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Communications & new media Dec. 2013 I Vol. 27 No. 12Communications & new media Dec. 2013 I Vol. 27 No. 12

HOW FOOTBALL FUMBLED ITS PR STRATEGY IN 2013

NEW BOOK TACKLES NFL’S CODE OF SILENCE

BASEBALL’S PR WITCH HUNT

AND MORE!

SPORTS AND ENTERTAINMENT SPECIAL

SUPER BOWL XLVIII: A GAME-CHANGER FOR BRANDS

WHY ENTERTAINMENT BRANDS SHOULD OWN CONTENT, NOT RENT IT

RANKINGS OF TOP SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT PR FIRMS

Decmagazine_Layout 1 11/27/13 5:40 PM

January: Crisis Comms. / Buyer’s GuideFebruary: Environmental & P.A.

March: Food & BeverageApril: Broadcast & Social Media

May: PR Firm RankingsJune: Global & Multicultural

July: Travel & TourismAugust: Financial/I.R.

September: Beauty & FashionOctober: Healthcare & Medical

November: High-TechDecember: Entertainment & Sports

EDITORIAL CALENDAR 2014

Vol. 27, No. 12December 2013

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Brodeur Partners…...................................................................…BACK COVERFrench|West|Vaughan.......................................................................................9Live Star………………………............................................................................8Log-On............................................................................................................23Omega World Travel……............................................................................….25Rogers & Cowan........................................................................INSIDE COVER

Ruder Finn...................................................................................................…..3Shoot Publicity Wire………..............................................................................17Sitrick and Company……...............................................................................…7Strauss Media Strategies……….....................................................................18Taylor.................................................................................................................5TV Access…................................................................................................…29

27 RANKINGS OF ENTERTAINMENT& SPORTS PR FIRMS

20 PROFILES OF ENTERTAINMENT& SPORTS PR FIRMS

32 WASHINGTON REPORT

COLUMNS

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENTFraser Seitel

GUEST COLUMNKevin Foley

PEOPLE IN PR

BOOK REVIEWKevin McVicker

PR BUYER’S GUIDE

2829303134

EDITORIALCouncil of PR firms needs a newname.

6BERNSTEIN KNOCKS MEDIA’SOBSESSION WITH SCANDALCarl Bernstein of Washington Postfame speaks to students at Stony BrookUniversity.

8

E-CIGARETTE GROUP TAKESUP PRAs nicotine vapor devices explode inpopularity, a trade association representingthe e-cig industry ramps up PR efforts.

9

2014 SUPER BOWL COULDBE BRAND GAME-CHANGERWhy the 2014 Super Bowl willpresent many variables — both knownand unknown — for marketers.

10

2014 WILL BE THE YEAR OFRELEVANT CONTENTHow content strategies for rele-vant brands tend to differ from thosebelonging to forgettable brands.

12

CALLING FOUL: BASEBALL’SPR WITCH HUNTWhy baseball's legal and PRassault on Alex Rodriguez is misplaced andhypocritical in nature.

13

PEARSON’S ED BUSINESSCOMES UNDER FIREControversy has hit the Bill andMelinda Gates Foundation, as well asU.K.-based multinational publishing andeducation company Pearson.

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BRANDS SHOULD OWNCONTENT, NOT RENT ITBrands are flocking to embrace anintellectual property model, where theirattributes and emotions can resonatewith consumers.

11

16 PR CEO WANTS GRADS WITHSKILLS, PASSIONW2O Group CEO Jim Weiss spoke tostudents at San Jose State Universityregarding what his company looks forin new hires.

17 YOUR COMPANY’S BEENHACKED. NOW WHAT?Why it’s important to have a crisiscommunications plan in place before ahacking occurs.

18 HOW FOOTBALL FUMBLED ITSPR STRATEGYFrom a communications standpoint,the game of football has had a lousyyear.

19 PRSA CEO MURRAY GETS $61KBONUSPR Society of America CEO WilliamMurray received a 12% boost to his payin 2012.


www.odwyerpr.comDaily, up-to-the-minute PR news


DECEMBER 2013 4 WWW.ODWYERPR.COM6

Los Angeles • New York • San Francisco • Chicago • Washington, D.C.

800-288-8809

It’s Not What You Say About Yourself That Matters

But What Others Say

“The City’s Most Prominent Crisis Management Firm.”The New York Times

“Now (they) have hired Michael Sitrick, whose Los Angeles public-relations firm is known for goingatomic on opponents, using “truth squads” (which dig up alleged inaccuracies in the media), “wheel-of-

pain” tactics (negative publicity to quicken settlements), and high-profile journalists (who write profiles).”— Business Week

“The firm is also home to perhaps the most concentrated congregation of journalistic talent in the publicrelations business. The vast majority of its senior professionals are former editors, reporters, and corre-spondents at such publications as Newsweek, the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, CBS News,and NPR, with most of the others having spent time in senior corporate communications positions.”

— The Holmes Report

“Like more than one figure caught in a media cyclone, (he) had turned to one of the most accomplished practi-tioners of the dark arts of public relations ... The Winston Wolf of public relations had arrived. Wolf, as youwill recall, was the fixer in Pulp Fiction … he washed away assassins’ blood and gore. Sitrick cleans up the

messes of companies, celebrities, and others, and he’s a strategist who isn’t adverse to treating PR as combat.” — Fortune

Here’s what has been said about Sitrick And Company:

To learn more about what people are saying about Sitrick And Company, go to our website:www.sitrick.com

Corporate, Financial, Transactional, Reputational and Crisis Communications

EDITORIAL

Council of PR firms needs a new name

EDITOR-IN-CHIEFJack O’[email protected]

ASSOCIATE PUBLISHERKevin [email protected]

EDITORJon [email protected]

SENIOR EDITORGreg [email protected]

CONTRIBUTING EDITORSJohn O’DwyerFraser SeitelRichard Goldstein

Sarah Nicole Smetana OstizEditorial Assistant & Research

ADVERTISING SALESSharlene SpinglerAssociate Publisher & [email protected]

John O’DwyerAdvertising Sales [email protected]

O’Dwyer’s is published monthly for $60.00 a year ($7.00 for a single issue) by the J.R. O’Dwyer Co., Inc., 271 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016.(212) 679-2471Fax (212) 683-2750.

© Copyright 2013J.R. O’Dwyer Co., Inc.

OTHER PUBLICATIONS & SERVICES:

www.odwyerpr.com4 breaking news,commentary, useful databases and more.

Jack O’Dwyer’s Newsletter4 An eight-page weekly with general PR news, mediaappointments and placement opportunities.

O’Dwyer’s Directory of PR Firms4 haslistings of more than 1,600 PR firms through-out the U.S. and abroad.

O’Dwyer’s PR Buyer’s Guide4 Productsand services for the PR industry in 50 cate-gories.

jobs.odwyerpr.com4 O’Dwyer’s online job center has help wanted ads and hostsresume postings.

The Council of PR Firms, which is celebrating its 15th anniversary, needs a new nameto reflect changing conditions. A name that was used initially was “AmericanAssociation of PR Firms,” no doubt modeled after the American Association of

Advertising Agencies. However, this was dropped in favor of CPRF. We think the ad con-glomerates, the major funders of CPRF who have extensive holdings worldwide, played arole in that decision. But “PR,” meaning relations with the public, is a uniquely Americaninvention.We urge Council leaders to put “America” back in the title. Many established, legally-rec-

ognized professional associations — American Bar Association, American MedicalAssociation, and American Institute of CPAs — allstart out with the word American. America stands fordemocracy, justice, fairness, and equality for all. Thecommunications counseling business should alignitself as much as possible with this image.We spoke with CPRF members during their October 23 anniversary dinner in New York.

“There’s no question that a majority of the people in this room want a new name,” said onemember. “PR does not reflect what we do any more,” said another.The term is too identified with media relations, when a great deal of today’s work involves

dealing directly with consumers. Counseling on broad client issues is a main occupation.Some firms are taking on the role of management consultants.CPRF Chair Dave Senay told the dinner that use of the term “PR” by members is declin-

ing. He said a survey of members in 2010 found that 69% refer to themselves as “PR firms”and 31% said they don’t.A 2013 survey found 46% refer to themselves as PR firms, 38% said yes, but not exclu-

sively, and 16% said “no.” Only 13 of the current 110 members use “PR” in the title of thefirm, down from 18 in 2003 when there were 99 members.Only two of the firms in the “top 50” of the O’Dwyer Co. ranking use “PR” anymore:

Coyne and 5W. Sixteen of the firms in the O’Dwyer top 25 are members of CPRF. Thatmeans nine major firms have decided not to join: Ruder Finn, ICR, DKC, Qorvis, Allison +Partners, Regan, Zeno, Atomic, Hunter and 5W. Some of the non-joiners said they are notgoing to pay fees of up to $40,000 yearly (.65% of U.S. net fees) for the privilege of being inCPRF.Besides the expanded duties of Council members, there is an image problem with the term

“PR” itself. A $150,000 study of believable sources of information, published in 1999 by PRSociety of America after five years of research that involved interviews with 2,500 membersof the public, found “PR specialist” ranked 43 on a list of 45 industry titles, even worse than“political party leader” (no. 42).The bulk the Council’s 2012 revenues of $1,368,872 came from the conglomerates:

Omnicom, WPP, Interpublic, Publicis and Havas. An initial goal of CPRF in 1998 was taking control of the ranking of PR firms that was

being done by the O’Dwyer Co., PR Week/U.S. (which began publishing in 1998) and TheHolmes Report. Jack Bergen, CPRF President, said members were fed up dealing with threedifferent rankings and that henceforth members should only submit financials to the CPRFitself.The Council used a 5,000-member mailing list supplied by PR Week/U.S. to gather infor-

mation from firms. PR Week/U.S.’s initial circulation in the U.S. was the PR Society mem-bership list. The Society urged members to support PR Week/U.S. with ads and subscriptions,drawing a complaint from 2000 Chair Steve Pisinski who said the Society had no businessinterfering in the private marketplace. Whereas the O’Dwyer rankings required top pages ofincome tax returns, W-3s and other documents and kept non-PR income to a minimum, CPRFrequired no such documents and allowed up to 49% of income to include commissions oncorporate and issue ads, profits from graphics, printing and video production, and research insupport of PR.CPRF’s move to take over the rankings failed. It gave up completely in 2002 when

Sarbanes-Oxley promised heavy penalties for any public company that provided misleadingor false financials.The Council still shows too much influence by the conglomerates. Taking a new name that

includes “America” or “American” would show that its conglomerate-dominated days areover. £

— Jack O’Dwyer


Los Angeles • New York • San Francisco • Chicago • Washington, D.C.

800-288-8809

It’s Not What You Say About Yourself That Matters

But What Others Say

“The City’s Most Prominent Crisis Management Firm.”The New York Times

“Now (they) have hired Michael Sitrick, whose Los Angeles public-relations firm is known for goingatomic on opponents, using “truth squads” (which dig up alleged inaccuracies in the media), “wheel-of-

pain” tactics (negative publicity to quicken settlements), and high-profile journalists (who write profiles).”— Business Week

“The firm is also home to perhaps the most concentrated congregation of journalistic talent in the publicrelations business. The vast majority of its senior professionals are former editors, reporters, and corre-spondents at such publications as Newsweek, the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, CBS News,and NPR, with most of the others having spent time in senior corporate communications positions.”

— The Holmes Report

“Like more than one figure caught in a media cyclone, (he) had turned to one of the most accomplished practi-tioners of the dark arts of public relations ... The Winston Wolf of public relations had arrived. Wolf, as youwill recall, was the fixer in Pulp Fiction … he washed away assassins’ blood and gore. Sitrick cleans up the

messes of companies, celebrities, and others, and he’s a strategist who isn’t adverse to treating PR as combat.” — Fortune

Here’s what has been said about Sitrick And Company:

To learn more about what people are saying about Sitrick And Company, go to our website:www.sitrick.com

Corporate, Financial, Transactional, Reputational and Crisis Communications


Bernstein blamed the media foramplifying Washington’s dys-function by focusing on “ideo-

logical and partisan ammunition,”reported Stony Brook’s “Happenings”online newsletter.Bernstein echoed veteran journalist

Leslie Gelb, saying truth has beenreduced to a conflict of press releasesand a contest of handlers.Truth is judged by “theatrical per-

formance” rather than evidence. Truthis “fear of opinion polls, fear of specialinterests, fear of judging others of fearof being judged, fear of losing powerand prestige,” said Bernstein, VisitingPresidential Professor at the Long Islandschool.Bernstein believes the U.S. is on the

“edge of plutocracy.” The biggest newsstories are the “breakdown of the politi-

cal system and whether it can be fixed,and whether we are going to to be anation of the wealthy, for the wealthy, bythe wealthy at the expense of the greatmajority of the our people.”It will take at least a generation before

the political system is fixed, accordingto Bernstein. “The government canbegin to work only until the next gener-ation undoes” the current mess inWashington.He contrasted D.C. with the Kennedy

era of 50 years ago, a time when itwould have been unthinkable that thefederal government could “becomecompletely dysfunctional, that moneycould become the most important ele-ment in the political system or thatworking class people and middle classpeople would be struggling.”Though fractious debate existed dur-

ing the 1960s, the national interest and

looking for practical solutions would“come together to benefit the commongood,” he said.This isn’t the first time Bernstein has

excoriated the media for its penchant forsensationalism. In 1992, Bernsteinwrote the cover story “The IdiotCulture” for The New Republic, inwhich he analyzed modern journalism’slove of gossip over investigative report-ing. Bernstein, age 69, is a Pulitzer Prize-

winning journalist best known for hisreporting on the Watergate scandal,which led to the resignation of PresidentRichard Nixon. £

Bernstein raps media’s emphasis on political circus


MEDIA REPORT

By Kevin McCauley

The greatest failure of today’s media is reporting facts with-out context, said Carl Bernstein, of Washington Post fame,who delivered the annual presidential lecture to Stony BrookUniversity students in November.

Forbes Media is mulling the sale of its 96-year-old business magazine flagship that has battleddeclines in revenue and circulation, according to amemo from CEO Mike Perlis.

He told staffers that Forbes “has received morethan a few ‘over the transom’ indications of inter-est” and Deutsche Bank has been hired to organ-ize the process to test the waters regarding thesale.”

He said he expects “interest from numeroussuitors.”

Elevation Partners, which is backed by U2singer Bono, bought a 45% stake in FM in 2006.

Perlis noted the company has a thriving confer-ence and licensing business and solid digitalgrowth.

“I’m proud to say that we’ve accomplishedwhat no other traditional media company appearsto have done: established a huge digital audienceby efficiently creating quality content at scale, andwe ’re innovating around new business models tomaximize that relationship,” he wrote.

Print circulation, however, is down 12.3% dur-ing the first-nine months of 2013 and ad revenuesare off 45% since 2008, according to thePublisher’s Information Bureau.

B.C. Forbes launched the magazine in 1917 andhis son, Malcolm, put the magazine on the map.Steve Forbes, former CEO, ran for the Republicanpresidential nomination in 1996 and 2000.

