PR Week (US) articles from June 2009

PR Week (US) archives from June 2009

Letter from the Editor: New format gives readers an in-depth look into industry.(Editorial)(Brief article)
June 8, 2009... Welcome to the new monthly print edition of PRWeek. Together with our online daily and weekly editions, this magazine aims to provide our readers with a universe of news and insight, reflecting the complexity of this vibrant industry. Some...

Contributors.
June 8, 2009... Maril MacDonald: CEO of Gagen MacDonald offers Op-Ed on how influence trumps control in the industry p. 24 Steve Cody: In Gloves Off, Peppercom's managing partner takes one side of a debate over monthly fixed retainers p. 26 Michael...

Transom.
June 8, 2009... WASHINGTON: The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) awarded Burson-Marsteller a dollars 3.5 million contract for PR and ad support for its extended digital TV consumer awareness campaign. The base period of the contract runs until June 12 -...

Microscope.
June 8, 2009... Chevron recently produced a video to tell its side of a dollars 27 billion lawsuit it is facing in Ecuador. It hired a former CNN correspondent to narrate the video, which included interviews with Chevron executives that disputed the company is...

Habits: Lynn casey, CEO of Padilla Spear Beardsley.(Interview)
June 8, 2009... Morning ritual Wake up to NPR's Morning Edition, a half hour on the elliptical, read print edition of local daily, sync schedules with the family. If I don't have a breakfast meeting, it's peanut butter toast and a protein shake for the...

PRPlay: KFC cooks up smart PR after free meal disaster.
June 8, 2009... Three things are universally true: Everyone loves Oprah; recession or not, everyone loves a free meal, and people love the Colonel's chicken. So when these three things collide, one can only expect a consumer tidal wave that will wash...

Books: House of Cards by William D. Cohan (Doubleday, 2009).
June 8, 2009... The collapse of 85-year-old Bear Stearns in late 2008 was the biggest early signal to the general public that something was very wrong on Wall Street. In House of Cards, William Cohan chronicles the investment bank's rise from second-tier...

Webwatch - www.prweekus.com.
June 8, 2009... PRWeek Live: This prolific section of the Web site includes video interviews with top PR pros as they discuss the most vital issues facing the industry. Subjects include Weber Shandwick's Jack Leslie (l); Tom Coyne, CEO of his eponymous firm;...

Launchpad: Farmers infuse local flavor to new effort for Lay's Potato Chips.
June 8, 2009... Company: Frito-Lay Campaign: Lay's Local PR team: Internal and Ketchum, LA Launch: May 12 Budget: Undisclosed Idea: This recent effort, 'Lay's Local,' touts the chips' origins, which Frito-Lay says are sourced from potatoes grown...

Marketing: Companies reexamine events' role in overall strategy in the wake of recession.
June 8, 2009... As budgets tighten and company objectives change, marketers are reevaluating how to efficiently incorporate events into their 2009 plans. This former PR 'must-have' faltered earlier in the year, and companies remain cautious about which events...

Marketing: InsideTheMix - Woolite weaves in new elements to promote fabric care campaign.
June 8, 2009... Company: Reckitt Benckiser (Woolite) Agency Mix: Schneider Associates, Euro RSCG Worldwide, MPG, Eastwest Marketing Group In-house team: Laurie Labesque, marketing director; JP Gonzalez, brand manager; Samir Chaudhary, assistant brand...

Marketing: CMO Q&A.
June 8, 2009... Xerox's Christa Carone speaks with Nicole Zerillo about the value of PR and how she measures individual success. PRWeek: What do you see as the role of PR in the marketing mix? Christa Carone: As a CMO, I think it has to be one, if not...

Public Affairs: Obama's ambitious agenda prompts a boost in issues-based communications.
June 8, 2009... As a new president and Democratic Congress took control this January, companies in already highly regulated industries prepared for an onslaught of government attention. But Barack Obama's administration's ambitious platform, which...

Public Affairs: Commentary - Beltway experience validates the increasing importance of strategic comms.
June 8, 2009... After leaving the White House as counselor to President George W. Bush at the end of his term this past January, many were surprised I didn't return to lobbying, but instead opened a new strategic planning and communications firm. Given the...

