PR Week (UK) articles from January 2008

PR Week (UK) archives from January 2008

Brunswick set to replace Carter.
January 11, 2008... Brunswick is to begin the search for a new CEO after Stephen Carter left the City agency this week to be Gordon Brown's chief strategist. In a surprise move, Carter joined the Prime Minister's team after being approached at the end of last...

Suspensions row rocks Brown's schools team.
January 11, 2008... The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) has suspended two of its top communicators - while its comms director is on maternity leave. The department, headed by secretary of state Ed Balls, is responsible for pushing through...

How does your salary compare?
January 11, 2008... PRWeek's annual salary survey is now under way and we are calling on all UK PROs to help by filling in a short questionnaire. The 2008 report will be based on information submitted by both PR professionals and the companies that pay their...

UK public affairs head to boost Clinton's campaign.(Morgan Allen Moore)(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... A UK public affairs chief is commuting between London and the US to work for Hillary Clinton as the senator's campaign builds momentum following her New Hampshire victory. Steve Morgan, chairman of Morgan Allen Moore, spent the past week...

Clegg chief looks outside 'Westminster bubble'.
January 11, 2008... Nick Clegg's new press secretary has told PRWeek that she wants to make him better known among 'ordinary' people. Liberal Democrat leader Clegg poached his party's head of media Hannah Gardiner to be his top spokesperson last week. He has...

Energy body appoints chief as pressure builds.
January 11, 2008... The body representing UK energy companies is ushering in a new comms chief amid mounting concerns over gas and electricity price hikes. Kate Fielding will join the Energy Retail Association at the end of February, taking the title head of...

Hudson searches for new position.(Lucian Hudson)(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... Lucian Hudson is considering his next move after confirming he is to leave his job as director of comms at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). Hudson joined the FCO under Margaret Beckett in September 2006. He insisted he was...

National Opera loses director to equality group.
January 11, 2008... The newly formed Equality and Human Rights Commission has appointed its first director of external affairs after an exhaustive search. Mags Patten is expected to start the new job at the end of the month. She joins from the English National...

Talk to promote contentious mag.
January 11, 2008... US-based fashion retailer Abercrombie & Fitch is to use Talk PR to launch its controversial A&F Quarterly publication in the UK. The magazine was axed in the US after public outrage over erotic images four years ago. Four US states...

Six-figure L'Oreal account for Cow.
January 11, 2008... L'Oreal has handed Cow PR a pounds 100,000-plus corporate and consumer account after a competitive pitch. Cow will help to build L'Oreal's ethical brand credentials. This includes communicating corporate initiatives such as the Women in...

Pharoah leaves H&K for top role at Wrigleys.
January 11, 2008... Hill & Knowlton's EMEA head of corporate is quitting the agency after 12 years to join confectioner Wrigley. Andrew Pharoah joins the chewing gum manufacturer as director of public affairs and comms EMEA and India - the top comms role in...

Horror revisited.
January 11, 2008... A former BBC head of special projects is to help relaunch the cult horror studio Hammer Films. Ian Johnson Publicity has been hired by the studio as it prepares to release its first film in more than 20 years The agency has been tasked with...

News Brief: Gulf Air to hold pitch.
January 11, 2008... CORPORATE: Gulf Air - the flag carrier for the Kingdom of Bahrain - is holding a pitch for a global PR agency. Four Communications resigned the airline's account four months ago to work for Etihad

News Brief: Porter Novelli partners with Shunya.
January 11, 2008... AGENCY: Porter Novelli has partnered with Shunya Communications Group, one of China's largest integrated PR and marketing groups, to create Shunya International. The agency was founded after parent company Omnicom bought a minority stake in...

News Brief: Listerine appoints Weber Shandwick.
January 11, 2008... AGENCY: Listerine has appointed Weber Shandwick after a three-way pitch to promote the mouthwash brand's campaign for better oral health Wine and spirits firm Pernod Ricard UK has also hired Weber Shandwick to handle trade communications for 14...

