As consumers increasingly turn to platforms like TikTok for news, a new breed of digital journalists, dubbed news influencers, are emerging as important sources of information, particularly for younger audiences. In this PRovoke Podcast, Aaron Parnas, a lawyer-turned-news influencer with an immense following, and Jaclyn Rothenberg, an Avoq senior VP, discuss who qualifies as a news influencer, the role they play in disseminating information and the hesitancy communicators and companies have in fully embracing them. The conversation also addresses the question of these journalists’ credibility, exploring why organizations hesitate to engage them and what it takes to prove they are legitimate outlets — in the same way journalists tied to traditional platforms are.

If all goes as planned, Golin by 2026 will be the first fully AI-integrated PR firm, transforming everything from workflow and jobs to the nature of client relationships.

In this episode of the PRovoke Media podcast, Jeff Beringer, Golin’s first chief AI officer, and PRovoke Media’s Diana Marszalek discuss what being “fully AI-integrated” means in practical terms and how full-scale adoption of the technology will boost output and efficiency — all while keeping human relationships (and jobs) intact. Says Beringer, “We’re  trying to equip people to do their best.”

Corporate Affairs Trends 2025

Looking at corporate engagement with civil society issues on a continuum that starts with mere compliance, progresses through support and advocacy, and culminated in activism, the report found that both consumers and executives feel the “sweet spot” is in the middle: with companies supporting and advocating for social causes. The discussion focused on a strategic approach that can help companies decide when and how to engage.

In a conversation that covered the firm’s history, the reasons it has remained committed to its independence, its Trust Barometer research, and the challenges Richard sees ahead as the competitive landscape evolves.

Future editions of this podcast will feature a wide variety of leaders, from giant multinational agencies to small specialist boutiques, from all of the world's regions as we seek to capture what drives success in a dynamic, fast-changing, hyper-competitive PR business.

Read highlights from the episode here: https://www.provokemedia.com/long-reads/article/richard-edelman-i-like-to-run-the-pirate-ship

In this podcast, the third class of recipients gather with WE founder/CEO Melissa Waggener Zorkin and PRovoke Media editor-in-chief Arun Sudhaman to discuss their the program's importance, the lessons they are hoping to learn, and their advice for PR industry leaders. 

This show features the 2024 Young Changemakers:

• Adina James (UK/Europe), account director, Allison
• Mei Lee (APAC/MEA), senior designer, Retroviral 
• Paula Chirinos (North America), SAE, Ketchum

In conversation with Arun Sudhaman, Thomas discusses why and how he wrote the book, which features insights from numerous communications leaders from across the globe. He also explores whether brands can be 'outrage-proofed' in today's febrile environment, where many may choose to remain silent rather than risk a backlash.

https://www.provokemedia.com/latest/podcast/article/podcast-how-did-our-agency-of-the-year-winners-stand-out-in-a-tough-year-for-pr

The panel:

• Priscillia Chun, Campaign Director, Diffusion PR
• Myriam Khan, Head of Communications, UK, Hitachi Rail
• Arun Lloyd, Associate Director, Hope&Glory
• Mammy Maguire, Head of Student Communications & Social Media, Manchester Metropolitan University
• Anita Rathod, Communications & Engagement Lead, Rolls-Royce

In this episode of the PRovoke Media podcast, we look at neurodiversity in the PR industry in a conversation between Maja Pawinska Sims and Paul Nolan, COO and co-owner of B2B technology specialist agency CCGroup, who was recently diagnosed with ADHD after a 20-year career in PR. Nolan talks about his diagnosis, the impact on his personal and professional life, his experience of being a neurodiverse leader in PR, and how the industry can better support and embrace neurodiversity.

Resources:

Neurodiversity in PR: From Kryptonite to Superpower

PRCA/CIPR Wellness Audit

Gain deep introspection into Nestlé’s approach towards maintaining corporate reputation while handling stakeholder criticism and balancing long-term business vision. Also get unique insights in how shared values and purpose influence corporate culture, impacting business purpose and social responsibility.