Media news brief

FORBES GOES ON AUCTIONBLOCK

Carl Bernstein.


The ECIG has brought on Norwalk,Conn.-based ICR to guide ongoingcommunications, said account rep

John McKenna. The firm also counselsfounding member, FIN Branding Group, anAtlanta-based e-cig maker.The group made a splash in late

September when it hired former AmericanLung Association CEO Charles Connor asa consultant to serve as liaison between theindustry and the public health sector.ECIG chief Eric Criss told the

Washington Post last month that the indus-try wants to distinguish itself from ciga-rettes and not as a tobacco product. “Webelieve the product is a good alternative,and the goal should be to move peopledown the risk ladder from cigarettes,” hesaid.The e-cigarette industry is bracing for

proposed FDA rules to govern the sale ofthe devices, which deliver nicotine as avapor without the smoke and tar of normal

cigarettes. States are also weighing variousmeasures to regulate and rein ine-cigarettes.Industry estimates peg 2013

sales of the devices topping $2billion.ECIG is one of a handful of

trade associations that have poppedup to represent the sector, includingthe Tobacco Vapor ElectronicCigarette Association and the SmokeFree Alternatives Trade Association.

Downey McGrath “vapes” NJoyDowney McGrath has picked up NJOY,

a leader in the burgeoning electronic ciga-rette business, in response to White Houseand Congressional activity regarding possi-ble federal regulation of e-cigarettes.NJOY and the e-cigarette business main-

tain their products are safe alternatives toconventional smokes.CEO Craig Weiss wants to remove the

stigma, associated with smoking, accordingto the Oct. 26 New York Times.

Critics say an end to the demonization,however, would trigger an acceptance ofcigarette smoking causing more lung can-cer, heart disease and emphysema.Electronic cigarettes are typically com-

prised of a heating element that vaporizes aliquid solution containing a mixture of arti-ficial flavors and nicotine. E-cigarettescontain fewer toxic chemicals than tra-ditional cigarettes, and are thereforetouted as a safer alternative to smok-ing, or as a cessation tool. However,the risks of e-cigarettes remainunknown, and their benefits havebeen the subject of debate. Accordingto the World Health Organization, e-cigarettes’ efficacy in smoking cessa-tion has not been scientificallydemonstrated.

The American Lung Association is con-cerned about the safety and health conse-quences of e-cigarettes and claims that theymay be wrongly marketed as a way to helpsmokers quit the habit.The Food and Drug Administration is

assessing the need to regulate e-cigaretteproducts.Former Congressmen Tom Downey and

Ray McGrath are working the NJOY busi-ness. £

DECEMBER 2013 3 WWW.ODWYERPR.COM 9

The Electronic Cigarette Industry Group, one in a small group oftrade associations for the fast-growing e-cig industry, is rampingup PR as nicotine vapor devices explode in popularity.

E-cigs group ramps up PR

By Kevin McCauley



FEATURE

The 2014 Super Bowl will present alot of variables — both knownand unknown — for marketers.

For leading brands with an eye on thecoveted NFL fan, it could be a perfectstorm in activating awareness around theworld’s most watched single-day sportsevent. In order to fully leverage thishistoric sports platform, however, mar-keters should consider the followingstrategies in the coming months.Focus on location. The old axiom for

business success still holds true. ForSuper Bowl XLVIII, location affords anopportunity like no other destination forU.S. sports and entertainment marketers.Prior to the start of the current NFL

season, Taylor, which has been anagency partner to corporate sponsors ofthe Super Bowl and other major sportsproperties for three decades, conducted asurvey of marketers representing brands,agencies, sports organizations andleagues. The consensus? The uniquelocation of Super Bowl XLVIII will be a“game changer” for marketers. Of those surveyed (three quarters of

whom have activated an NFL sponsor-ship), 89% indicated they would recom-mend to brands that they should activatein 2014. The recommendation is basedon a number of factors, including thefact that this inaugural league title gamewill be played in the nation’s largestmedia market, and the unprecedentedengagement opportunities that will existamong the nearly 20 million inhabitantsin the New York metropolitan area, aswell as close proximity of other majorNFL markets such as Boston,Washington, D.C., Philadelphia andBaltimore; and the uniqueness of thecold weather, outdoor environment. Tickets to the game itself are always

scarce, but the opportunities to engagewith fans to enhance their experiencewill be plentiful. The ancillary eventsleading up to the game will scale largerand bolder than ever before and will beattractive not just to the locals but to theswelled crowds who will travel to New

York just to inhale the Super Bowl expe-rience. Weather the storm. The prospects of

a Super Bowl played in bitter cold, windand ice can actually be quite appealingfrom a marketing play. Yes, there havebeen Super Bowls played indoors(Detroit, Atlanta, Dallas) where MotherNature wreaked havoc on the region.But brands that embrace the winter cli-mate in their programming — think ofways to keep people warm (from mobileapps to pop-up stores to creative appar-el) in mind and spirit; celebrate “oldschool” football, where weather is sup-posed to be a factor in February; helpcelebrate New York as one big wintercarnival — will create a true point ofdifferentiation from marketing platformsof Super Bowls past. Penguins, polarbears, and frozen commuters could bepopular themes come February.Target the avid fan. The Super Bowl,

more than any event, appeals to thecasual fan and marketers often catertheir programming against this broaddemo. But brands cannot shy away fromthe avid NFL fan, whose buying powerand impact to the bottom line is secondto none among U.S. sports consumers. Aconsumer engagement strategy that tar-gets avid fans — male and female — isthe most prudent approach.Be flexible, be social. Digital and

social media must be a powerful ampli-fier to any Super Bowl campaign.According to the Taylor survey, only 6%of respondents indicated that first screen(TV) and traditional media should be theprimary channel for brands to engageconsumers around the game. Rather, alarge majority — 70% — favor a bal-anced approach that integrates digitalwith traditional media. It’s not going tobe enough to just have “great content” toengage consumers around this unprece-dented Super Bowl. Brands will have to be highly relevant

in their content, targeted with theirdelivery platform and have a deepunderstanding of consumer insights.Whether it’s leveraging evolving social

video platforms or just having a smartcommunity management strategy,brands should beplanning to localizethe experience fortheir target audi-ence — whetherthey’re in the NewYork / New Jerseyarea or spreadacross the globe.Avoid clichés.

Veteran admanPaul Enables toldAdweek prior tothe 2013 Super Bowl, “Do it becauseyou love your craft and want to makesomething great,” when asked whatadvice he had for creatives embarkingon their first Super Bowl spot. To thatend, brands should be leveraging theramp-up to the Super Bowl by building astory around the biggest of Americansporting events in what will be a veryuntraditional environment. Spare us thetalking animals, frat-boy humor andrecycled celebrities. Let New York andthe winter elements be your canvas.Paint a fully integrated campaign — notjust a single 0:30 spot — that is bold andoriginal.Leave a lasting legacy. Brands that

have decided to activate against a longerterm strategy will build a greater equitystake with fans across the New Yorkregion as well as with NFL fans nation-wide. Innovative programs built aroundphilanthropy, for example, will resonatestrongly with consumers. Legacy pro-grams are common in Super Bowl desti-nations, but the scale of the New Yorkmetropolitan area makes for a muchstronger, lasting impact than afforded byother host cities. Initiatives like play-ground builds and restoration projects,legacy school programs that canenhance learning, and programs thatgive fans access to many of the specialactivities leading to the game can allhave great impact.

Bryan Harris is COO and ManagingPartner of Taylor. £

With 2014 approaching, it’s difficult to recall a year that promised so much excitement andopportunity for leading sports marketers. Highlighting the brand marquee will be the FIFA WorldCup, hosted by the most passionate and decorated of soccer nations, Brazil; the Sochi Olympics,the first Winter Games contested on Russian soil; and of course, Super Bowl XLVIII, the first SuperBowl in the New Jersey/New York region and the first NFL title game contested outdoors in a coldweather climate.

2014 Super Bowl could be game-changer for brands

By Bryan Harris

Bryan Harris


2014 Super Bowl could be game-changer for brands

There’s a surplus of chatter makingits way through many circlesregarding content marketing with a

particular focus on sponsored and brand-ed content strategies. The chatter is abyproduct of a vocal demand by contem-porary brands to retain creative control ofhow their products are utilized within allforms of entertainment content. Previously, it was common for brands

to place their products in television showsand films. This traditional placementmodel, where the ROI for “seconds” ofonscreen exposure is minimal to non-measureable, has disappeared. Brandsnow have limited creative control on howtheir products are utilized and no owner-ship unless they write a large check,cross-promote at point of retail or make alarge media buy.As a result, brands have transitioned

from renting media to an intellectualproperty (IP) strategy where they createentertainment ideas, content and plat-forms they can own. Historically, IP hasbeen used as a legal concept to defineexclusive rights for intangible assets orcreations of the mind. For today’s suc-cessful marketers, the term has broadenedto include entertainment franchises suchas the Vans Warped Tour, Park City Live’sWinter Concert Series, Nerd HQ atComic-Con and Sony Crackle “Playing itForward.” Why would a brand want to own

IP? Why create a concert series, event,web series or an app? Why shift a mediabuy from paid advertising like banner,print and TV ads to IP? It’s quite simple.IP is about owning the idea to tell thebrand story and engaging with audiencesthrough a variety of media channels. IPpushes brands to start thinking beyond asingular campaign to create a franchise oflasting value that lives beyond the branditself. Brand marketers continue to realize that

IP is a form of storytelling that stays clos-er to the production of the idea and thatwill resonate with the brand’s attributesand emotions, lending authenticity amongconsumers. Revenue opportunities can be

created through the distribution of thebrand’s owned entertainment assetsacross multiple channels and platforms.IP also allows for greater flexibility ofdirect social sharing with the brand’s tar-geted communities. IP then becomes thenucleus of a campaign targeting earned,shared and paid media channels to extendthe brand’s reach to a broader consumeraudience. The linear progression of con-tent that is of consumer value builds trustand ultimately drives sales. So, what is the catalyst for brands cre-

ating their own IP? What are the key ele-ments that lead to successful IP? As withmost marketing initiatives, IP was bornout of a void that needed to be filled. Thiscomes in the form of launching a newproduct or service, a desire to promote alifestyle inspired by the brand or ademand from audiences for more ways toconnect with and experience the brandthrough multiple touch points. IP strate-gies need the right blend of ingredients toget a successful result, which includes agreat idea, an audience, funding, distribu-tion and engagement.

Create an ownable ideaDevelop a creative idea that meets the

need or void you need to fill and repre-sents your brand. You can develop thecreative idea from scratch or mine yourexisting marketing activities to determineif there is a concept or initiative that canbe turned into an IP platform. Forinstance, EKOCYCLE was an extremelysuccessful idea created by The Coca-ColaCompany and will.i.am as a “stand-alonebrand initiative dedicated to promotingsustainability through aspirational, yetattainable lifestyle products made in partfrom recycled material.” While Coke isembedded in the very name, EKOCYCLEis a program that supports the company’ssustainability efforts, and it lives beyondthe brand through numerous partnerships.

Find the fundingBrands are seeing the value in creating

IP and some already have the financialresources to invest. If you do not havethese resources, there are other ways tofund your IP through partnerships withother like-minded brands and media that

are trying to reach the same audiences andlooking for a unique approach. Forinstance, Zachary Levi (star of NBC’s hitshow “Chuck”) and prop master DavidColeman launched their Nerd Machinebrand building a fan community to spreadthe “nerd” culture and spurring the cre-ation of NerdHQ at Comic-Con. Over thepast three years, Nerd HQ has grownexponentially byjoining forces withlike-minded brandpartners, such asVerizon, Fiat, Inteland Asus, that pro-vide the financial fuelto sustain the eventwhile hosting con-sumer sweepstakesand customizedonsite activations forNerdHQ fans.

Secure distributionWhile there are some brands that have

their own built-in distribution platforms,the majority do not. This is a challenge ifyou have a great, creative idea but no wayto distribute it to your audiences. The keyis to seek out partnerships with brandsand media whose target audiences are insync or are part of a segment you havebeen struggling to reach. Similar to theissue of funding, there are other ways tosecure distribution for your IP throughpartnerships with brands, media and tal-ent who have their own broadcasts, publi-cations, websites, blogs and social mediaplatforms to push out content and assets.

Create engagementOne of the most important ingredients

to ensure success is engaging with theaudience through an integrated marketingcampaign to promote the IP throughearned and shared media. It’s possible fora brand to create a very unique, creativeidea, but if it is not promoted properly toengage mass and niche audiences then thelikelihood of success is limited. Earnedand shared media strategies have becomea way for brands to organically reach newaudiences via the voice of passionate, tal-ented evangelists. It’s important to makesure you have a team who understandshow to use the recipe to deliver the rightresult. This requires having the team withthe right experience and right connec-tions.

Tom Tardio is CEO of Rogers &Cowan. £

The traditional product placement model has died, resulting inbrands now developing intellectual property concepts wheretheir attributes and emotions can resonate with consumers.However, creating a platform to share these messages is nosimple task.

Entertainment brands should own content, not rent it

By Tom Tardio

Tom Tardio




FEATURE

Even though we’re getting ourname out there, we’re failing tomake the profound connections

that the world’s best brands haveformed with their prospects. For thosebrands, the customer connection isdeep, emotional and lasting. In a noisyworld with way too many products tochoose from, they’ve somehow becomerelevant.In a world focused on buzz, eyeballs,

follows and search rankings, we oftenforget about relevance. What we reallywant are meaningful bonds that gobeyond changing perceptions. You wanta relationship that helps others fullyexperience your product, brand, candi-date or cause, and take action: buy,share, evangelize, sign up, or vote. Social media has worked some mira-

cles in this regard. Over the past fewyears, PR people have devoted enor-mous effort to mastering the science.We’ve thought about what platforms tobe on, whom to follow, how often topost and how to measure it all.Advanced practitioners tweak their pro-grams in response to their results andcontinuously improve engagement. Butwhat has all that gotten us? As 2014 approaches, I’m advising

clients and prospects to step back fromthe mechanics of our communicationsprograms — the platforms — and con-sider the content. Now that we’ve pret-ty much nailed the science of pitching,posting, following, measuring and lis-tening, it’s time to get back to the art.It’s time to make content relevant.Here are three ways content strate-

gies for relevant brands differ from for-gettable brands:

Relevant brands tell storiesRelevant brands employ elements of

an ancient form. Whether it’s in theBible or in the latest sci-fi flick, a storyhas characters you care about who facechallenges, struggle with them, andarrive at a resolution. Whether it’sProgressive’s Flo saving a policy hold-er in distress or the Silverado ownerrescuing a calf, stories have power.

Fictional characters are okay, butauthenticity counts. So if you’re post-ing a photo on Facebook, consider areal person triumphing over an obstaclerather than a stock photo. If you’rewriting a case study, tell a down-to-earth story about a real person, with areal business problem, making a realdecision. If you’re tweeting, dare totweet like a human speaks. With all theBS in the world, people are developingreally strong BS detectors. And theylove to use them.

