PR Week (UK) articles from May 2008

PR Week (UK) archives from May 2008

Liverpool owner brings in Freud.
May 2, 2008... Tom Hicks, the embattled joint owner of Liverpool Football Club, is poised to hire Freud Communications in a bid to improve his image. This follows a very public spat with co-owner George Gillett and chief executive Rick Parry over the...

Agencies feeling the bite of economic downturn.(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... Fresh fears of a downturn in the PR industry have been sparked by a prediction that one in eight consultancies could disappear within two years. More than half of the 972 agencies polled by Plimsoll Publishing have seen their margins fall...

Cracknell resigns after short spell with FD-LLM.
May 2, 2008... FD's public affairs arm FD-LLM has been left reeling by the shock resignation of its chairman David Cracknell. Cracknell joined the agency amid much fanfare barely four months ago after a six-year stint as The Sunday Times' political...

Details of MoD spend revealed.(Ministry of Defence)(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... The Ministry of Defence (MoD) will spend pounds 750,000 of a pounds 54.1m recruitment budget on 'traditional' PR campaigns this financial year. The majority of the latter budget will be used on advertising and PR campaigns designed to...

Boris better at PR but Ken tipped to win, says PRCA.
May 2, 2008... Boris ran the best campaign but Ken will win the London mayoral election, said top PR professionals this week. As PRWeek went to press, 70 per cent of the PRCA Leaders' Panel said they felt Boris Johnson had run the best campaign, but more...

Media Zoo says strike will boost refinery's image.
May 2, 2008... Media consultancy Media Zoo, the agency at the centre of the Grangemouth oil dispute, has said it will use the coverage to boost the profile of Ineos once the strike is settled. Ineos, the Scottish refinery that has fallen out with workers...

Viewpoint: Remembering the last fuel strike.(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... Grangemouth is a timely reminder of the overwhelming power of public mood in a complex modern economy. Last time was in 2000, when 200 fuel-price protesters brought the economy to its knees in six days and shook our political elite to the core....

'Handful' to pitch for eBay account.
May 2, 2008... Auction site eBay is seeking an agency to provide corporate PR and public affairs support. The online marketplace wants one agency to provide both services and is down to a shortlist of a 'handful' of agencies that will pitch in the next...

Irish footie lures Ryanair PR chief.
May 2, 2008... Ryanair's head of comms Peter Sherrard is leaving the airline to join the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) as director of comms. From 13 May, Sherrard will be responsible for FAI's corporate comms activity, a role that has been vacant...

Bell Pottinger to help spread Muslim views.
May 2, 2008... Bell Pottinger is working with polling firm Gallup to promote better understanding of Muslims in the West. The agency has been brought in to promote the Muslim West Fact Initiative project, a database containing ordinary Muslims' opinions...

Lingerie online.
May 2, 2008... Online underwear retailer Figleaves.com has hired Maverick Publicity to handle its external press and PR activity. The agency will develop brand-building campaigns to promote the decade-old online retailer. The account will be headed by...

News Brief: Whitehall's speechwriter sets up own agency.
May 2, 2008... AGENCY: Simon Lancaster, Whitehall's longest serving speechwriter, has set up his own agency, named Bespoke Speechwriting Services. He most recently wrote for Health Secretary Alan Johnson

News Brief: Co-operative Insurance hands retained brief to MC2.
May 2, 2008... CONSUMER: The Co-operative Insurance has handed a retained brief to Manchester-based MC2. The agency will raise the brand's profile with key stakeholders and implement a national consumer campaign to compete with major insurance players

News Brief: DSM appoints Cake to launch Teavigo.
May 2, 2008... CONSUMER: Vitamin supplier DSM has appointed Cake to launch high-potency green tea extract Teavigo as an ingredient for beverages, food and dietary supplements

News Brief: PR Academy announces bursary awards.
May 2, 2008... AGENCY: Training provider PR Academy has announced two bursary awards for CIPR qualifications. The awards will help PROs who want to achieve a professional qualification but are unable to fund the cost Applications should be made by 31 May.

