Potomac Flacks

AP National Political Editor Sidoti is new BP Head of Communications

Liz Sidoti, who has spent nearly the last 15 years with the Associated Press, most recently as National Political Editor, will join BP as Head of Communications, within the new Communications and External Affairs team, effective December 31.

A native of Kent, Ohio, Sidoti joined the AP in Cincinnati in 1999, and spent four years covering the Ohio Statehouse. Before AP, she reported for The Columbus Dispatch, The Repository in Canton, Ohio, and the Record-Courier in Portage County, Ohio.  She is a graduate of Ohio University.  (PF tipster)

Lamke, Henderson Join Growth Energy

This week, Growth Energy, which represents the producers and supporters of ethanol who “feed the world and fuel America,” hired two new communications team members.

Ryan Lamke joins Growth Energy as the new Communications Manager and will be responsible for strategic planning, grassroots communications, as well as managing and coordinating social and traditional media efforts to expand Growth Energy’s public relations, legislative affairs and membership agendas.

Courtney Henderson joins as the new Communications Assistant and will be responsible for monitoring media coverage of the biofuels industry, as well as expanding Growth Energy’s digital presence through various social media platforms, such as Twitter, Facebook and blog posts, in addition to supporting the overall mission of the communications team and membership of Growth Energy.

Prior to joining Growth Energy, Lamke was an independent consultant providing strategic communications support to various individuals and nonprofits. He has previously worked in government and public relations for a variety of companies; he is an alumnus of Georgetown University and is a decorated U.S. Marine Corps veteran.

Henderson has previously worked as a digital media consultant, and earned a B.A. from the University of Notre Dame and an M.A. from the University of Michigan.  (PF tipster)

Rear Adm. Kirby Named new Pentagon Press Secretary

Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel announced that Rear Adm. (lower half) John Kirby will serve as Pentagon press secretary and his principal spokesman.

According to a release, Rear Adm. (lower half) Kirby, who currently serves as the U.S. Navy's chief of information, has long been a trusted voice for the U.S. Department of Defense and is one of its leading public affairs officers.  He previously served as one of DoD's top spokesmen under Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and as chief spokesman and public affairs advisor to Adm. Mike Mullen throughout his tenure as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Rear Adm. Kirby grew up in St. Petersburg, FL. He is a 1985 graduate of the University of South Florida in Tampa, Fla., where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in History. He holds a Master of Science degree in International Relations from Troy State University and a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College.  (PF tipster)