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| Bruce Harrison |
E. Bruce Harrison, who co-founded with his wife, Patricia, one of the most successful PR firms dedicated to environmental communications, died Jan. 16.
The “Dean of Green PR,” whom the late Harold Burson praised as “among the most able of PA counselors specializing in the environment," was 88.
Harrison made his mark in 1962 as PR director of the Chemical Manufacturers of America when he spearheaded a counterattack on Rachel Carson’s classic, “Silent Spring,” which outlined the harmful effects that pesticides, especially DDT, have on the environment.
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For that effort, Harrison rose to VP and environmental information officer—the first time that title appeared in the business community.
He went on to Freeport Minerals Co. as VP & chief communications officer, where he launched a major copper mining project in Indonesia and expanded his duties to include investor and government relations.
In 1973, Harrison helped launch E. Bruce Harrison & Co. to counsel corporate clients about environmental issues and dealing with green activist groups.
He sold E. Bruce Harrison & Co. to Ruder Finn in 1997. At the time of sale, E. Bruce Harrison & Co.'s client list included General Motors, BP America, Monsanto, Ford Motor, American Petroleum Institute, RJ Reynolds Tobacco, Union Carbide, Phillips Petroleum, Philip Morris, Unocal and Uniroyal Chemical.
Harrison wrote the ground-breaking “Going Green” book in 1992, an early title on sustainable business communications. He followed up with “Corporate Greening 2.0” in 2008.
He also contributed to the O'Dwyer publications.
Donations in Harrison’s memory can be made to the Saint Pio Foundation, 270 North Ave., Ste. 808, New Rochelle, NY 10801 (www.saintpiofoundation.org) or the First Amendment Forever Fund: Society of Professional Journalists, 3909 N. Meridian St., Ste. 200, Indianapolis, IN 46208 (www.spj.org/hq.asp ).
Hugh Braithwaite, founder of Braithwaite Communications in Philadelphia, died Feb. 28. He was 63.
Alfred Horowitz, who was a PR counselor, educator, businessman and philanthropist, died February 14 of natural causes. He was 93.
Ginger Reeder, the former VP-corporate communications at Neiman Marcus, died Jan. 9. She was 64.
José Antonio Llorente, founding partner and executive chairman of Spain’s LLYC, died from cancer on Jan. 1. He was
Bob Dorf, who founded his own firm and then ran Dorf & Stanton with Alex Stanton, died Dec. 2. He was 74.
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Jan. 26, 2021, by Sam Waltz, APR, Fellow PRSA
Bruce Harrison was an extraordinary counselor who will be missed. I remember him well from the 1990s, periods of my career where I headed PRSA nationally (1999) and served 5 years on its Exec Comm and when I served in senior External Affairs / Public Affairs leadership roles for the DuPont Co. He already had become a legend, even when he was at his peak in that period, and he was so respected. RIP.