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| Andrew Graham |
Public Relations Society of America/New York announces Andrew Graham, Clear founding partner, will serve as 2021 president. KWT founder and Prophet founder and CEO Aaron Kwittken is named president-elect. Internova Travel Group PR manager Kellie Jelencovich will take on the role of immediate past president. The chapter has also expanded the board, creating three new roles to support its Diversity, Equity & Inclusion efforts. GLAAD CCO Richard Ferraro will serve as VP (diversity & inclusion); Lippe Taylor VP, media Rashidah Timothy will be senior director (diversity & inclusion); and PAN Communications VP & GM/New York Brandon Thomas will be associate director (diversity & inclusion).
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ASTRSK PR is awarding a full year of free PR services to a BIPOC, woman and/or LGBTQ+ founded startup. The firm says the contest is intended to address a situation in which less than 10 percent of all venture capital deals go to initiatives with founders who are women, people of color or LBGTQ+. The winner of the contest receives a one-year contract with ASTRSK, valued at over $200,000. To be considered, startups must have at least one female, LGBTQ+ or minority founder, be consumer-facing (no B2B startups) and early-stage (no more than $1.5 million in funding). Applications will be accepted through Nov. 27, with five top finalists selected by Dec. 4 and a winner named on Dec. 17. To find out more, or apply, click here.
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San Diego-based marketing agency Power Digital has acquired DataQ, a customer activation and targeting technology tool. DataQ employs proprietary algorithms and advanced extract, transform and load technology to help companies increase purchase frequency, reduce customer churn and find customers similar to their most valuable clientele. “With the incorporation of DataQ, we can offer game-changing intelligence, making our approach that much more data-driven,” says Power Digital CEO Grayson Lafrenz. This marks the second acquisition of the year for Power Digital, which acquired Covet PR in August.
Page launches the Polansky Future Leaders Fund, which was established through a gift from 2025 Page Hall of Fame inductee and former Weber Shandwick Global CEO Andy Polansky... Ruder Finn reintroduces its website, ruderfinn.com, which will now feature a large language model (LLM) as its primary user interface... Higher Plane Media is launched by former Sloane & Company CEO Darren Brandt.
Champion, which specializes in restaurant, franchise and consumer brands, opens a Miami office, adding to its operations in Dallas and Los Angeles... Violet PR, a Montclair, NJ-based firm that focuses on economic development, commercial real estate and place branding, opens a second office on Park Avenue South in New York... Inflection Point, a founder-led, senior growth systems partner for startups and growth-stage businesses, launches... PRSA announces the recipients of its inaugural Women of Impact Awards. Honorees honorees were recognized during the PRSA Women of Impact Summit & Awards at the Union League Club of Chicago.
FleishmanHillard is shuttering its 20-member Dublin office as Omnicom Public Relations reorganizes its global operations... Vested acquires Watermark, a D.C.-based public affairs and special situations firm.... Matter earns two Pinnacle Awards 2026 Marketing & Communications honors for its clients.
Quad/Graphics launches Direct, a Quad Agency to help marketers create, execute and measure direct marketing campaigns in one connected offering... InnoVision Marketing Group SVP/senior creative director Giselle Campos and SVP/general manager Alanna Markey are among the first-ever winners of the San Diego Business Journal’s Indispensables Awards, which recognizes professionals who make the greatest impact within their organizations and across the San Diego business community... Park Place Technologies, an IT infrastructure services firm that works with Feintuch Communications, releases the second episode of its “The Savvy CIO” podcast. 
Ripley PR is named a silver winner in the TITAN American Business Awards’ Outstanding PR Campaign category... Excellera, a corporate-advisory firm, came in at number one in deal count, as well as fourth in deal value, in Mergermarket’s list of top EMEA firms... Thunderly is telling the stories of military veterans who transferred the discipline, organization and leadership skills developed in service to their country into successful post-military careers as franchise business owners, as part of its year-long "American Dreamers: The Stories of Franchising" effort.