News Brief: Beattie poaches Rawlins.
January 11, 2008... AGENCY: Beattie Communications has poached Justine Rawlins, MD of Staniforth Communications, to be a senior member of its management team She will report to group MD Laurna O'Donnell.

News Brief: Lansons merges divisions.
January 11, 2008... AGENCY: Lansons Communications has merged its online and broadcast divisions to create Lansons Live, which will focus on digital communications such as social networking and blogging. The team is headed up by former CNN series producer...

News Brief: Oxygen hires Fleishman-Hillard.
January 11, 2008... CONSUMER: Electric scooter manufacturer Oxygen has hired Fleishman-Hillard as its first PR agency. The scooters will be targeted towards the delivery market including postal and food deliveries

News Brief: The Money Centre hires Band & Brown.
January 11, 2008... CORPORATE: Buy-to-let mortgage broker The Money Centre has hired Band & Brown Communications as its retained PR agency. The Norwich-based agency won the five-figure account in a three-way pitch

News Brief: Correction.(Correction notice)
January 11, 2008... PRWeek notes that the chair of the Charity Commission Dame Suzi Leather did not say that Lifeline was the model that all charities should follow (News, 14 December 2007). She commended Lifeline's fundraising guidelines as good practice

Agency called in for dancer Dixon.(Liz Matthews PR)(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... Strictly Come Dancing winner Alesha Dixon has hired a PR agency as she attempts to capitalise on her turn on the BBC1 show. Liz Matthews PR is charged with developing a PR strategy to incorporate Dixon's TV, music and acting work. ...

Pleon launches legal advice arm.(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... EMEA-wide consultancy Pleon has followed the lead of larger global agencies Ketchum and Bell Pottinger by launching a specialist litigation comms practice. The new division will advise Pleon's clients in its 32 European offices on all...

Time Out drafts in The SPA Way to handle busy year.(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... Time Out has appointed The SPA Way to handle its consumer business following a six-way pitch. The SPA Way fended off rivals Resonate, Exposure, DSA, Frank and Braben to win the sought-after brief. The agency starts immediately and will...

Green Party's mayoral bid secures agency help.
January 11, 2008... The Green Party has called in a PR agency to aid its London mayoral candidate Sian Berry in her bid to achieve a strong showing in this year's election. As well as devising the campaign's PR strategy, Global Tolerance will advise the...

MoD loses chief to BearingPoint.(James Clark)(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has lost its director of news to a management and technology consultancy, after five and a half years of service. Former Daily Mail and Sunday Times journalist James Clark has joined BearingPoint as its first...

Exposure pays thousands over Kidman scent row.
January 11, 2008... Consumer agency Exposure has been forced to pay thousands of pounds for its involvement in a spat between The Daily Telegraph newspaper and actress Nicole Kidman, currently the face of Chanel. The row began late last year when The Daily...

Gyro buys out HSD Communications.(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... Integrated comms agency Gyro International has made its first move into the PR industry with the acquisition of healthcare PR shop HSD Communications. HSD currently has a turnover of pounds 2m and a staff of 20. Founder and MD Lesley...

Black housing group to battle against closure.
January 11, 2008... One of the biggest UK ethnic minority housing providers has brought in PR support as it fights a government bid to merge it into a mainstream housing association. Regulatory body the Housing Corporation wants Ujima Housing Association,...

Lucre to push luxury hotels.
January 11, 2008... Global luxury hotel brand Preferred Hotel Group has appointed consumer shop Lucre to oversee European PR for four establishments. The group represents hotels including Ireland's K Club, The Hempel in London and Hotel Balzac in Paris. ...

Manchester's MC2 agency takes over Vertigo PR.
January 11, 2008... Vertigo PR, the Manchester consumer agency launched by former Communique MD Nathalie Bagnall, has been acquired by fellow Manchester agency MC2. MC2 specialises in B2B and professional services PR. Bagnall said the deal was worth around...

