Housing news releases, whether sent by snail- or e-mail, have been non-public documents that yearn for but seldom receive public exposure.

We're about to change that, and make news releases available to everyone everywhere the instant they're sent. You can see the start of that process at HousingNewswire.com, which exists in skeletal format only today. The site will be live and interactive within a few weeks.

Housing news releases are a lecture, often a very dry and boring lecture that no one wants to hear. We'll change that too, and make a housing news release the start of a richly illustrated conversation that people look forward to. Compare this news release with the ones you're used to seeing (click on any release) for a sample of what's to come.

Housing news releases have been static documents that can't be changed once they've been sent. We'll change that too, and make it easy to update a news release in real time.

Housing news releases have been unaccountable, with no one having any real idea of how many times they've been viewed and what kind of response they generated. We'll change that too, so that anyone can see how many times a news release was viewed and how people interacted with it. Look at this news release and click View activity on the left nav bar to see what I'm talking about.

Some public relations people have a strange disregard for how the public views their product. Their clients will either demand that they change their approach, or send them to sleep with Lucca Brazzi.