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September 30, 2002 Issue of PRWeek

Ford restructures global comms amid market and media pressure

DEARBORN, MI: Faced with continued bad press and falling stock prices, Ford Motor Company has reorganized and downsized its worldwide communications staffs, which had been ...

PR budgets buck economic trend, soar 21% in past year

HIGHLAND PARK, IL: Despite the downfall in the economy, and in direct opposition to massive cutbacks in above-the-line advertising spending, the average corporate PR budget ...

Waste Management hires ex-Cigna lobbyist to boost its profile in DC

HOUSTON: After a search that lasted nine months, the US' largest disposer and hauler of refuse, Waste Management, has named Barry Caldwell its new SVP ...

F-H poised for DC coup as it nears acquisition of QG

WASHINGTON: Fleishman-Hillard is poised to walk away with one of the most coveted Washington acquisitions this year, announcing last week that it had an informal ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Fleishman-Hillard gets rid of the KVO brand

SEATTLE & PORTLAND, OR: Two years after acquiring KVO, Fleishman-Hillard is getting rid of the KVO brand. Fleishman acquired KVO to give it a presence ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: American Airlines to promote from within

FORT WORTH, TX: American Airlines will promote from within to replace its retiring EVP of marketing and planning. Customer service EVP Daniel Garton will succeed ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Subaru of America has promoted Mike Whelan

CHERRY HILL, NJ: Subaru of America has promoted Mike Whelan to national manager, corporate communications from his previous post as product PR manager. Rob Moran, ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Text 100 names John Kerr as GM

NEW YORK: Text 100 has named John Kerr as GM of its New York office. Kerr previously served as VP of Text 100 North Asia. ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Jeff Holyfield named as director

JACKSON, MI: Jeff Holyfield has been named director of news and information for Consumers Energy, replacing Charles MacInnis, who retires this week. A former AP ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: McKibben Marketing has been acquired by FWV PubliCom

RALEIGH, NC: McKibben Marketing, based in Williamsburg, VA, has been acquired by FWV PubliCom in Raleigh, NC, parent company of Richard French & Associates. McKibben ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Corder Philips & Wilson named agency of record

CHARLOTTE, NC: Corder Philips & Wilson has been named agency of record by Charah Environmental of Madisonville, KY. A privately held company, Charah Environmental serves ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Linda De Jesus has been promoted

NEW YORK: Linda De Jesus has been promoted from SVP and managing director of The Bravo Group - the largest Hispanic marketing communications agency in ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: MediaMap launches PR package

WATERTOWN, MA: MediaMap has launched its Business and Finance PR Package - targeted for the banking, securities, brokerage, and insurance industries - as part of ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Michael E. Dunn teams up with Mindshare Internet

WASHINGTON: Michael E. Dunn & Associates has teamed up with Mindshare Internet Campaigns to provide fund-raising and communication services to political action committees (PACs). The ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: John Graham awarded medal for services in journalism

ST. LOUIS: The University of Missouri-Columbia School of Journalism has awarded Fleishman-Hillard CEO John Graham its honor medal for distinguished service in journalism. Graham, an ...

Sloane to help United pilots take case to media and DC

NEW YORK: The United Airlines pilots' union retained New York-based Sloane & Company during intense contract negotiations with the management of the beleaguered carrier. The ...

A&R secures two new tech clients

SAN MATEO, CA: Interwoven and Zone Labs have named A&R Partners as their AOR.

Ogilvy promotes Hausmann to MD

SAN FRANCISCO & LOS ANGELES: Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide has appointed Clay Hausmann as MD of the San Francisco and LA offices. He replaces Kate ...

Covad rebounds from Chapter 11 to tackle phone giants

SANTA CLARA, CA: Covad Communications hopes to revitalize the battered DSL market with its just-launched "popularizing broadband" ad/PR campaign.

Web effort against childhood obesity draws ire of food industry

WASHINGTON: The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has gone online to campaign against childhood obesity.

Capelli takes top PR job at Staples

FRAMINGHAM, MA: Staples has hired Paul Capelli as its VP of PR. Capelli will report to Shira Goodman, EVP of marketing.

Fleishman tapped for $3m utility job

LOS ANGELES: Fleishman-Hillard has won a $3 million contract from the nation's largest municipally owned utility, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (DWP).

Employee comms hurt by scandals, surveys reveal

NEW YORK & ANN ARBOR, MI: Ongoing corporate scandals have decimated companies' ability to communicate their goals and vision to employees. That is at the ...

Airlines add PR to DC lobbying effort

WASHINGTON: The airline industry is backing its lobbying efforts for government aid with a PR offensive that will culminate in a joint employee fly-in for ...

AAHP and PhRMA revamp PR efforts to win Hill support

WASHINGTON: Two dominant players on the DC healthcare advocacy scene initiated some major changes to their PR functions last week.

'Clean' video store publicly attacks DGA

LOS ANGELES: A lawsuit between a video store and the Directors Guild of America (DGA) over the content of Hollywood films - and who should ...

Anti-SUV book puts heat on carmakers

DETROIT: It's a publishing publicist's dream: a new book that creates controversy within the media, generating repeated coverage and even counter-PR.

