PRWeek UK podcast

In this episode, we take a look at the looming "crisis" caused by escalating COVID cases and the so-called "pingemic". W Communications CEO Rachel Friend, Publicis UK Influencer practice lead Chris McCafferty and Ready10 director Aimee Jacobs reveal how their agencies are managing their teams during this difficult period. The panel then discuss whether the industry should 'ditch the pitch' and the merits of pitching. Finally, the podcast turns to the Olympics and campaigns that have (or have not) caught the eye, and what these games mean to Rachel, Chris and Aimee.

The panel discusses England in the Euros and what needs to be done to tackle online racism following attacks on Saka, Sancho and Rashford. They then look at whether BBC's independence has been tarnished after the Robbie Gibb allegations, and what PR agencies are planning as ‘Freedom Day' approaches. Host Arvind Hickman is joined by Borkowski founder Mark Borkowski, Thread & Fables founder & former West Brom press officer Rebecca Roberts and Calacus PR founder & former BBC journalist David Alexander.

Lansons CEO Tony Langham and Red Havas MD Rachael Sansom join PRWeek's John Harrington and Arvind Hickman to talk about PR campaigns at the Cannes Lions festival and what makes a good purpose campaign. The pair then share their views on how PR salaries have trended in the past year and the challenges of the recruitment market. The podcast also looks at the UK government's public messaging as it eases COVID-19 restrictions.

Fresh from receiving a CBE, industry legend Sarah Waddington shares her memories of the late PR luminaries Bob Leaf & Robert Phillips. PRWeek news editor Arvind Hickman and Sarah then discuss their first impressions of GBNews and the brand backlash. The podcast then moves on to the need for ethnic pay gap transparency, before wading into Cristiano Ronaldo's public snub of Coca-Cola at Euro 2020.

Citypress CEO Charles Tattersall and Manifest Manchester MD Bec Chelin join PRWeek news editor Arvind Hickman to discuss Euro 2020 campaigns and the controversy over England players taking the knee. They then share their expectations for new TV station GB News and whether an out of hours email ban can work in PR. The podcast with tips on how to create an industry-leading workplace and culture.

PRWeek's John Harrington and Arvind Hickman analyse how tennis star Naomi Osaka and tennis authorities handled her controversial withdrawal from the French Open due to mental health concerns. They then discuss how brands can avoid 'pinkwashing' during Pride month and how M&C Saatchi Group's recovery is going. Arvind is then joined by Where Eagles Dare's Richard Tompkins and Look After Group's Felix Henderson to discuss the challenges of launching an agency during COVID.

India is enduring one of the world’s worst COVID crises with a death toll rapidly rising towards 300,000. H+K India CEO Abishek Gulyani and freelance journalist and media consultant Shubhreet Kaur join the PRWeekly to discuss what it is like on the ground and how agencies, journalists and influencers are coping. They also provide insights into some of the unique public health communications challenges the nation faces. PRWeek UK editor John Harrington and news editor Arvind Hickman discuss whether more agencies are likely to expand abroad given recent moves by One Green Bean and Milk & Honey. They also look at senior hires in the industry, whether PR professionals need to lift their climate crisis comms game and the widely acclaimed Kiyan Prince FIFA 21 campaign.

The local election has been largely hailed as a victory for the Conservatives and SNP. Special guests Inflect Partners founder Emily Wallace and Cicero/AMO associate director Sonia Khan discuss why the Conservative's campaign is resonating and what next for Labour. PRWeek UK editor John Harrington & news editor Arvind Hickman look at why the M&A market in PR firms is heating up, and the results of a study into what journalists think about PR.

Taylor Herring CEO James Herring and Publicis’ UK Influence Practice lead Chris McCafferty join PRWeek editor John Harrington to share the lowdown on Publicis Groupe's high profile acquisition of Taylor Herring, why they decided to sell and what this means for the creative shop and Publicis in the future. Also, the trio talk about PRWeek's 30 Under 30 and what makes the class of 2021 special.

The Top 150 PR consultancies has landed. PRWeek UK editor John Harrington, news editor Arvind and special guest, PRWeek EMEA editor-in-chief Danny Rogers, analyse how agencies fared in a year disrupted by COVID; it was the first time aggregate revenue declined for decades. Also, Danny looks at the major Publicis acquisition of Taylor Herring, while Danny and Arvind talk about the reputational damage for the six Premier League clubs backing down from a controversial breakaway Super League.