The discussion lifts the veil on critical changes in the governance sector and highlights the importance of engaging thoughtfully with stakeholders in an increasingly consumer-centric world. Hear about Nestlé's consumer relationship strategy, importance of purpose-led initiatives, and the paradigm shift in public relations sector in this episode.

The show concludes by discussing the intricate role of authenticity and effective communication in fostering corporate relationships and maintaining a positive corporate reputation. From Nestle's journey of becoming a warmer, authentic organization, to adapting strategies around carbon-neutrality, this episode provides a comprehensive outlook on future challenges in sustainability, human rights, health, and harnessing AI for issue resolution and problem-solving.

In conversation with PRovoke Media editor-in-chief Arun Sudhaman, Lawrie also discusses the future of AI as it relates to corporate affairs professionals, in terms of potential opportunities and threats, along with the reputation risks entailed for business.

The role of ESG in the context of ongoing political debates is also examined, alongside the emergence of 'green hushing' and its impact on transparent sustainability reporting. 

• A discussion of how AI can enable and empower PR professionals rather than threaten to replace them, and how those familiar with the technology can make their colleagues more comfortable about the transformation AI will bring.
• Why corporate interest in ESG is unlikely to dissipate, even if the language we use to discuss a broad commitment to stakeholder capitalism needs to change—and why more relatable language may be needed.
• How the “pink economy” has always been central to healthcare, where women are often the gatekeepers for the entire family, and what consumer brands can learn from that.
• The importance of discussing economic inequality, and why that’s an issue at the root of ESG, DEI and the kind of tribalism that seems to have taken over political discussion in the US and globally.

Unlock Health is a single-source growth partner for healthcare providers, offering a range of marketing communications services, consulting, and technology. It emphasizes the importance of convergence in the industry, bringing together technology solutions and traditional marketing services, brand and performance marketing, and do it all through the lens of their industry-specific healthcare expertise. 

Resources:

‘Integrity Matters: Net Zero Commitments by Businesses, Financial Institutions, Cities and Regions’ the latest report from the UN’s High Level Expert Group.

The Climate Action 100+ Net Zero Company Benchmark

Race to Zero criteria, which outlines the ‘five Ps’: Pledge, Plan, Proceed, Publish and Persuade

The Global Standard on Responsible Climate Lobbying

We Mean Business coalition

As we look to life post-pandemic and discussions of returning to the office more permanently than the past two years, Ruder Finn's Kathy Bloomgarden and Mondelez International's Russell Dyer weigh in on the challenges facing leaders in ways that have never been required of them until now.

You can subscribe to the APACD podcast, for more conversations like these, here:

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Topics Covered: 0:00 Introductions 2:32: What if This is New to Me? 4:57: The History of ESG 7:57: Start with the Top-Line Narrative 9:57: Get Executives Involved 14:01: Consistency Between Internal and External Messaging is Always a Problem 15:37: Make Employees Part of the Strategy 20:51: Where Does This Fall in the Priority List for the Company? 22:10: You’re Likely Already Doing Great ESG Work (and Don’t Know it) 

To explore the strategy behind their long list of successful partner-pairings, Megan Miller, head of content partnerships at PRovoke Media, speaks with Jackie Peskin, vice president at Coyne PR, and Dave Holdsworth, vice president of marketing at Eggland’s Best.  The agency-brand relationship has brought life to several unique partnerships including ones with Lifetime Fitness and the colorful lifestyle brand, The Home Edit. While many wouldn't have expected eggs to have much in common with an organizational brand, Peskin's research and background in nutritional studies led to the insight that reorganizing the way food is stored inside a fridge can actually help people eat healthier — something with which Eggland's Best strives to be associated. Peskin and Holdsworth also discuss the surprising ways in which the Covid-19 pandemic affected their work, most notably making the decision to scale back Eggland’s Best advertising during the beginning of lockdowns as consumers were having difficulty finding any eggs available in their supermarkets. The conversation concludes with Peskin speaking on the importance of the firm and the brand's roles in vetting possible partners for the value a partnership will lend to enhancing that brand’s identity. 