Clear winner for lightbulb campaign.
January 11, 2008... A company that makes energy-efficient lightbulbs has hired its first PR agency, as the Government presses ahead with plans to ban incandescent bulbs by 2011. Greenled has briefed Clear Communications to raise awareness of its sustainable...

Heading north.(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... Tenerife, the Canary Island often seen as the home of boozy Brits abroad, has hired The Brighter Group in a bid to overhaul its image and attract a more upmarket crowd. Brighter will focus on promoting the north of the island. Most Brits...

Public Sector: Liverpool hires agencies to push year of culture.
January 11, 2008... A trio of agencies have been signed up to promote Liverpool's debt-ridden 2008 European Capital of Culture project. Four Communications, LD Communications and Bolton & Quinn have been appointed to promote different parts of the year-long...

Public Sector: Councils unite to recycle.
January 11, 2008... Surrey County Council and 11 neighbouring district and borough councils have grouped together to hire a PR agency to push a new recycling incentive. 3 Monkeys Communications has been appointed for a six-figure sum to persuade Surrey...

Public Sector: New approach to stop smoking.
January 11, 2008... The Government has dropped previous shock tactics for this year's stop-smoking campaign. Launched on New Year's Eve, the latest campaign takes on a more supportive role. Retained agency Fishburn Hedges is spearheading the campaign. ...

Public Sector: Wake up and smell the climate change.
January 11, 2008... 2007 was the year that the great British public, as water lapped around their ankles in some cases, woke up to climate change. Nearly nine in ten now say they are worried about it, and 75 per cent disagree that too much fuss is being made....

Voluntary Sector: Tory MP lauded for street stunt.
January 11, 2008... The comms manager at homelessness charity Thames Reach has praised Tory housing spokesman Grant Shapps for spending Christmas Eve sleeping in a London street to highlight homelessness. Shapps visited two Thames Reach hostels before spending...

Voluntary Sector: Mind's shake-up as director quits.(Ruth Evans)(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... Mental health charity Mind is reviewing its comms department following the departure of its top communicator. Ruth Evans was director of fundraising and comms for five years, but left to go freelance at the end of 2007. Mind is...

Voluntary Sector: Munro & Forster chases McDonald's children brief.
January 11, 2008... The charity supported by fast food giant McDonald's is poised to call in Munro & Forster as it looks to double in size over the next five years. Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) is on the verge of signing up agency support for the...

Voluntary Sector: Clifford to offer fundraising help.
January 11, 2008... Max Clifford is to speak at a charity comms conference on how charities can work effectively with celebrities. The publicist will address delegates at PRWeek's sister magazine Third Sector's 'Fundraising, PR and Communications Excellence'...

Voluntary Sector: Geronimo loses director to social change agency.
January 11, 2008... Geronimo Communcations director Peter Gilheany has left to head up the corporate department at social change agency Forster. His departure comes only weeks after Geronimo founder Karen Harris left to set up a mentoring charity at the...

Voluntary Sector: Sleep safe.(Spa PR Company)(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... Save the Children has teamed up with The Giant Sleepover to raise funds for children in emergency situations. The charity's PROs and The Spa PR Company will promote the sleepovers, taking place on 14 and 15 June, with over 40,000 children...

Public Affairs: Precise directors acquire agency in two-year deal.(Precise Public Affairs)(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... Precise Public Affairs has been bought out by its directors Chris Lowe and Robbie MacDuff. The six-strong lobbying firm will keep the same name after the two directors agreed a deal with parent firm Unique Communications Group. MacDuff...

Public Affairs: Google tops new thought index.(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... Google tops the first 'thought leadership index' compiled by recently formed consultancy The Ledbury Group and opinion research firm Populus. The index claims to reveal which businesses, individuals and not-for-profit organisations are...