Fleishman picks new creative boss

ST. LOUIS: Fleishman-Hillard has hired Catherine Rohan as a creative director in its interactive group.

KEF expands into radio media tours

ATLANTA: KEF Media has expanded its offerings to include radio media tours (RMTs).

First lady's book festival sees changes

WASHINGTON: For the second year in a row, first lady Laura Bush is holding her National Book Festival, a two-day celebration of American literature.

Chiklis' Emmy win for 'The Shield' is PR victory for FX

LOS ANGELES: When actor Michael Chiklis won an Emmy last week for his portrayal of a rogue cop on FX's The Shield, it represented a ...

Ketchum's ethnic unit loses another exec to a start-up

DALLAS: Former Ketchum VP Jose Villasenor's return to entrepreneurship marks the second high-level departure from the agency's Vanguard Cultural Marketing Specialty practice since its founding ...

Schlotzsky's beefs up comms role for web boss Landers

AUSTIN, TX: Schlotzsky's, a casual-dining restaurant chain, has given additional communications duties to Monica Landers, director of communications.

TDK takes firm stance against digital music piracy

GARDEN CITY, NY: TDK is taking a public stand in the war over music piracy.

Using website technology to help build relationships

All PR firms continually search for and evaluate tools and techniques to make their businesses more efficient, to utilize staff time more effectively, to strengthen ...

Wolff departure opens MD slot at New York office of Golin Harris

NEW YORK: Golin/Harris International is searching for a new managing director for the New York office following the departure of Richard Wolff.

Stratacomm hired to encourage safe drinking at events

WASHINGTON: Stratacomm, a specialist in transportation public affairs issues, is putting together a communications program for Techniques for Effective Alcohol Management (TEAM), a nonprofit coalition ...

Buca di Beppo chain set to launch 18-city media tour

MINNEAPOLIS: Italian restaurant chain Buca di Beppo is launching an 18-city, three-month media tour to tout a new cookbook and garner media exposure for its ...

Applied wins Wind River, Epiphany to push brand values

SAN FRANCISCO: Epiphany and Wind River have both hired Applied Communications to provide PR services.

EDITORIAL: Amid all this talk of corporate accountability, PR can't lose sight of its basic daily concerns

THOUGHT LEADER: A tight economy has prompted hiring managers to adapt more rigid job criteria

ANALYSIS: Bankrupt companies find benefits of focusing on PR

Companies working their way through Chapter 11 bankruptcy may make several cutbacks, but increasingly, PR isn't one of them.

PAUL HOLMES: PR's role should be to help everyone see how their decisions impact corporate reputation

CORPORATE CASE STUDY: Post-merger General Mills serving up PR in big portions

General Mills has long believed in product PR, while Pillsbury has traditionally been more quiet. But now that the two have merged, an even bigger ...

ANALYSIS: Media Watch: Revelation of Welch's continuing GE perks rekindles media's ire

MEDIA ROUNDUP: Live Music: Coverage goes local in new breed of rock journalism

Live popular music has sprawled into every nook and cranny of the country, including every media genre. David Ward discovers that getting attention for a ...

MEDIA PROFILE: Readers look for Time Out from New York's hustle and bustle

With responsive editors and frequent issues, Time Out New York is a dream for PR practitioners looking to have their clients stand out in a ...

PROFILE: Levins' rise to top of healthcare PR was no accident

Ilyssa Levins has been in healthcare PR for 20 years, and now runs GCI's global healthcare group. Though she fell into her specialty rather unexpectedly, ...

END OF THE CEO CULT?

Corporate PR heads rethink how much a CEO should personify a company.

REGIONAL FOCUS: Northwest: Northwest clouds lifting

The Northwest's economy has mirrored its climate of late. Still, finds Andrew Gordon, some PR pros are offering hopeful forecasts.

PR TECHNIQUE: Shielding your client from overexposure

Movie stars and other notables want more than their 15 minutes of fame. But as Matthew Arnold finds out, there can be such a thing ...

CAREERS: Pandora's Problem Page

Q: I just got a job at a mid-size tech firm right out of college.

CAREERS: My Big Break - Carlos Arcos is an AE with Fogarty Klein Monroe Public Relations in Houston

After almost seven years of practicing law, I knew I couldn't do it for the rest of my life or, for that matter, even for ...

CAREERS: Where I Work - Lauren Bossers, Account manager, Skutski & Oltmanns

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS: Wayne Hickey, Weber Shandwick Worldwide

Mountain-biking, head-banging Wayne Hickey may put the spin on Microsoft Windows digital toys at Weber Shandwick Worldwide, but he's hardly your stereotypical pencil-neck tech PR ...

TALES FROM TINSELTOWN: Rude awakening leaves actor's son longing for publicity career

I'm working with a terrific British actor in his early 40s who's stealing the show from his more famous co-stars. Nothing against our fine American ...

LAST CALL: Lamar's cops some delicious coverage with donut duel

With all the buzz Krispy Kreme has generated in recent years, you might think smaller competitors would be shaking in their donut batter these days.

LAST CALL: PETA makes sure TBC doesn't enjoy its life in a fishbowl

We thought we smelled something fishy in a New York Post Page Six item last week which described "panicked publicists" for Harlequin Gen-X imprint Red ...