Lead Balloon - Public Relations, Marketing and Strategic Communications Stories

Lead Balloon - Public Relations, Marketing and Strategic Communications Stories


Latest Episodes

BONUS: Literally, the Grammar-Nerdiest Conversation You'll Ever Hear, with Dr. Valerie Fridland
January 17, 2024

Dusty is still *figuratively* fuming about this word's evolving definition.

50. Grumpy Cat, the Sound of Freedom, Watergate and More: A Look Back and a Look at What's Next
December 27, 2023

Some eye-opening updates on old episodes with two old pals who dropped in for our 50th episode.

49. How I Almost Got Fired in My 1st Week in PR, and the Important Life Lessons I Learned
November 29, 2023

As a young PR hot shot, Dusty stupidly insults his new boss. Seven years later, they revisit the faux pas.

48. A UAP PR Campaign: Mainstreaming the Conversation About Unexplained Anomalous Phenomena, with Lt. Ryan Graves
November 01, 2023

He's not asking you to believe in little green men. But he is insisting we take this national security threat seriously.

47. Sliding into DMs on the Dating App Hinge, with NextGen America's Kristi Johnston
October 03, 2023

Get-out-the-vote organizers mix dating with politics in an innovative, eyebrow-raising new tactic.

46. Why Are Wireless Emergency Alerts on Your Phone So Terrible? A Strategic Communication Conundrum
September 06, 2023

A ballistic missile false alarm in Hawaii prompts us to take a closer look at a perennially misused public safety tool.

45. Replaced by Chat GPT: Are Creative and Copywriting Jobs Threatened by Artificial Intelligence?
August 01, 2023

We meet one of the "first wave" of workers laid off in the A.I. revolution, and look ahead to the future of creative industries.

44. How a Real Life Ad Agency Inspired the Robin Williams CBS Sitcom, "The Crazy Ones"
July 05, 2023

Life at Leo Burnett served as a constant source of comedic inspiration for John R. Montgomery and Rob Davis.

43. Brands Don't Have the Rizz: Appropriating Gen Z Slang Is Falling Flat in Social Media Marketing
June 01, 2023

We prove conclusively, WITH SCIENCE, that brands are only hurting themselves when they co-opt youth slang.

BONUS: Covid is—Air Quotes—Over. What That Means for Strategic Communicators, with former HHS Spokesman Bill Pierce
May 11, 2023

The Coronavirus public health emergency is over in the U.S. But that doesn't mean we're done talking about Covid.