Public Affairs: Select committee reveals dates.(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... The Public Administration Select Committee will resume its lobbying inquiry on 24 January. The committee will then hold a session every Thursday 'for the next three or four weeks', according to a spokeswoman. Members of the committee had...

Public Affairs: Connect loses director to LGIU.(Local Government Information Unit)(Connect Public Affairs)(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... Connect Public Affairs director Andy Sawford has been appointed chief executive of the Local Government Information Unit (LGIU). Sawford joined Connect in 2004, having previously worked for a number of Labour MPs including Rosie Winterton,...

Public Affairs: Network Rail on ropes as press chief steps down.(Chris Rumfitt quits)(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... Network Rail's media and public affairs chief has resigned as the beleaguered company fights to restore its reputation following a disastrous start to the year. Head of external comms Chris Rumfitt will leave at the end of the month. He is...

Public Affairs: Insight to lobby MPs as reading initiative begins.
January 11, 2008... Insight Public Affairs is to raise political awareness of reading initiatives, as the Government kicks off a major drive to promote literacy throughout 2008. The agency has been hired by the National Literacy Trust, which is responsible...

Healthcare: Medicom account director becomes new MD.(Medicom Group)(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... Surrey-based health PR specialist Medicom has appointed former account director Gaynor Hayburn as its new MD. Hayburn takes the reins from founder and chairman Martin Ellis. She has risen rapidly through the ranks since joining Medicom in...

Healthcare: PROs optimistic over 'self-care' proposals.
January 11, 2008... Healthcare public relations specialists look set to benefit from new government plans to urge millions of people with arthritis, asthma and heart failure to treat themselves. An internal government document leaked to The Daily Telegraph...

Healthcare: Mysterious exit for pharma boss.(Helen Bray leaves Bayer Schering Pharma)(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... Bayer Schering Pharma has axed its tops comms role following the departure of Helen Bray. The company would not comment on where Bray has moved to and she could not be reached as PRWeek went to press. Insiders suggest she is moving to a...

Healthcare: Gene therapy company searches for agency.
January 11, 2008... Biotech company Genzyme is on the hunt for a PR agency to handle the firm's UK corporate brand identity. The firm develops treatments for rare diseases and is a leader in cell and gene therapy in the UK. 'We are looking for an agency...

Healthcare: At a Glance - All hands to the pump at the Royal Marsden.
January 11, 2008... - Is this in the wake of last week's hospital fire? Correct. While the main challenge was clearly evacuating patients and staff safely from London's Royal Marsden cancer hospital, the establishment's high profile meant the PR team was also...

City & Corporate: Deals down on last year as Brunswick tops chart.
January 11, 2008... Brunswick sits at the top of the first Deal Watch chart of 2008 having worked on nearly pounds 8bn worth of deals through December 2007. The table is in marked contrast with last January's chart, which saw Maitland at the top, having worked...

City & Corporate: Sri Lanka drafts in agency.(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... The Central Bank of Sri Lanka has brought in Good Relations for an international campaign. The bank wants to build confidence in international business media based in London and Asia, and sees London as the ideal international hub from...

City & Corporate: FD snaps up Irish agency K Capital.
January 11, 2008... FD has bought Dublin-based K Capital Source - the financial agency that advises Aer Lingus, Smurfit Kappa and Independent News & Media. K Capital was founded in 2003 by Mark Kenny and Jonathan Neilan, cashing in on Ireland's booming...

City & Corporate: M:Comms set for a happy new year.
January 11, 2008... A report by the British Venture Capital Association last year highlighted how much money the City made on the back of private equity and singled out the PR industry in particular. Private equity houses do not spend much on themselves, but they...

Technology: Fashion site lures H&K PRO in-house.
January 11, 2008... An online fashion site has taken its PR in-house after hiring a staffer from its former agency. Lauren Cleak, who managed the my-wardrobe.com account at Hill & Knowlton, said the fashion site had decided to move its PR operations in-house...

