch, warm soup is on the top of my list of favorite fall foods.

7) Go Trick-or-Treating

Listen. I know what I said, but how can fall be complete without trick-or-treating? Whether you’re dressed up as the cutest mermaid or the best Power Ranger, trick-or-treating is an essential part of celebrating fall, even if you just dress up as a very cold person like I did one year. The key (or trick if you will) if you are part of an older audience is to dress up recognizably and go to neighborhoods with younger siblings or cousins.

8) Change up your wardrobe

The final step to celebrating fall is to change out your wardrobe. As the weather gets colder, eventually shorts and T-shirts won’t cut it anymore. That means that now is the time to start breaking out those warm sweaters and cute boots. It also means that now is the best time to go on a little shopping spree for new clothes if that’s more your speed.

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading this short list of things to do this fall, and I hope you get the chance to go out and try some of them! Let me know if you’ve done any of these things this fall, or if you’re now inspired to try some things out!

I hope you all have a happy fall!

Public Relations Focus – International News

Hey y’all!

This week, we’re going to be looking at international news from an international newspaper, specifically an article from the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) discussing the separation of Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni and her partner, Andrea Giambruno.

I know I’ve already written an article about the affect of public relations in the news, specifically regarding the North Korean tour of Russian military production facilities, but that was sourced primarily from American newspapers. So I thought I’d shake it up and find an article about another country written by another country. Thus BBC and the Italian prime minister. Link below.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-67168294

To summarize, this article covers the fact that Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is separating from her partner of almost 10 years and the father of her 7-year-old daughter, journalist Andrea Giambruno. This is due to Giambruno making sexual and inappropriate comments towards coworkers, comments which were recorded and then broadcast.

Taking this article in terms of public relations, it summarizes neatly the context behind the event as well why the pair is separating and provides a few quotes at the end of the article from both supporters and enemies. This allows the BBC to maintain its position as a neutral party who simply reports both sides of the news.

Analyzing the writing style itself, it’s similar to American news articles where the journalist uses quotes to add a “human element” to keep the reader engaged. There are a few differences, however. Of the 20 paragraphs in the article, most of which were a single sentence with a few breaking the mold with two sentences, eight did not reference a quote in some way or another.

This gives the BBC credibility, because the chances of the journalist writing on this isn’t giving any space for personal opinion. That does not mean that there is no personal opinion included in the article, but it gives off the appearance of credibility since most paragraphs in the article contain quotes, and those that do not are short and to the point.

That being said, the article does a wonderful job of steering away from difficult topics, such as the politics of being a staunch believer of Christian family values while not marrying your partner with whom you have a child. But to be fair to the author, they were simply trying to convey the facts without angering either their boss or the prime minister of a country. It also gives enough information and provides enough contrast that people can pick up on the differences and go looking for information themselves if they want.

Below is an article about the same topic by the New York Times.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/20/world/europe/giorgia-meloni-andrea-giambruno.html?searchResultPosition=1

Public Relations Focus – Movies

Hey y’all!

In this week’s blog post, I’m going to be discussing movies, one of the most common things that public relations professionals tend to promote. I’ll be specifically focusing on the promotional campaign for the first Pacific Rim that came out in 2013.

Below is the main trailer that was released to promote the movie. Feel free to watch it and refresh your memory about Pacific Rim (2013).

I think that this was a good choice for the first trailer for the movie, because it sets the audience up for the basic conflict of the movie with a little background thrown in there. It also hypes up all of the people who are interested in the movie for the fight scenes and starts to introduce the main characters that the audience will be rooting for in the film. The best thing that this trailer does is assure potential fans that it won’t be a gritty realistic film, but rather a fun enjoyable movie that has its moments of comedy to lighten the general story.

Besides releasing a trailer, which is textbook movie promotion these days, the marketing team also worked on an interactive website that helped users get more into the mindset of Pacific Rim; wrote a graphic novel, Pacific Rim: Tales from Year Zero, set before the movie begins, and released it about a month before the movie; and a viral fictional advertisement from a character in the movie just over a week before the movie premiered.

To focus specifically on the website, the purpose of the website was to host interactive content that helped the fans get in the mindset of the film at their leisure. Unfortunately, it has since been deactivated in lieu of a website for Pacific Rim: Uprising (2018), but information on it still remains. The following link leads to the fan-sourced Wiki, with basic information about the website and its content, and a few videos, memos and photos that are still viewable.

https://pacificrim.fandom.com/wiki/Panpacificdefense#History

Analysis

Personally, I think that this campaign was done well, as it allowed people who were interested in the film to get more involved and more in-depth with the universe that the film is set in, building a solid fanbase before the film was actually released. Below are a few reviews on the marketing campaign, ranging from over six months before the release to a mere two weeks before the release.