Rick goes into detail about acquiring the Ad agency West and Vaughan to help grow his business and along with it, the range of options he could offer current and new clients. 

The two also discuss navigating the culture clash of merging companies, acquiring a firm with its own way of working. They also speak on working through those cultural differences, and becoming stronger, and more unified through them. On that subject, Rick stresses the importance of having a similar philosophical identity with the principles at the firm to be acquired. 

French/West/Vaughan produced the iconic and longstanding Wrangler Network for the jean brand and Rick discusses how that came to fruition and how an ad campaign became a profit generator for Wrangler. 

Lastly, Rick talks about how his work producing content for clients has led him to work in TV and Film production.

Both Paul and Jim agree that the role of a CEO is incomparable to past generations of CEOs.  Previously, CEOs were figureheads who handled the business systems, financial elements and board relations. Now, CEOs spend increased time relaying the role of an organization in social issues, as  well as its role in society more than ever before.

Now that this has shifted the focus for CEOs, it also has changed the roles of CCOs within an organization. Advocacy is a much bigger part of the corporate communications roles than it ever has been.

Similarly to social issues, the “Great Resignation” has put pressure on organizations to be clear and transparent with their staff about where the company stands on social issues—topics that need to be handled well, lest the risk of alienating employees.

Lastly, the two discuss the human element in public relations. We have never before been able to know so much about public sentiment towards a company internally and externally, and being clear with your company’s values as to how they relate to your consumers, staff and shareholders is the most important factor in connecting with people today. 

The rise, the predicted fall, and the ultimate staying power of influencers has been jarring and rejuvenating for the PR industry. And, as we learned during the Covid pandemic, influencers play a key role in healthcare communications, which has changed dramatically over the last two years.

With that in mind, we partnered with Marina Maher Communications on a new video series on the role influencers play in healthcare. In each episode, members of MMC’s team of specialists will explore the topic from different angles.

In this premiere episode, we speak with Olga Fleming, MMC’s president of healthcare and corporate, and strategist Maddie Simko, who led research looking at the place and power of healthcare influencers.

The candid conversation covers the challenges leaders face in a post-pandemic world that ostensibly includes people returning to the office. Keeping employees engaged, maintaining a strong culture and making employees’ commutes worthwhile are among the topics explored.

Creating a Movement is a series on health and wellness produced in partnership with the Bulleit Group. This episode features Alexandra Zatarain, co-founder of Eight Sleep. Built on the premise of using technology to improve sleep, Eight Sleep specializes in products including smart mattresses that track and promote better sleep, one of the most important pillars of health. Kyle Arteaga, founder and CEO of the Bulleit Group, also joins the discussion.

The discussion includes valuable insights from Hudson and Mussante as people of color in Silicon Valley. They provide an inside perspective on how big tech responded with recent racial reckonings in America and what companies can or can’t accomplish in this realm. Both discuss challenges working in places where not many peers look like them and the balance between friends who may say the wrong things and the larger systems which led those friends to unknowingly say biased things.  

This video conversation features the following panelists:

- Charles Hudson, Managing Partner and Founder of Precursor Ventures

- Syreeta Mussante, EVP of B2B & Enterprise tech at Praytel

- Aarti Shah, Past PRovoke Executive Editor (moderator) 

Topics covered:

01:40 Changes in corporate comms

03:44 Preparing for future challenges

04:31 The corporate comms skillset

06:22 Exemplary organizations

07:48 Reaching the c-suite

The discussion featured the following panellists:

• Justin Lam, Business Executive Officer, Nespresso HK & Macau
• Marty Filipowski, Director of Public Relations, APJ, Nutanix
• David Hardoon, Managing Director, Aboitiz Data Innovation
• Caroline Hsu, Managing Director AP, The Hoffman Agency
• Sheel Kohli, Chief Marketing Officer, Eqonex
• Arun Sudhaman, Editor-in-Chief, PRovoke Media (moderator)