News Brief: Agencies fighting for CIPR Excellence Award.
May 2, 2008... TRADE: Lexis PR, London Communications Agency, Blue Rubicon, Fishburn Hedges, 3 Monkeys Communications and Cow PR are among the agencies fighting for the CIPR Excellence Award for outstanding consultancy. The winner will be announced on 15...

From prweek.com.
May 2, 2008... AGENCY: 3 Monkeys Communications has launched a sister agency to deal with conflict clients. Challenger Brand PR will operate from its Oxford office and be headed by 3 Monkeys head of news Howard Bowden. CONSUMER: William Grant & Sons...

Ex-Sainsbury's PRO joins Cirkle.
May 2, 2008... Sainsbury's former head of consumer PR has joined grocery specialist agency Cirkle as client services director. Sarah Leaman had been at the supermarket for three years until her departure in December, reporting to director of comms Pip...

Onyx founder takes on European role with B-M.(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... Healthcare shop Onyx Health's founding partner Karen Winterhalter is joining Burson-Marsteller as leader of its European healthcare practice. She takes over from Paris-based Linda Pavy, who will now run B-M's healthcare nutrition work. ...

Woolworths picks new retail specialist.(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... Woolworths has brought in new agency backing after the end of its six-year relationship with The Ideas Network. The high-street retailer was in talks with three agencies before deciding on retail specialist ZPR. ZPR will start work in...

Baxters seeks to expand support.(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... Food group Baxters is believed to be on the hunt for new agency support. The group has been in talks with agencies this week, inviting credentials as it reviews its current PR needs. Baxters said there was no brief in the marketplace,...

LCA now in rightful place in Top 150.(London Communications Agency)(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... Last week's PRWeek Top 150 table ran the rule over the most influential PR agencies. However, London Communications Agency (LCA) was omitted, despite it sending in a completed form. A data entry error resulted in its figures (pounds...

Birley to 'hold the fort' at Bite.(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... Lexis PR CEO Hugh Birley is to take the reins at Next Fifteen Group sister agency Bite Communications. As interim MD, Birley will 'hold the fort' until the agency finds a replacement for outgoing MD David Hargreaves. Hargreaves is leaving...

Google Enterprise starts trawl for agency support.
May 2, 2008... Google Enterprise, a division of Google that offers businesses their own search engines, is on the hunt for agency support. Head of comms Annette Ryszkowska confirmed that the division was looking for an external agency and said she...

Good Relations to advise Kellogg's.
May 2, 2008... Cereal giant Kellogg's has hired Good Relations to handle its digital PR activity. The agency won the account following a five-way pitch. The appointment follows Kellogg's decision to move the bulk of its consumer account out of Munro &...

Public Sector: Facebook used to beat criminals.
May 2, 2008... Greater Manchester Police is claiming to be the first police force in the country to use social networking site Facebook to fight crime. A special application has been developed in-house by the force's web unit to raise awareness of local...

Public Sector: Drug treatment agency nabs DoH head of news.
May 2, 2008... The Department of Health's (DoH) head of news has taken a role spearheading the Government's drug treatment strategy. DoH deputy director of comms (news) Jon Hibbs leaves his post after six years for a one-year secondment at the National...

Public Sector: Kent seeks help for youth plans.
May 2, 2008... Kent County Council is seeking an agency to design a 'hard-hitting' campaign to deter young people from drug and alcohol abuse, smoking and risking their sexual health. Kent wants an agency that can devise and advise on a campaign strategy...

Public Sector: May heads Forestry Commission team.
May 2, 2008... The Forestry Commission of Scotland has boosted its comms and secretariat team by appointing a new head of communications. Sheryl May joins from Scottish Water, where she was commercial marketing manager, leading the effort to raise...