Public Affairs: DC influencer Q & A.(Americans for Tax Reform)(Interview)
June 8, 2009... Delivering a message Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, speaks to Douglas Quenqua about mobilizing forces around a key issue. PRWeek: Why are people so angry about taxes now? Grover Norquist: Spending has...

Digital: More b-to-b companies find that social media is an essential business platform.
June 8, 2009... Social media has changed the way companies interact with the average consumer. In the b-to-b space, tech companies have been among the first to use social media to communicate with clients, as well as others in their industry. However, as...

DIGITAL: Campaign of the month - Sears, Kmart open their doors for interactive customer communication.
June 8, 2009... Company: Sears Holdings Corp. Campaign: Launch of MySears.com and MyKmart.com PR Team: Sears and Euro RSCG Worldwide PR Duration: May 5-ongoing Budget: Undisclosed STRATEGY The unveiling of MySears.com and MyKmart.com is a way...

Digital: Domains - The month's buzziest Web service.
June 8, 2009... Ensembli.com What: Ensembli is a personalized, browser-based news aggregator that requires no additional software and filters content in a way that makes results more relevant for the user. The site displays headlines of articles, allowing...

Media: Critical Hit - Today spots serve as the perfect ingredient for Jif's branding effort.(Melinda Long)(Interview)
June 8, 2009... Name: Melinda Long, account supervisor, Cohn & Wolfe Placement: Today - March 19, 21, 28 Pitch timeline: One week Melinda Long: Jif's media goals for the year's Most Creative Peanut Butter Sandwich Contest were... to strengthen the...

Media: Journalist Q&A - Ali Velshi.(Interview)
June 8, 2009... Name: Ali Velshi Title: Host of Your dollars dollars dollars dollars dollars and The Ali Velshi Show, chief business correspondent Outlets: CNN, CNN Radio, CNN.com Live Preferred e-mail address: cnnradio@cnn.com Ali Velshi is a...

Media: Factfile - Newspaper program for Kindle DX creates opportunities, challenges.
June 8, 2009... In the news Amazon recently introduced the Kindle DX, the newest version of its Kindle mobile reading device. The company promises a higher-quality reading experience on the device because its screen, which shows content in shades of gray,...

Editorial: Comms must take the lead in organizations' social media shift.(Editorial)
June 8, 2009... The reality of the digital era is that communications is no longer the only voice for a company. There are already examples, like Comcast, in which employees outside of the traditional communications department are using the Web as a way to...

Op-Ed: Influence, not control, has become the key to success.
June 8, 2009... Seismic changes, driven by astonishingly rapid technological breakthroughs, have reshaped many of the underlying premises that define societies. While we accept that intractable forces like globalization and digitalization have altered the...

Op-Ed: An effective strategy in the battle to find diverse talent.
June 8, 2009... To ensure that diversity in the workforce prevails, our industry needs to devote efforts to recruit, develop, and retain talented minorities. There are many top-line methods to doing so. A good start is partnering with and sponsoring...

Opinion: Basics of PR measurement still provide valuable insight.
June 8, 2009... Among the many important issues in the PR industry, measurement is one that continues to elicit strong interest and opinions. PR pros are under more pressure than ever to prove ROI and the value of their efforts, so it's understandable that...

Opinion: The industry benefits from a strong trade publication.
June 8, 2009... I've always enjoyed working on trade publications because it allows me to truly get to know an industry and its people, often becoming a part of a community I might have never imagined existed. Beat reporters can do the same at a general news...

Gloves Off.
June 8, 2009... Are fixed monthly retainers the best billing option for PR agencies? YES - Sean Cassidy, President of DKC PR professional with nearly 20 years of experience, the past four in his current post At DKC, billing our clients via a set...

Columnist: Michael Oxley, The value of insight in an instant world.
June 8, 2009... In this new format of PRWeek, it seems appropriate to note the new challenges and opportunities for corporate or nonprofit PR pros. In the rapidly changing environment of how the public receives, perceives, creates, and interacts with...

Future on the line.
June 8, 2009... Facing competition from other disciplines, PR is fighting to keep, and grow, its piece of the digital pie. Aarti Shah reports. When Domino's Pizza set out to find an advertising agency two years ago, Crispin Porter + Bogusky (CPB) took the...