0:00 Introductions & relevant experience 6:05 Changing role of PR in B2B marketing strategy  23:27 Long term objectives vs short term focus 29:34 Understanding what PR can accomplish 35:40 Changes in PR investment, from media relations towards social media, owned/paid content and influencer marketing 50:05 Using data and commstech to measure and prove return on PR investment 1:07:17 Quality of B2B content

Topics Covered:  02:02 Orthman on moving to Japan to join Infiniti just as Covid-19 enveloped the world  04:33 Friess draws parallels between automotive and beauty, retail & lifestyle  06:04 The QX 55 launch — and the unexpected pandemic pivot  08:12 How lockdown allowed the team to take unprecedented risks  11:20 How to replicate the sensory experience of buying a car during the pandemic 12:49 Rethinking exec comms around the ‘no suits rule’  15:03 ‘It takes a village’ - a new way to approach the marketing mix  18:43 Getting real about the role of celebs vs more accessible influencers  21:00 How the ‘Claire’ persona for QX60 still included multicultural nuance 25:11 Lessons learned on integration 

Topics: 

01:15: How AI can be used to pitch media  04:20 How PRophet emerged from an internal competition  07:08 AI will allow the PR workforce to spend more time on higher-quality work 11:39  Reducing 'grunt work' can help improve the industry's mental health crisis  13:59 Aaron's take on the future of the office 16:58 DE&I priorities in the post-pandemic era  21:40 Shifting employee-employer dynamics  24:02 Thoughts on innovation 

Topics covered:  01:35 What is it like working at Otsuka America Pharmaceutical? 03:41 How communications can help improve  access to care 08:17 Why mental health community outreach requires a multi-layered approach  11:21 The role comms plays in leveraging the power of digital technology 16:41 How to create a more compassionate culture around mental health 21:55 How the language we uses can shift acceptance of mental health

Topics:  01:30 Gabriel Stricker on almost working at Theranos  03:50 The importance of having moral alignment with the leadership team 06:17 Is it possible to vet for character during the interview process?  10:05 Is the gold rush mentality in tech normalizing people compromise their values for big payouts?  13:34 Having a healthy internal culture and building harmful products aren't mutually exclusive 17:36 Should CCOs be chief conscience officers?  28:43 The tricky economics of the agency world 36:33 Stricker's rule for vetting companies 

Topics covered: 01:33 Defining digital health  02:26 The impact of recent VC investments in telehealth  05:13 How healthcare apps can stand out in such crowded markets    06:22 Will mental health continue to be digital-first?  08:29 Biggest digital health category in 2022?

To hear more from this conversation, listen or watch below:

4:30     Misinformation vs disinformation

7:38     How the decline of local journalism is changing society

15:06   Who should decide whether news is reliable? 

21:10    Should objectivity really be the objective? 

26:05   How cellphone footage has changed the narrative.   

36:51   Should journalists unionize and do paywalls work? 

43:42   How did The Atlantic respond to attacks on Jeffrey Goldberg? 

48:37   Is it even possible to predict the news cycle?

06:38      Why we should examine the use of ‘femtech’ 

07:21      Medical terms vs. euphemisms for women’s health 

10:16      Social media restrictions on feminine health 

13:49      How to build trust around such intimate offerings 

17:48     Inclusive storytelling on women’s health

21:26     How data is driving storytelling on women’s health 

24:16     Combating ageism against women 

27:10     Where is the conversation headed?

29:40     How to stand out in such a crowded, buzz-generating space? 

Hip Hop Public Health executive director Lori Rose Benson and Finn Partners senior partner Helen Shelton join Diana Marszalek on the PRovoke podcast to talk about how using popular music to deliver health and safety information to an underserved youth audience has resonated during the Covid pandemic.

Show Notes 6 Tools for Allyship

Video Interview