LOS ANGELES--()--Nearly 350 guests attended the 2012 PRSA Los Angeles PRism Awards Show, which celebrates outstanding achievements in public relations throughout greater Los Angeles. A total of 57 PRisms were awarded to agencies, corporations and non-profit organizations, representing industry sectors such as entertainment, healthcare, gaming, toys and technology. In addition, a special Best-In-Show Award was given to Ketchum for its “Since When Did Agriculture Become a Dirty Word?” program, and the coveted President’s Award for the most awards won during the evening was bestowed upon Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, which received a total of 15 awards. The 2012 Los Angeles PRism Awards Show took place November 7th at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at the Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood.
“At every PRSA-LA PRism Awards Show there’s an exceptional display of excellence, hard work and professionalism by creative and talented public relations professionals throughout Greater Los Angeles”
“At every PRSA-LA PRism Awards Show there’s an exceptional display of excellence, hard work and professionalism by creative and talented public relations professionals throughout Greater Los Angeles,” said Dennis Kaiser, president of PRSA-LA. “This year was no different. It was truly a celebration to recognize the best of the best in Southern California PR, while honoring a slate of deserving professionals with Special PRism Awards.”
View the Winners List and Award of Excellence Recipients: http://www.prsala.org/PRism/2012-PRism-Award-Winners
Directed by veteran award-show producer and director Michael Seel, the evening featured a dynamic video highlighting the work of finalists, as well as numerous dignitaries who joined PRSA-LA to recognize outstanding accomplishments. Among the guests in attendance were Al Golin, founder of GolinHarris, Gary Rudnick, President of the Americas for GolinHarris, L.A. PR luminary Ron Hartwig from The J. Paul Getty Trust, and Emmy Award-Winning TV personality Bob Eubanks, who presented the PRism for Outstanding Achievement in Publicity to Sallie Bixby, President of the Pasadena Tournament of Roses. Mr. Golin attended to honor Judy Johnson, Managing Director of the Western Region for GolinHarris, who received the PRism for 2012 PR Professional of the Year.
In addition to the PRism Awards for strategic campaigns and tactical efforts, seven special awards were presented to these deserving organizations and individuals for their efforts:
PR Professional of the Year
Judy Johnson, Managing Director,
Western Region, GolinHarris
PR Team of the Year
Mattel Brands
Outstanding Achievement in Publicity
Pasadena Tournament of Roses
Outstanding Achievement in Public Affairs
Steve Soboroff,
President, Soboroff Partners
Corporate Citizen of the Year
Union Bank
Outstanding News Professional
Jane Wells, Correspondent, CNBC, Los
Angeles Bureau
Joseph Roos Community Service Award
Eric Borsum, Managing Partner,
Citizen Relations
About the 2012 PRism Special Awards
PR Professional of the Year. Judy Johnson, managing director of GolinHarris’ West Region, was honored as PRSA-LA’s 2012 PR Professional of the Year. Johnson is a 30-year veteran of the Los Angeles PR industry, has been a long-time supporter and member of PRSA-LA and served on its board from 2000-2002. She was a founding member of PRSA LA Young Professionals. Johnson is a passionate advocate for the evolving role of PR as a business tool. She regularly speaks at industry events and on college campuses, as well as working one-on-one with the next generation of communications professionals. She serves as a college mentor with several local universities and is committed to seeking out and promoting diversity in the communications field. She spearheads some of GolinHarris’ best practices in hiring, retention, diversity and inclusion-specific initiatives.
PR Team of the Year. Based at the company’s El Segundo headquarters, the Mattel Brands public relations team, which handles all communications needs for Mattel Global Brands and Mattel North America, was selected as 2012 PR Team of the Year. Led by Sara Rosales, Vice President of Public Relations and Communications, the team at Mattel is responsible for external consumer-facing communications for a diverse portfolio of brands ranging from popular powerhouse brands like Barbie, Hot Wheels and UNO games, to newer brands in the marketplace such as Monster High and Fijit Friends, to name just a few.
Outstanding Achievement in Publicity. Sallie Bixby, President of the Pasadena Tournament of Roses was presented the 2012 PRism for Outstanding Achievement in Publicity by Emmy Award-Winning TV personality Bob Eubanks. Each New Year's Day, the world focuses its attention on Pasadena, the home of the Rose Parade and Rose Bowl Game. It's a celebration more than a century old–a festival of flowers, music, equestrian units and sports unmatched anywhere in the world. These two events staged by the organization each year generate worldwide publicity, which garners consumer media impressions in the millions. That coupled with the good will generated for the City of Pasadena and all of Southern California is immeasurable.
Outstanding Achievement in Public Affairs. Los Angeles business leader and community champion Steve Soboroff, president of Soboroff Partners, was honored for his exemplary work in public affairs and as a civic leader. Through all of his endeavors, Soboroff uses public affairs and communications strategies to achieve results – whether rebranding Playa Vista, engaging the news media in the possibility of a new arena on the site of an old convention center hall, spearheading a new rail transportation corridor or helping communicate the core issues of the city’s parks to improve quality of life in Los Angeles. He is involved in organizing the Parks Save! Campaign, serves as Chairman of The Friends of EXPO Center and was instrumental in helping the California Science Center bring the Endeavour Space Shuttle to L.A. Currently, Soboroff serves as Board Chair of the Weingart Foundation—one of the region’s leaders in philanthropy.
Corporate Citizen of the Year. Each year PRSA-LA honors a corporation for its philanthropic work towards impacting the local community. This year the Corporate Citizen of the Year Award was presented to Union Bank, recognizing its more than 53,000 volunteer hours served by employees and its Local Heroes program, which pays tribute to extraordinary individuals in various diverse communities who are making a difference by improving their local neighborhoods, communities and the world.
Outstanding News Professional. PRSA-LA recognizes excellence in the media profession because it is essential to the public relations business. The 2012 PRism award for Outstanding News Professional was presented to CNBC correspondent Jane Wells. Based in Los Angeles, Wells covers its unique economy and its businesses that drive it to a nationwide audience. She also writes the “Funny Business” blog for CNBC.com where she covers a variety of atypical and interesting items.
The Joseph Roos Community Service Award. This award recognizes a PRSA member who has demonstrated outstanding community service, either for a single project or an ongoing program. This year’s recipient was Eric Borsum, managing director of Citizen Relations’ Los Angeles office. Throughout his 30-year career, Borsum has dedicated significant time and effort to critical social issues including sexual violence prevention, healthcare access for children, the de-stigmatization of mental illness, hunger and food insecurity, obesity and overweight, maternal and child health and cancer prevention. Currently, Borsum serves on the boards of Inspire USA Foundation, which, through ReachOut.com, prevents suicide and promotes mental health among teens and young adults, and Town Hall Los Angeles, which has for 75 years provided Angelinos with a nonpartisan forum to explore issues facing our community.
About PRSA-LA
PRSA is the largest public relations organization in the world, with more than 21,000 members nationally. The Los Angeles chapter is the fifth largest in the country, with nearly 600 members who reside in Greater Los Angeles County, as well as in Santa Barbara, Ventura and Kern Counties. The PRSA-LA chapter has 26 volunteer members on its Board of Directors, along with 25 committee members who collectively planned and presented more than a dozen educational programs, networking mixers and business development events this year, including the 2012 PRism Awards Show. More information can be found at www.prsala.org, on Twitter at @PRSALANews or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/PrsaLosAngelesChapter.
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