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March 10, 2003 Issue of PRWeek

Beers' resignation unlikely to affect US government's image goals

WASHINGTON: The sudden resignation of undersecretary of state Charlotte Beers last week is not expected to cause a major shift in mission at the Office ...

SEC rules force the holding companies to change tack

NEW YORK: Acting on the advice of legal counsel, several of the major marketing holding companies - including WPP, Omnicom, Interpublic Group, Grey Global, and ...

IPG pulls Wagner from AMS for CFO job at Golin Harris

NEW YORK and CHICAGO: Golin/Harris International has replaced its CFO with a veteran financial executive from within the Interpublic Group, Golin's parent company.

Edelman awarded Campaign of the Year

NEW YORK: Edelman and Tyco subsidiary CIT Group collected the coveted Campaign of the Year laurel in front of more than 1,000 attendees at PRWeek's ...

Fair takes auto PR world by surprise in leaving Nissan

GARDENA, CA: Debra Sanchez Fair, VP of communications for Nissan North America, has resigned from the company effective March 7.

Pediatric dental academy defends big Coke donation

CHICAGO: Reacting to a leaked New York Times story, the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) has launched a major communications effort to explain why ...

GMMB to help Hollywood unions merge

LOS ANGELES: Hollywood's top two unions for performers have hired GMMB to facilitate a "consolidation" that would merge them into a single entity with 135,000-plus ...

Tech challenges grow as Red Herring finally sinks

SAN FRANCISCO: The demise of Red Herring last week marked the end of an era of independent coverage of the tech boom and bust, leaving ...

New consultancy launched by vets of WS and McCann

PROVIDENCE, RI: Cathy Lugbauer, Weber Shandwick's former COO, and Lois Kelly, former CEO of McCann Erickson's interactive unit Thunder House, have formed consulting firm Kelly ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Ginny Wolfe joins MS&L as SVP for public affairs

WASHINGTON: Ginny Wolfe, a top aide to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, is joining MS&L as SVP for public affairs. Wolfe devised and led the ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Amgen names Marie Kennedy as new VP of corporate communications

THOUSAND OAKS, CA: Amgen has named Marie Kennedy, former senior director of corporate affairs for Genentech, as its new VP of corporate communications. In her ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Peter Harris joins Ketchum as SVP

NEW YORK: Peter Harris has joined Ketchum as SVP, and will work on the IBM account as part of Ketchum's One Blue unit. Harris, who ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Brio Software selects Incendio International

SANTA CLARA, CA: Brio Software has selected Incendio International as its corporate AOR for the Americas and EMEA. Brio, which develops business intelligence tools and ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Rose Berg joins Edelman

SEATTLE: Rose Berg has joined Edelman to lead its public affairs group in Seattle and Portland, developing the practice throughout the Northwest and working with ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: US Newswire enters into alliance with LatinClips

WASHINGTON: US Newswire has entered into a strategic alliance with LatinClips, a web-based Hispanic-media monitoring service. The newswire's clients will now have access to monitoring ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Shore PR signs signs two upscale hotel clients

DALLAS: Fledgling firm Shore Public Relations has signed two upscale hotel clients: The Mansion on Turtle Creek and the Hotel Crescent Court. Proprietor John Shore ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Rachel Perry hires consulting firms

VAN NUYS, CA: Skincare and cosmetics company Rachel Perry has hired consulting firms RF Binder Partners and Vertical Sales & Marketing. RF Binder Partners is ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Netgear selects Sterling Communications as AOR

SANTA CLARA, CA: Netgear has selected Sterling Communications as its AOR. The company, which develops wireless, ethernet, power-line, and phone-line networking hardware and services, will ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Appointment at FitzGerald Communications

BOSTON: Steven Casey has rejoined FitzGerald Communications in the newly created position of president. Casey previously worked at FitzGerald as a VP from 1997 to ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: BindKey chooses McClenahan Bruer Communications

SUNNYVALE, CA: BindKey Technologies has chosen McClenahan Bruer Communications as its AOR. BindKey develops software that improves chipmakers' productivity during the design phase. McClenahan Bruer ...

Newsweek boosts its coverage of the arts with new hires

LOS ANGELES: Newsweek has made a number of hires and promotions in its arts and entertainment coverage, giving the section a new leader and an ...

Economic adviser to Bush joins staff at Ketchum's TWG

WASHINGTON: Last week, Ketchum's government relations and lobbying firm, The Washington Group (TWG), snagged recently departed White House economic adviser Carlos Bonilla. He will join ...

RWJF reaches out to uninsured via TV push

PRINCETON, NJ: Alert viewers will notice a common thread running through some of TV's most popular shows this week. On ER, a number of patients ...

Ford reacts to controversy over its police cars' safety

CLEVELAND: As simmering controversy over police-car safety heats up, Ford Motor Co. is countering negative claims, issue by issue.

Pork council taps O&B for PR help in face of legal battle

ST. LOUIS: The National Pork Board, facing a court challenge from small-hog producers over its Pork Checkoff program, has hired b-to-b firm Osborn & Barr ...

GLAAD launches protest as MSNBC signs Savage

NEW YORK: GLAAD has begun a campaign in protest of MSNBC's decision to hire Michael Savage, the San Francisco radio broadcaster famous for making discriminatory ...

Future Brand and WS link up to offer expanded service

NEW YORK: Brand consultancy Future Brand has joined forces with Weber Shandwick in a partnership that is designed to allow the two firms to offer ...

