Have you seen all the beautiful new murals around Portland? During the week of August 18-23, the not-for-profit public mural project Forest for the Trees brought together 20 international artists to make their mark on our fair city. According to their site, “The mural project promotes public visual expression; collaboration; and community engagement with contemporary […]
Read MoreUnless you live under a rock, the ALS #icebucketchallenge has probably taken over your newsfeed at some point in the last few weeks. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often referred to as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease,” is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. To #strikeoutALS, people post a […]
Read MoreThe death of Robin Williams has consumed our media feeds and our minds the last few days. While tragic, the conversations it has spurred around mental health are powerful and important. The state of mental health in the United States is deplorable. Despite the uptick in school shootings and high profile suicides and addiction-related deaths, […]
Read MoreBasic steps for your crisis communications plan The recent water contamination in Toledo, Ohio underscores the need for all types of organizations to have a plan for how they will handle communications in a crisis. Most of us won’t be facing a life-or-death situation, as the city of Toledo did, but nevertheless a bit of advance […]
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For the past week I’ve becoming increasingly consumed with the ongoing search for Dundee woman Jennifer Huston. On the outskirts of Portland, Dundee and neighboring Newberg where she was last seen are quite close to where I live in Tualatin and my kids went to school in Sherwood. I am not here to speculate or […]
Read MoreYou might end up calling your marketing and PR efforts by an entirely different name if the rest of the industry follows Procter & Gamble’s lead in renaming its overall marketing organization “Brand Management.” According to Ad Age, the new department now includes the functions the rest of us are still calling marketing, market research, […]
Read MoreLiving in Oregon, we are fortunate to be able to identify the provenance of many of the products we use and the produce and meats we consume. More so than anywhere else I’ve lived, there’s the ability to shop locally, with any number of locally owned and run businesses and services complementing the offerings of […]
Read MoreFor those of us in Portland, Drew Carney is a bit of a TV superstar. You might get ready in the morning while watching his antics, or catch him emceeing the annual Kells Smoker at the St. Patrick’s Day Irish Festival; however this week he cemented his place in national, viral infamy. To try to […]
Read MoreLately I have become captivated by the amazing A Beautiful Body Project by photographer Jade Beall. I am not too proud to admit that my stomach does not resemble itself from nine years ago, before I’d birthed a 10 pound (no, that is not a joke or exaggeration) baby – and then three years later […]
Read MoreFood for thought: had lunch at Chipotle, lately? Apparently you’ve got some reading material to digest along with your chips and salsa. The fast food chain has introduced the Chipotle Cultivating Thought series, a project that, as Chipotle states, aims to present “the words and whimsy of thought-leaders, authors and comedians through unique, you’ll-only-find-them-here essays, each […]
Read MoreI came across an article about beginner’s luck, and whether or not it exists in public relations. I think many businesses have had a streak of beginner’s luck with favorable results – but while results may be high right out of the gate, it may actually work against you too. Here is a prime example […]
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