Relevant brands go beyond logicLogic is overrated. Any pickup truck

will let you rescue that calf, but it’sChevy that made that powerful emo-tional connection. What really makesan audience connect are shared values(I’m dedicated to my animals), emo-tions (I’m desperate to find her), senso-ry stimuli (the truck looks boss all cov-ered with mud), and social concerns (allmy friends buy American). In all of ourresearch on relevance, logic and reasonmay be a point of entry, but it is thesocial values and sensory elements thatoften close the sale. And this isn’t justwith consumer products. We recentlyworked for a medical device companyand found that what most appealed tosurgeons was not the device’s technicalspecifications but the sound it madewhen activated.

Relevant brands go beyond ‘you’ It’s easy to overestimate the degree to

which people will engage with whatyou are selling. You may think yourmessage/story is fascinating. The factis that very few people are nativelycurious about what anyone else has tooffer. Fewer still think about our prod-ucts and ideas the way we do. We needto think how customers think. Soundseasy, but it is incredibly hard to do. Start with challenging assumptions as

they are often ill placed. For example,although many hotel brands spend mil-lions of dollars to market and in manycases even brand their beds and bed-ding, our online conversational rele-vance audit about hotels uncovered asurprising fact: that the most animated

and influential topic of conversationwas not the hotel’s bed but the waterpressure of the shower (a different sen-sory concern). That guests might spendan extra $20 or $100 to stay in a roomwith an awesome shower is somethingworth knowing. So let’s try an exercise. If you sold

barbecue grills, how would you posi-tion them to, say,the 50-to-60-year-old female seg-ment? You couldtout the grill’s fea-tures, you couldimplore women tobe the “man” ofthe house. Butwhat if you tiedthe product tosomething that weknow is extremelyrelevant to this audience: friends andfamily?How about: you have to eat. How

about: grilling is really fun. How about:grilling brings friends and familytogether and is a great excuse to contactpeople you haven’t seen in a while.How about: it’s exciting to learn a newskill. It’s really not that hard, and canbe creative. How about: you knowyou’re great in the kitchen, now youcan also be great outdoors. You can leadan urban grilling trend. One more mythof male superiority busted!Whether that’s good or bad, we’re

now at least heading in the direction ofaligning the message with the targetcustomer’s state of mind. We’re givingher something she can connect to.We’re invoking senses, social concernsand values.We’re starting to open rele-vance pathways. As 2013 winds down and we

reassess, we should all ask ourselves:what pathways can we open? What sto-ries do we have left to tell? How can wealign what we say with what peoplecare about? How can we be relevant in2014?

Andrea “Andy” Coville is CEO ofBrodeur Partners. £

Why 2014 will be the year of relevant content

Andrea Coville

Do people actually read your news releases? Are the articles about your brand moving the needlein terms of sales? Are your social media activities building a community of people who care aboutyou? Are you really getting what you need out of PR? It’s natural for brands to take a step backand assess the efficacy of their PR investment. Sometimes, however, our communications effortsleave us wanting more. By Andrea “Andy” Coville



It happens in real life, as well as on thebig and small screens: the “good”chase down and dole out punishment

on the “bad.” But in baseball, as in othersports, the “good” was often a willingpartner until Congress, and the media,made it too big of an issue to ignore.Thus it is with the monarchs of all

sports, especially those rulers of baseballand their relentless quest to punish usersof PEDs. What differentiates baseball’smission to rid its game of players usingbanned substances from other sports isthat it easily can be used as a post-gradu-ate course in hypocrisy. Ever since baseball became a big

money making business, and for decadesbefore, cherished players have behavedbadly without being punished for theirunsportsmanlike conduct and are still cel-ebrated by the baseball establishment andthe media.However, baseball’s punishment also

equates to witch-hunting, especially inthe A-Rod situation, because for yearsduring the home run “steroid era” theteams, leagues, sports marketers, thecommissioner’s office and much of themedia turned the other way when itbecame obvious why players were hittinglonger balls.But are players’ uses of PEDs or other

banned substances as bad as the NationalFootball League and National HockeyLeague, which for years turned a blindeye to life-altering hits to the heads oftheir warriors? Not in my opinion. PEDsonly affect baseball’s treasured recordsbook. Hits to the head can affect lives. (ANew York Times article on October 13said researchers from the Mayo Clinicdetermined that the way hockey is playedmust be changed because it causes toomuch brain trauma, and the NFL concus-sions problems are not new; they’ve beencovered for years.) When it comes to multi-image prob-

lems, The NFL is in a league of its own:concussions, players’ use of banned sub-stances and a gangster aura. The AaronHernandez murder problem is not new tothe NFL, whose league rap sheet includesother players who have been involved inmurders. What the NFL needs instead of

a commissioner is a warden.While concussion-causing hits to the

head haven’t been a big problem in whatonce was known as the “street game,”basketball, let’s not forget the NationalBasketball Association has had a cast ofits own bad actors.There is a long tradition among

American sports entities of trying toestablish a good citizen and patrioticimage by wrapping themselves aroundthe flag to create an aura of patriotismand by supporting various charities. Butthese do-good endeavors are an attemptto cleanse their sports from a sordid his-tory of scandals, abetted by the leaguesthat for years have refused to admit thatthey are part of the problem regardingtheir stars’ sorry behavior.

USA Today reported that baseball par-ticularly targeted Ryan Braun andRodriguez in its “clean up the game”investigation, which baseball denied. Ifthe report is true, it seems like discrimi-natory punishment. Other publishedreports said money was offered for infor-mation, which makes me wonder whatprice revenge? Even if the reports areuntrue is there any doubt that baseballwanted to make Braun and A-Rod exam-ples because they dared challenge thecommissioner’s office?Should athletes be held to a higher

standard of behavior and receive morepunishment for unlawful acts, as definedby commissioners of leagues, than Joeand Jane Citizen? In a just society justiceshould be equal and most people deservea second chance. But the sports cabalshave provided athletes with numeroussecond chances, sending the wrong mes-sage to sports-crazed future athletes andyoung people in general. So yes, somepunishment is warranted. In the August 2USA Today, baseball columnist BobNightengale pointed out that MannyRamirez is allowed to play despite beingsuspended twice for testosterone use andformer pitcher Steve Howe was suspend-ed seven times for cocaine problems. Isthere any doubt that other players fall intothe same category?I believe the fairness of the punishment

doled out by the sports leagues has sometroubling elements: nonathletes who have

broken laws and caused monetary andphysical injury to others receive fairertreatment in the civilians’ justice systemthan do athletes, whose major crime wasembarrassing their leagues while hurtingno one but, maybe, themselves. Bad behavior by athletes on the field is

obviously a league matter. But when thecommissioners punish players for off-the-field behavior before a non-prejudicedjury decides on theguilt of the person,that is a step too farfor me. Also, “thegood of the game”punishment is espe-cially troubling. Itis so broad that itcan be used for anysituation by a com-missioner. Ineffect, it not onlygives the commis-sioner the power of the judge and jury butplaces sports in a judicial league of itsown.

Arthur Solomon was a senior VP/seniorcounselor at Burson-Marsteller. £

Calling foul: baseball’s PR witch hunt

Arthur Solomon

Baseball's legal and PR assault on Alex Rodriguez equates to a modern day witch hunt. For yearsteams, leagues, sports marketers and much of the media turned a blind eye when it was obviousthat spinach wasn’t responsible for those wins. Why all the attention now? And should athletesbe held to a different standard of behavior than the rest of us?

By Arthur Solomon

The legal team of embattled New York Yankeesthird baseman Alex Rodriguez has asked a federaljudge in New York to block the subpoena ofrecords from his PR advisor Sitrick and Company.

Sitrick chief Michael Sitrick also argued, amongother claims, in a brief that his records related toRodriguez are privileged because the player’s legalteam hired him.

Major League Baseball, which has suspendedRodriguez for a record 211 games, asked a judgeto subpoena the PR records in the league’s arbitra-tion hearing for Rodriguez’ appeal.

MLB alleges that Sitrick leaked documentsfrom a Florida clinic linked to performance-enhancing drugs to Yahoo! Sports, which penneda story about players involved with the clinic,Biogenesis.

Rodriguez’s lawyers, in seeking to quash thesubpoena, argued in their court filing that MLB isout to destroy the former MVP’s public reputation.

Bloomberg reported that Sitrick’s lawyers alsosaid the PR executive can’t be compelled to fly toNew York to testify, but he would not oppose giv-ing a deposition in California.

PR news brief

A-ROD MOVES TO BLOCK PR SUBPOENA



REPORT

The Bill and Melinda GatesFoundation, which is funded byMicrosoft founder Bill Gates and

U.K.-based multinational publishing andeducation company Pearson, gives away$4 billion a year to battle disease andpoverty worldwide “but it’s a drop in theocean in terms of what needs to be invest-ed to solve these big, complex problems,”Gates Foundation communications headKate James told the Institute for PRNovember 21 at the Yale Club in NewYork.James, a native of the U.K. who’s been

Chief Communications Officer at theGates Foundation since 2010, deliveredthe annual Distinguished Lecture at the52nd annual IPR event, which boasted anaudience of nearly 300 and includednumerous PR leaders. “In a tough global economic environ-

ment, we need governments and otherdonors to see investment in aid as a goodreturn and we need the public to see andbelieve in the progress that’s beingmade,” she said.Since 2000, she noted, the lives of 1.1

million African children have been savedfrom malaria.She saw the economic as well as the

humanitarian impact of disease whileworking in Saharan Africa for StandardCharter bank.Up to 10% of the workforce in Kenya

was either ill or looking after somebodywho was ill, she noted. “It didn’t justimpact our employees, but our suppliersand our customers as well.” AnHIV/AIDS epidemic was ravaging thearea.

CSR needs to alight to bottom line“Corporate Social Responsibility

efforts,” she said, “need to alight to thebottom line — to facilitate market access,consumer engagement, employee moti-vation — and it’s only then that you startto see the return on investment. It’s notjust about the size of the check, but howcompanies use their intellectual expertiseand human capital.”James noted that a recent piece in

DealBook charged Goldman Sachs withspending too much on CSR. DealBook

obtained a quote from Gates Foundationtrustee Warren Buffett saying that spend-ing shareholders’ money on CSR is notthe right approach.Therefore, thinking about philanthropy

as just the right thing to do has its limita-tions, James admitted.The top Gates priority now is eliminat-

ing polio worldwide. About 99% of thecases have been eliminated so far but thedisease is still present in Nigeria,Pakistan and Afghanistan.James, who is joining Pearson after the

first of the year as Chief CorporateAffairs Officer, said Pearson has “a mas-sive responsibility — the education of thenext generation. And it may be clearer ata place like Pearson where market forcesand social changes intersect, but if youlook closely — they’re intersectingeverywhere. When your companies lookto you, they aren’t just asking for yourcommunications insights. They look toyou for your understanding of the worldin which they operate.”

Edlund: PR can leadBjorn Edlund, Chairman of Europe,

Middle East and Africa for Edelman, whoreceived and Alexander Hamilton Medalfor contributions to PR practice andeffective use of research and who report-ed for 12 years for UPI and Reuters, said“PR at its most ambitious is about how tolead. It is the job of PR to help leadersmeet that deep-seated human need ofgroups to be included, engaged, inspiredand rallied towards a shared goal.”The job of PR people, he said, is to

“help leaders think things through. Weadd context, depth. A chief communica-tions officer’s job is about culture, brand,purpose, reputation, the narrative, andstakeholder engagement. It is about howto shape behaviors, both our behaviorsand that of others.”Edlund said he “probably grew most in

the situations when I deeply disagreedwith the CEOs but was compelled tounderstand their priorities, and to faith-fully act on them.”He has worked for 11 CEOs as head of

communications. Employers includedShell, Sandoz and ABB.The thing he missed most about jour-

nalism was “the banter.” He said,“Reporters and photographers have alight-hearted yet fiercely intenseapproach to their work. Theirs is a clear-eyed view of the mess that power willleave behind if it moves carelesslythrough society. The good ones alsomaintain distance to folk in power.”

Controversy hits Pearson, GatesPearson is portrayed by PR Watch and

others as a for-profit octopus that has itstentacles around practically every aspectof U.S. education, reaping billions of dol-lars in revenues.Gates, funded by Microsoft Founder

Bill Gates, is charged with putting toomuch emphasis on online learning andtesting while giving short shrift to build-ing writing skills.PR Watch cites instances of Pearson

working with elements of the AmericanLegislative Exchange Council, which PRWatch says is an organization of 2,000mostly Republican state legislators and300 corporate representatives that has anundue influence on state lawmaking.Only one Democrat is among 104 legisla-tors in its leadership posts, it says. PRWatch portrays ALEC as a conservativegroup that impacts state laws but does notregister as a lobbyist. Almost all state leg-islators who are members areRepublicans.Mickey Revenaugh, Co-Founder and

SVP of state relations of ConnectionsAcademy, a unit of Pearson, was “privatesector” co-chair of ALEC’s EducationTask Force from 2008 until May 2010,according to PR Watch. PR Watch says ALEC has been

engaged for 20 years in an effort “to pri-vatize public education through an ever-expanding network of school vouchersystems which divert taxpayer dollarsaway from public to private schools.”Allison Bazin, Connections’ Senior

Director of PR, told PR Watch in July2012 that the company withdrew fromthe ALEC Education Task Force in mid-May 2010 and no longer funds ALEC.PR Watch also charges Pearson as hav-

ing undue influence on legislators and

Pearson’s big ed business comes under fireAttacking disease and poverty is good business, said PR executive Kate James, who deliveredthe annual Distinguished Lecture to the Institute for PR at the Yale Club in November. James isleaving the Gates Foundation to be Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at Pearson at the start of2014.

By Jack O’Dwyer

0Continued on next page



improperly funding trips abroad for edu-cators.According to the blog bigeducationape,

“In essence, every facet of our publiceducational system, from teacher prepa-ration, curriculum design and content,and testing/assessments from womb totomb are now owned by a private corpo-ration whose profits skyrocketed into thebillions of dollars.”Pearson, with revenues of $8.29 bil-

lion, is called “the largest education com-pany in the world” and the “largest bookpublisher in the world” by Wikipedia.Its properties include the Financial

Times Group; 47% of Penguin RandomHouse; 50% of the Economist Groupwhich includes The Economist magazine;Prentice-Hall; Connections Academy,which operates online classes in manystates, and numerous education-relatedentities.

Collins of NYT raps PearsonSchool testing has been

turned into “a huge corporateprofit center, led byPearson,” New York Timescolumnist Gail Collins wroteon April 27, 2012. “AnAmerican child could go to apublic school run byPearson, studying frombooks produced by Pearson,while his or her progress isevaluated by Pearson stan-dardized tests. The only pub-lic participant in the showwould be the taxpayer.”Collins said the $32 mil-

lion that New York State waspaying to Pearson was“small potatoes” comparedto a five-year contact withTexas that is costing taxpay-ers “nearly a half-billion.”Collins’ essay, called “A Very Pricey

Pineapple,” ridiculed a question on aPearson exam for New York eighthgraders that asked whether a pineapple ora hare would win a race. State educationcommissioner John King had the ques-tion removed from the test.Collins says Pearson lobbyists include

the top White House liaison withCongress who was involved in draftingthe “No Child Left Behind Act” in 2001and that the Pearson’s non-profit founda-tion “sends state education commission-ers on free trips overseas to contemplateschool reform.”

