Potomac Flacks

JOB OF THE WEEK: National Retail Federation, Director of Media Relations

The National Retail Federation (NRF) is seeking a Director, Media Relations to develop and execute short and long-term media campaigns to garner press coverage and awareness of NRF’s policy and advocacy agenda and support the organization’s strategic goals.

Responsibilities

• Proactively builds press awareness of NRF campaigns, issues and events
• Writes press releases, media advisories, Op-Eds, blog posts and executive briefing documents
• Develops and maintains relationships with Washington, D.C. media contacts from traditional and emerging media outlets
• Identifies targeted media opportunities to increase brand awareness and profile of the NRF brand and its senior leadership team
• Maintains an acute understanding of policy issues including their history, current activity and future developments
• Works with policy team to develop and maintain content to support PR and Advocacy sections of NRF website
• Represents NRF to the public through a variety of media outlets as an association spokesperson
• Manages the tracking and reporting of NRF media hits
• Offers insight and understanding about leveraging new and emerging media technology to strengthen public awareness of key issues among target audiences
• Performs other related duties as assigned

Qualifications:

The successful candidate will have:

• A Bachelor’s degree in Communications/Journalism.
• A minimum of 5 years’ experience in increasingly responsible staff positions handling multiple media relations duties on a full-time, daily basis with comparable direct experience handling federal government and policy issues.
• Must have a portfolio of successful past media placements, specifically demonstrating results with political and government media.
• Established relationships with Inside the Beltway and national media – including print and television producers.
• Demonstrated ability to understand and analyze complex issues and situations and to provide thoughtful media relations strategy.
• Outstanding judgment, writing, speaking, organizational and interpersonal skills; Must communicate effectively and persuasively in a variety of environments.
• Ability to write about a variety of legislative issues for diverse audiences through multiple channels.
• Background experience working on a political campaign, on Capitol Hill, at a trade association, and/or in print/broadcast media experience is a plus.
• Understanding of social media platforms to enhance overall reach and breadth of messaging.
• Proven excellence in successfully juggling multiple and often high-pressure deadlines with an extraordinary attention to detail.
• Some travel required.

TO APPLY: Send a resume and one-page letter summarizing your interest, qualifications and salary expectations. Please reference the Director, Media Relations position in your cover letter. Please email your application to [email protected] or mail to: VP, Human Resources, NRF, 1101 New York Ave., NW, Suite 1200, Washington, DC 20005.  (PF tipster)

Cruz adds Slobodien to U.S. Senate Office as Communications Director, Watson as Media Booker

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) announced on Friday that he has named Rachael Slobodien as his new Communications Director and Heidi Watson as Media Booker and Press Assistant.

Slobodien previously worked at The Heritage Foundation as Manager of Media Affairs where she led the regional communications team and crafted messaging and strategy for Heritage’s Institute for Economic Freedom and Opportunity.

She has previously served as Press Secretary to then-U.S. Rep. Barbara Cubin (R-WY), as Senior Media Associate at Heritage in 2010 and as Communications Manager at the National Taxpayers Foundation.

A native of Little Rock, Slobodien holds a Bachelor’s degree from Washington and Lee University.  She is currently earning a Law Degree from The George Washington University.

Watson most recently worked as Press Assistant for the House Committee on Small Business, where she led social media efforts and contributed to graphic design and messaging under Chairman Steve Chabot (R-OH).

Watson moved to Washington, D.C. from Oklahoma in January 2015, she first interned for U.S. Rep. Dave Brat (R-VA). Prior to working on the Hill, her experience includes serving as Constituent Services Manager and Assistant Appointments Director for former Oklahoma Speaker of the House T.W. Shannon. She also worked as Campaign Assistant during Shannon’s bid for the U.S. Senate in 2014.