A lobbying scandal involving former Prime Minister David Cameron has exposed a concerning lack of transparency. The PRCA's Francis Ingham and Cicero/AMO's Louise Stewart discuss what needs to happen next, including a six-point plan to fix lobbying rules. PRWeek's John Harrington and Arvind Hickman also discuss the challenge facing creatives and brands as the economy gradually reopens for a summer.

In this episode, PRWeek UK editor John Harrington and news editor Arvind Hickman discuss Ogilvy UK CEO Michael Frohllch's sudden move to Weber Shandwick; the Finn Partners acquisition of a digital agency; the impact COVID has had on internal comms; and whether social media is safe for brands after Thierry Henry deactivated his accounts following racist abuse. Manifest's Julian Obubo joins the show and pulls no punches in dissecting a controversial report on racism in the UK.

Returning to the office full-time looks like a thing of the past, as the majority of PR professionals prefer flexible working. PRWeek’s UK editor John Harrington and news editor Arvind Hickman take a deep dive into what the future of work looks like. The pair also take a look at whether anyone is likely to replace Number 10’s outgoing comms director James Slack, and the inaugural PR Cup Winter Series.

W Communications founder Warren Johnson believes spring will be a crunch time for many PR agencies, predicting a "smaller second wave" of business closures. In a brutally honest discussion, Warren explains how the Government's timeline to ease lockdown will impact the industry and broader economy, as well as why he believes social media companies are in need of greater scrutiny and regulation.

Women's careers and mental health have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID crisis. This special International Women's Day episode, guest hosted by Women in PR president Anna Geffertt, examines the issues in relation to the comms industry, and ask what progress we can expect in 2021. Featuring Edelman's Gerry Wisniewski, Mayor of London's Sneha Patel and Powerscourt's Ngozi Emeagi.

In the UK, Europe, Australia and the US, regulators are planning to clampdown on Big Tech and social media like never before to combat the spread of fake news, cyberbullying and protect user privacy. But what does regulation look like, how will it impact the way we use social media and what is the repercussions for PR and communications? Experts in this field – Battenhall's Drew Benvie, AxiCom's Asim Qureshi and X-Digital's Gabrielle Laine-Peters – take a deep dive into one of the big issues for 2021.

As the UK's COVID death toll passes 100,000, our panel discusses the comms challenges around vaccines and other major industry issues to look out for this year. Featuring: Hearst Director of PR & Communications Effie Kanyua; Cicero/AMO Executive Chair Iain Anderson; Hope&Glory Co-Founder and CCO James Gordon-Macintosh; Finsbury, Glover, Hering UK, Middle East & Asia CEO Faeth Birch; and Pretty Green Account Director Sheeraz Gulsher.

The technology industry has thrived during the COVID crisis by helping society adapt to lockdowns and a new way of isolated living. This episode looks at how tech PR has helped firms get cut through in a frenetic news cycle, whether it has helped the sector recover from the 'techlash' and how this has impacted comms agencies. Feat: Comms Co's Ilona Hitel, Fanclub's Adrian Ma, 3 Monkeys Zeno's David Lucas and Brands2Life's Andre André Labadie.

Agency leaders are concerned about the impact of COVID lockdowns on the mental health of employees heading into winter. This podcast takes a look at how the crisis is impacting mental health, what agencies are doing to provide vital support and whether an industry-wide approach is needed. Featuring: Edelman's Luciana Berger, Don't Cry Wolf's John Brown, The Romans' Indigo Le Fèvre, FleishmanHillard Fishburn’s Kev O’Sullivan and mental health expert Amy McKeown.

By their own admission, PR’s industry bodies have not done enough to address ethnic diversity, but is all that about to change? We speak to leaders and diversity chiefs of the PRCA & CIPR about why they have moved too slowly and how they plan to improve the diversity and opportunities for BME talent in the industry. Featuring: PRCA's Francis Ingham & Barbara Phillips, and the CIPR's Alastair McCapra & Avril Lee. Topics: industry body diversity, new initiatives (including The Blueprint, DRIVEN pledge) and more.

