Our agency opened its doors on March 25^th 1985. It’s been a quarter of a century, today. It’s our day…

We are privileged to have been a witness to some of the most accelerated changes in history — moments that occurred from 1985, the year of our founding, to today — moments in time that have impacted not only history, but the PR consciousness and subsequently changed the ‘way it was’ from that ‘moment’ forward.  Recognizing this, we set out to put it all into some perspective to crystallize these impactful moments.

Our choice of 25 PR Defining Moments, over our 25 years, is capsulated in the video below.

We sought out ideas for our list from our colleagues, PR professionals and journalists, asking them to submit their ideas.  The criteria for inclusion was that the ‘moment in time’ over the last quarter of a century, had to have found its place in history or altered the way we live our lives, and also had to have impacted change within the context of public relations.  The ‘moments’ submitted could have influenced a lifestyle change, unfurled a technology that would change the way we lead our everyday lives, spotlighted a news happening through an inadvertent camera shot, or changed a political order or the societal landscape.

What we got was astounding, way more than 25…

So we chose our moments, from the many, and listed them in random order, so that we would be free to include ‘moments’ that fit our criteria, rather than be limited to the year in which they occurred.

If you wish, please let us know about ‘your moment’ that is not on our list via: Twitter @PollackPRMktg with a #25PR hashtag, comment on the blog, or email to info@ppmgcorp.com.

• Exxon Valdez Oil Spill
• The Televised Car Chase
• September 11, 2001
• The Cola Wars of the 1980s
• US Airways Flight 1549
• Fall of the Berlin Wall
• War Time Coverage
• Demi Moore’s Cover for Vanity Fair
• Real-Time Communication
• Barack Obama’s Social Media Election Campaign of 2008
• Dan Rather Exits As News Anchor
• First Dot Com Web Domain
• Debut of Roger & Me
• Gen-Y Changes the Playing Field
• Demise of Seattle News Institution
• The Rise of Pundits
• The Oprah “Effect”
• Reality Television
• Mosaic Browser Introduction
• Entertainment As News
• Product Craze
• Death of Princess Diana Media Implications
• Faux News Scandal
• First Blog Post
• You!

Live car chases would become an international phenomenon after the slow-speed chase of OJ Simpson in 1994, which captivated national viewers. But over the next decade, declining viewer interest resulted in decreased coverage of car chases by local news.

->Back to 25 PR Defining Moments

->View the Complete List

Compiled By The Pollack PR Marketing Group, The List Is A Collaborative Effort Of

Colleagues, Journalists And PR Professionals

LOS ANGELES (March 25, 2010) – As part of the celebration of its 25th anniversary, The Pollack PR Marketing Group (PPMG), an integrated PR and marketing agency, released today a list of 25 PR Defining Moments that occurred from 1985, the year of its founding, to today — PR moments in time that impacted not only history, but the PR consciousness and subsequently changed the ‘way it was’ from that moment forward.

Several months ago, the agency sent out a call to colleagues, PR professionals and journalists, requesting them to submit their ideas for such a list.  The criteria set for inclusion was that the ‘moment in time’ over the last quarter of a century, had to have found its place in history or altered the way we live our lives, and also had to have impacted change within the context of public relations industry.  The ‘moments’ submitted could have influenced a lifestyle change, unfurled a technology that would change the way we lead our everyday lives, spotlighted a news happening through an inadvertent camera shot, or changed a political order or the societal landscape.

According to Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Noemi Pollack, “What first prompted the making of such a list is that over our 25-years we have been witness to some of the most accelerated changes in history.  As such, we wanted to put it all into some perspective to crystallize these impactful moments in time. Clearly, we recognized that many more than 25 ‘PR moments” would qualify for the list, so this list represents our choices of the numerous ones that were submitted. We chose to present the selected 25 in random order, so that we would be free to include ‘moments’ that fit our criteria, rather than be limited to the year in which they occurred.”

The agency was founded on the 25th of March in 1985, as Pollack & Setzer by senior strategists Noemi Pollack and Paul Setzer.  Almost two years later, at the time that Setzer left the firm to pursue a focus on advertising and graphic design, the agency was renamed The Pollack PR Marketing Group.  In the ensuing years, the agency continued its early focus on consumer products and services and, in recent years, has expanded its niche to include online and offline consumer branded engagement.

Fourteen years after its founding, the agency became a partner in The WORLDCOM Public Relations Group, a consortium of 110 agencies in 94 world markets, which added the collective resources and talents of 2,200 professionals that creatively and collaboratively handle small to large scale local, national and international public relations and marketing campaigns, seamlessly.

Additional plans for the year-long celebration include: developing and posting videos on the 25th of every month of forward-thinking communication concepts and ideas that incorporate evolving communication trends, as well as concepts that can support smoother adoption of ‘change’ by corporations – globally; a community relations “roll-up-your-sleeves” plan, whereby each agency professional gets an opportunity to work an 8-hour day at a charity of their choice on the 25th of every month and, in return, the agency will offer a donation to each charity; a monthly guest blogger column on the agency’s blog on the 25th of every month; and, of course, social festivities.

To date, guest blogger contributors include: futurist and author, David Houle, sales “guru” Jeffrey Gitomer; social media strategist, Jason Baer, author and sales strategist, Tom Searcy; PR publisher, Paul Holmes; and journalist, James Flanagan.

Says Noemi Pollack, “When we think of ourselves as a quarter of a century old, the longevity in that phrase really astounds,” and adds, ”We look forward to the next 25.”

ABOUT THE POLLACK PR MARKETING GROUP

The Pollack PR Marketing Group (PPMG) based in Century City, CA, is a 25-year old mid-sized, multi-specialty agency that develops communication platforms and programs, manages corporate reputations, launches new products and services and promotes consumer brand engagement for clients ranging from innovative start-ups, to Fortune 500 companies, with a focus on consumer products, technologies and services. PPMG is a partner in The WORLDCOM Public Relations Group, a consortium of over 100 partners with offices around the world. For more information, visit http://www.ppmgcorp.com, or http://www.pollackblog.com, or follow us on Twitter @PollackPRMktg.