Public Sector: BERR cuts external PR spend by two-thirds.
May 2, 2008... The Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) has bucked the trend of growing funding for PR by reducing its spending by two-thirds over the past four years. BERR was formed in June 2007 but largely carries out the...

Public Sector: Golley Slater lands two green contracts.
May 2, 2008... Golley Slater has won two environmental contracts in Wales. The agency's Cardiff office has won Carbon Trust Wales and retained the Waste Awareness Wales campaign. The agency will provide Carbon Trust Wales with regional PR support to...

Public Sector: Conference shows our public value.(Conference news)
May 2, 2008... Now it's down to business for London's mayor and, whoever has won, it's not going to be easy. Scare big business away and the country suffers. Mess up on the small details that make living in a city heaven or hell and vital workers will think...

Voluntary Sector: Charity drive on World Asthma Day.
May 2, 2008... Asthma UK is calling on the Government to end the 'lottery' faced by children with asthma when accessing local health services. 'Wish You Were Here?' will launch on 6 May - World Asthma Day. It aims to persuade parents, governments and...

Voluntary Sector: Greenpeace tactics are pointless, says Lexis PR.(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... Lexis PR has called Greenpeace tactics 'pointless' after it became one of three agencies targeted in an anti-Unilever campaign last week (PRWeek, 25 April). The agency criticised its tactics, saying it should have made an appointment to...

Voluntary Sector: Fawcett Society seeks PR chiefs.
May 2, 2008... Women's rights organisation the Fawcett Society has created two specialist in-house PR roles for the first time. It is on the hunt for a head of campaigns and a senior comms officer, which it hopes to have in place by August. The group...

Voluntary Sector: Pitch to promote Chance to Shine cricket campaign.
May 2, 2008... A charitable body set up by the world of cricket has brought in agency backing for the first time. The Cricket Foundation's Chance to Shine campaign is looking to raise pounds 250,000 from members of the public in 2008 and has hired sports...

Voluntary Sector: WWF backlash works in its favour.(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... WWF's head of press and media relations has said the adverse reaction over the 'Stinky Fish' campaign actually made more people aware of the issue. 'If anything, the hullabaloo that surrounded Stinky Fish helped push the issue further into...

Voluntary Sector: Homeless protest.
May 2, 2008... A ten-day protest outside Aberdeen City Council arranged by homeless charity The Cyrenians has attracted widespread interest. The protest has been picked up by BBC Scotland, STV and local radio. More than 40 articles have appeared over the past...

Public Affairs: Select committee to quiz Murphy on career move.(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... APCO UK MD Darren Murphy has been summoned to appear before the public administration select committee as it enters the final stages of its lobbying inquiry. The committee wants to grill former Downing Street aide Murphy about his...

Public Affairs: APPC narrows search for chair.
May 2, 2008... Two lobbyists are now in the frame to be the next chair of the Association of Professional Political Consultants (APPC). Precise Public Affairs director Robbie MacDuff and Foresight Consulting MD Mark Adams are both believed to have thrown...

Public Affairs: Ingham berates leaders for over-reliance on PR.
May 2, 2008... Margaret Thatcher's former press handler has argued that no amount of PR support can now restore Gordon Brown's reputation. Bernard Ingham also warned Tory leader David Cameron not to rely too heavily on his comms director Andy Coulson to...

Public Affairs: Lexington and FD look north for expansion plans.
May 2, 2008... Lexington Communications is understood to be opening a public affairs shop in the north of England. Headhunters are said to have been contacting senior PROs at northern agencies in the hope of hiring an MD for a Manchester branch of the...

Public Affairs: PSA lands political brief for retail firm.(Home Retail Group)(PSA Communications)(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... The company behind Argos and Homebase has handed a major public affairs account to PSA Communications. The London-based agency has been brought in by Home Retail Group to monitor political issues affecting the retail industry in the UK and...

