7 DEC 2018 · It’s December and if you’re a college student that means prepping for finals and dreaming about winter break. If you’re not a college student, then you’re probably longing for those days when you could leave it all behind, hop a plane or a train, and head home for three or four weeks of sinking into a couch at your parent’s house, swaddled in the biggest blanket you can find. Those were the days! We’ve got students on our mind this week, as we check in with a few PR overachievers to see how they’re feeling about the business, now that the semester, and the year, are set to wrap up. We’re dishing PR with three D.C.- area PR pacesetters – Gillian Casey, Diana Ochoa, and Brandon Johnson. Each is the president of their school’s PRSSA chapter, and each is sold out on the practice of public relations. These students are smart, plugged in, and focused. And they’re together in studio for a special end-of-the-semester edition of the Flack Pack.   Links: Public Relations Student Society of America American University PRSSA Chapter Bowie State University PRSSA Chapter University of Maryland, College Park PRSSA Chapter Diana Ochoa Brandon Johnson Gillian Casey

30 NOV 2018 · Flack Pack got a chance to go to Social Media Week in London! This year’s theme was “Closer." We explored the changes and impact that today’s rapid pace of technological innovation brings about, which includes social media. One discussion we had at the conference is a segment of today’s population that has some important and unique characteristics, and that uses social media pretty heavily. These individuals are called CorpSumers and they can have a big impact on brands and organizations. CorpSumers care about your values and are extremely loyal brand activists.   In this episode, Rebecca Blinston-Jones, Gareth Davies, and Pippa Ellis from MWWPR’s London office share with us why this is a part of the population that you’ll want on your side—and NOT positioned against you.   LINKS: Social Media Week London CorpSumers Rebecca Blinston-Jones Gareth Davies Pippa Ellis

19 NOV 2018 · It’s Thanksgiving week, so naturally we’re talking about turkeys, the kind that visit the White House each year looking to avoid an untimely end as someone’s holiday feast. The National Turkey Presentation is a PR bonanza for the turkey industry, with reporters lining up in the Rose Garden to report on the annual pardoning ceremony. Abraham Lincoln spared the first bird, but his successors presumably ate the annual presidential gift until Harry Truman picked up the notion of pardoning the animal for all to see. Today, it’s a PR event unlike any other and it comes with a Presidential seal of approval.   Links: A White House Turkey Timeline Angela Greiling Keane National Turkey Federation 2017 Turkey Pardon News Release Beth Breeding West Wing Reports Paul Brandus Adam Belmar

9 NOV 2018 · This week, we want to know how any public relations firm could still be working with the Saudi government after reports that people on its payroll murdered and dismembered a journalist critical of its policies at home? The Flack Pack discusses a Washington Post report listing PR firms that government documents show still work for Saudi Arabia and its agents following the death of Jamal Khashoggi. And we ask what PR pros should do if faced with this ethical question: Should you put your head down and take the money, or stand up for free speech? Our guest, Anthony D’Angelo, is the 2018 National Chair for the Public Relations Society of America. We’ll talk about a letter he sent to PRSA members a few weeks ago, and the courage it takes to overcome the ethical challenges facing PR pros today.   Washington Post: This is what Saudi Arabia’s influence network in Washington looks like. Saudi lobbyists in D.C. hunker down after Khashoggi’s killing. Anthony D’Angelo’s Letter to PRSA Membership Anthony D’Angelo PRSA Code of Ethics PRSA Board of Ethics and Professional Standards

30 OCT 2018 · It’s about time public relations people had a holiday to call their own. National Publicist Day is today, October 30th. It’s a day to celebrate what we do as publicists, flacks, communicators, and practitioners. Whatever you call yourself, the Day’s founder, Jordanna Stephen says you should take a moment to recognize the hard work you and your colleagues do every day on behalf of clients and organizations. Today marks the 4th annual celebration of the Day. If you didn’t know about it, that’s ok. You do now. So get out there and celebrate, right after you listen to this special interview with Jordanna, about our day, and what it should mean to each of us. National Publicist Day Jordanna Stephen Ivy Lee Mr. Lee’s Publicity Book

26 OCT 2018 · Even if you practice PR in an industry where technology is slow to arrive, the day will come when you’ll have to face the tech monster. Good or bad, society’s reliance on the Internet of Things is only going to grow. Every day, something new is connecting to the net, and whether we like it or not, we, as public relations professionals, need to be ready to explain that to our audiences. Anne Potts is Managing Director and Executive Vice President at Racepoint Global. She spoke with the Flack Pack during the PRSA International Conference in Austin, Texas about the need for brands to consider how they’re going to engage a world slowly being subdued by the Internet of Things. Caroll Spinney retires from Sesame Street Anne Potts Is Alexa Dangerous? Dia de los Muertos

12 OCT 2018 · Is life working in a PR agency as glamorous as Hollywood portrays it on television and in movies? The truth is, working in an agency can be exciting, but it also can be exhausting, and not for every PR soul. This week, we consider the ups and downs of PR agency life with Dr. Gina Luttrell, a PR and Social Media Professor at Syracuse University, and co-author of a new book, The PR Agency Handbook. We’ll explore the agency-client relationship, discuss the book’s included client personas, and find out whether Gina recommends agency work to her budding PR wards. Our second guest, Rob Biesenbach, preaches the lessons of improv comedy to agency managers and other PR leaders, sharing an approach based on a four-letter word – love. The Flack Pack wraps up its coverage from the PRSA International Conference this week with an episode about PR agencies. Dr. Gina Luttrell The PR Agency Handbook Syracuse University S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications Rob Biesenbach

28 SEP 2018 · Credit creativity and a team committed to good storytelling for the social media content coming out of Mount Vernon, the home of America’s first Commander in Chief, George Washington. This week, Flack Pack host Summer Johnson interviews Rebecca Aloisi, Vice President for Marketing at Mount Vernon, about her team’s approach to marketing the historic home of POTUS 1.

21 SEP 2018 · When was the last time you placed a guest column on the digital opinion page of your local newspaper? You probably pitch pieces every week, but how often do your efforts lead to publication? Unfortunately, the answer is probably rarely. Joanna Allhands, digital opinion page editor for the Arizona Republic, says audience preferences are the reason it’s getting more difficult to publish guest columns and submitted opinions online.  Without the newspapers' metrics, which editors aren’t willing to share, she admits PR people face an uphill battle when it comes to knowing how to write content worthy of a little digital love. In our interview, Allhands offers practitioners useful advice for those willing to attempt a solution to the mystery of the digital opinion page.