Holtz Communications + Technology

Paul Pendergrass, corporate communicator and executive speechwriter, recently joined the New York Times’ DealBook blog to write about PR and communications under the pen name Jack Flack. In this interview, he discusses the role of writing about his craft, the state of PR, and the impact of new media, among a wide range of other topics.

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Ah ha, caught you, didn’t I? You started to blurt out an answer, then stopped. I know I did, when I read a “Big Idea” post on FastCompany with the provocative title, “

More than three years ago, in North Idaho, three bodies were discovered in a home. The subsequent search for two other children missing from the house ended a couple weeks later, on July 2, 2005, when Shasta Groene, then 8 years old, was found at a restaurant in Coeur D’Alene in the company of a convicted sex offender named Joseph Edward…

I have a bet.

For some time now, at least a year, I’ve been offering this wager: $100 says 10 years from now, I’ll be able to buy a newspaper out of a rack on the street. Jose Leal has taken me up on the bet, and this post will serve as the record. I also have it marked on calendar: July 21,…

Help A Reporter Out (HARO) began as a group of Facebook and is now a dedicated website with rapidly growing momentum. People sign up to receive queries from reporters looking to interview experts or people with experience for their articles. HARO was created by Peter Shankman, who still manages the site and mailing list in his spare time, while he’s not…

Last September, Southwest Airlines found itself embroiled in a controversy when a passenger was asked to get off the plane because she was, according to ground personnel, dressed inappropriately. The passenger was able to re-board only if she used a blanket to cover her legs.

Southwest addressed the issue on its blog—more than once. President Colleen Barrett wrapped up the issue that had…