Public Affairs: ABI director exits for association.(Association of British Insurers)(resignation of Leaman, Alan)(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... The ABI, the trade association for Britain's insurance industry, is to lose its longstanding corporate affairs director after seven years. Alan Leaman is leaving this summer to join the Management Consultancies Association as chief...

Healthcare: Media Safari to back Siemens product range.
May 2, 2008... Siemens Medical Solutions (SMS) has hired healthcare technology specialists Media Safari for a trade PR brief. The appointment follows a competitive pitch against four undisclosed agencies. The campaign will involve raising the profile...

Healthcare: Healthcare specialists hit back at damning web report.
May 2, 2008... Senior healthcare PROs have spoken out against a report criticising the pharma industry's reluctance to take advantage of online marketing opportunities. The report by Datamonitor, released last week, said the industry has been slow to...

Healthcare: Staff changes at clinical excellence body.
May 2, 2008... The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has appointed a new associate director of external comms. Philip Ranson has been promoted from his role as comms manager to replace Lucy Betterton, who is on 12 months...

Healthcare: At a Glance - UCL and Moorfields PROs eye up coverage of trial.
May 2, 2008... - Is this the blind teenager whose eyesight improved? He isn't blind but suffers from Leber's congenital amaurosis, a condition that causes progressive loss of vision. Steven Howarth, 18, found his night vision had significantly improved...

City & Corporate: Brunswick loses research chief to Gavin Anderson.(appointment of Deasy, June)(appointment of Poston, Tom (British excicutive))(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... Gavin Anderson has poached one of Brunswick's research chiefs to set up its own dedicated research arm. The move follows Brunswick's efforts to create a new company within its dedicated research group. Tom Poston joins after nine years...

City & Corporate: Insurer offers crisis support.
May 2, 2008... A business venture between insurer Hiscox and agency Chelgate will see the insurer offer its own clients crisis management support. Corporate comms and PA agency Chelgate will be available to Hiscox clients that purchase additional cover...

City & Corporate: Bell Pottinger to aid Artumas oil.
May 2, 2008... Canadian oil, gas exploration and production company Artumas Group has brought in Bell Pottinger Corporate & Financial for an IR and financial brief. Although Artumas is a Canadian company, it focuses on exploration in East Africa and is...

City & Corporate: Bad news for BAA after leaks to press.
May 2, 2008... The interim report by the Competition Commission into the ownership of the most important London and Scottish airports by BAA was in the news last week. The commission will not produce its final report until later this year, but said that...

Technology: Toy site hunts for grown-ups.(WickedUncle.com )(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... Online toy retailer WickedUncle.com is targeting 'yummy mummies and silver surfers', capitalising on their disposable income. Loewy-owned consumer tech agency Custard PR has been retained on a new digital brief to drive traffic to the...

Technology: Three agencies battle it out for pounds 250k AMD pitch.
May 2, 2008... Microprocessor giant AMD has put its pounds 250,000 EMEA brief out to pitch, potentially ending its retainer relationship with Waggener Edstrom. According to a source close to AMD, the pitch took place last week, with Ketchum competing...

Technology: MS&L loses its telecoms chief.
May 2, 2008... Manning Selvage & Lee's head of tech and telecoms has left after less than two years in the role. Justin Hayward, who moved to MS&L from Ogilvy PR, is rumoured to be considering an in-house move. Tech PROs are calling his departure a...

Technology: Software tester AppLabs calls in Red Consultancy.
May 2, 2008... The Red Consultancy has been handed an EMEA brief from a global software testing company, beating three other UK agencies. The agency will position AppLabs as the leader in its field in the national and trade press. AppLabs tests...

Technology: WS to promote SurfKitchen brand.
May 2, 2008... A mobile software company backed by millions of pounds of private equity has brought in Weber Shandwick to ensure its name is 'in the minds and on the lips' of key media, analysts and industry leaders. SurfKitchen, whose investors include...