• November 30, 2012 – https://screenrant.com/pacific-rim-jaeger-blueprints/
• May 29, 2013 – https://variety.com/2013/film/news/pacific-rims-legendary-marketing-challenge-1200488764/
• June 28, 2013 – https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2013/06/28/pacific-rim-and-how-pre-release-tracking-becomes-a-weapon/?sh=4e2079d82098

I think that the way the movie was promoted affected the brand in a positive manner, because it allowed the fanbase to solidify before the movie was released instead of relying on the movie to bring people together like with a cult classic. It allowed Pacific Rim (2013) to establish itself as more than just aliens vs. the Transformers, it became Kaiju vs. Jaegers.

Overall, while the campaign might have been considered a failure for domestic release, it did net over $400 million at the box office, well over half of its budget. Rotten Tomatoes also gave Pacific Rim (2013) a 72% on the Tomatometer and a 77% Audience Score, so regardless of how the critics may regard this movie, the general public loves it. Link to the page below.

Pacific Rim (2013) | Rotten Tomatoes

But what do you think? Did the campaign do the movie justice? Or did the movie not live up to the hype?

Public Relations Focus – Sports

Hello all!

This week’s focus will cover sports public relations, particularly the steps that some teams take to manage their public reputation.

The story I will use to demonstrate this point is in regard to a player getting dismissed from the Kansas Jayhawks men’s basketball program after being charged with a felony. I’ve attached a few articles about the story below.

• https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/38520319/kansas-dismisses-transfer-arterio-morris-rape-charge
• https://abcnews.go.com/Sports/kansas-dismisses-transfer-arterio-morris-after-rape-charge/story?id=103602534

In the article, transfer player Arterio Morris was arrested and charged with a felony, and as this was not his first strike of this nature, he was dismissed from the program.

The team released a short statement from the coach that addressed the suspension and dismissal, as well as addressed potential questions that the media might contact them with. The statement is included below.

“When we learned of allegations regarding Arterio Morris, he was suspended from the Kansas men’s basketball program,” Self said in a statement. “We are now aware he has been arrested and charged, and he was dismissed from the program. As this is an ongoing legal matter, we are not able to comment further at this time.”

This is a good example of a public statement from a sports program that regards a player’s negative choices and their dismissal from the program for those choices. It states succinctly the steps the program took before dismissal, why an individual was eventually dismissed, and then informs the press why the program will not respond to inquiries about the case.

Most PR teams will tend to default to this type of response as it does not make any claims, positive or negative, about the validity of the case, nor does it say anything other than the pure facts.

This person was dismissed because of these reasons. We are not able to comment further at this time because of this reason.

Depending on how the case goes and how much the program gets dragged into it, the program may choose to make a statement that condemns that negative behavior, though what it will say then is up for debate.

The reasoning behind this type of statement varies, but most of the time it is to prevent the team or company from being sued for defamation of character if the charges are eventually dropped or the case is dismissed. At the same time, it prevents the program from being accused of dragging its feet or supporting the negative behavior even implicitly.

It is because of this reasoning that most sports programs prefer that their players work to stay above reproach, so that they do not have to deal with this type of situation. If the program dragged its feet in regard to responding to this, the negative publicity could transfer to the team and everyone associated with them.

That being said, most teams do stand behind their players and staff when allegations are raised. It just so happens that in this case, the player was arrested and charged and so was dismissed from the program.

While this decision might not be the right one to make in every situation, I do believe that at this point, with the information available, it was the right decision to protect the reputation of the team.

Public Relations Focus – Interviews

­Hello all!

This week’s post is about interviews and interviewing.

Interviews are necessary to give an article some zing, and to get a quote that will humanize an article.

If an article says something like, “50 people lost their homes due to the storm,” that bores me and makes me lose interest.

But if the article had a quote instead?

“My kids have lost everything,” Homeowner and mother Tammy Lynn said, “And now we have no place to even sleep right now.”

See how that changes the information and humanizes the event?

That is the power of a quote, but you can only get a quote if you have an interview.

The first step of doing pre-interview research would be doing a few simple searches of their name on search engines and major news sites.

­Learn all you can about them from the Internet. How long have they worked at that company? How long since their last promotion?

If they’re a traveling athlete, figure out where they’ve been before and what they’ve done.

After you know some background about the person you want to interview, figure out what other interviewers have asked before.

You do not want to be the person who gets an exclusive interview, only to ask the same questions someone else did.

If applicable, you might be able to reach out to their workplace or family members to better your questions.

Once you have figured out the questions you want to ask, then it’s time to focus on the interview.

First, where are you going to conduct the interview? Is it going to be in a public place, like a coffee shop? Or will it be somewhere more private, like a personal office or someone’s home?

What location will make your interviewee more at ease? Are they going to share something private or something public?

Then comes actually conducting the interview.

