Not Using VNRs "Would Be Negligent," Says Medialink Head

In a Fox News interview, Laurence Moskowitz, the CEO and President of Medialink Worldwide, defended video news releases (VNRs). "If the government doesn't use VNR as a tool, I believe they would be negligent," he said. Medialink is the largest global producer of VNRs. Moskowitz estimated that some 4,000 VNRs are produced by corporate and government sources each year. Bob Priddy, the chair of the Radio-Television News Directors Association, said airing VNRs without the sponsor being identified breaks the Association's code of ethics. "If people take canned material, whether it's from a government agency or anywhere else, and they don't tell their audience who or where it is coming from, they are lying to their consumer," he told Fox.