Jewish PR leaders David Fraser (Ready10), Sophie Raine (Ketchum), Graham Goodkind (Frank) and Natalie Neave (Tin Man) discuss the Wiley attacks and social media response, the scourge of antisemitism and their personal stories of hurt, whether it exists in PR, and how the communications industry can tackle it.

The coronavirus pandemic has been challenging for established PR agencies with many battling for survival. Despite this, many new agencies have launched. This episode will take a closer look at four of them to find out why they decided to launch, the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. Guests include: Shook co-founder Gemma Moroney, Hard Numbers co-founder Darryl Sparey, Coldr founder Kamiqua Pearce and Bold White Space co-founder Mike Robb.

Only three agencies (Manifest, Blurred and InFusion) have earned accreditation to a new scheme that aims to improve racial diversity in PR. This episode looks at how they qualified for Blueprint accreditation and why this is such an important and timely industry initiative. Panellists also discuss the reality of racism in PR and what else can be done to tackle it. Feat: Manifest's Julian Obubo, Blurred's Nik Govier and InFusion's Sara Hawthorn.

The government's new COVID quarantine rules have been described as 'ridiculous', 'daft' and will have a devastating impact on travel and hospitality. The industry is fighting back through a PR campaign led by The PC Agency founder Paul Charles and backed by 500 businesses. Charles, Kuoni head of comms Rachel O'Reilly and PRWeek editor-in-chief Danny Rogers discuss whether the Quash Quarantine campaign can force the government into a quick u-turn, and whether the industry can fully recover.

BP has doubled down on its ambition to become a net zero carbon emitting business by 2050 despite the crippling impacts of the global pandemic. Oil prices plummeted to below zero in the US, supply has dried up and businesses have been forced into drastic cost-cutting. Communications is playing a critical role in helping BP and other energy giants manage the crisis and keep their climate change plans on track. BP executive vice president of communications and advocacy, Geoff Morrell, and Hill+Knowlton Strategies managing director of energy and industrials, Chris Pratt, join us for this special look into the sector.

After a dramatic shift in messaging to the ambiguous 'Stay Alert' slogan – some believe the government is losing a grip on its comms during the coronavirus crisis. Repetitive daily briefings and combative relations with parts of the press have fuelled concern. BCW's head of strategic media Steve Hawkes, crisis comms consultant Amanda Coleman, MHP head of media Ian Kirby and W20 Group president Annalise Coady debate all of this and whether the government needs a new approach as social distancing rules are eased.

The coronavirus pandemic could forever change the communications industry and how clients value certain services. Freuds CEO Arlo Brady, Grayling Europe, UK & Ireland CEO Sarah Scholefield and Cicero/AMO executive chair Iain Anderson discuss which service areas have been critical – including internal comms, purpose and crisis comms – how their businesses are handling the crisis, and how the PR industry is likely to evolve.

Expert judges from PRWeek UK's Best Places to Work Awards join The PR Show to examine what sets apart leading employers in the communications industry. The episode explores recent progress in mental health support, flexible working and 'flexwashing', what the coronavirus tells us about working practices among PR employers, and where more progress is needed. Panellists include Alison Clarke, business consultant and mentor; Jane Fordham of Jane Fordham Consulting; and Peter Bowles, chief creative officer at Clarity PR.

Communications and PR is playing a critical role helping businesses in some of the industries hardest hit by the coronavirus crisis. Rooster managing director James Brooke and Palm PR founding director Liam Keogh take us through the challenges faced by travel, tourism and hospitality, and how the crisis is having a major impact on their own agencies.

Business communications during the coronavirus crisis requires a completely new approach to messaging and tone. People do not want to be marketed to and companies have quickly had to move away from behaving like brands towards acting like businesses that serve a genuine purpose. Blurred CEO Nik Govier and Frank managing partner Andrew Bloch join PRWeek's Arvind Hickman to debate how to strike the right tone in such unprecedented and challenging times. Brands discussed include: BrewDog, LVMH, Disney+, Burger King, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, British Airways, KFC, Guinness, Paddy Power, Joe Wicks, Wetherspoon's Tim Martin and more.

