Your PR Architect

News item: Chipotle will hold an all-employee meeting Feb. 8, closing its doors to the public while engaging executives and workers in real time on issues stemming from its recent food-borne illness crisis. Not a bad idea. A food safety crisis crippled Chipotle's business for the fourth quarter of 2015, with mysterious outbreaks in the Pacific Northwest and New England. A month ago, I praised the upfront, take-responsibility approach of co-CEO Steve Ells, who went on network TV  news shows to publicly apologize for the restaurant chain's problems. Getting all employees on the same page, even for an hour, reflects Chipotle's commitment to following through on its promises. And the move has potential PR benefits, as the employee meetings demonstrate that the chain is taking serious steps to address its problems. Will this persuade me to visit the Chipotle eatery in my town? I've only eaten at one Chipotle, years ago, before the chain's rapid growth. And

Last week, my pal Dresden Engle invited me to a big reveal: the re-branding of the Ad Council of Rochester to Causewave Community Partners . The old Ad Council organization, founded decades ago by an advertising manager at Eastman Kodak Co., orchestrated community-wide campaigns that grew awareness for water pollution, distracted driving, and other important issues. And it helped dozens of not-for-profit organizations earn visibility in regional media. The fresh branding helps Causewave differentiate itself from other regional Advertising Councils, as well as the national Ad Council. Now, about the organization's causes: At the event, I met a few PR professionals who are on the high side of age 50. They had that look ; they were networking, looking for contacts who might help them find job opportunities. These pros were in the minority; most of the Causewave celebrants were much younger. As a demographic snapshot, the job seekers were older, with salt-and-pepper hair an

Photo by DO'Neil via Wikimedia Commons. I need a shower. Right now. Maybe I can scrub away the stench of this story. Sexual harassment is beyond shameful. It's criminal. The women who accused entertainer Bill Cosby of sexual assault are at last being taken seriously. But we're kidding ourselves if we think such behavior is limited to realms of entertainment or politics. It's a widespread, heinous practice.  Even in the PR industry. Look no further than last month's imbroglio involving D.C.-based PR executive  Trevor FitzGibbon, whose agency's client list included Amnesty International, Wikileaks, and the American Civil Liberties Union. Less than a month after several women voiced claims of sexual harassment or sexual assault against Mr. FitzGibbon -- including a female job applicant from whom he solicited nude photos --  FitzGibbon Media shuttered its doors .  And the agency's 29 employees were left jobless a few days before Christmas

I don't do New Year's resolutions. I don't own a smartphone. Which is not to say I don't need self-reappraisal, or that I am not online. I choose when and where I engage, rather than letting devices or media clichés drive my decisions. By Stanislav Kozlovskiy (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0], via Wikimedia Commons I recently unfolded a virtual spyglass, and took a long, hard look at Facebook, appraising the social media site and the interactions it offers. PR pros appreciate Facebook's ability to reach a broader audience. We see it as a way to help our messages go viral. 2014's ice bucket challenge wouldn't have achieved its remarkable reach without Facebook. And that's fine. Many of Facebook's other features, however, are less admirable. Quizzes that tell you which words you used most often in your posts? Recycled click-bait stories? Re-shared posts that decry cancer and government ineptitude? Intentionally incendiary political needling mea