Pearson defends tripsPearson has answered such charges

by saying the trips “make it possible forour nation’s education leaders to engagein an exchange with their international

counterparts, share experiences, andcome home armed with new strategiesand ideas to raise achievement, espe-cially achievement for our most strug-gling students.“Regrettably, state and local educa-

tion budgets could never provide theresources necessary for state chiefs andothers to travel and collaborate in per-son with education ministers, reformersand innovators from Finland,Singapore, Brazil, or other nations whoare more than willing to share theirinsights and best practices with us.”This response was on the Pearson

website after complaints were made thatthe Iowa education chief violated ethi-cal codes by going on Pearson trips.New York Times reporter MichaelWinerip wrote an article headlined“Free Trips Raise Issues for Officials inEducation” which focused on thePearson trips.

PR Watch takes issue with corporatehosting of legislators at ALEC meetings.It says that member companies cover

hundreds or thousands of dollars worthof plane tickets for lawmakers and hotelsfor them and their families and this “rais-es serious concerns about such giftsunder many states’ ethics and lobbyinglaws.”The spending is called a “scholarship”

and filtered through a bank account des-ignated as the “ALEC scholarship fund.”This has enabled the donors to “maneu-ver around laws designed to limitimproper influence,” says PRW, addingthat watchdog groups like CommonCause, People for the American Way,Progress Now, and others are callingthese practices into question.The “No Child Left Behind Act”

recalls a sorry chapter in PR’s historybecause it was revealed that the Dept. ofEducation hired Ketchum to promote theAct and Ketchum paid $240,000 to com-mentator Armstrong Williams to use hiscontacts and on-air appearances for thatpurpose.A firestorm of coverage broke out that

included a 3,000-word feature in theSunday, Feb. 13, 2005 New York Timesby Tim O’Brien titled “Spinning Frenzy:PR’s Bad Press.” Numerous PR figureswere quoted but no one would talk toO’Brien from either Ketchum or parentOmnicom.

Ravitch battles school “Privatization”Among those battling school “priva-

tization” is Diane Ravitch, former U.S.Assistant Secretary of Education. She is the author of “Reign of Error,”

which charges that private interests arecorrupting public education for the sakeof profit.

An original supporter of“No Child Left Behind”and charter schools, shebecame disillusioned withthe concepts and withdrewher support, saying “Weare destroying our educa-tion system, blowing it upby these stupid policies.And handing the schoolsin low-income neighbor-hoods over to privateentrepreneurs does not, initself, improve them.There’s plenty of evidenceby now that the kids inthose schools do no better,and it’s simply a way ofavoiding their — the pub-lic responsibility to pro-vide good education.”

The Chronicle ofHigher Education, in a series of stories,says Microsoft founder Bill Gates isusing his money to find ways that stu-dents can complete their college educa-tions quicker through technology.Valerie Strauss, writing in the

Washington Post, says “Gates has exer-cised extraordinary influence in shap-ing modern K-12 school reform to hisliking, leveraging cash from his vastMicrosoft fortune to drive the publicagenda — and taxpayer funds —toward standardized test-basedaccountability.”His vision includes “ways to measure

everything, largely through testing,”writes Strauss.The Gates Foundation has spent $472

million on higher education since 2006,according to the Post. £

The 52nd annual Institute for PR Distinguished Lecture (from L to R):Frank Ovaitt, Institute for PR President; Kate James, Gates FoundationChief Corporate Affairs Officer; and Bjorn Edlund of Edelman, winnerof the Alexander Hamilton Medal.



FEATURE

Weiss said he wants recruits“who are ready to step onsome toes, tick some people

off.” An ability to work quickly is a req-uisite at his firm.Successful applicants will have devel-

oped a “positive personalbrand.” A “service-oriented”personality is much desired,he said.“Real world experience” is

preferred and especially expe-rience as an entrepreneur.Traditional skills such as

writing ability are still at thetop of the list of desired quali-ties, he said.Weiss, who gave the

keynote address that was fol-lowed by a panel discussionconducted by four counselorexecutives, said rapidly devel-oping new ways of getting andtransferring information arestealing the thunder of tradi-tional media.Most of what we now learn

comes through friends and ourown expanding networksrather than mainstream media,he said. This includes blogs,Twitter, Facebook and video.Surveys show that 65% of

people say they are visuallearners, he said. “Visualtrumps copy” was one of thelines in a slide show that Weisspresented.The audience was about 75% female.CPRF seeks top studentsKathy Cripps, President of the Council

of PR Firms, which is staging a series ofcareer forums at colleges, said the pur-pose of the series is to encourage talentedstudents to enter the PR counselingindustry.“I’ve enjoyed my career in PR and I

want to share that enthusiasm with stu-dents,” she said.She conceded that snaring a job right

out of college can be tough but said thosewho are good writers and understand howto help clients solve problems will have

the best chances.Serving in internships is “incredibly

important” as well as “making as manyconnections as you can,” she said. “Keepin touch with people. This is a shortfall ofmany students. They’ll meet someone butthey won’t keep in touch with them.”

The career series got its start when aCPRF survey found that “young peoplereally don’t know what PR was or whatit was like to work at a PR firm.” CPRFthen set up career forums at collegesthat boast strong PR programs.Cripps said there are PR opportunities

in big cities, but students should notneglect the smaller markets wherebreaking in might be easier.“You have to be clever and have an

entrepreneurial spirit and take control ofyour career. Talk to a lot of people. Eachagency has a different culture andspeakers love to talk about their agen-cies.”

Rucker introduced CrippsBob Rucker, Director, School of

Journalism & Mass Communications,introduced Cripps. A presentation wasmade by Michael Brito, group director ofWCG, which is part of W20 Group.Brito said he spends a lot of time with

students at UC Berkeleyand Santa ClaraUniversity as well as thoseat San Jose and is eager toanswer their questions.Students need a “mentor”to guide them. Brito saidthat he still has one.One reason for the pre-

ponderance of women inPR currently is that theytend to have “more empa-thy and you need empathyin this business,” he said.Being able to empathizewith your customers iscrucial, he added.Christine Disalvo, lec-

turer in PR at SJSU, mod-erated a panel whosemembers were LouHoffman, CEO, TheHoffman Agency; JasonMandell, Co-Founder andPartner, LaunchSquad;Bill Orr, Executive VP,Burson-Marsteller; andTracey Parry, Senior VPand Partner, AirfoilGroup.Students said they

wished there had been more time forquestions and answers at the end of theformal program.Cripps, asked whether the Council

should change its name after 15 years toreflect the expanded duties of “PR” firms,said she would not take up that topicsince it was not of concern to the atten-dees.A buffet was made available by Spartan

Catering at the end of the program.Seven copies of O’Dwyer’s Directory

of PR Firms were raffled off at the closeof the event.

Samantha Mendoza is a student at SanJose State University. £

PR CEO wants grads with skills, passionJim Weiss, CEO of W2O Group, a $62 million firm in healthcare, tech and consumer, told 200students at San Jose State University in November that his firm is looking for grads thathave passion, computer and social skills and who “play to win vs. playing not to lose.”

By Samantha Mendoza

The November San Jose State University panel (L-R): Christine Disalvo,lecturer in PR at San Jose State; Lou Hoffman, CEO, The HoffmanAgency; Tracey Parry, senior VP and partner, Airfoil Group; and JasonMandell, co-founder and partner, LaunchSquad.

A student speaks at the San Jose State University event.

Photos by Samantha Mendoza.



Employees can be exposed to identitytheft, customers can become victimsof financial crime, and companies

can lose valuable intellectual property.Further, hacking can impact the public atlarge. Earlier this year, a false AssociatedPress tweet regarding an attack on theWhite House led to market-moving panic.Even if there is no immediate or obvi-

ous damage following a cyber attack,many regulations require public disclo-sure of any security breach that exposes— or potentially exposes — personallyidentifiable information, such as salesdatabases, financial records and humanresources documents. In a report CheckPoint released earlier this year, 54% ofstudied organizations had at least onepotential data loss incident. And thesesecurity breaches can quickly turn intopublic relations nightmares.Ideally, all businesses should have tech-

nology and protocols in place to protectagainst known and unknown securitythreats. But many companies don’t andare therefore vulnerable to cyber attacks,making it essential that every organizationhave a crisis communications plan readyto put into action on a moment’s notice.Here are a few suggestions to help you

develop a strategy:Know who’s in charge: During a

cyber attack, your number-one go-to isyour Chief Security Officer. Build a rela-tionship with your CSO; find out how toreach him or her in the event of an attack.Be in sync with his/her plans for handlingdifferent types of attacks, and as a preven-tative measure, brainstorm together thetypes of attacks your organization couldlikely sustain.Determine what your other boss(es)

want: While your CSO is your number-one contact in case of emergencies, doyour homework to understand what yourC-level executives expect in the event ofan attack or breach. Ask the right ques-tions: What do they see as your greatestcyber vulnerabilities? Who is motivatedto attack your company? What is the com-pany’s holding statement in the event of a

cyber attack?Write (yet another) plan: As PR pro-

fessionals, we write a lot of plans. Butthis document is one of the most impor-tant proactive plans you’ll ever work on.After you’ve gathered internal intelli-gence on preferred security measures,expectations and vulnerabilities, it is timeto get started. Lay out protocols for mul-tiple security breach scenarios, identifythe impacted audiences, prepare commu-nications materials for different channelsand the most likely scenarios, set up cov-erage monitoring (online and social) forkey decision-makers and put aside anybudget needed.Emphasize social media: In the age of

140 Characters, make sure your planincludes a defined approach to key social

sites. Be in lockstep with your socialmedia manager on what to do in the eventof a breach, and remember to monitoryour social feeds around the clock.Consider how you might use social mediaproactively in the aftermath of an attack.And don’t forget to include protocols forwhat to do if the attack originates in oneof your socialchannels, as in thecase of the AP’sTwitter account.Gone are the

days when securityincidents can behandled by ITalone. To combatthis era of pervasivethreats, communi-cations profession-als must find newstrategies, work in tight coordination withmany parts of their organizations, and —most importantly — plan ahead.

Jim Rivas is head of CorporateCommunications for Check PointSoftware Technologies. £

Your company’s been hacked. Now what?

Jim Rivas

You hear about it all the time: a person or major company isthreatened by a cyber attack. For financial and healthcareinstitutions, universities, social media sites and more, theconsequences can be severe. Here’s why it’s important tohave a crisis communications plan in place before it happens.

By Jim Rivas


There’s long been talk of footballbeing the true national pastime. I getit: the communal aspect of tailgating,

the smell of nachos and beer, the thrill ofwatching alpha males demolishing eachother. It’s so grippingly American.At a time when previous seasons cen-

tered on a feel good, Tim Tebow-esquestory, however, this NFL season’s headlineshave instead focused more disappointinglyon recent controversies:Native American groups have grown

increasingly vocal in their request that theWashington Redskins change its name.Based on allegations made by Miami

Dolphins offensive tackle JonathanMartin, the NFL has been pressured totake a stand against an alleged culture ofbullying and hazing in the sport.Earlier this year, the NFL agreed to set-

tle a $765 million concussion suitbrought on by 4,500 players.It takes a brand as powerful as the NFL

to be able to absorb such powerful hits(pardon the pun). But putting aside thepolitics of today’s NFL, there is an evenmore pervasive, and troubling, football-related conversation occurring in theNCAA, and this one goes directly to theheart of inequality and fair play:The players at Grambling, Louisiana-

based Grambling State in October stageda boycott, forcing the school to forfeit agame against Jackson St. Boston-basedprogrammer WBUR referred to the inci-dent as “the Rosa Parks of college foot-ball.”Pretty big words.Whether this will ultimately be an isolat-

ed incident is beside the point, as is the factthat these students were striking for merelybetter locker room conditions. Of moreconsequence is the way the brief boycotthighlights the treatment of unpaid studentathletes and whether their amateur status isinhibiting their ability to be fairly compen-sated. It’s a firebrand topic, to be sure. Like,

what right do these kids have to strike whenthey get to play football and travel aroundthe country?The issue is clearly multifaceted. On one

hand, we’re talking about students beinggiven a unique opportunity to excel, and —in the case of sports like football, basket-ball, and here in New England, hockey —receive public ado-ration. This is a con-stituency manythink should just feelgrateful for the ben-efits they alreadyreceive (most arealready on scholar-ship).Then again, the

gross profit marginfor some programsallowing players toput on their uniforms is impressive. 2012Southeastern Conference figures reveal theaverage total athletic revenue of the top tento be a staggering $104 million. TheCrimson Tide alone recently extended theircontract with Nike for a value of an estimat-ed $30 million. Ignoring what cursory perksthese athletes are given, should schools beexpected to share the bounty with their ath-letes? After all, schools profit wildly offathletes’ images, yet do not allow them touse their likeness for personal profit. Evenwith the less high profile sports, wherethere’s a championship, there is an opportu-nity for schools to promote accomplish-ments, turn to fundraising, etcetera.Maybe a middle ground is achievable.

Regardless of the details in crafting a solu-tion, the discrepancy is indisputable. AsTyson Hartnett recently pointed out, “exec-utives are getting $1 million per year whilean athlete can’t earn $50 from signing a fewautographs.”Ultimately, as much as there have been

calls for dialogue around student loans, col-leges should also broach a conversation sur-rounding the archaic amateur status regula-tions placed on athletes. When it comes tothe relationship between student and aca-demic institutions, many colleges findthemselves at a crossroads. This reflectionshould extend to student-athletes as well.Every student deserves an affordable, qual-ity education ... and every worker deservesto be compensated for their efforts.That’s what being American is all about.Andrew Hoglund is a public relations

executive at Rasky Baerlein StrategicCommunications in Boston. £

From a communications standpoint, the game of football hashad a lousy year. Here’s why things could get worse.

By Andy Hoglund


Andy Hoglund

FEATURE

How football fumbled its PR strategy in 2013



His 2012 pay includes “bonus andincentive compensation” of$61,222, the only staffer to get a

bonus. His 2011 package totaled$382,013. Neither Murray nor anyother staffer received any bonuses in2011, 2010 or 2009.Included in the 2012 total is $53,660

in non-taxable benefits.Murray and VP-PR Stephanie

Cegielski have been asked what Murraydid to merit the bonus.Cegielski said that Murray is the

COO of an association with a $12 mil-lion budget for which there is a lot thathe is responsible. She declined furtherdiscussion of the topic.Murray joined the Society in January

2007 as President and COO andreceived the new title of CEO at the2013 Assembly. That title was previ-ously held by the highest elected mem-ber. Joe Cohen will have the title ofChair in 2014. Society lead-ers said having thetitles of Chair,CEO, Presidentand COO was con-fusing to the mem-bers and did notreflect the reality thatMurray has been act-ing as CEO for manyyears.Murray has yet to

address the New Yorkchapter membership inopen session or any NewYork group in open sessionas far as O’Dwyer’s candetermine.The Society has a “business case for

PR” initiative but no one to carry it outin public. VP-PR Arthur Yann, whodied June 13, did not speak publicly onbehalf of the Society and PR.

