21 Facts About Ketchum Inc

Ketchum Inc is a global public relations firm, offering marketing, branding, and corporate communications services in the corporate, healthcare, food and beverage, and technology industries.

George Ketchum Inc founded the firm as a Pittsburgh-based advertising company in 1923.

Ketchum Inc merged with Dusseldorf-based Pleon in one of the industry's largest mergers in 2009.

In 2009, Ketchum Inc merged with Europe-based Pleon in one of the industry's largest mergers.

In 2016, Ketchum Inc created "Cultivate", a new branch to help companies and organizations in organic food markets.

Related searches

In 1985, Ketchum Inc launched the Acura line of cars for American Honda Motor Company.

Ketchum Inc worked on the rebranding of Orville Redenbacher's popcorn in the 1990s to appeal to a younger demographic, developed Doritos' 2006 crowdsourced "Crash the Super Bowl" contest, which won a Golden World Award from the International Public Relations Association, and created a campaign for Delta Air Lines during US Airways' 2008 bid to take over the airline after it had filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

In 2011, Ketchum Inc faced backlash for a promotion for ConAgra, in which the agency hosted a dinner for food bloggers that was billed as serving food prepared by George Duran, but diners were served ConAgra frozen foods instead.

Ketchum Inc filmed each dinner and hoped to use footage of diners' reactions for promotional purposes.

In 2011, Pennsylvania State University hired Ketchum Inc to handle crisis communications following the Jerry Sandusky scandal in 2011.

Ketchum Inc worked with Malaysia Airlines during the search for and response to missing plane MH370 in 2014.

In 2004, Ketchum Inc was accused of "covert propaganda" for a series of news stories for HHS that used actors playing journalists reporting on drug benefits without informing viewers of the government connection, for which it was found to be in violation of a federal propaganda ban by the Government Accountability Office.

In 2005, the Ketchum Inc received similarly critical coverage after the Education Department directed the agency to pay for coverage that praised President Bush's No Child Left Behind Act.

The final investigation by the FCC did not find Ketchum Inc to be at fault, but it did issue a citation for Armstrong Williams, who was paid by Ketchum Inc to promote the NCLB Act, and fined two broadcasting companies.

From 2006 to 2015, Ketchum represented the Russian Federation in the US and Europe for events including the G20 Summit, World Economic Forum, and 2014 Sochi Olympics, media and op-ed outreach.

In 2013, Ketchum Inc pitched an op-ed from Russian president Vladimir Putin on the Syrian Civil War to The New York Times.

In January 2015, Politico magazine reported that Ketchum Inc had received more than $60 million from the Kremlin for their work from 2006 to 2014.

In 1985 Ketchum Inc New York was a finalist in the Caples direct marketing awards for their pro bono work assisting Central Park and the Central Park Conservancy.

Ketchum Inc is owned by Omnicom Group and is part of the company's Diversified Agency Services network's Omnicom Public Relations Group.

In 2016, Ketchum Inc announced the formation of a global leadership council comprising 20 senior leaders.

Ketchum Inc developed a program called MindFire for college students to respond to client challenges with creative solutions in order to earn prizes and networking opportunities.