Technology: MySpace scene.(Outside Organisation)(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... The Outside Organisation is to publicise a new MySpace channel ahead of its launch in mid-May. The celebrity agency will promote 'Scene Junkie', which will feature exclusive content, news feeds and blogs by performers including Russell...

Media Relations: What the papers say - Game launch set to blight Iron Man.(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... The level of criticism aimed at the eagerly awaited launch of Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto IV (GTA) was minuscule compared with other computer games that are reputed to glorify violence. This was despite Hillary Clinton's assertion that 'the...

Media Relations: Contact Book Update.(resignation of Michaels, Adrian)
May 2, 2008... PRESS The Financial Times' Milan correspondent Adrian Michaels has moved to the Telegraph Media Group as head of foreign operations. Michaels will be responsible for the group's world news output across both its titles and its website. ...

Media Relations: 2 minutes with ... Nick DeCosemo, Editor, Mixmag.
May 2, 2008... Mixmag has been redesigned and is celebrating its 25th anniversary. - Who reads the title? Our core readers are 18- to 25-year-olds who are either DJs, producers, promoters or musicians themselves, or just young people with an interest...

Media Analysis: Is the Express on the rocks?
May 2, 2008... The Express has recently had to make a high-profile apology and deal with lawsuits and staff walk-outs. Clare O'Connor analyses its value to PROs. It cannot have been an easy month for Daily Express editor Peter Hill In late March, the...

News Analysis: Sexual harassment laws shake-up.
May 2, 2008... Young female agency PROs have generally learned to put up with unwanted advances from male clients. But new legislation might mean they no longer have to keep their tales to themselves. Clare O'Connor reports. Last month, the Equality and...

Profile: The liberal rock - Jonathan Oates; Director of policy and comms, Liberal Democrats.(Interview)
May 2, 2008... 'Politics has become interesting again after being in a deep freeze for six or seven years,' remarks a perfectly poised Jonathan Oates, who sits in his rather humble but neatly ordered office. Based in the political heart of London, Oates...

Opinion: To deny or not to deny, that is the question.
May 2, 2008... As the waves of Watergate lapped closer to the White House, president Richard Nixon went on TV to deliver a scripted broadcast. He ended it with the fateful words: 'I am not a crook.' The US was simultaneously stunned and electrified. ...

Opinion: New campaign tactics in mayoral battle.(Viewpoint essay)
May 2, 2008... This time last week I was thinking that a victory for Ken Livingstone over Boris Johnson in the London mayor race would be a stunning victory for him and his PR team. This was because Ken has faced the most hostile media onslaught since Neil...

Editorial: Should agencies act on ethical pressure?(Editorial)(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... It's tough to be beaten at your own game, so I have sympathy with the frustration of Margot Raggett, CEO of Lexis, one of the three agencies ambushed by Greenpeace protesters dressed as orangutans. Every account executive knows that a great...

Opinion: Letters - There is plenty of PR talent in India.(Letter to the editor)
May 2, 2008... It's rather surprising to read that someone running a PR agency in Delhi believes 'there is absolutely no PR talent in India', as Lewis PR's Arunava Kahn does (News Analysis, 18 April). One wonders what this says about Lewis PR's operation in...

Opinion: Letters - Tonight's figures far from 'miserable'.(Letter to the editor)
May 2, 2008... Julian Bray is plain wrong with his assessment of Tonight's viewing figures and stature (Letters, 25 April). I've never heard of Mr Bray, but his firm's website assures me he is 'an internationally recognised broadcaster, author and...

Opinion: Letters - How to avoid the 'greenwashing' label.(Letter to the editor)
May 2, 2008... Your article on 'greenwashing' (News, 18 April) caught my eye, as our San Francisco office recently commissioned an Eco-concerns consumer survey. As Chatsworth Communications' research found, many eco-friendly company initiatives are...