3 Mar, 09:20 A record number of brands are sponsoring athletes and teams at the Tokyo Olympic Games. It proves the 'five rings' are still a major draw – but can sponsorship in such a cluttered environment deliver value? British Olympic Association’s Tim Ellerton, H+K’s Jamie Corr, M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment's Jamie-Wynne Morgan and The Playbook’s Nick Meakin discuss how brands are making the most of the Olympics, and other trends in sports marketing.

27 Nov 2019, 15:35 PR professionals from ethnic minority backgrounds are being held back in their careers in what is a largely white industry. A combination of prejudice in the recruitment process, unconscious bias that favours white employees, apathy about the issue, and a lack of understanding is holding back BAME talent. BME PR Pros’ Elizabeth Bananuka, Manifest’s Julian Obubo and WX’s Zoe Stafford discuss the problem, why it exists, some positive programmes and what can be done to improve diversity in the communications industry.

25 Nov 2019, 14:17 Is it possible for an industry that is known for its 'always on' culture and insane deadlines to work flexibly? The answer is 'yes', but to date there are only a handful of agencies that do flexible working well. Some leading lights in flexible working, Golin's Bib Hilton, The PR Network's George Blizzard, Radioactive PR's Rich Leigh and Sesame's Emily Buckland, share their experiences and have called for a broader cultural shift to allow flexible working to become the norm. They warn the industry is at risk of 'flex washing' and there aren't enough flexible roles to retain young talent, and much more.

14 Oct 2019, 15:57 Agencies and brands are investing more of their marketing budgets into social cause campaigns, but not all are getting it right. Woke-washing has become a concern and some marketers are reluctant to be called out as hypocrites. Global expert on purpose marketing Sue Garrard used to lead Unilever’s sustainability and comms program. She joins Blurred co-founder Nik Govier and Freuds partner Lotte Jones to discuss whether brands should play in the purpose space, the tension between backing a social cause and being called out as a hypocrite, and how to do purpose marcoms effectively.

30 Jul 2019, 15:02 Agency leaders and many marketers believe the pitching process isn’t fit for purpose, but is this view shard by new business and procurement consultants? The answer is ‘yes’ and ‘no’. The process is far from perfect and can be improved, but us still a vital mechanism in how clients choose agency partners. That’s the verdict of procurement guru Tina Fegent and new business experts Tony Spong (AAR) and Charlie Carpenter (Creativebrief). They explain the parts of pitching that work well and how highly clients prioritise PR pitches – which may make for uncomfortable listening to some.

10 Jul 2019, 17:03 At this year’s Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity, established PR consultancies failed to score the top prize in the PR Lions. Is this a sign that PR agencies are still lagging in the creative stakes or is their cause for optimism? Edelman’s Michelle Hutton, Weber Shandwick’s James Nester and The Romans' Ottilie Ratcliffe join us to discuss creativity in PR.

12 Jun 2019, 08:00 Pitching has recently been described as “broken” and a “shit show” by prominent agency leaders. In this episode we look at the pitch process and discuss whether it is fit for purpose and what can be done to improve. To unpack pitching, we are joined by James Herring from Taylor Herring, Mandy Sharp from Tin Man and Snapchat’s director of international communications, Tanya Ridd.

3 May 2019, 16:56 Each year PRWeek analyses the top 150 consultancies in the UK and some of the key trends in the market. In this special podcast, Ketchum's Jo-ann Robertson, Golin's Bibi Hilton and W's Warren Johnson joins PRWeek's John Harrington to debate the major findings, including opportunities and challenges, talent and diversity, pitching, and the service areas that agencies are increasingly investing in.

2 Apr 2019, 11:06 Billed as Coachella of the Caribbean, last year’s Fyre Festival ended up more like the Hunger Games leaving thousands of rich millennials stranded on a tropical island. An army of influencers, including Kendall Jenner, helped sell out the festival, but few apologised for misleading their fans. Billions are being spent on influencer marketing each year, but are brands being ripped off? We’re joined by Karmarama’s Katie Hunter, The Romans’ Joe Mackay-Sinclair and YouTube star Joshua Pieters to discuss the ethics and effectiveness of influencer marketing.

