So we’ve all had a good laugh after hearing about Woody Harrelson‘s disastrous AMA session on Reddit two days ago, where a proxy for the actor (let’s face it, that wasn’t him typing those answers) basically gave vague answers to half of the questions and in-no-way subtle plugs for his upcoming movie Rampart to the other half. It was a public relations nightmare, and while it certainly raised awareness about the movie, it definitely backfired.

In order to reach young people these days, companies often have to utilize social media to promote their brand, but one of the inherent dangers of using Twitter is that the message can quickly come right out of your hands and get hijacked by other users in a flash. McDonald’s learned this the hard way this past week when it launched its #McDStories Twitter campaign.

Here’s a kind of random question; What’s up with the marketing for The Change-Up? No, I’m not referring to those posters seemingly designed to insult both women and babies but rather the decision to have both stars, Jason Bateman and Ryan Reynolds, repeatedly talk about how stupid the plot is.

Back in June, a Fox Business Network promo featured only Fox News stars, touting the new financial channel.

Now there’s a new marketing strategy out, in ads playing on News Corp. cable news networks but also across the dial, that features Fox News talent tag-teaming with Fox Business hosts – including one with Glenn Beck and somtime-fill-in Andrew Napolitano.

So you’re trying to get viewers to know about the launch of Fox Crime, a Spanish channel dedicated to series like Dexter and Law and Order. What’s a memorable way you can get the name to stick in people’s heads? Well, if you’re the ad agency, Bungalow 25, the answer is simple; you dress up a mannequin to look like a dead body, sink it in a popular scuba diving location, and let it scare the ever living crap out of some divers.

Recent headlines have read that although the recession is nearing an end, it may be years before everyone feels the actual effects of an upswing. Particularly, non-profit organizations may be among the last to recover from the worldwide economic debacle. There is a silver lining: even amidst a global recession, the marketplace is chock-full of companies who are showcasing their cause-related commitments.

Online advertising, for a variety of reasons, does not generate the same revenue that print advertising has traditionally done. To make up for the lack, publishers have been considering any manner of income generators. However according to an piece on Forbes.com today, the solution may be as simple as getting readers to cough up a whole lot of personal information.

This is the kind of viral marketing that executives dare not even dream about. In fact, while outlets like Gawker have come under fire for their use of sponsored content like Bloodcopy, the folks behind AMC’s “Mad Men” are reaping huge PR dividends for free. Their personalized icons have swept over Twitter like a nuclear daisy.