Stories by Thomas Mustac

California Pizza Kitchen (CPK) recently experienced a social media nightmare when employees mishandled delivery order placed at one of its restaurants. But thanks to exemplary crisis communication, CPK transformed the nightmare into a media win.

Successful debating requires a blend of strategic communication, effective rebuttals and emotional connection with the audience. By adopting techniques inspired by Eminem’s rap battles—relatability, preemptive defense, and exposing contradictions—you can turn the tables in your favor for not just debates, but interviews, press conferences and more.

Public relations provides third party validation, credibility and visibility for startup companies struggling to differentiate themselves in a sea of competitors.

To combat deepfakes and misinformation, communicators should focus on fostering media literacy among both consumers and the industry, arming them with the necessary skills to understand the difference between fact and fiction.

In the public relations industry, where strategic communication and media relations are more than classroom concepts, internships allow students to immerse themselves in real-world campaigns, build a portfolio of successful projects, and hone their skills through mentorship and client interactions. Here are five ways to level up your PR internship programs this fall.

In media relations, newsjacking helps create a real-time, mutually beneficial relationship between yourself and the reporter, as you’re providing them with a credible third-party resource or commentary that they can use right away. Here’s a step-by-step guide.

In a conversation with PRNEWS about influencer marketing strategies, Cristy Garcia, CMO at Impact.com, discusses how can brands and influencers can get the most out of their partnerships, where misalignment between the two occurs, and recent research findings conducted on the brand-influencer relationship.

Great guest pieces deliver inspiring and empowering content that outlets want to publish and passion about a particular topic that ropes readers in. But one important element that is often overlooked is style. Here are some steps to help you score style points with an outlet and its readers.

For all the emphasis on bigger crisis situations (a la CrowdStrike), a more common issue companies face is the prospect of a one-off negative article. Here are six recommended actions for PR pros in this situation.

Hahn’s Earned Lift Model approach to measurement calculates the expected business impact of a brand’s media mentions by examining earned media hits and observable changes in customer behaviors. Here’s how the method could matter to business’ bottom line ROI.