Opinion: Letters - Industry support for our graduates.(Letter to the editor)
May 2, 2008... Despite the Hotwire survey's claim that the PR industry 'flounders with graduates' (News, 25 April), I can report that it offers a wide range of support to undergraduates and postgraduates on the PR programmes at our media school. The...

Campaign: Voluntary sector - MPs show allegiance for teen runaways.
May 2, 2008... Campaign: Runaways Support - The Final Push Client: The Children's Society PR Team: In house Timescale: January 2007 to January 2008 Budget: Approx pounds 7,500 While many runaways soon go home, others are left penniless on the...

Campaign: Luxury - Alpine VIP club shows off its glamorous side.(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... Campaign: Launching the Coco club in Verbier, Switzerland Client: Coco owner Harvey Sinclair PR Team: LDR LONDON Timescale: September 2007 - February 2008 Budget: pounds 60,000 Objectives To position the club as the first...

Campaign: Tourism - Pride in Kent gives free tickets for attractions.
May 2, 2008... Campaign: Kent Big Day Out 2008 Client: Visit Kent (Kent County Council) PR Team: Maxim Timescale: December 2007 - April 2008 Budget: approximately pounds 5,000 Research has revealed that more than 30 per cent of people visiting...

Career development: 'This is the best thing I've ever done'.
May 2, 2008... Looking for a hobby? Find yourself bored on weekends? Join the Royal Auxiliary Air Force and you could be briefing journalists in battle zones around the world. Suzy Bashford reports. The military forces are rarely out of the headlines but...

Freelancing: Is freelancing for you?
May 2, 2008... In these times of financial uncertainty, firms are forced to tighten their PR belts. So is this the right moment to give up job security and branch out on your own? Alex Blyth talks to six PROs who have done just that. LOUISA BARNETT ...

Diary: Getting a sugar rush with wino Amy.(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... Amy Winehouse, whose internal organs probably resemble those of the late Oliver Reed (that is, nine years after his burial), made a well-publicised police station appearance last Friday. Like the rabid pack of paparazzi tracking her every...

Diary: Classic confessions from an ad genius.(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... With TV series Mad Men proving almost as popular as Kojak in its heyday, Southbank Publishing is heavily pushing its age-old tome, Confessions of an Advertising Man, by the original advertising bigwig, David Ogilvy. So successful has the...

Diary: Break a leg - it's all for a good cause.(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... Genius is not a word Diary often associates with dreary northern sud-fest Coronation Street. Nevertheless, the eternally popular televisual spectacular was subject to a rather clever PR move last week. PRWeek moles have discovered the truth...

Diary: Life imitating art - er, footie, actually.(3 Monkeys Communications Ltd)(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... Staying in Manchester, ever thought you were spending too much time with your clients? Find yourself finishing their sentences and thinking their thoughts? Console yourself you are not like 3 Monkeys account executive Becky Lockett, who...

Diary: Hit or miss ... Jungle fever.(H F Ullmann )(Brief article)
May 2, 2008... Following hot on the heels of last week's Greenpeace orangutan protest came the launch of a new book with pictures showing, for the first time, the primates swimming and fishing. Publisher H F Ullmann launched its latest book, Thinkers of...

Diary: Let's Meet at - Riverpoint.
May 2, 2008... Reviewed by Laura Chambers, senior consultant, Just Health PR. Overlooking the Thames on the leafy Putney/Wandsworth borders, Riverpoint is equally suited to a brunch with a client, lunch with a journalist or coffee with a colleague....

Colombia seeks to update image.(Brief article)
May 9, 2008... The Colombian government is to hunt for UK PR support in a bid to promote a 'modern' image of the South American country. Andelfo Garcia, Colombia's deputy head of mission in the UK, told PRWeek his government was on the lookout for support...

CBI/Government talks spark furore.
May 9, 2008... The Government has been ordered to disclose records of meetings in a case that could force changes to lobbying practice. The tribunal ruled that the Department for Business, Enterprise and Reform (BERR) must release details of monthly...