Top six split $1,399,936Second highest paid at the Society is

CFO Philip Bonaventura, who got a$7,968 raise to $243,765. Third highestpaid is VP-Corporate Development

John Robinson who got a $6,071 raiseto $198,444. Yann had received a$4,975 increase to $191,460.Karla Voth, VP/Special Events, was

paid a total of $182,002, a raise of$6,540, and Jeneen Garcia,VP/PRSSA/Academic Affairs, had apackage worth $160,618.The six highest paid staffers received

a total of $1,399,936 or an average of$233,322. The 50 (estimated) otherstaffers split $3,528,079 in pay/benefitsor an average of $70,561.Pay packages for 2013 will not be

revealed until next November if currentpractices continue.

IRS form 990 just under deadlineThe Society on November 5 provided

a printed copy of the 55-page 990 toO’Dwyer’s. It was stamped “DRAFT”and had no date. The 2011 990 wasfiled with the IRS on Oct. 12, 2012; the

2010 form on Aug. 12,2011, and the 2009 formon Sept. 2, 2010.

Cegielski said the 990was provided to theAssembly on Oct. 26,the day that it met. Shedid not say in whatform it was providedbut it was no doubtelectronic since theSociety has toldAssembly dele-gates they mustdownload alldocuments.

Initial deadline forthe form was May 15. The

Society has been asked what took solong for the 990 to be filed when theaudit was completed and published inMay.ProPublica, Independent Sector and

many other non-profits post their 990son their websites early in the year asrecommended by IS, an organization ofmore than 500 non-profits, both501c/3s and 501c/6s.Each page of the Society 990 is

stamped “Draft” and there was no date

on the filing. Cegielski said it was filedafter it was pre-sented to theAssembly. An electronicversion willnot be provid-ed to this web-site or anyone,said Cegielski.Members canrequest a copyin writing orvisit h.q. toobtain it.The form

shows occupan-cy costs for 2012 were $802,729 for22,500 square feet of office space or$35 a square foot. Previous offices inMidtown South at 33 Irving place costabout $325,000 or $22.50 per squarefoot.Total payroll costs in 2012 were

$4,928,015, a decline from $5,134,342in 2011.Revenues exceeded expenses by

$469,260.As of Dec. 31, 2012, the Society had

common stocks worth $1,389,723 andcorporate bonds and preferred stockworth $1,012,160.The fair value of the investments was

$283,854 more than their cost.D.C. is site of 2014 conferenceThe program for the 2013 conference

in Philadelphia revealed thatWashington, D.C. will be the site of the2014 conference.Murray had announced in PR Tactics

that cities for the next five conferenceshad been chosen but they will only berevealed one year at a time.The conference was in D.C. in 2010.The last conference in New York was

in 2004 and before that in 1992. Sincethere will be no New York conferencesfor at least five years, that means therewill only be one New York conferencein 25 years and counting. New Yorkchapter leaders say there are no planson the part of the chapter to bid for theconference.Conference cities are chosen on the

basis of what chapter makes thestrongest bid in terms of financial andother support. £

PRSA CEO Murray gets $61,000 bonusWilliam Murray, who got a title boost to CEO of PR Society ofAmerica during its October conference in Philadelphia, receiveda 12% boost in his pay, bringing his total pay package to$423,647 in 2012.

By Jack O’Dwyer

Murray


BLAZE

225 Santa Monica Blvd., 3rd Flr.Santa Monica, CA 90401310/395-5050Fax: 310/[email protected] www.blazepr.com

Matt Kovacs, EVP/GM

BLAZE is the nationally rec-ognized PR firm that attractscompelling and aggressive con-sumer brands that need to win.BLAZE develops campaignsthat help our clients create orreclaim relevance in the market-place. Utilizing comprehensivestrategic communications cam-paigns to differentiate and ele-vate our clients from their com-petitors, we are able to exceedour clients’ expectations when itcomes to positioning them totheir audiences and attractingpositive attention from bothconsumers and the media.BLAZE also offers full publicaffairs capabilities through itsparent company DAVIES. Clients include: BodyBlade,

Claremont Hotel, Club & Spa,Converse, ESPN, KeVitaDrinks, Mad Dogg Athletics,Peak Pilates, Performance Bike,

Spa del Rey, Spinning, andSpinlister.

BRENER ZWIKEL &ASSOCIATES

6901 Canby Avenue, #105Reseda, CA 91335818/462-5600www.bzapr.com

1633 Broadway, 16th FloorNew York, NY 10019212/708-1703

Steve Brener & Toby Zwikel,Principals

Brener Zwikel & Associatesis a PR and marketing firm withmore than 60 years of combinedexperience in the sports journal-ism and PR fields. BZA has theexperience and contacts to max-imize client exposure via PR,promotions, event planning,event production and marketingplans. The firm’s network of media

contacts at the local, nationaland international levels facili-tates media placements. Itsservice-oriented philosophyincludes strategic plan develop-ment, interaction with clientcontacts, cultivation of mediapromotions to enhance advertis-ing buys, adherence to time-

lines, timely progress reports,on-site execution and eventresults and evaluation.Sports clients include: NFL

(National Football League),NHL (National HockeyLeague), MLB (Major LeagueBaseball), SHOWTIMECHAMPIONSHIP BOXING,Speedo, OMEGA, Indycar,MGM Mirage Resorts, HumanaChallenge, Barclays, RicohWomen’s Open, Santa AnitaRace Track, USTA, AVP, JDPCommunications, ESPN ERT,College Football Awards, SCPAuctions and WSOF.

CATALYST

304 Park Avenue South, 5th FloorNew York, NY 10010www.catalystimg.com. Twitter: twitter.com/PRCatalyst Facebook: facebook.com/Catalyst

Bret Werner, SVPTed Fragulis, SVPBill Holtz, SVP

Catalyst, an IMG Consultingcompany, is at the forefront ofstrategic public relationsthrough its extensive knowledgeof digital and traditional media.The agency partners with lead-ing brands to reach the heartsand minds of consumers whoare passionate about sports,entertainment and leading anactive lifestyle. From 2010 to2013, Catalyst earned fouragency of the year honorsincluding consecutive SmallAgency of the Year awards fromPRWeek in 2012 and 2013. IMG Consulting, a Division

of IMG, is the world’s premieresports & entertainment market-ing solutions agency with aglobal team of experts based in21 offices across the globeincluding key hubs in New YorkCity and London as well as longestablished offices in Brazil,Russia, India and China. IMGConsulting services includesponsorship strategy & activa-tion, brand marketing, publicrelations, digital & social mediasolutions, contract negotiations& management and return oninvestment measurement servic-

es. IMG Consulting works onbehalf of our clients across allthe major global sports andentertainment properties includ-ing specialized practices inOlympics, Global Football,Motorsports, Golf, Tennis,Event Marketing, Hospitality,Tourism and Public SectorServices.

CONE COMMUNICATIONS

855 Boylston StreetBoston, MA 02116617/227-2111www.conecomm.com

220 East 42nd Street, Suite 800ANew York, NY 10017212/894-8320

Jens Bang, ChairmanBill Fleishman, CEOMark Malinowski, SVP, Head ofEntertainment Mktg

When getting consumers torelate to brands on a global scale,we run into one of our most inter-esting challenges of all: trying tofind actors that aren’t acting.With nearly 50 combined yearsof expertise managingHollywood relationships, ConeCommunications EntertainmentMarketing is skilled at integrat-ing brands, causes and issueswith entertainment entities —celebrities, films, televisionshows — to create authentic rela-tionships and develop impactfulprograms. We understand thevalue of capitalizing on thecelebrity’s brand and network tomaximize exposure.Finding a celebrity to align

with your causes and issuesrequires an extra level of scruti-ny, as the risks are often muchgreater. Cone’s deep expertise incause marketing gives us an edgein knowing what to look for andhow to find it. Our relationshipswith agents, managers and publi-cists allow us to create partner-ships between celebrities andbrands that are organic and gen-uine. Lastly, we translate ourexpertise in engaging consumersto drive stronger and deeper pro-grams for you.

DECEMBER 2013 4 WWW.ODWYERPR.COM 4 ADVERTISING SECTION20

Coyne client Daytona International Speedway broke ground onDaytona Rising, its multi-year, $400 million redevelopment of itsmile-long grandstand facility, on July 5, 2013.


PROFILES OF SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT PR FIRMS

ADVERTISING SECTION 3 DECEMBER 2013 3 WWW.ODWYERPR.COM 21

COYNE PUBLICRELATIONS

5 Wood Hollow RoadParsippany, NJ 07054973/588-2000www.coynepr.com

1065 Avenue of the Americas,28th FloorNew York, NY 10018212/938-0166

604 Arizona Avenue, Suite 10Santa Monica, CA 90401310/395-6110

Thomas F. Coyne, CEOJohn Gogarty, Executive VicePresidentHeather Krug, Senior VicePresident, General ManagerWest CoastChris Brienza, Vice President,Sports and Media PropertiesDavid Cooper, Vice President,Sports and Media Properties

Coyne PR’s knowledge andcreativity has made it one of thecountry’s fastest-growing agen-cies and top awardwinners. Our specialized prac-tice areas of Entertainment andSports & Media Properties rep-resent an impressive collectionof top national brands, high-profile events and first-classorganizations. The Entertainment team

works with Hard RockInternational, making the brandsynonymous with music bygenerating national and interna-tional buzz through events withtop artists ranging from Karminto Yoko Ono. The team alsoworks with Epiphone Guitarsand AEG. In addition, they’vemanaged events with topcelebrities including Cee LoGreen for Meow Mix, Ke$hafor Casio Baby-G and MileyCyrus for the Walt DisneyCompany. The Sports andMedia team’s playbookincludes winning gameplans forindustry-leading companiessuch as Daytona InternationalSpeedway, the United StatesGolf Association, IRONMANand ESPN The Magazine,among several others. The key

to Coyne’s success — andyours — is that we combinecreativity and enthusiasm witha smart strategic approach andimpeccable client service,resulting in outstanding cover-age in both expected and aspi-rational places.

DKC

261 Fifth Ave., 2nd Flr. New York, NY 10016212/685-4300Fax: 212/[email protected]

Established in 1991, DKC isamong the largest independent-ly owned public relations firmsin the country. We break themold of a traditional publicrelations firm to create a boldnew hybrid that combines thecreativity, expertise and seniorlevel engagement of a boutiqueagency with the strategic abili-ties, intellectual capital andbandwidth of a large corpora-tion. With experience that cutsacross nearly every industry andgeographic region, sports andentertainment have always beencornerstones of the firm’sdiverse client mix. DKC’s Sports division is a

trusted, longtime partner for amultitude of Fortune 100 com-panies, leagues, franchises, ven-ues, sponsors, owners and ath-letes. With a seasoned staff thatis deeply rooted in all aspects ofthe sports business, from high-level front office posts to sportsjournalism, DKC’s Sports teamknows how to build coveragefor clients well beyond the tra-ditional sports media landscape.Clients include the U.S. TennisAssociation/U.S. Open, NewBalance, Citi, Sprint, New Era,Topps, THQ, Warner HomeVideo, 2K Sports and Fanatics. DKC specializes in working

with entertainment at the inter-section of corporate enterpriseand creative pursuits. TheEntertainment team takes a 360degree approach to buildingclients’ brands – from personal-ities to entertainment executivesto corporate clients who useentertainment sponsorships tohelp bring their products andservices to life. DKC recentlyappointed Joe Quenqua asExecutive Vice President,Director of Entertainment,based out of the company’s LosAngeles office. Joining DKC

from Walt Disney Studios,where he was Vice President ofPublicity and Communications,Joe will lead the growth ofDKC’s national entertainmentbusiness across thecompany. Entertainmentclients include THE X-FAC-TOR, 50 Cent, Sean “Diddy”Combs, Ken Burns, Ed Burns,Jay Leno, Bill Maher, MichaelEisner, Clive Davis, SesameStreet, Marvel, Sony PicturesTelevision, Showtime, MartinGuitars, Billboard Magazine,Yahoo! Entertainment andWarner Music Group.

FINN PARTNERS

301 East 57th St.New York, NY 10022212/[email protected]@finnpartners.comwww.finnpartners.com

Philippa Polskin, ManagingPartner 212/593-6488David Hahn, Partner 212-593-5847

Voted Best New Agency,Firm of the Year (Midsize) andBest Place to Work in 2012/13,Finn Partners is one of thefastest-growing independentcommunications agencies in theworld with offices in NY, LA,SF, DC, CHI, London andIsrael. The firm’sEntertainment and Arts &Culture work falls under twomajor groups at theAgency: POLSKIN ARTS &COMMUNICATIONS COUN-SELORS, and MEDIA CON-NECT. With its division POLSKIN

ARTS & COMMUNICATIONSCOUNSELORS, Finn Partnersis home to the oldest and largestgroup specializing in culturalpublic relations. PA&CC isknown for strategic planning ofcomprehensive campaignsfocused on major institutionalinitiatives, for representing cor-porations and other fundersengaged in cultural collabora-tions and for providing expertongoing counsel and crisis com-munications. Clients includeThe Museum of Modern Art,Solomon R. GuggenheimMuseum and Foundation,Whitney Museum of AmericanArt, Alvin Ailey AmericanDance Theater, the J. Paul GettyTrust, the Menil Collection, theNatural History Museum of LosAngeles County, StedelijkMuseum Amsterdam and UBS.

MEDIA CONNECT, a spe-cialty division of Finn Partners,focuses on the promotion ofauthors, entertainers, andartists. It regularly promotesbestselling authors from majorbook publishers includingJames Patterson, John Grisham,Janet Evanovich and DeanKoontz. MEDIA CONNECThelps media companies such asCondé Nast, HBO, PBS, NationalGeographic and The DiscoveryChannel by providing SatelliteTV and Radio Tours and onlinesocial mediacampaigns. Currently the divisionis conducting a USA launch of aseries of art, photography andlifestyle books by UK publisher,Goodman Fiell.

