Chip Smith, a veteran Democratic operative and founding partner and CEO of Glover Park Group, is leaving GPG for a corporate affairs and policy slot at 21st Century Fox.
He takes a public affairs role vacated by executive VP of government relations, Michael Regan, at 21st Century Fox, the essential successor to News Corp. in News Corp.'s 2013 split that owns its movie and TV studios, cable networks and Fox TV.
In a statement, CEO James Murdoch said industry upheaval has made it critical to communicate the company's business to the policy and regulatory community, as well as "the broader creative community of which we are a part."
Smith was a top official of the Gore-Lieberman White House bid in 2000 and held top roles in the media and strategy firms Shrum, Devine & Donilon, and Doak, Shrum, HArris, Carrier, Devine.
In between, he was chief of staff for the president and COO of telcom giant MCI Worldcom.
Smith co-founded GPG in 2002 with Tucker Eskew, Michael Feldman and Joe Lockhart. WPP acquired the firm in 2011.
At 21st Century Fox, he will be based in Washington and New York and oversee the policy offices of the company in the US, Hong Kong, Brussels and UK.
Senior-most communications executives in the Fortune 500 earned between $50,000 and $100,000 more this year than they did two years ago, according to a recent survey of chief communications officers.
The pressure is on PR pros to make sure corporate messaging remains clear and cohesive. Business jargon is an obstacle to achieving this goal.
In today's volatile world of constant disruption, the ability to offer reliability and dependability is more valuable than ever.
