Winner: Kristen Daly - Boston Marathon Bombing
As a result of the work of Kristen Daly and her colleagues at The Goodwin Group, Carlos Arredondo has been referred to as the "Comforter in Chief" of the Boston Marathon tragedy. The iconic photo of his rescue of Jeff Bauman is one of the most recognized photos of that tragic day of April 15, 2013. During Goodwin’s work with Arredondo, many book agents, looking for him to tell his life story, contacted them. The careful maintenance of his image and the interest in his story resulted in a six-figure book deal for Goodwin’s client; multiple civic and government awards; him being a guest of the First Lady at the State of the Union; and multiple paid and unpaid speaking appearances.
Goodwin’s conscious decisions on how to present Arredondo's story and reputation were managed in a way that allowed him to be embraced and respected by the public without crossing the line of exploitation and over-exposure. His preexisting reputation as a "crazy war activist" was quickly forgotten and his past activity has now been recognized and rewarded instead of ridiculed and ignored. Some of his media hits included NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams, People Magazine, The New York Times, ESPN, Primer Impacto, CNN, Fox News, Runner’s World, Parade Magazine, Canadian Broadcasting, as well as other numerous local, national and international outlets worldwide.
Honorable Mentions:
- Airlines for America - Don't Ground America campaign
- MWW - Brigadier General Jeffrey Sinclair Court Martial
- Weber Shandwick and Chobani - #FreeChobani: Greek Yogurt "Hostage" Crisis