Who's Unitil's Audience?

A reporter bitches (again), but also wonders if his paranoia is founded.

In essence, as Unitil goes about a massive PR effort, I wonder if their target audience is the ratepayers in the region, or state officials in Boston, who really hold the company's fate in their hands.

Consider: Unitil has offered the Pride a sit-down with the Unitil CEO, but I saw him on WBZ last night. Why Boston media before local media? Also, why run a full-page ad in Monday's Boston Globe? For the 20 people in Fitchburg, Townsend, Ashby and Lunenburg who pick up the Globe? Or was it to put a big splash in front of officials in Boston?

Look, PR strategy is PR strategy (in this case, Boston heavyweights O'Neill and Associates are involved), and Unitil's end goal is likely to escape as much harm as possible on the state level, and hope by the summertime everything is back to normal. Getting on BZ and into the Globe furthers that strategy better than being here.

So, you'll see Gantz on FATV tonight and maybe at some point we'll get that CEO interview. But in the meantime, pay attention to where Unitil is putting stuff -- and where it's going first -- and you can decide who they're really sorry to. Us, or state officials.