FRENCH/WEST/VAUGHAN

112 E. Hargett St.Raleigh, NC 27601919/832-6300www.fwv-us.com

Rick French, Chairman and CEODavid Gwyn,President and PrincipalNatalie Best, Executive VicePresident and Director of ClientServices, Principal

French/West/Vaughan (FWV)is the Southeast’s leading publicrelations, public affairs and brandcommunications agency, inde-pendent or otherwise. Founded inApril 1997 by Agency Chairman& CEO Rick French, FWV nowemploys 85 research, public rela-tions, public affairs, advertisingand digital marketing expertsamong its Raleigh, N.C. head-quarters and New York City,Dallas/Ft. Worth, Los Angelesand Tampa offices.Ranked as the #2 firm for

sports PR and #17 for entertain-ment PR by O’Dwyer’s, FWV isan industry leader in sports andentertainment marketing, andspecializes in creating maximumbrand exposure for its clientsthrough strategic partnerships,paid endorsements, sponsor rela-tions, event management, socialmedia, mobile and experientialmarketing and traditional earnedmedia outreach programs.FWV’s sports and entertain-

ment clients include All-ProCincinnati Bengals defensivetackle Geno Atkins, New YorkGiants starting free safety Ryan

0Continued on page 22

The January issue of O’Dwyer’s will fea-ture a company profiles section on crisiscommunications. If you would like yourfirm to be listed, contact Editor JonGingerich at 646/843-2080 [email protected]




Mundy, Baltimore Ravens start-ing defensive lineman ChrisCanty, Philadelphia Eaglesquarterback Michael Vick,Orlando Magic forward Glen“Big Baby” Davis, former NFLstar Terrence Holt, NFL legend-turned-filmmaker Simeon Rice,SKINS compression wear, TascPerformance apparel,NATHAN, Peter Millar, UnitedStates Speedskating, best-sell-ing author Nick Schuyler andthe Southwestern AthleticConference (SWAC).The agency has also done

work on behalf of the CentralIntercollegiate AthleticAssociation (CIAA), UnitedStates Polo Association,Professional Rodeo CowboysAssociation, Eurosport/SOC-CER.com, leading internationalswimwear brand Arena, SeattleSeahawks quarterback RussellWilson, All-Pro NFL runningback Arian Foster, Detroit Lionssafety Glover Quin, NBA veter-an Dahntay Jones, platinum-

selling musician T.I., actorBrandon Mychal Smith, actressLinda Hogan, Olympic GoldMedalist Jessica Hardy,AstroTurf, Speedo, MoGoMouthguards, TVG (America’sHorseracing Network), ParelliNatural Horsemanship, XtremeFighting Championships(XFC), OTB Records, theCarolina Cobras of the ArenaFootball League, AccuSportInternational, PremiereManagement Group, theAtlantic Coast Conference(ACC), the Aggie-EagleClassic, Urban Sports andEntertainment Group, NorthCarolina Amateur Sports andthe N.C. State Games, amongothers. Additionally, FWV Chairman

& CEO Rick French is a nation-al trustee of the Rock and RollHall of Fame and Museum. As amember of the board of trustees,French is among a small num-ber of America’s most promi-nent business and music indus-try leaders who are stewards ofthe Hall of Fame and Museumand are also asked to representthe Rock Hall’s mission andgoals at programs and eventsaround the world.

KEITH SHERMANAND ASSOCIATES

234 West 44th StreetNew York, NY 10036212/764-7900Fax: 212/764-0344 www.ksa-pr.com

Keith Sherman, PresidentBrett Oberman, VPScott Klein, VP

KEITH SHERMAN & ASSO-CIATES provides strategic publicrelations counseling and marketingcommunications services to adiverse roster of entertainment,lifestyles, sports and corporateclients.KSA has publicized hundreds of

films, network and cable televisionbroadcasts, Broadway shows,national touring productions andhigh profile events nationally andinternationally. Clients include:Universal Pictures, Focus Features,Adrian Grenier, Olympic MedalistsBrian Boitano, Paul Hamm andMichelle Kwan, Tony Awards onCBS for 18 years, Colin Quinn,Lang Lang, Mike Birbiglia, BolshoiBallet, Kimpton Hotels, PortugueseGourmet Food Festival, 54BELOW and 300 Broadway, Off-Broadway and touring shows.KSA’s clients include: The New

York Times, Visiting Nurse Serviceof New York, Hertz, Sony, TheOnion, Architectural Digest,Columbia University, MemorialSloan-Kettering Cancer Center,New York Marriott Marquis, TheBroadway League, Bristol-Myers

Squibb, Abu Dhabi Festival and theMontreal Jazz Festival, among oth-ers.Excellence. Results. A fresh

point-of-view. Proactiveeffort. Intelligent strategic think-ing. Experience. High stan-dards. Integrity. Creativity.Passion. These are some of the ele-ments that distinguish KSA’s work.

MAYO COMMUNICATIONS

7248 Bernadine Ave., 2nd FloorWest Hills (L.A.), CA 91307818/340-5300Fax: 818/340-2550www.mayopr.com

Aida Mayo, PresidentKevin Martin McQuade, SocialMedia Dan Lai, San Diego BureauRenee Robinson, NY Bureau

MAYO communications,based in Los Angeles, offersSocial Media, Corporate SocialResponsibility, CorporateCommunications and Branding.A short list of entertainmentclients this year includes: JazzMusician Jon Barnes, whorecently toured Europe and per-formed in the daCarbo JazzFestival along with ArturoSandoval and former lead singerSkip Martin, Kool and the Gang.A short list of other entertain-ment clients include: ActorJeremy London, Actor/ProducerTimothy Woodward Jr;

0Continued on page 24

FRENCH/WEST/VAUGHAN0Continued from page 21

Jazz Musician Jon Barnes and Thomas Brinkmann, Reg. Mgr.Automobili Lamborghini America, inside the Lamborghini exhibit atthe Concours d’ Elegance, where amazing hybrids went on displayfor thousands of attendees of the world famous auto show.

NFL superstar quarterback Michael Vick engaged FWV to launchone of the most comprehensive reputation management and commu-nity relations campaigns of any professional athlete.




Hollywood Film Magazine;Status L.A. Magazine;“Hollywood East” (HULU) Teendrama; Global Onslaught-Australia-UK; Buddy Princetonand the Incorruptibles (JacksonBrowne, Steve Miller Band), andOperation Blankets of Love (ani-mal rescue charity), to name afew.Last Summer MAYO went on

tour with Music Master JonBarnes. Recently, Barnes per-formed with Arturo Sandoval andKool and the Gang’s former leadSinger Skip Martin at the CatalinaJazz Club and on tour inGermany. All were sponsored byMONSTER CABLE and daCarboTrumpets, which makes the onlycarbon-fiber instruments in theworld. The new luxury sports carssuch as 2014 Porsche andLamborghini are also made out ofcarbon-fiber, so it was appropriatethat Barnes played August 17, atthe Rolex Monterey MotorsportsReunion (car show) in MontereyCounty, CA. Barnes played his hitsong, That’s Monster Love (JonBarnes on Reverbnation) at thePebble Beach Concours d’Elegance event.

MWW ENTERTAINMENT

304 Park Avenue SouthNew York, NY 10010212/704-9727www.mww.com

Michael W. Kempner, President &CEO

To Matter MoreTM, brandsmust build relationships withthe influencers who mattermost. MWW Entertainmentconnects clients with top talentin music, sports and entertain-ment to inspire action andincrease awareness, brandimage and sales. Clients turn toMWW Entertainment experts totap into our relationship net-works and connect with celebri-ty endorsers that move the nee-dle to establish cachet, credibil-ity and relevance. MWWEntertainment is a joint venturebetween MWW and KWLEnterprises, led by Kevin Liles,former President of Def JamMusic Group and EVP ofWarner Music. Our team craftsmulti-dimensional campaignsfor artists, entertainers, andsports/entertainment properties.MWW Entertainment servicesbrands in the areas of celebrityacquisition and branding, fash-ion and entertainment publicity,full service celebrity brand inte-gration, positioning and mes-saging, talent management, dig-ital and social media, and con-sumer lifestyle marketing andpublic relations.

PMK*BNCPacific Design Center8687 Melrose Ave., 8th FloorLos Angeles, CA 90069310/854 4800www.pmkbnc.comTwitter: @pmk_bncFacebook: pmk*bnc

622 Third Ave., 20th FloorNew York, NY 10017212/582-1111

7-11 Herbrand Street Lon WC1N 1EXUnited Kingdom +44 20 7837 3737

Michael Nyman, Chairman & CEOCindi Berger, Chairman & CEOChris Robichaud, CEO

PMK*BNC is the globalauthority in Popular Culture andEntertainment. We specialize increating ideas that move theconsumer. We are experts whospeak a global language of pop-ular culture driven by consumerpassion points including film,television, sports, music, arts,fashion and technology.With extraordinary access to

the entertainment industry, wecreated a Science Series to shareunique data and insights, andhave developed a proprietarytool that measures celebrityinfluence called Fanatomy. Werepresent approximately 800clients ranging from celebrities,producers, directors, cable andnetwork TV properties, produc-tion companies, musicians,authors, sports figures, con-sumer brands and events. With a staff of roughly 250

professionals in New York, LosAngeles and London, ouragency delivers inspired solu-tions that include public rela-tions, event production, experi-ential marketing, celebrity andinfluencer outreach, sponsor-ship, promotions, product place-ment and integration, digitalcontent creation and brand con-sultation.

ROGERS &COWAN

8687 Melrose Ave., 7th FloorLos Angeles, CA 90069310/854-8117Fax: 310/854-8106www.rogersandcowan.com

Tom Tardio, CEO

Rogers & Cowan is the lead-

ing, full-service entertainmentmarketing and PR agency work-ing with a diverse roster of clientsranging from A-list celebrities tocontent creators and consumertechnology companies to socialentertainment brands. Theagency offers brands an entertain-ment insider’s “POV” on evolv-ing lifestyle, consumer, technolo-gy and social entertainmenttrends as well as deep relation-ships with media and influencerswithin the entertainment commu-nity.Our core entertainment and

sports expertise is in workingwith celebrities, athletes, record-ing artists, cable and network TV,film production and distribution,record labels, video game produc-ers, sports leagues and live eventsas well as the evolving socialentertainment ecosystem includ-ing emerging entertainment tech-nology brands and creators ofcontent for multiple screens. Rogers & Cowan utilize our

proprietary EMBRACE method-ology to create customized enter-tainment strategies for brands,including the development ofintellectual property, celebrityspokespeople and partnerships,branded storytelling / integration,celebrity and influencer outreach,music and culture events, socialmedia activation, celebrity brandambassadors, lifestyle mediarelations and relationship build-ing with entertainment industryinfluencers. Based on the cam-paign, we develop an integratedmedia campaign to activate andamplify the message and toengage media, consumers andonline communities throughowned, earned, and shared mediachannels. We embrace the power of tradi-

tional and social media to buildbrands, drive viewership forbroadcast and mobile entertain-ment programing, increase atten-dance for live events, activatebrand sponsorships, grow onlinefan communities and increasedownloads of mobile apps. Recent clients/projects have

included Rdio, Amazon Studios,Target, Sonos, Food Network,HGTV & DIY Networks, GRAM-MY and Latin GRAMMYAwards, Billboard Music Awards,USA Pro Cycling Challenge, PGATour, Haunting Melissa, DolphinDigital, Sony Pictures HomeEntertainment, Sprite RefreshingFilms, The Coca-Cola Company,Cinemacon, Fox ConsumerProducts, Miramax, and Kabam.

MAYO COMMS.0Continued from page 22

Sony Crackle teamed with John Legend for an impromptu performancein Los Angeles on November 26th as part of their “Playing It Forward”music movement of good will to generate awareness and funds to sup-port education programs in schools. Rogers & Cowan was hired by SonyCrackle to manage artist relations, on-site event activation, event pro-duction, charitable partnerships, brand management and traditional andsocial media outreach.

View and download entire issues of O’Dwyer’smagazine in PDF format, as well as hundredsof company profiles in our searchable onlinedatabase.

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TAYLOR

The Empire State Building350 Fifth Avenue, Suite 3800New York, NY 10118212/714-1280www.taylorstrategy.com

Tony Signore, CEO & ManagingPartnerBryan Harris, COO & ManagingPartner

Named “Consumer Agency ofthe Decade” by the Holmes Group,Taylor has forged a reputation ofexcellence in public relations andbrand marketing over the past 30years by partnering with theworld’s leading corporate mar-keters utilizing their sports,lifestyle, and entertainment assetsto engage consumers and fosterbrand relationships that drive busi-ness growth. The agency’s rootsare firmly planted in the world ofsports and its legacy of developingand activating hundreds of award-winning campaigns for leadingbrands in support of sports sponsor-ships is unparalleled. From globalproperties like the Olympic Gamesand FIFA World Cup, to the crownjewels of U.S. sports — the WorldSeries, Super Bowl, NBA Finals,and Daytona 500, among others —Taylor has long been a trustedcounselor for many of the world’smost influential sports marketers. The agency has also successful-

ly aligned its client partners’ busi-ness goals with the most recogniz-able properties in the entertainmentindustry, including the AcademyAwards, Grammy Awards, LatinGrammy Awards, Sundance FilmFestival, and MTV Music Video

Awards.Taylor’s client partners include

Diageo, P&G, Allstate, CapitalOne, Coca-Cola, General Mills,Nike, 3M, Taco Bell, NASCAR,and Nestlé.

WCG

60 Francisco StreetSan Francisco, CA 94133415/362-5018Fax: 415/362-5019 www.wcgworld.com [email protected]: blog.wcgworld.comTwitter: @WCGWorld

Jim Weiss, Founder and CEOChris Deri, President of WCGBob Pearson, President of W2OGroupDavid Witt, Practice Leader-Consumer

WCG, part of the W2O Groupfamily, is a global communicationsagency offering integrated creative,interactive and marketing commu-nications services to clients inhealthcare, technology, consumerproducts, and entertainment. WCGis creating the positive future ofcommunications by focusing onthe corporate, product marketingand communications needs of theworld’s leading companies.Established in 2001 by Jim

Weiss, a 25 year veteran in health-care communications, the agencyhas grown to 425 employees, with190 housed in WCG, servingclients globally with offices in SanFrancisco, New York, Austin,Atlanta, Minneapolis, Los Angelesand London.WCG’s seasoned professionals

remain the greatest asset we offerour clients. Our teams specialize in

branding, design, digital, socialmedia, interactive, influencer iden-tification and engagement, socialand traditional marketing, predic-tive modeling, location based mar-keting, corporate and product PRand media, as well as investor andadvocacy relations. Entertainmentclients include Warner Bros. HomeVideo, for which WCG maintains ahighly accurate predictive model ofDVD sales based on technical vari-ables and social signals. For more information, visit our

website at www.wcgworld.com orfollow us on Twitter@WCGWorld.

WEBER SHANDWICK

919 Third AvenueNew York, NY 10022212/445-8000www.webershandwick.com

Gail Heimann, President, ChiefStrategy OfficerJerry Gleason, Senior VicePresident; Director, SportsMarketing North America

Weber Shandwick’s SportsMarketing practice combines theagency’s industry-leading con-sumer marketing practice with anexpansive global network ofsports marketing experts focusedon creating award-winning pro-grams for many of the world’sbest known brands in cooperationwith the major sports franchises,leagues and athletes.We bring together athletes,

products and campaigns to tellengaging stories across multipleplatforms that help connect withconsumers and fans alike to giveour clients competitive advan-tages enabling them to elevatetheir brands, enhance consumerloyalty and increase sales.We build visibility and prefer-

ence for our clients and theirproducts and services throughconsumer outreach, media rela-tions, event marketing, fanengagement, sponsorship activa-tion and social media. In addition, we work closely

with our Interpublic Group sportsmarketing partner Octagon tooffer our clients a full range ofcounsel and support surroundingsponsorships, athlete representa-tion, on-site physical activationand hospitality, negotiation andbenchmarking. Our sports marketing profes-

sionals have created and lever-aged sports sponsorships for some

of the most recognized andrespected brands in the world incooperation with the major sportsfranchises, leagues and athletes.Our programs give our clientscompetitive advantages enablingthem to elevate their brands,enhance consumer loyalty andincrease sales.

