With business journalists always ready to jump on the latest corporate misdeed, the fear of incurring blaring headlines that will shock shareholders is more powerful than any regulatory changes, so says a recent study from the University of Chicago.

On a press tour to drum up attention for his new book on Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s first 100 days as President, Jonathan Alter, a senior editor at Newsweek, realized he learned a great deal about the art of media relations from his own subject.

Thanks to the popularity of do-it-yourself video websites like YouTube.com, it seems that everyone has become an amateur videographer – even the professionals. But when professionals try to act like a layperson, the handling of the message is likely to come off looking just plain amateurish.

In its annual forecast of the global media and entertainment marketplace, PricewaterhouseCoopers notes that “content innovation” – which stems from technologies like DVRs and greater access to broadband channels – will have a significantly lasting effect on how marketers and consumers relate to each other over the next year.