Stories by PRNEWS

More than three-quarters of moms (80%) nationwide are making the major household purchasing decisions for their families, per a recent Child’s Play Communications study. Dads may still have a long way to go before they catch up, but the tide is slowly changing.

PR News will announce the winners of the 2013 PR People Awards at a Dec. 10 luncheon at Washington, D.C.’s National Press Club. We’ll also honor this year’s inductees into the PR News Hall of Fame and the 2013 People to Watch list of Rising PR Stars (listed here).

In the social media world, the process of turning an individual into a so-called thought leader begins with “content.” Initially, this involves creating and posting blogs and comments on others’ blogs, but also includes creating and posting other written content, such as white papers, case studies, and eBooks.

On a daily basis, we see Democrats and Republicans trying to shape the narrative and control the story and, therefore, public opinion.

Talk about reeling them in. At the Public Relations Society of America’s 2013 International Conference last week in Philadelphia it was standing room only for two separate work sessions focusing on how PR pros can deploy video to enhance their communications strategy.

When one of the top ballet companies in the world, the Paris Opera Ballet, decided to perform seven shows in Chicago last summer, the Windy City’s arts patrons were ready to fork over for tickets, while the Harris Theater for Music and Dance set its sights on reaching well beyond the 1,500 people it could fit into its house for a performance.

Can Handle the Truth: More than two-thirds of consumers in the U.S., UK and China place a high value on honesty and transparency, according to a recent Cohn & Wolfe study.

I’ve worked alongside some of the best investor-relations professionals in the business. They are smart, focused and often jaded about the value that public relations can bring to the party. And in many cases, quite frankly, they are right.

Every year, thousands of marketers, agencies, media providers and buyers, branding consultants, industry press and even the occasional PR practitioner converge for four days of speeches, seminars, schmoozing and hyper-networking at the Association of National Marketer’s (ANA) Masters of Marketing Conference.

Despite the constant drumbeat throughout PR and marketing precincts to ramp up spending on social platforms, nearly 60% of senior-level PR executives said they are spending between just 1% and 5% of their overall revenue on social media, according to an exclusive study for PR News conducted by PR consultancy StevensGouldPincus.