When you ask your questions, make sure to keep your body language engaged and open. Instead of curling your shoulders in, open them up and make it clear that you trust whoever you are talking to.

Humans tend to mimic other’s body language and body language tends to affect a person’s emotions. If you have your shoulders open and relaxed, your interviewee will also become more relaxed.

Make sure to maintain natural eye contact with your interviewee because it will show that you are engaged in the conversation.

Both principles still apply even if you are conducting an interview over the phone or on Zoom. If you’re calm and relaxed, chances are that it’ll come across and your interviewee will become more relaxed too.

That being said, sometimes you aren’t able to score an interview in person. Sometimes your interviewee is too busy for even a phone call, or your interview is too short to justify an actual interview.

That’s okay! I’ll walk you through how to conduct an interview over email, and then show you an example of all the parts put together into one email.

In the first part of the email, write who you are, who you work for, and what you want. Be as concise as possible. This part should be two sentences at the most.

Then, ask for an in-person or phone interview if you haven’t yet. Getting a real-time interview is ideal, but it’s not always possible. So make sure to ask, but don’t expect anything to come of it.

After you’ve written your introduction, mention what time you need your answers back by. If you don’t, your interviewee might email back the answers a week after the article was supposed to be posted.

This is where you’ll put the questions you have to ask. Make sure to only ask at most six questions. Any longer and it should be an in-person interview.

Make sure to create both open and closed questions to encourage natural conversation flow, even if it’s via text.

Then, thank the person for their time, and remind them one last time about when you need your responses by.

Leave your name, and the email and phone number that you can be contacted by as your sign off.

Example email below:

Hello! My name is Dwayne Johnson, a journalist for White House Publications. I would like to interview you about the recent scandal that has come to light about The Rock Industries.

Would you be available for a short interview within the next two weeks?

If that is not possible, please respond to the questions below and email them back by 9/30/23 at 12 p.m. Thank you!

1. Question 1
2. Question 2
3. Question 3
4. Question 4
5. Question 5
6. Question 6

Thank you for your time! Again, please email me back by 9/30 at 12 p.m.

Sincerely,

Dwayne Johnson

1 (800) 224-5678 | djohnson@whp.org

For more reading regarding interviews, some links are attached.

Columbia Journalism: http://www.columbia.edu/itc/journalism/isaacs/edit/MencherIntv1.html 

American Psychological Association: https://www.apa.org/pubs/authors/working-with-media

Image Credits:

https://gsb.hse.ru/en/careercentre/career/interview

Public Relations Focus – In the News

Hello all!

This week I will be posting about Kim Jong-un’s military tour of Russia, and my take as a PR professional based off the article below from the New York Times.

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/09/15/world/russia-ukraine-news

In this article, it talks about North Korean leader Kim Jong-un taking a tour of Russian military facilities, and the potential ramifications of that. The article also summarizes the potential gain for each side, with Russia standing to gain North Korean ammunition stocks and North Korea finally gaining technology that has been off-limits to them for over 15 years due to United Nations (UN) sanctions. The UN bans “financial, technological or other aid for North Korean weapons programs”. While no official trade agreements have been signed between the two nations, both have agreed to work together in the face of their common enemy, the United States.

Kim Jong-un’s tour of Russian military production facilities is important because it reveals that Russia is looking to create bonds with other countries that will enable them to continue their war with Ukraine. It also reveals the lengths Russia is willing to go to form those agreements.

For context, North Korea has been under UN sanctions since 2006, affecting the viability of their weapon programs and stunting their technological growth, making them eager for any deal that can deliver what they have been denied. Russia was among those countries that supported sanctioning North Korea in 2006. (Referenced article below.)

• https://www.reuters.com/world/russias-lavrov-says-situation-has-changed-since-north-korea-was-hit-by-un-2023-09-13/

I believe that the Kremlin’s PR team is in a unique position in our modern world, as most PR teams don’t have to spin their nation’s invasion of another nation, as well as any events that occur thereafter, in a positive light.

While Russia has already damaged its public image by attacking a peaceful nation, the damage would eventually fade in a few decades once the war ends. But if Russia goes through with the possibility of a military trade agreement between Russia and North Korea and violates UN sanctions in the process, it will likely be far worse than if Russia just left well enough alone.

Even once the war with Ukraine ends and international relations with Russia improve, countries will still remember how Russia was willing to provide North Korea with support for their weapons programs in exchange for ammunition to continue the war.

And that’s not something you can just erase.

https://apnews.com/article/north-korea-kim-russia-putin-421c4984a8b83d17bb0719676592c135

In this photo released by the Khabarovsky Krai region government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, looks at a military jet cockpit while visiting a Russian aircraft plant that builds fighter jets Friday, Sept. 15, 2023. (Khabarovsky Krai region government via AP) (Photo obtained from AP (link above).)