WEBSTER &ASSOCIATES

33 Music Square West, #100BNashville, TN 37202615/777-6995 x232Fax: 615/369-2515 [email protected]@websterpr.comwww.websterpr.com

Kirt Webster, PresidentJeremy Westby, VP

Webster & Associates has guid-ed the publicity and marketingcampaigns for such legendarymusic artists as Hank Williams Jr.,Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogersas well as artists as diverse asLynyrd Skynyrd, Pat Benatar,Sam Moore and Kid Rock. All aremusicians who are the best intheir respective genres and ourfirm is at the forefront of creatinginnovative campaigns not only onbehalf of established heritageartists but actualized effectivestrategies launching new careers.Corporate brands such as CrackerBarrel Old Country Store,Wrangler and Blaster have alsotrusted the guidance of Webster &Associates. Through our solid relationships

with talent bookers, tastemakers,music supervisors and otherindustry professionals we create acustomized campaign with a mul-tidimensional approach that sig-nificantlybuilds our clients’ pro-files and also raises industryawareness. The increased mediapresence also helps build bridgesto new ventures from corporateopportunities to new compellingprojects. We have a proven trackrecord of these results.We also provide a host of addi-

tional services that can enhanceyour public relations and market-ing campaign. This broad spec-trum includes Media Training,Satellite Media Tours, CrisisManagement and Special Events,for which we can act as sole pro-ducer or serve as consultants. Ourgoal is always to seamlessly inte-grate these activities with a clientor brand’s publicity and market-ing campaign. £

Webster Associates President Kirt Webster with Bob Romeo,Academy of Country Music CEO and client Big Kenny.


© Copyright 2013 The J.R. O'Dwyer Co.

© Copyright 2013 The J.R. O'Dwyer Co.

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Professional DevelopmentOPINION

If you’re a liberal left-winger, you posi-tively adore Michael Moore and MorganSpurlock, the film makers who’ve made

mince meat out of fat cats from GeneralMotors to McDonald’s.If you’re a conservative right-winger, you

can’t get enough of James O’Keefe, thefilm maker who brought community group

ACORN to its knees.Despite their diver-

gent ideologies,Moore, Spurlock andO’Keefe share a com-mon trait: They aresnakes who will sacri-fice anything —including truth, fair-ness and propriety, toskewer their targets.This brings us to

the current flapbetween the upscale,Upper East Side pan-theon of discriminat-ing fashion sense,

Barneys, and the aging-yet-still-feistysnake among snakes: Al Sharpton.Rev. Al, of course, has become a bit

defanged from his early heyday 25 yearsago, when he burst on the national stage toperpetrate a colossal hoax involvingAfrican-American teenager TawanaBrawley, who falsely accused six whitemen of raping her. After furiously pumpingthe fictitious story to a gullible media andruining the lives of the men in question,Sharpton was fined $65,000 for master-minding the ruse and then got his support-ers to pay the freight.Where others might have slunk away in

shame, Sharpton rejuvenated himself as akind of civil rights stalker, throwing himselfheadlong into any controversy anywherethat involved a whiff of discrimination.For the past year, Sharpton has bided his

time as an MSNBC broadcaster, DemocratParty king maker and FOB (Friend ofBarack). But in October, when Barney’swas reported to have interrogated two blackshoppers because of the color of their skin— Rev. Al was back in business. After presumably spending months plot-

ting strategy with the two — one of whom,a 19-year-old woman, paid $2,500 with atemporary debit card in February; the other,a 21-year-old man, purchased a $350 beltin April — Sharpton screamed “racial pro-filing” and demanded a sit down with

Barneys’ brass.How the refined merchant deals with its

slithering adversary should be an object les-son for any high profile firm which findsitself in the sights of a bad publicity gun-for-hire.Stated metaphorically, here’s the antidote

for the snake venom:1. Take the charges seriously.Is Al Sharpton a phony who specializes in

targeting vulnerable, deep-pocketed adver-saries in high-volume controversies that areoften short on facts but long on righteousindignation? Yes, yes, yes, but ...Takes the accusations seriously, regard-

less of the suspect credibility of the accuserand the fact that the alleged offenses hap-pened months ago.Accusations of discrimination are good

copy. Today, with web sites and blogs —from Huffington Post to TMZ.com, fromblackamericaweb.com to christianpost.com— eager to leap on any brewing controver-sy, very little slips under the radar. Once theblogosphere gets hold of the looming bat-tle, it’s only a matter of time before themore legitimate journalistic web sites —nytimes.com, abcnews.com, et al — runwith it as well.So if you’re a high-profile target, take

every charge seriously.2. Preempt with quick action.When charged by a provocateur like

Sharpton, don’t wait for a sit down to act.Move immediately to preempt the charla-tan before he gets the drop on you.In Barneys’ case, as soon as the Sharpton

publicity bomb was dropped, the companyannounced it had retained Michael Yaki, amember of the U.S. Commission on CivilRights, to review the operations and proce-dures at its Madison Avenue store, thescene of the alleged customer inquisitions.In acting quickly to hire an experienced,

unbiased arbiter to find out the true factsbehind any racism at Barneys, the chainpreempted Sharpton from hand-picking acrony to audit its activities.3. Accept a meeting.It also makes sense to allow the snake

into the tent, rather than denying him ameeting he demands. Clearly, this isalways risky.Accepting a meeting with thugs elevates

them in stature, confirming that they andtheir concerns merit top management’sattention. In effect, the meeting legitimizesthe adversaries. In Barneys’ case, both ofthe “victims” are suing (surprise!) theretailer and the New York Police

Department, and a meeting with Barneys’top management presumably adds heft totheir charges.But as long as you understand the risks

— and Barneys clearly does — the meet-ing becomes a symbolic testament of yourwillingness to listen to the other side andconsider acting on what they’ve said.That’s why Barneys’ CEO Mark Lee sat

down with Sharpton and his battalion tohear them — and get them — out.4. Control the post-meeting agenda.This is the tricky part. Al Sharpton is out

for one thing — Al Sharpton. He wants themeeting to lead to actions that he will dic-tate and perhaps even profit from. The trickis to steal the agenda away from him.To do this, Barneys must be ready to

announce its action plans to ensure that racediscrimination never again rears its uglyhead in a Barneys’ store. Its plan shouldinclude actions growing out of the YakiAudit, a diversity training regimen forBarneys’ personnel, and an internal adjudi-cation program to deal with allegations ofdiscrimination.CEO Lee should make these plans public

and promise to report periodically onprogress. Sharpton won’t like it, becausesuch an approach will neutralize his bluster.5. Mobilize your third-party allies.To rid the premises of snakes, use your

allies to corroborate your good intentionsand actions to remedy the problem.In the case of Barneys, the chain’s secret

weapon is none other than one ShawnCarter aka Jay Z, the rags-to-riches rapper,who has triumphed over childhood in theBed Stuy projects and scatological, sexistlyrics to become an art-buying, President-friending, budding member of the estab-lishment.Now he has collaborated with Barneys to

benefit his foundation and inner-city edu-cational advancement.Carter understands that while Barneys,

like any store, may have a few bad apples,it isn’t fundamentally racist. He also under-stands that Sharpton isn’t exactly the “cru-sader for truth and dignity” that he purportsto be. He also knows that in the currentpecking order, he outranks Rev. Al, whothus far has backed off on criticizing Jay Zfor his Barneys tie.What Carter does next — either sever his

ties with the store or reaffirm his commit-ment to a chain that disavows discrimina-tion — may tell the tale on whetherSharpton gets more.The bet here is that Jay Z, conscious of

the big picture for the people he has prom-ised to help as well as himself, will backBarneys and the snake will slither away. £

Fraser P. Seitel hasbeen a communicationsconsultant, author andteacher for 30 years.He is the author of thePrentice-Hall text, ThePractice of PublicRelations.

Dealing with snakes in PRBy Fraser Seitel



Guest Column

Despite their “I told you so” procla-mations, what Republicans fearmost is happening at my broadcast

and Internet public relations firm inGeorgia.

My company’s annu-al healthcare costswill drop at least$60,000 in 2014thanks to the healthinsurance exchangethe U.S. Departmentof Health and HumanServices is operating.This financial reliefcomes just in time.After Obamacarewas signed into lawin 2010, my healthinsurer rushed tocash in while it

could, jacking up our premium 29 percentover the last two years and another 13percent in 2014.Our new costs would likely drop fur-

ther if Georgia had a state-run healthinsurance exchange. Unfortunately,Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal, like so manyother red state governors, is deliberatelyundermining Obamacare and has refusedto implement a state exchange. Nor hasthe Georgia Chamber of Commerce —the purported advocate for small busi-ness — lobbied Deal to establish anexchange.So our 24 employees will go to the

federal exchange to select policies.Silver Plan benefits offered there closelymatch what I currently provide. The costfor most of these plans is lower thanwhat we now pay and about half of myemployees will qualify for tax creditsthey can use to purchase their healthinsurance. As I have always done, I willpay a portion of their premiums.My employees are free to decide what

coverage they buy, no longer stuck with-in the limits of the insurance we offered.Unlike pre-Obamacare days, they cannotbe refused coverage for pre-existingconditions and their policies won’t becancelled if they get sick or injured.Small businesspeople continue to be

swamped with relentless Chicken Littleprophesies coming from the conserva-tive media and GOP politicians. Here’s asampling of what Georgia politicos aresaying:

If Obamacare is so awful, why not justlet it fail? Democrats will suffer political-ly and Republicans will pick up seats inCongress and maybe even win the WhiteHouse in 2016.Here’s the answer: “People will like it,”

Tea Party Sen. Mike Lee admitted duringa recent interview with Rush Limbaugh.Yes, the on-line rollout was botched.

Problems will be fixed by Nov. 30. Someinsurers cancelled junk policies that canbe replaced with superior plans, in manycases for the same or less money.Nevertheless, Republicans branded

Obama a heinous liar and demandedaccountability. For them, I’ve got just two

words: mission accomplished.Recall this is the same crowd who

showed no interest in accountability afterPresident Bush, on the wings of his infa-mous “mushroom cloud” lies, sentAmerican troops to Iraq in search of non-existent WMD and 4,487 of them camehome in caskets.But Obama gets no benefit of the doubt,

let alone any help from the GOP as hereforms a broken system while providingdecent insurance coverage to 40 millionAmericans and lowering the nation’s run-away healthcare costs.Conservative hypocrites are bound to

be exposed as the real liars when storieslike mine are repeated across Georgia andthe U.S. by individuals and business own-ers who discover Obamacare’s bottomline benefits.This time next year, when Republicans

are claiming credit for healthcare reform,voters need to remember their deceitfulwords and ask why it was they who so dis-honestly stood in the way of something sogood for Americans and American busi-ness. £

My PR company is saving $60K under ObamacareBy Kevin Foley

Kevin Foley is CEOand founder of KEFMedia, an Atlanta areabroadcast and digitalPR services firm.

Rep. Tom Price: “The last thingthat this nation needs is this law thatwill destroy quality healthcare in thiscountry.”

Rep. Phil Gingrey “This (roll-out)fiasco is yet another warning sign ofObamacare nightmares to come.”

Rep. Paul Broun: “Obamacarewill destroy everything in America.”



PEOPLE IN PR

Chamberlain’s Wilsontakes Spectrum prez

Jonathan Wilson, an 11-year veteranof Chamberlain Healthcare andpresident for the last four, will

relocate to Washington to take the President slot at Spectrum ScienceCommunications, effective Jan. 4.

Spectrum Founder John Seng continuesas CEO and takes the chairman position.He said Spectrum is in a “transforma-

tional stage” and Wilson has the major bighealthcare brand experience and business-building savvy to guide the firm’s growth.Wilson was at Ketchum before moving

to New York-based Chamberlain, which ispart of inVentive Health.Spectrum posted $5.3 million in net fees

during 2012. £

FH recruits data chieffrom Coke

FleishmanHillard has brought inChristina Liao from The Coca-ColaCo. to lead research, analytics and

data for the firm.Liao headed Coca-Cola’s knowledge

and insights team as group director, specif-ically focused on determining return oninvestment across the beverage giant’spaid, earned, shared and “owned” media.She was previously VP of Analytics at

market research firm CMI.At Omnicom-

owned FH, Liao, aChina native andPh.D. candidate atGeorgia State Univ.,is a Senior Partnerand Senior VP,charged with man-aging the firm’salliance with sisterunit Annalect. She is

relocating from Atlanta to St. Louis.

FH president and CEO Dave Senaynoted the firm’s ability to “gather, makesense of, and apply” research and analyticsfor clients is now “critical.” £

WCG’s Jones moves toEdelman

Edelman hired WCG’s Spike Jones inAustin as Senior VP to oversee busi-ness development and regional strate-

gy in the southwest.At San Francisco-based WCG, Jones was

Group Director ofengagement for itsAustin outpost.WCG ranks No. 1

in Austin with 2012fees of $10.1 million.Edelman’s Austin/Dallas/Houston unitscombined for fees of$9.1 million.Earlier, Jones was

with FleishmanHillard’s office in Texas’capital and a 10-year veteran of Brains onFire (Greenville, SC).Jones is author of “Brains on Fire: Ignite

Powerful, Sustainable, World of MouthMovements.”Edelman’s Austin office is the independ-

ent PR firm’s “center of analytics.” HelenVollmer heads Edelman’s southwest operations. £

Finn Partners bolstersHollywood savvy

Finn Partners has added entertainmentpro HopeBoonshaft as

senior partner at itsRogers/ FinnPartners unit in LosAngeles.Most recently at

Carmen GroupWest, she onceserved as generalmanager of Hill &Knowlton’s LA and Irvine outposts, coun-seling Sony Pictures Imageworks,Lionsgate Entertainment, Mazda,LinkedIn, Adidas, Yahoo, Dolby andTechnicolor.Prior to H&K, Boonshaft was executive

VP/group external affairs at Sony Pictures.Boonshaft will work closely with Ron

Rogers, who has known her for more than20 years. £

Ingersoll Rand tapscomms head for spinoff

Ingersoll Rand, the Ireland-incorporatedglobal industrial conglomerate, hasrecruited veteran

corporate communi-cations exec SusanaDuarte de Suarez tohead communica-tions for Allegion,the $2 billion securi-ty unit being spun offnext month.Duarte de Suarez,

who has run her ownshop, Media Moon Communications, forthe past four years, was previously VP ofCorporate Communications for two globalbuilding materials giants, Holcim andCEMEX. Previous roles included chiefcommunications officer of The PeaceCorps from 2002-05 and assistant directorfor FEMA.At Allegion, she leads communications

and corporate affairs as VP for the Carmel,Ind.-based company, which makes locks,steel doors and other security barriers andproducts for residential and commercialapplications. Its brands include Kryptonite,Legge and Steelcraft.Ingersoll Rand moved its corporate base

from Bermuda to Swords, Ireland, in2009. It is slated to spin-off Allegion as apublicly traded entity on Dec. 1.Allegion met with investors Nov. 18 in