Campaigns: Aussie tie-in boosts Tim Tam debut.
June 8, 2009... Client: Pepperidge Farm (Norwalk, CT) PR team: DeVries Public Relations (New York) Campaign: Tim Tam US launch Duration: Nov. 2008-March 2009 Budget: Under dollars 100,000 STRATEGY 'There are brand advocates that will go to the...

Campaigns: Hampton Hotels renovates its ongoing initiative to honor American legends.
June 8, 2009... Client: Hampton Hotels (Memphis, TN) PR team: Cohn & Wolfe (Los Angeles) Campaign: Save-A-Landmark Duration: April-Oct. 2008 Budget: dollars 755,000 STRATEGY Working with AOR Cohn & Wolfe, the team launched two surveys to see...

Campaigns: Greyhound puts new bus line launch into motion by boosting social media presence.
June 8, 2009... Client: Greyhound (Dallas) PR team: Edelman (San Francisco) Campaign: New bus launch Duration: Nov. 2008-April 2009 Budget: dollars 75,000 STRATEGY 'We had to manage customer expectations because (the buses) would only be...

Measurement Roundtable: Defining value.(Discussion)
June 8, 2009... Be it tactics, investment, or integration, the measurement conversation continues to fundamentally change. Erica Iacono and Tonya Garcia were recently in New York for a Burrelles Luce-sponsored roundtable on the topic Latest advancements...

Newsmaker: Simon Sproule.(Company overview)
June 8, 2009... The auto PR veteran steps into Microsoft's top comms slot at a time when the company is preparing for big things - and he is more than up for the challenge. By all accounts, Microsoft is at a crossroads. From its birth in 1975, it has...

Expert View: Q&A.(Richard Strauss)(Interview)
June 8, 2009... Richard Strauss, president, Strauss Radio Strategies. - Q: What are common problems clients are turning to you to help resolve? A: The recession and the Obama administration's commitment to change are creating a lot of demand for radio...

People moves: Publicis appoints a new CEO of PR, Yahoo loses a VP, and more.
June 8, 2009... NEW YORK: Publicis Groupe dismantled its division that previously housed PR activities, Specialized Agencies and Marketing Services (SAMS), and appointed Olivier Fleurot CEO of all PR and events management companies, including MS&L and Publicis...

People moves: Yahoo.(Brad Williams)(Brief article)
June 8, 2009... SANTA CLARA, CA: Brad Williams, former VP of corporate communications at Yahoo, left the company, according to reports and his LinkedIn profile. The circumstances under which Williams, who had been acting as head of corporate communications...

People moves: SanDisk.
June 8, 2009... MILPITAS, CA: SanDisk hired Wendy Sept for the newly created position of director of worldwide retail PR. She most recently headed consumer marketplace PR for eBay. Sept will report to Ryan Donovan, senior director of corporate communications....

People moves: Nissan North America.
June 8, 2009... FRANKLIN, TN: Nissan North America hired Scott Stevens as VP of corporate communications for Nissan Americas. His responsibilities include product, corporate, and internal communications for all of the Americas. Stevens replaced Alan...

People moves: FD.(Brief article)
June 8, 2009... NEW YORK: FD promoted four staff members to MD in North America Jeannine Dowling is now MD in corporate communications, where she counsels on sustainability and regulatory issues. Evan Goetz is now MD in corporate communications and he oversees...

People moves: Discovery Communications.
June 8, 2009... SILVER SPRING, MD: Discovery Communications named Chance Patterson VP of international communications. He will lead development and implementation of all Discovery Networks International communications strategies. He reports to David Leavy, EVP...

Master Class: How can social media be used to extend the reach of a press release?
June 8, 2009... PANEL: Tom Becktold VP of marketing, Business Wire e-mail: Thomas.Becktold@businesswire.com Andy Keith Digital strategy manager, Weber Shandwick e-mail: andy.keith@webershandwick.com Paolina Milana VP of marketing, Marketwire e-mail:...

Last Don Spetner: The Peril of People Pleasing.(Diary entry)
June 8, 2009... If any of you have been to therapy (and if you haven't, schedule an appointment immediately), you've likely heard the phrase 'pleaser.' It's a personality type that constantly seeks to please others, always offering to be of help and to serve....