Unions stand up for actors against war

LOS ANGELES: Two powerful unions representing entertainment performers and workers have issued statements supporting celebrities' right to speak out against war with Iraq without fear ...

Lego links with teen brands to push new launch for girls

ENFIELD, CT: Lego is hoping its latest effort clicks with girls. At the Toy Fair in New York last month, the company introduced Clikits.

Sun taps Maverick to hike its profile in Canadian market

MARKHAM, ONTARIO: Sun Microsystems has selected Maverick PR as its new agency of record in Canada to help raise the company's profile up North.

Top ISPs tout recent anti-spam efforts

NEW YORK, ATLANTA, and REDMOND, WA: The country's three largest ISPs have finally found something they can agree on: they hate spam.

Krups hires Nike to up awareness for its full product line

NEW YORK: Upscale appliance maker Krups has selected Nike Communications to create a PR campaign that will increase awareness of all Krups products, and also ...

PR agencies sign on to help push olive oil

MINNEAPOLIS: Expect to hear a lot more about olive oil, thanks to two new account wins.

AMP to promote Panama City Beach, FL to college spring breakers

PANAMA CITY BEACH, FL: The Panama City Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau has hired Alloy Marketing and Promotions Agency (AMP) to promote the town as ...

Chiquita chooses Bloomberg's Wise as new head of IR

CINCINNATI: As Chiquita Brands continues its long comeback from its 2001 bankruptcy, the company has appointed former Bloomberg reporter Monique Wise as its new director ...

Survey points to low quality of US business journalism

WASHINGTON: The state of American business journalism got a failing grade in a recent, comprehensive study that included a harsh assessment from business editors and ...

Burson to help its small tech clients pick up new leads

SAN FRANCISCO: Burson-Marsteller's technology practice has developed a new service to help midsize and small clients with their lead generation.

OP-ED: CEO 'branding' is key to shaping corporate reputation

As the demand for corporate transparency increases, so do expectations of our leaders, particularly CEOs.

ANALYSIS: Companies stress branding for eventual hi-tech rebound

As companies eye an end to the current hi-tech downturn, Andrew Gordon finds most PR pushes are eschewing tech talk to focus more on branding ...

PAUL HOLMES: Boards must assume greater responsibility in dealing with corporate reputation issues

Imagine you're the SVP of corporate communications for a Fortune 500 company. Imagine you're in the early stages of a crisis: your CFO has been ...

ORGANIZATION CASE STUDY: PR breeds knowledge of the American Kennel Club

The American Kennel Club didn't have a PR problem - it just didn't have PR. Now that it does, pet owners and member clubs alike ...

MEDIA WATCH: Media plays host to blame game in wake of Great White fire

The February 20 blaze that leveled The Station nightclub in Rhode Island was the country's fourth-worst nightclub fire, claiming 97 victims and injuring 200 others. ...

MEDIA ROUNDUP: Focus on security opens doors for several sectors

With the press devoting more coverage to homeland security, pitching opportunities across technology, transportation, manufacturing, and several other sectors have started to open up.

MEDIA PROFILE: Stars and Stripes brings American culture to the front lines

If your pitch is focused on something of interest to men and women in uniform, Stars and Stripes is probably interested as well. But such ...

PROFILE: Hosford helping drive Hyundai's success in the US

When he's not hanging 10, Chris Hosford helps Hyundai make big promises to car buyers. And it's starting to pay off, likely because honesty - ...

SALES DRIVERS

It's never been so important for PR and sales teams to work together. But that can be just as difficult as it sounds.

MARKET FOCUS: DVD goes bananas

Anita Chabria finds DVDs being launched with the same razzmatazz as theater films

PR TECHNIQUE: Pitching your client's expertise to the media

Positioning a client as an expert commentator is a good way to get column inches for someone else's story. Melanie Shortman looks at tools to ...

CAMPAIGNS: Inviting opening helps Syndicate draw A-list crowd

PR Team: Syndicate (New York) Campaign: Subversion Time Frame: September 2002 - present Budget: $0

CAMPAIGNS: Houghton Mifflin is an open book in face of dispute

PR Team: Houghton Mifflin -in-house (Boston) Campaign: Across the Centuries crisis Time Frame: February 2002 - ongoing Budget: Less than $1,000

CAMPAIGNS: Fontainebleau II builds buzz with artistic approach

PR Team: O'Connell & Goldberg (Hollywood, FL), Turnberry Associates (Aventura, FL), and Fontainebleau (Miami) Campaign: The Fontainebleau II Time Frame: June 26-July 9, 2002 Budget: $30,000

THE PUBLICIST: Hollywood PR pros get to be stars of the show for a night

March is here, which means the countdown to the big awards show has begun. Odds are being made. Office pools are circulating. Hollywood is getting ...

PR PLAY OF THE WEEK: Buffett scores PR windfall with Fortune

OMAHA, NE: When a man who has amassed the world's second- largest personal fortune by stubbornly sticking to his principles breaks with tradition, people take ...

TOY BOX: Samsung reloads with its Matrix phone

Will Samsung's Matrix phone be promoting a movie, or will a movie be promoting the phone? It's hard to say.

BOOK REVIEW: IBM's turnaround as seen from the top

The 80 pages of appendices at the end of Lou Gerstner's plain-language, easy-to-read retelling of IBM's turnaround story are indication enough that he means business. ...

EDITORIAL: In parting, Beers casts light on both the US' PR failing and her successor's biggest challenge

A week before she resigned, citing health reasons, Charlotte Beers told a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, "The gap between who we are, how we ...