In 1974, when I became a full-time faculty member of the USC School of Journalism after seven years as an adjunct, I joined a largely white male group of seasoned newspapermen. What I didn’t know was how much these print newshounds hated broadcasting and public relations.

During the first meeting of the fall semester, three items dominated the agenda: a move to diversify the all-male...

The art of the deal has gotten a bad name these days. Forget for a moment its political associations, there is a case to be made that we could use a little more deal-making and a lot less posturing or arguing.

Let’s start with the role communicators often play, that of negotiator. A reporter calls with a story we’d rather not tell. All too often those calls get ignored or the reporter...

Much has been said about media and creative agencies working better together. But that stool needs a third leg and it’s us. Here’s a POV on why what we do is the magic ingredient marketing needs more than ever.

When David Ogilvy founded the company, advertising was the dominant marketing capability. Through it, Ogilvy built brands which remain household names today. In Ogilvy’s 70th...

Employee communications has a long history of being an underdog in communication circles.

How many people do you know who start off their comms career aiming to be the head of employee communications? For that matter, how many people actually know what they’d be doing if they were in this role?

Few universities offer an employee communications curriculum and there hasn’t been a...

Disruption is hard to navigate. It moves faster than your ability to plan for it, and demands that you nimbly shift your paradigm, throw out old processes and build new tools. That’s always hard, but keep in mind that disruption also brings opportunity. To do better and grow. To learn from past mistakes. To refocus on purpose.

One of our core areas of business is healthcare, which is...

In June 2018, Andy Warhol’s Interview Magazine announced it was folding after a stylish and groundbreaking 50-year run. The magazine was ultimately saved by a relaunch, though it’s now speculated that the print edition of Glamour may not be so lucky. Print publications are routinely biting the dust, and the media landscape continues to evolve.

It’s no secret that the world of content...

The USC Center for PR’s 2018 Global Communications Report indicated that 42% of PR professionals were concerned about the increasing prevalence of branded content. In a follow-up study, we asked the same survey participants specific questions about their perceptions of branded content. A total of 220 professionals, representing agencies, private companies, consultancies and government...

It’s both a benefit and a curse that content is king in the digital age. Good content has the potential to go viral, giving a brand a great opportunity to make an impact for little investment, but the flipside is also true.

With a smartphone in every pocket, brands are now facing an environment where someone with 10 followers can now reach millions and jeopardize the reputation of a...