Technology: Bite secures UK brief for Bluetooth pioneer Parrot.
January 11, 2008... Bluetooth firm Parrot has brought in Bite after parting company with Nelson Bostock. The agency will handle all UK PR for Parrot, the biggest Bluetooth developer in Europe and one of the most resilient 'start-ups' to emerge from the...

Technology: Lewis to promote IT headhunter.
January 11, 2008... An AIM-listed IT consultancy has hired Lewis PR for a corporate campaign focusing on the skills shortage in the computing industry. After a three-way pitch, InterQuest retained Lewis for all its UK PR work. The company specialises in...

Technology: We need to catch up fast if we want to own word-of-mouth.
January 11, 2008... The industry has an opportunity to reclaim online communications from advertisers and marketers, says Alex Burmaster. PR people were the first to really understand the value of measuring consumer-generated media online and the impact they...

Media Relations: What the Papers say - Heated debate on energy hikes.(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... Npower's announcement of a hike in both gas and electricity prices, described by Giuseppe Di Vita, managing director of its residential business, as a 'fact of life', provoked much sparring among energy price watchers. Karl Brookes,...

Media Relations: 2 Minutes with... Sammy Jacob, Programming director, NME Radio.
January 11, 2008... - IPC Ignite and DX Media will launch national 24/7 music station NME Radio in mid-2008. Tell us about it. The station is for fans of rock music from the 1960s to now. It will be the 'real thing' in the sense that it will be run and...

Media Relations: Contact book update.
January 11, 2008... PRESS John Mulholland has replaced Roger Alton as editor of The Observer Mulholland was deputy editor at the paper for nine years. Lisa Bachelor, deputy personal finance editor, will be consumer affairs correspondent. Elizabeth Colman...

Media Analysis: Changing the face of women's titles.
January 11, 2008... With its focus on the self-analytical, Psychologies ventures into unknown territory for a women's magazine. Clare O'Connor discovers its desire for PROs to offer enlightened ideas, rather than predictable beauty releases. Psychologies is a...

News Analysis: Gazing into the industry crystal ball.
January 11, 2008... From taking action to combat climate change to spotting the next agency to be snapped up and preparing for a shake-up in the recruitment industry - PRWeek readers predict what 2008 has in store for them. CSR SOLITAIRE TOWNSEND, CEO,...

Profile: The town crier of the internet - Larry Weber - Founder, W2 Group.(Interview)
January 11, 2008... Larry Weber is almost 24 hours late for his PRWeek interview. Thanks to the worst ice storm the east coast of the US has seen in years, he spent hours at Boston airport while his UK minions frantically rearranged his schedule. When he finally...

Opinion: Railway needs a unified voice for 2008.
January 11, 2008... Already they have the look of the iconic news pictures of the New Year. Just as the images of Northern Rock queues set a lasting tone for 2007, pictures of engineers working on deserted railway lines will be synonymous with the problems of...

Opinion: Christmas break goes in Brown's favour.
January 11, 2008... When I recommended that the Prime Minister should take a long holiday break and come back from Scotland refreshed, even I did not expect this strategy to prove so successful. Without uttering one word over Christmas, except to make comment...

Editorial: Behind the scenes at the Obama show.(Editorial)(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... The Barack Obama show has rolled into the global consciousness, offering what suddenly looks like an irresistible blend of hope and confidence to an American public jaded by war and terrorism. Spare a thought for UK lobbyist Steve Morgan,...

Opinion: Letters - We can make moral decisions ourselves.(Letter to the editor)
January 11, 2008... I read with some dismay the story in PRWeek concerning the CIPR's move to draw up guidelines around junk food and computer game promotion to under-16s (News, 14 December 2007). Having been the most senior PR person at Nickelodeon for more...

