Celebrity

Immigration reform has been a hot-button issue in American politics for more than 30 years. There are always the extreme sides – one wants a totally closed border, and the other wants open borders and a come as you are policy. Then there are the tens of millions in the middle, wondering if anyone will ever actually do anything about this issue, good or bad. Recently, President Obama took one step, by eliminating the so-called Wet Foot Dry Foot rule that applied only to Cuban immigrants. If they were able to reach the country, they could stay, a courtesy denied... Read More >

Without his recent screen success, Ryan Reynolds most popular movie role may have actually killed his career. After back to back fan failures in Green Lantern and as Deadpool in Wolverine: Origins, Reynolds might have been on the way out … then Deadpool saved him. The profane, violent and riotously funny rated R film about Marvel Comics’ Merc With a Mouth was pitch perfect, earning Reynolds a Golden Globe nomination. Suddenly, Reynolds was everywhere, a new Hollywood golden boy. He even got a nod from Harvard’s “Hasty Pudding Theatricals,” a student group that recently named Reynolds its Man of the... Read More >

The biggest headline coming out of the annual ball drop party in Times Square is easily the debacle surrounding Mariah Carey’s performance … or lack thereof. Where you land on this story depends entirely on what version of the story you’ve read. Maybe you heard that she was lip syncing and when the track was off, she just gave up. Maybe you heard that her monitors were not working properly and she couldn’t hear the backing track over the crowd. Maybe you’re with the camp who scoffs at any performer who lip syncs at a major show … or maybe... Read More >

[caption id="attachment_86244" align="aligncenter" width="880"] Ronn Torossian on Mariah Carey's New Years Eve performance.[/caption] This advice is not new: When it comes to a PR crisis, own up to the mistake quickly. Don’t deflect blame, don’t try to sweep it under the rug; admit the problem, do what you can to fix it and let people know what you’re doing along those lines, and move past it as fast as you can. What did Mariah Carey do after the debacle that was her performance on New Year’s Eve at Time Square? None of the above. Instead, she’s blamed others, gone so... Read More >

According to statements we have received, Ravi Sawhney, an industrial designer and branding expert said today, “Donald Trump connected with voters emotionally in Midwest states more than Hillary Clinton.   Whether it was the result of psychographic research carried out by his staff (not likely) or simply a reflection of his brash, politically-incorrect communication style, the mogul’s message touched an emotional chord with one powerful voting bloc-rural, mostly white, blue-collar workers in critical swing states in the South and Midwest.  His “Make America Great Again” message was designed to make white, working-class Americans remember better times, connecting with them emotionally and... Read More >

Santa Barbara Signs Lou Hammond Group as Agency of Record The city of Santa Barbara, long known for its beauty and luxury accommodations, just brought in the travel and lifestyle PR agency Lou Hammond Group (LHG) to support their current creative PR campaign, “Miss Nothing.” The campaign focuses on helping visitors see their city as the “American Riviera.” LHG also will build additional campaigns emphasizing Santa Barbara’s direct-fly markets with Denver and Dallas, the convenient location, and the popularity of their resorts. M Booth Adds New Internal Agency – Made Made – an agency within the M Booth Agency just... Read More >

Israel’s Strong Public Relations Ambassador For a young woman, Yityish “Titi” Aynaw (pronounced Ya-Teesh I-now) has accomplished some amazing things. She was born in Ethiopia in 1991. Her father died when she was only a few years old, followed after her tenth birthday by her mother’s passing. At the age of 12, she and her brother moved to Israel to live with their grandparents. Before long, Titi had learned to speak Hebrew and during high school she served as student body president, participated in track and field, and won a national film competition for students. After that, she served as... Read More >

  Folk singer Bob Dylan defined an era, more than just a rock star with his finger on the pulse of the times; he was the voice of a disaffected, angry generation, both a unifying figure and the originator of an anthem that would create a movement. Now, decades after his contributions to the world, Dylan is being given one of his craft’s ultimate awards. Bob Dylan is now a Nobel laureate. This is big. Huge. Larger than you might think. When was the last time a singer-songwriter was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature? Well, it’s been 115 years,... Read More >

5WPR CEO Ronn Torossian takes a look at the rise and fall of Ken Bone. These days, the Internet can give you your 15 minutes of fame only to set you up to fall further and faster than you ever thought possible. It’s the world we live in, and it’s the world sweater-loving undecided voter Ken Bone has been living in the past week. Bone quickly became a national darling after asking a question at the most recent presidential debate. Sporting a snazzy red sweater and the ultimate “everyman” demeanor, Bone delivered an actual policy question in a presidential race... Read More >

Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt Hired PR Experts for Divorce-Related Communications Both actors are big name draws, and both have recently retained crisis communications pros. Jolie’s team consists of Laura Wasser (attorney for Johnny Depp and Jennifer Garner) and two publicists based in the U.K., presumably because she has publicly stated that she wants to raise her family in England. The two U.K. publicists, Arminka Helic and Chloe Dalton, are also long-time associates of Jolie. Pitt’s team consists of family law attorney Lawrence Spiegel and PR crisis communications expert Matthew Hiltzik, CEO of Hiltzik Strategies. Bill Cosby Adds Ripp Media... Read More >