Watson earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma and is a native of Ardmore, OK. (PF tipster)

Remainders: Gleischman to GPG; Mason to Albright-Stonebridge; Haulsee to Senate HELP Cmte; Litman to Google

Here are some recent items that we missed:

• Max Gleischman has joined Glover Park Group as Vice President.  He was most recently Director of Communications and Spokesperson for U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Samantha Power.  Previously, he served as Communications Director for then-Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and for former U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI).  (PF tipster)
• Julie Mason, currently the White House Director of Special Projects in the Office of Vice President Biden, has started working as Vice President for Communications at the Albright-Stonebridge Group.  Previously she was Communications Director for Dr. Jill Biden, spokesperson at AOL Time Warner and a communications staffer in the Clinton White House for five years.  (Politico “Playbook)
• Pinehurst, NC native Taylor Haulsee has been named Deputy Press Secretary for the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee for Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN).  She previously worked at FP1 Strategies.  (PF tipster)
• Riva Litman has joined Google’s global communications and public affairs team in DC.  She was previously Communications Director for House GOP Conference Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA).  (Politico “Influence”)

Former Journalist and Obama Aide Douglass Named Global Head of Communications at Bloomberg

Bloomberg LP today that Linda Douglass will be joining Bloomberg Media Group as Global Head of Communications in September.

Douglass will oversee communications strategy and press relations for Bloomberg Media’s global multi-platform products, including digital, print, television, video, radio, and live events.

Douglass is a veteran in the fields of communications, media, and journalism.

She served most recently as the Senior Vice President for Global Communications at Atlantic Media, where she oversaw communications strategy for such initiatives as the digital transformation of The Atlantic and the launch of Quartz.

Prior to that, Douglass worked for President Obama in various roles, including Director of Communications for the White House Office of Health Reform and senior advisor to his 2008 presidential campaign. She has had a long career as a broadcast journalist, covering politics and government.

Douglass has worked as a journalist in Washington D.C. and, earlier, in Los Angeles. She was a Washington-based correspondent for CBS News, specializing in health care and campaign finance.

She later joined ABC News, where she spent eight years as the Chief Capitol Hill Correspondent, receiving the Everett Dirksen Award for Excellence in Coverage of Congress.  (PF tipster)

AP’s Pickler Joins Glover Park Group

Strategic communications and government affairs firm The Glover Park Group (GPG) today announced that Nedra Pickler has joined as a Managing Director.  Pickler will work in the Strategic Communications practice, providing strategic and media counsel for the firm’s clients.

Pickler, a veteran journalist, joins GPG after spending 17 years at The Associated Press (AP), most recently serving as a White House reporter covering the second term of the Obama Administration. Pickler previously covered the second Bush Administration. In both of those roles, she covered breaking news, questioned both presidents extensively and reported from abroad on presidential trips across five continents.

Pickler also served as federal courts reporter in Washington, DC, and covered presidential campaigns for the AP during both the 2004 and 2008 election cycles. Pickler was part of the AP team nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for coverage of the 2008 presidential campaign and received several awards from the AP during her tenure, including the John L. Dougherty Award for coverage of the Ford-Firestone tire scandal, and was twice the recipient of the global Beat of the Week award for breaking news reporting. She started her career in the Michigan bureau of the AP. (PF tipster)

JOB OF THE WEEK: Communications Manager, Georgetown University McDonough School of Business

The Communications Manager, reporting to the Director of Online Marketing and Communications, develops and implements online marketing and communications tools to raise the visibility of Georgetown’s McDonough School of Business.

 

• Primary duties include reporting on and creating social media content, coordinating social media and digital production calendars, monitoring social media accounts, analyzing our competitors’ digital efforts, and creating and analyzing metrics reports from various tracking sources.
• Secondary duties include updating web pages, creating html emails, creating landing pages, writing copy & preparing online advertisements, shooting and editing videos for social media, being an advocate for social news dissemination, and teaching and training staff about social media.

Responsibilities & Qualifications:

REQUIREMENTS:

• Bachelor’s Degree - preference for business, marketing, communications, or journalism.
• Some experience in journalism and reporting. 
• Excellent writing and proofreading skills. 
• At least five years, though preferably more, of exposure to digital communications and updating websites.
• Excellent management organizational skills.
• Ability to work both independently and within a team environment. 
• Ability to multi-task in a fast-paced environment. Technical expertiseinApple OS, Windows, HTML 5, CSS 3, Drupal  7, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, HootSuite, basic Photoshop, Dreamweaver, WordPress, Google Analytic – as well as basic videography and editing, Finalcut Pro, IMovie, or Adobe Premier.

TO APPLY: Click here. (PF tipster)