Opinion: Letters - Be grown up about marketing to kids.(Letter to the editor)
January 11, 2008... Marketing to children is one issue on which the PR industry should act like a grown up rather than a stroppy teenager dragged kicking and screaming to the debating table. While I have considerable respect for Graham Lancaster, I do not...

Opinion: Letters - Has Whelan finally lost the political plot?(Letter to the editor)
January 11, 2008... OK, I'm biased, but Charlie's piece on 14 December was off the wall! Take the four most perplexing statements. First: 'There is a sense in Westminster that Brown has turned the corner.' Oh no there isn't! Second: '...still a remarkable unity...

Opinion: ViewPoint - Don't let the workforce be the last to know.
January 11, 2008... Propeller PR founder Martin Loat urges PROs to consider a client's internal staff communications when releasing company information to the media. In this week's podcast, available at www.prweek.com/uk, he says: 'In some cases the workforce...

Campaign: Free breast cancer screening triumph - Not for profit.
January 11, 2008... Campaign: Screening Saves Lives Client: Breakthrough Breast Cancer PR Team: In-house Timescale: September 2006 - October 2007 Budget: pounds 35,000 OBJECTIVES To get the Government to review the current upper age limit for...

Campaign: Facebook helps launch Fujifilm youth camera - Consumer.
January 11, 2008... Campaign: Launch of Fujifilm Fine Pix Z10fd Client: Fujifilm UK PR Team: Golden Goose PR Timescale: August - December 2007 Budget: c.pounds 100,000 OBJECTIVES To position the Fujifilm FinePix Z10fd as the perfect 'social...

Campaign: Healthy success for Manchester festival - Event.
January 11, 2008... Campaign: Launching 10th Manchester Food and Drink Festival Client: Manchester Food and Drink Festival PR Team: Pazang PR Timescale: March - October 2007 Budget: c. pounds 10,000 OBJECTIVES To drive footfall to the festival and...

View From the Top: Ekow Eshun - The face of determination.
January 11, 2008... Ekow Eshun rose through the ranks of trend-setting journalism at record speed, before reinvigorating one of London's premier arts venues Adam Hill finds out how he has boosted the profile of the Institute of Contemporary Arts. Ekow Eshun...

Search engines: Why Google's threat is good news.
January 11, 2008... Google is cracking down on companies that artificially inflate the popularity of their website. Sean Hargrave looks at how digital agencies can benefit. The power of Google is obvious to any company in communications. It accounts for 85...

Diary: A match made in PRWeek heaven.(Diary entry)
January 11, 2008... Diary has returned, sated from a diet of Aunt Bessie's Yorkshire puddings, Brussels sprouts and turkey, and looking somewhat like a Texan with a thyroid problem. So an invitation to a big bash was met with slight trepidation - until Diary...

Diary: Carter will do his utmost for Brown.(Brief article)
January 11, 2008... More celebrations around Stephen Carter's desk at Brunswick. The former Ofcom chief exec and City agency CEO has landed a prime role advising Gordon Brown. It is likely Carter's bank manager is less pleased, noting that the bespectacled...

Diary: Boris gets into the thick of things.(Diary entry)
January 11, 2008... The PM is not the only politician hiring a strategist to improve his reputation. Gaffe-prone mayoral wannabe Boris Johnson has brought in Lynton Crosby in a bid to persuade people that he is no longer prone to gaffes. Crosby masterminded...

Diary: PROs are all shook up in Manchester.
January 11, 2008... On a lighter note, and riding the crest of the cultural wave like a cryogenics experiment thawed after a decade of slumber, the Manchester PR scene is apparently devoid of innovation and in dire need of shaking up. First Nina Wheeler...

Diary: Hit or Miss... Celebrity foul-up.
January 11, 2008... Sainsbury's was looking down the barrel of bad publicity after not handling its celebrity face. Chef and good food campaigner Jamie Oliver has questioned why Sainsbury's - for which he fronts ads - would not take part in a televised debate...