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March 11, 2002 Issue of PRWeek

Ogilvy launches counter terrorist unit

WASHINGTON - Ogilvy PR has assembled a core team of five people to run its new high-level crisis service, Counter Threat.

Publicis acquires Bcom3 to become $4 billion entity

PARIS, CHICAGO, AND TOKYO: A $3 billion deal in which Publicis Groupe acquires Bcom3 and forges a long-term partnership with Japanese advertising giant Dentsu, will create a ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Appointment at Yahoo!

SAN FRANCISCO: Christine Castro has been named SVP and chief communications officer for Yahoo!. Castro was previously VP of corporate communications at The Walt Disney Company.

NEWS IN BRIEF: Georgia-Pacific picks Weber Shandwick Worldwide for PR brief

ATLANTA: Paper goods maker Georgia-Pacific has picked the Chicago office of Weber Shandwick Worldwide to handle PR for its bath-tissue business. Brands involved include Angel Soft, Quilted ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Weber Shandwick Worldwide announces changes

NEW YORK: Weber Shandwick Worldwide has officially announced two major reporting changes in its US regional management structure. Ranny Cooper, president and COO of the public affairs ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Morgen-Walke Associates signs three new clients

NEW YORK: Morgen-Walke Associates has signed three new clients into its retail practice. Party City, Designs, and Alltrista have all hired the agency for corporate positioning, message ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Dan Klores Communications retained for Project ALS

NEW YORK: Dan Klores Communications has been retained as agency of record for Project ALS, the organization working to find a treatment and cure for amyotrophic lateral ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Make Your Mark offers no-contract service

ENCINO, CA: Make Your Mark, a new PR firm, has opened its doors to serve the needs of hi-tech companies with limited marketing budgets. It aims to ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Appointment at Cerrell Associates

LOS ANGELES: Cerrell Associates has hired Matthew Klink as VP and a member of the management team. Klink is a public affairs and media specialist who appears ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Betsy Helgager opens BLH Consulting

ATLANTA: Betsy Helgager, former founder and VP/group manager of Ketchum's African-American markets group, has opened BLH Consulting. The new company will specialize in - but not be ...

Spirits Council reacts swiftly to correct numbers on youth drinking

WASHINGTON: Frank Coleman knew right away that the numbers were wrong. Late on Friday, February 22, Coleman received word that the National Center on Addiction and Substance ...

Interpublic Group sees 5% dip in PR revenue for 2001

NEW YORK: PR revenue at Interpublic Group (IPG) plummeted more than 25% from the fourth quarter 2000 as compared to the fourth quarter 2001, from $165.7 million ...

Tech lost ground in 2001 coverage

SAN FRANCISCO: According to the first sector-wide benchmarking survey by Applied Communications, the technology industry experienced a 25% drop in media coverage in the second half of ...

Antiterror efforts prompt airport to seek comms help

DALLAS: A PR contract for Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, valued at about $200,000, is up for grabs.

Auto safety VNR captured biggest audience in 2001

NEW YORK: The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has wrestled its way to the number-one spot on Medialink's list of most-watched video news releases (VNRs) for ...

Employees value a company's care over its financials

LIVINGSTON, NJ: According to a new survey by The Cherenson Group, a company's reputation among potential employees depends more on how workers are treated than on the ...

Raytheon vies for Congress' attention

WASHINGTON: Raytheon, already one of the top-five defense contractors in the country, kicked off an effort last week to become the company you think of when you ...

Ogilvy introduces terrorist-specific crisis PR practice

WASHINGTON: Parlaying over a decade of work on government exercises and scenarios on the effects of weapons of mass destruction, Ogilvy PR has assembled a core team ...

Hass acquisition gives MS&L boost in Detroit market

DETROIT: MS&L has bought Hass Associates, nearly doubling its presence in Detroit, and solidifying its position as a major PR agency for General Motors.

Only 'relevant' brands are welcome at Spring Break

NEW YORK: According to a new study by Euro RSCG Worldwide, the college students who help comprise the coveted 18-24 age group are wary of big brand ...

