Publicity stunt

A staged event or action designed to attract media coverage and public attention, usually to promote a person, organization, product, or cause.

News values: The qualities journalists use to judge whether an event is worth reporting. Novelty, conflict, and visual impact help a stunt pass editorial selection.
Red Bull Stratos: A 2012 Red Bull project in which Felix Baumgartner made a high-altitude skydive from the stratosphere. The branded jump joined a record-setting feat to extensive global media coverage.
P. T. Barnum: An American showman and circus owner known for theatrical attractions and aggressive promotion. Barnum’s staged spectacles helped establish the modern culture of promotional showmanship.
Public relations: The practice of managing communication and relationships between organizations and their publics. Publicity stunts are a conspicuous tactic within the wider practice of public relations.
Earned media: Publicity gained through independent coverage rather than paid advertising. A stunt seeks coverage whose perceived independence can amplify its message.
The Great Moon Hoax: A series of 1835 newspaper articles falsely claiming that astronomers had found life on the Moon. The hoax became a landmark example of fabricated spectacle attracting mass attention.
Harry Reichenbach: An American press agent known for inventive stunts promoting performers and attractions. His publicity campaigns made staged incidents a professional method of promotion.
Brand awareness: The extent to which consumers recognize or recall a brand. Repeated coverage can make a sponsor’s name memorable even when the stunt dominates the story.
Media event: An event arranged chiefly to attract news coverage and shape public attention. A publicity stunt is a deliberately theatrical kind of media event.
Orson Welles’s War of the Worlds broadcast: A 1938 radio dramatization of H. G. Wells’s novel, presented as a series of news bulletins. Its reception illustrates how presentation can make staged fiction resemble urgent news.

Linked from 6 pages