In the new episode of The Line, Richard Gillis & Danny Rogers talk to Jermaine Jenas, the former England & Premier League star who is one of the rising stars of sports broadcasting. The conversation starts in 2006 in Baden Baden, at the England team's during the ill-fated Fifa World Cup campaign, which won more headlines for WAGs, Beckham-mania and tabloid stings than football matches. This summer, Jenas is part of the BBC's team in Russia for the 2018 version. We discuss whether journalists should be patriotic when it comes to covering England matches, whether football is ready for its first gay superstar and what really happens behind the scenes at Match of the Day.

Pochettino, Neymar and the Spurs Jinx Sunday Times best-selling author, journalist & Sky Sports analyst Guillem Ballague talks to Richard Gillis about Brave New World, his new biography of Spurs' highly rated young manager Mauricio Pochettino, the most talked-about sports book of the year. It’s a rare glimpse inside football’s inner sanctum and one which has proved highly controversial: the book was blamed for Spurs dip in form, leading to frenzied - and very valuable - coverage in The Sun and the Daily Mail, and even analysis on Match of the Day. We talk about the role played by the comms industry in the memes and tropes of football media coverage and whether the cult of the football manager is a particularly British trait. Guillem is joined around the podcast table by La Liga global delegate Keegan Pierce, who is tasked with promoting Spanish football to the world. The conversation roams from the post-Messi and Ronaldo era, the strength of the Spanish club game and the brand impact of the Neymar transfer, which saw the most expensive player in the world move from Barcelona to Paris St Germain last summer.

What’s the point of a sports agency? Big Sport sits at the epicentre of content, media & technology, offering fame & engagement to the right brands with the right strategy. But get it wrong & sponsors face the backlash of fans & viewers alike, so the value of good advice comes at a premium. This week, The Line tackles the big questions facing the agency sector, which has evolved from its corner in the comms industry to offer a wide range of services for clients, from brands & media, to rights holders & social platforms. Two leading sports strategists, Henry Chappell & Rupert Pratt, talk about the future of the agency sector, from small specialist shops to the role sport plays in the major marketing networks. We talk content, Facebook, Intellectual Property & the soap opera that is Formula One.

Brian Moore has made the transition from player to pundit look deceptively easy. The former England rugby star is today one of the most distinctive & authoritative voices in sports broadcasting & news media, working for the BBC & Daily Telegraph & establishing his own rugby podcast Full Contact, which is a cult hit among sports fans of all ages. In the latest episode of The Line, Moore talks to The Line’s regular host Richard Gillis about the sport’s relationship with the media, the rise of the pundit class and the cult of the super coach. Featuring one tale of sponsorship in rugby's amateur era involving ill-fitting shorts and a last gasp run to a Richmond sports store on the morning of the 1991 World Cup final. Moore also discusses the marketing challenges facing today’s generation of rugby stars and the role PR management played in the career of Danny Cipriani, the great lost talent of English rugby. Throughout this exclusive one-to-one encounter, Moore’s trademark bite & wit are never far below the surface. The only time he sounds uncomfortable is when asked whether he considers himself a brand (spoiler: he doesn’t, but he is).

With a few high-profile exceptions, sport sponsorship has long felt like a men-only club. Between 0.5% & 3% of event sponsorship goes to women sport, yet the market for women's professional sport is growing fast, with a higher media profile than ever before. London 2012 created a generation of brilliant new female stars who were embraced by an enthusiastic public. Strong, sexy & smart, women athletes are telling a whole new sports story – so where are the brands? With the assistance of two of the sponsorship world’s most insightful thinkers, Episode 5 of The Line looks at the relationship between sport & big business, to assess how the sponsorship market is responding to rapid change in how we watch & engage with sport. "It’s like sport has had some kind of epiphany," mocks Sally Hancock, managing partner of Y-Sport & chair of Women in Sport. "They suddenly realise they have female customers. Who knew?" Danny Rogers and Richard Gillis will be mulling over this & much more with Hancock and rormer CEO of Synergy Sponsorship Tim Crow on The Line, PRWeek's sport podcast, available for download now.