FDFN to offer interactive transcripts of earnings calls

BOSTON: Beginning next quarter, Fair Disclosure Financial Network (FDFN) says it will be the first company to offer full-text, interactive transcripts of corporate earnings conference calls. The ...

Like Miami, WSW lets Louisville buy back its practice

LOUISVILLE, KY: Because company executives felt the market was not strategic enough, Weber Shandwick Worldwide, has sold its Louisville, KY office back to local management.

French's allots $500,000 to PR as part of spiced up marketing blitz

WAYNE, NJ: French's mustard is planning a $500,000 PR campaign to revitalize its core brand.

NIRI advises SEC on investor confidence

WASHINGTON: In the same week a survey by New York-based PR firm TowersGroup showed that 43% of active individual investors have less confidence in the post-Enron stock ...

Cordiant trapped in legal tug of war with former execs

LONDON: Cordiant - already hurt by financial woes that led it to renegotiate its bank loans - has now become a legal combatant.

Harwood urges Americans to act upon 9-11 sentiment

WASHINGTON: The Harwood Project, a Pew-funded nonprofit dedicated to raising the level of public discourse, is launching a campaign urging Americans to "move beyond flag waving

Energy and image take center stage for new CRT areas

RICHMOND, VA: Carter Ryley Thomas PR has created two practice areas: Energy, and RC2, which stands for reputation, change, and culture.

EDITORIAL: Recession-proof PR still a distant dream

As WPP announced its results recently, we were again reminded that the conglomerate's PR firms had failed to live up to chairman Sir Martin Sorrell's exacting financial ...

COMMENT: Thought Leader - Look for media industry to be a harbinger of the merger wave to come

While the incredible merger wave we experienced in recent years appears to have crested, don't expect calm seas - not in every industry, at least.

ANALYSIS: MBA Programs - Working PR into business schools is an uphill battle

The way business schools function has made it difficult to integrate communications studies. But many MBA programs believe in teaching PR, and are finding ways to do ...

Enron saga should teach corporations to put greater stock in employee communications

In light of Enron's ignominious collapse - and various polls showing confidence in big business at an all-time low - American corporations should be concerned about relationships ...

ANALYSIS: Client Profile - PR prominent in AT&T's company-wide restructuring

AT&T's PR efforts have been woven into its operations since Arthur Page held the comms hot seat. And even though the giant telecom is under media scrutiny, ...

ANALYSIS: Media Watch - Crematory's macabre acts found mystifying and maddening

To date, more than 300 corpses, some dating back 15 years, have been disinterred from the grounds surrounding the now infamous Tri-State Crematory in rural Noble, GA. ...

MEDIA: Outdoor Living - Media Roundup. Outdoor coverage booms with expanding audience

A recent explosion in coverage of outdoor life has eschewed snowboarding for hiking, hunting, and fishing. David Ward discovers a vast number of niche titles within this ...

SAG hires Masters of Disaster to push controversial deal

LOS ANGELES: The Screen Actor's Guild has tapped two former Clinton-Gore communications pros to help sell a controversial contract to members.

MEDIA PROFILE: Slate's focus on thought and discussion make it tough to pitch

When Slate switched from a subscription to advertising model, its popularity surged - except among PR pros. The news-driven website is a 'Fort Knox' for pitches, but ...

PROFILE: DeBerry brings TV news nous to Alamo City PR role - Drawing on her experience as a TV news reporter and producer - and her devotion to San Antonio - Trish DeBerry is widely recognized as a shining star of the city's PR scene

In San Antonio, a city steeped in history and legend, Trish DeBerry's roots run deep. But don't tie her to outdated ideas.

GUNS OR BUTTER?: Defense sits atop the 2003 budget, but as Douglas Quenqua learns, public affairs is key to ensuring money is kept aside for other domestic issues

The release of the President's budget registers in the mind of the average American about as strongly as whether or not the groundhog sees his shadow. But ...

MARKET FOCUS: IR - Enron: An epiphany for IR. The Enron quake has sent moral tremors throughout the IR community. Finger-pointing aside, how can IR help restore trust in the financial system?

I believe that each of us, and our organizations, must engage in a collective period of introspection and self-examination as we work to restore the confidence of ...