Highlights from Ragan’s PR Daily Media Relations and Nonprofit Communications Awards luncheon

Communicators from far and wide gathered at The Yale Club in Manhattan to celebrate their achievements at Ragan’s PR Daily Media Relations and Nonprofit Communications Awards luncheon. The event recognized PR and comms pros for their excellence over the last year.

“Media relations can feel less like a straight path and more like navigating a maze that keeps rearranging itself with shrinking newsrooms, global uncertainty and an unpredictable landscape,” Ragan CEO Diane Schwartz said. “Yet you have cut through with initiatives that matter and stories that need to be heard. Non-profit PR in particular proves that clarity and compassion can steady us when the ground feels shaky.”

She added that the awards recognize more than just the success of the campaigns up for nomination, but the processes that went on behind the scenes as well.

“We’re spotlighting and honoring not just the result, but your creativity, your grit and your appreciation of best practices in public relations,” Schwartz said. “Your great work deserves not just to be done, but to be seen and celebrated.”

After receiving their awards, honorees were given a choice of questions to answer in front of the gathered audience to give some insight into the people behind the campaigns.

Meghan Myers, senior director of cause marketing at the National 4-H Council, told the audience that her biggest takeaway from managing comms campaigns at her organization centered on the difference comms can make.

“When you’re aligned with your audience, your results and your findings, you can have a really powerful impact,” she said.

Lisa Peterson, chief marketing officer of Americas consulting at EY, shared her thoughts on what popular song best described her team’s campaign, the AI Anxiety Index.

“The survey dove into the difference between AI productivity measures versus the broad societal implications that AI can have,” Peterson said. “So of course, I had to turn to ChatGPT while we were waiting. I asked what song would represent the Index, and it said it would be  ‘Learning to Fly’ by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. That song talks about how we actually have to make change, but sometimes it has to be without a safety net.”

Jacqueline Villegas, deputy director of external marketing for the City of Greeley, Colorado, told the audience that her team learned about the power of the quick pivot helped her team discover new ways of communicating every day during its external marketing campaign.

“Each day brought different challenges, and our team kept growing and learning,” she said. “We found new ways to connect with our diverse community and engage new voices. Through that, you have the success of this campaign and even higher goals for next year’s events. That happens when you have a great team that dreams big.”

Check out more Ragan PR Daily Award Winners here.

Sean Devlin is an editor at Ragan Communications. In his spare time he enjoys watching his Philadelphia sports teams — especially when they win on occasion.