Hosted by PRWeek editor-in-chief Danny Rogers and author and journalist Richard Gillis, episode four of The Line lifts the lid on the phenomenon that is Arsenal Fan TV and discusses how fan-based influencers in sport are changing the game. Special guest, Arsenal Fan TV founder Robbie Lyall, explains how the YouTube channel – which now boasts more than 350,000 subscribers began and what has made it so popular. Should we be treating it as an equal to ‘traditional media’? And what is the future for the ever-growing market of fan channels? Danny Rogers and Richard Gillis will be mulling over this and much more with Hall on The Line, PRWeek's sport podcast, available for download now.

Hosted by PRWeek editor-in-chief Danny Rogers and author and journalist Richard Gillis, episode three of The Line discusses Ben Stokes' off-field boxing career and what it's like when a client is in the eye of a PR storm. Sex, violence, booze and drugs. And that's just before we talk about brown envelopes full of cash and dawn raids in Swiss hotels. Sometimes it feels like sport lunges from one big PR crisis to the next, keeping a whole specialist comms industry busy. Ben Stokes' infamous right hook, Wayne Rooney's drink-and-drive escapades, Joey Barton's betting habit and the end of the Tiger Woods brand via a car crash with a fire hydrant: the list of sports crises is a long one, moving from personal disasters through to the big corporate scandals of recent years, involving Fifa's financial shenanigans, and the money and doping problems that have dogged sports such as cycling and athletics. Communications expert and former News of the World editor Phil Hall has witnessed, exposed and advised on many comms crises first hand. In this episode of The Line, we talk about what it's like when a client is in the eye of the storm. We look at the nature of a scandal, the little moments that define a story and celebrity news management in the age of Twitter. "I used to have a checklist of the dos and don'ts of crisis management", says Hall. "But I chucked it in the bin. Every case is different." Danny Rogers and Richard Gillis will be mulling over this and much more with Hall on The Line, PRWeek's sport podcast, available for download now.

Hosted by PRWeek editor-in-chief Danny Rogers and author and journalist Richard Gillis, The Line asks "do tribes scale?" as the NFL returns to London this weekend. With special guests: Steve Martin, CEO of M&C Saatchi Sport and Entertainment Garry Cook, former CEO of Manchester City and chief global brand officer for UFC Nicky Horne, former Channel 4 American football presenter and all-round broadcast legend The NFL comes to London again this weekend when the Baltimore Ravens take on the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley. Meanwhile, the big Premier League teams are becoming global brands and rugby's professional clubs are pushing hard to build support in the USA. The commercial benefits to international growth are obvious. But beyond the money men, does anyone really care? What are the comms and marketing challenges underpinning sport’s global ambitions? What’s the difference between selling a one-off event and building regular support for a new club or franchise in London? Danny Rogers and Richard Gillis will be posing these and many more questions to an invited group of experts on The Line, the PRWeek's sport podcast, available for download now. The Line is supported by Cake.

The Line - PRWeek's sports podcast - Episode 1: How big player transfers became a marketing story Hosted by Danny Rogers and Richard Gillis With special guests: Amanda Docherty, Director of Dial Square and former head of comms at Arsenal Football Club and the FA Jim Dowling, Managing Director of Cake, the Havas sport and entertainment agency Tariq Panja, The New York Times journalist and author of Football's Secret Trade The Line is supported by Cake. This week's topic: How big player transfers became a marketing story Premier League clubs spent over £1.5bn in the summer transfer window as across Europe, the market for football talent skyrocketed. Neymar went from Barcelona to PSG for a record €222m fee and the Spanish club then chased and failed to lure Liverpool’s Coutinho for not much less. Spurs fans chuckled as Man City paid over £50million for their full back Kyle Walker and Chelsea manager Antonio Conte tore his new hair out as the Blues missed his targets. Meanwhile, journeyman defender Jonny Evans’ became one of the most sought after players in the Premier League, and nobody quite knew why. But beneath the headline numbers, the football’s transfer economy is a story about media, marketing and the future of the communications industry. How have social media platforms changed how football communicates? What is the potential and the limits of player brand power? Are the lines between sponsor and rights holder still relevant? And what do big brands want from players, teams, leagues and the game of football itself? Danny Rogers and Richard Gillis pose these and many more questions to an invited group of experts on The Line, the first PRWeek sports podcast, available for download.