New York to outline its strategy.Allegion had previously tapped Ray

Lewis Senior VP of HR and communica-tions in August. £

Grayling vet to Levick

Leslie Wolf-Creutzfeldt, who servedas Managing Director of GraylingUSA to help the British PR operation

gain a footfhold here, has gone toWashington’s Levick.Mark Irion, Levick’s President and for-

mer head of Dutko Worldwide, which wasacquired by Grayling’s parentHuntsworth, admires Wolf-Creutzfeldt’s“seemingly effortless ability to connectclients to top-tier media analysts and busi-ness partners.”Prior to Grayling, Wolf-Creutzfeldt led

Interpublic’s life sciences investor rela-tions unit and headed the technology unitof Thompson Financial.Her new job is to build Levick’s New

York presence. £

John Seng, CEO; Lissette Capati, Sr. VP;Jonathan Wilson, Pres.; Maureen Varnon,

Sr. VP

Liao

Jones

Boonshaft

de Suarez


Famed Green Bay Packers coachVince Lombardi said, “Footballisn’t a contact sport. Dancing is a

contact sport. Football is a collisionsport!” Over the last half century, thou-sands of players and millions of fanshave witnessed exactly that. In recent years, a disturbing number of

suicides of former NFL players haveopened a new discussion into the dangersof the most lucrative professional sport.In “League of Denial: The NFL,

Concussions and the Battle for the Truth”(Crown Archetype, 2013), Mark Fainaru-Wada and Steve Fainaru, who are brothersand investigative reporters with ESPN,explore a twenty-year span in which con-cussions in pro football players took on anew level of seriousness and their long-term consequences. The authors took a risk

even writing this bookconsidering ESPN paysmore than $1 billion peryear for the broadcastrights for Monday NightFootball.Since the early 1990s,

the seriousness and long-term effects of concus-sions have been a point ofcontention within theNFL, the media and themedical community. Many players consid-

ered it a badge of honor toplay injured. Players wereconstantly in fear of los-ing their status as starters.Medical personnel couldadvise players, but onlyhead coaches could bench a player. Whenthe press started to ask questions aboutthis phenomenon, then-CommissionerPaul Tagliabue dismissed it as a “packjournalism issue.”The authors begin with the death of

Mike Webster, who played for thePittsburgh Steelers. “Iron Mike,” as hewas known, set a record for playing morethan 600 consecutive offensive plays.Webster’s former teammates realized

something was amiss when he gave arambling, incoherent speech when he wasinducted into the Football Hall of Fame.Fainaru and Fainaru-Wada chronicle

Webster’s rise and fall. He escapedpoverty to play football at the Universityof Wisconsin and then on to the NFLwhere he played on four Super BowlChampion teams. He made enoughmoney to last the rest of hislife. His behavior becameerratic. He lost his big house,and lived in train stations. Hewould forget where he was.Notes written by Webster andobtained by the authorsreveal an addled mind nolonger capable of linearthought.When Webster died in

2002, he was only fifty yearsold. The authors explain that whenWebster’s body was brought to the coro-ner’s office, a young Nigerian doctorname Bennett Omalu was on duty.Unlike most doctors featured in Leagueof Denial, Omalu was not a football fan

and had no loyalty toany team or the NFL. During the autopsy, heexamined Webster’sbrain and was stunnedby what he saw underthe microscope.Omalu’s discoveriesset the NFL and thescientific communityon a new course ofconcussion investiga-tion. Following the sui-cides of former playersDave Duerson andJunior Seau, medicalresearchers competedwith each other toobtain their brains toexamine them forrepeated trauma.One former player

who receives little attention, but whoseconcussion is one of the book’s morememorable examples is former DallasCowboys quarterback Troy Aikman. Aikman was accidentally kneed in the

head in the 1993 NFC Championshipgame. He spent the night in the hospitalrepeatedly asking his agent why he wasthere and if he had played that day.Aikman went on to lead the Cowboys toa Super Bowl victory. A year later, he

remembered almost none of it. Other well known players, including

former Chicago Bears quarterback JimMcMahon, are also reported to be suf-fering from short-term memory loss.Former New York Giants linebackerHarry Carson even used his Hall ofFame induction speech to call on theNFL to pay more attention to concus-

sions.The authors also obtainedextensive access to doctors andresearchers on both sides of theconcussion debate — thosewho dismissed them as a work-place hazard and those whosework broke new ground in thisfield of study. The competiveness of these

researchers, the authors show,reached the same level of

intensity of the players they studied.Readers will want to read and perhapsre-read the chapters on the science ofconcussions carefully. The book has alist of key participants, including play-ers, doctors, and NFL executives.Just as tobacco executives can no

longer deny the ill effects of smoking,the NFL can no longer deny the substan-tial risks to football players’ heads. Infact, just before the publication ofLeague of Denial, the NFL settled a law-suit with 18,000 players for $765 mil-lion. The reader will have to weigh the evi-

dence as to whether or not the NFLengaged in a Nixonian cover-up or isguilty of willful blindness, but theauthors’ meticulous research presentsevidence that cannot be dismissed. Theevidence presented by the authors readslike cracks in the NFL’s dam — and theleague may soon be under water.Fainaru-Wada and Fainaru have taken

sports journalism to a new level byweaving vivid, heartbreaking narrativeswith eye-opening facts unearthed fromoriginal sources. However, League ofDenial will probably do little to affectfootball’s popularity. Die-hard fans willbe left wondering about the futures ofcurrent stars like Ben Roethlisberger andPeyton and Eli Manning. It should be read by anyone who

thinks about donning a football helmet,those who care about them and thosewho may have to care for them. £

— Kevin McVicker

New book tackles NFL’s code of silence“League of Denial — The NFL,Concussions and the Battle for the Truth”

Crown Archetype (October 8, 2013) • 416 pages

Book Review

By Mark Fainaru-Wada andSteve Fainaru

Fainaru-Wada and Fainaru




WASHINGTON REPORT

Chicago-based FoodMinds has developed the Food LabelCompass to help marketers deal with the Food & DrugAdministration’s impending overhaul of nutrition labeling.

Bill Layden, Co-Founder and Partner, sees a robust demand forits FLC as many food companies lack the internal savvy requiredto handle the complex FDA process.Since the FDA nutrition guidelines are 20 years old, many com-

panies need to be educated about how the process plays out,Layden told O’Dwyer’s.FoodMinds partnered with Nutritional Impact, a consulting firm

that analyzes dietary intake trends and develops science-basedmessages for clients, and EAS Consulting Group, a regulatoryconsulting company, for the creation of the FLC.The FLC will analyze food and nutriental content of a brand rel-

ative to the new FDA rules, develop labels modified to complywith the updated requirements and forge PR programs to ensurebands are used in the way that is intended.The FDA may make an official announcement about the change

in food labeling by the end of the year.FoodMinds recruited Robert Post, USDA’s Center for Nutrition

Policy and Promotion associate executive director, last month as itsfirst chief science officer.He will lead the Washington office with Foodminds co-founder

and partner Susan Pitman. £

FoodMinds offers compass toguide regulatory overhaul

US Investigations Services, the background screener andsecurity firm that vetted rogue contractor EdwardSnowden for government work, has engaged crisis PR

counsel as it faces legal and image fallout.The Falls Church, Va.-based company, which is the federal

government’s top contractor for employee background checksand conducted a check in 2007 on Washington Navy Yard shooter Aaron Alexis, is working with Sard Verbinnen & Co.Sard has advised parent company Providence Equity Partners inthe past. Managing director Brandy Bergman is speaking forUSIS.USIS was dealt another blow Oct. 30 when the U.S. Dept. of

Justice said it joined a two-year-old whistleblower lawsuitagainst USIS alleging it failed to execute quality control reviewson its background checks.“We will not tolerate shortcuts taken by companies that we

have entrusted with vetting individuals to be given access to ourcountry’s sensitive and secret information,” said AssistantAttorney General Stuart Delery.The Wall Street Journal reported that USIS rushed background

checks for security clearances to meet quotas. Former companyofficials told the paper that CEO Bill Mixon demanded employ-ees “do what it takes” to finish checks, “even if they aren’t thor-oughly vetted.” Bergman told the Journal that USIS takes the allegations seri-

ously: “Since they were first brought to our attention over oneyear ago, we have acted decisively to ensure the quality of ourwork and adherence to [government] requirements.”USIS earned $253 million in federal work last year. £

Security screener that vettedSnowden finds PR help

Doug Smith, a public and private sector communicationsadvisor, is stepping down from an assistant secretary role atthe U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security for the GM slot of

MWW's Washington operation.Marilyn Berry Thomspon, who led the DC office of MWW until

July, is now non-executive chairman and senior adviser.Smith led the Private Sector Office in four years at DHS,

advising Secretary Janet Napolitano on strategic communicationsand fostering ties with private sector companies and other institu-tions.He was previously Managing Partner of PA shop T Street

Partners, handling the push for Chicago to be a U.S. designate cityfor the 2016 Olympics. He was also a VP at Leo BurnettWorldwide on the U.S. Army’s “Army of One” PR and advertisingaccount, and worked in PA and press roles in the Clinton adminis-tration at Housing and Urban Development and the Dept. ofTransportation.President Barack Obama has nominated Jeh Johnson to take over

DHS, following Napolitano’s exit. Rand Beers is interim secretary.Smith takes an EVP and GM title at MWW.£

DHS’ Smith to lead MWW DC

The Jewish Agency for Israel, which promotesZionism/Judaism and Jewish immigration to Israel, hasregistered as a lobbyist with the U.S. Justice Dept.

The Government of Israel has granted a legal and publicvoluntary status upon JAFI, authorizing it to “develop and set-tle the country, absorb immigrants from the diaspora and coor-dinate activities with other groups in the country, according tothe federal filing.Haaretz reported Nov. 7 that Israel plans to hike overseas

spending by “hundreds of millions of shekels during the nextfew years” for outreach to Jews abroad and on college cam-puses across Americas as part of new campaign to strengthenJewish identity abroad and diaspora ties to the Jewish state.”Jewish Agency director Alan Hoffman said the government

currently spends $125 million a year on outreach effort. Morethan 120 Israeli and Jewish leaders have just wrapped up anoutreach “brainstorming summit” in Jerusalem, which JAIFpraised as a “historic moment.”JAFI’s programs also promote the study of the Hebrew lan-

guage, Jewish culture, history, philosophy, traditions and theachievement of the Zionist ideal. £

Jewish agency for Israelestablishes lobby beachhead



International PR News

Venn Strategies, LLC, Washington, D.C., registered October 31, 2013 for Government of Mongolia, China, to educate key stakeholders regardingopportunities for trade and investment in/with Mongolia as well as building awareness and recognition of the efforts of the government of Mongolia'sleadership and economic, geopolitical, and social policy initiatives of importance to the United States.

Patton Boggs, LLP, Washington, D.C., registered November 21, 2013 for Office of the National Security Advisor, Three Arms Zone, ThePresidency, Abuja, FCT, Nigeria, to provide comprehensive security/defense advice, to include pursuing potential donation by the U.S. Governmentto the Government of Nigeria excess military and law enforcement equipment.

Development Counsellors International, Washington, D.C., registered October 31, 2013 for Tourism & Events Queensland, Brisbane,Queensland, regarding public relations activities, including media pitching, developing key influencers, and producing key messages content.

¸ NEW FOREIGN AGENTS REGISTRATION ACT FILINGSFARA News

Below is a list of select companies that have registered with the U.S. Department of Justice, FARA Registration Unit, Washington,D.C., in order to comply with the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, regarding their consulting and communications work onbehalf of foreign principals, including governments, political parties, organizations, and individuals. For a complete list of filings,visit www.fara.gov.

G NEW LOBBYING DISCLOSURE ACT FILINGSBelow is a list of select companies that have registered with the Secretary of the Senate, Office of Public Records, and the Clerkof the House of Representatives, Legislative Resource Center, Washington, D.C., in order to comply with the Lobbying DisclosureAct of 1995. For a complete list of filings, visit www.senate.gov.

Cornerstone Government Affairs, LLC, Washington, D.C., registered November 22, 2013 for National College Players Association, Norlo,CA, regarding concussions, educational funding, anti-trust issues and general college athletics.

Gephardt Group Government Affairs, Washington, D.C., registered November 22, 2013 for National Association of Broadcasters,Washington, D.C., regarding issues related to carriage of television broadcasting signals.

Becker & Poliakoff, P.A., Washington, D.C., registered November 20, 2013 for Brady Center and Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence,Washington, D.C., regarding anti-violence public health and safety initiatives.

Lincoln Policy Group, Washington, D.C., registered November 20, 2013 for American Health Care Association, Washington, D.C., regardinglong-term care reform, Medicare and Medicaid funding, bad debt relief, and SGR replacement.

Lobbying News

Nigeria signed Patton Boggs to a one-year $3 millioncontract for counsel on defense and security issues withthe U.S.

A key focus for PB’s partner Gordon Arbuckle and seniordefense policy advisor John Garrett is donation of U.S. militaryand law enforcement equipment to oil-rich Nigeria.Arbuckle works with PB clients on matters related to the

business and environmental impact on energy and infrastruc-ture projects.Amnesty International in November issued a report on wide-

spread oil spills in Nigeria. It blamed pipeline corrosion andequipment failures as the major cause for the spills and namedShell Oil and Italy’s ENI as culprits.Garrett, a retired Marine Corps colonel, focuses on lining up

PB clients for federal grants/awards in the homeland securityand Iraq/Afghanistan reconstruction markets.On Nov. 13, the U.S. State Dept. designated Nigeria’s

Islamic breakaway group Boko Haram a terrorist organization.The U.S. marines have been working with the Nigerian mil-

itary to combat piracy off the African nation’s coast.PB’s contract is with Nigeria’s national security advisor. £

Nigeria awards $3M D.C. pactThe Egyptian Foreign Ministry is defending the hiring ofGlover Park Group to a monthly retainer of $250,000,one of the fattest government-relations contracts on file

at the Justice Dept.The contract, according to the Egyptian press, is under fire

by opponents of the junta that ousted freely elected presidentMohamed Morsi.On the evening of Oct. 26, the Ministry released a statement

to say that hiring a PR firm is “customary among the nationsof the world.” It wants to use GPG to make an impression inthe U.S. because America is a “large country with interests andconnections in different parts of the world.”The Ministry assured Egyptians that the government, not

GPG, would decide the “content of the message to be directedand targeted at either the U.S. administration, Congress,research centers or media.”The role of GPG is to use its contacts and connections to

relay Egypt’s position, according to the FM.The junta’s statement noted that past Egypt governments

have hired PR and lobbyists. It added that No. 1 adversaryMuslim Brotherhood political/cultural group has used outsidepaid pitchmen.The Government said the GPG is not a financial burden to

the people of Egypt because an unnamed third-party is pickingup the tab.GPG’s work began Oct. 15. Contract details became public

Egypt defends Glover Park pact Oct. 18. Mohamed Tawfik, ambassador to the U.S., signed thecontract on behalf of the Arab Republic of Egypt. WPP ownsGPG. £



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PR JOBS - http://jobs.odwyerpr.comLuxury Travel Public Relations Manager

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