Lead Balloon - Public Relations, Mark...

Compelling tales from the world of public relations, marketing and branding, told by the well-meaning communications professionals who lived them.

On Lead Balloon, professional communicators share tales of the do-or-die situations that defined their creative careers—how they planned for the unexpected, how they navigated high-profile crises, and what they learned in the process.

With immersive storytelling and a wry sense of humor, host Dusty Weis revisits epic PR disasters, intense communications scenarios, professional inflection points and notable campaigns we all remember, and usually finds a reason to chuckle.

Because sometimes, there are important lessons to be learned from someone else's worst day.

And sometimes, it's just more convenient than group therapy.

Lead Balloon is an award-winning program for strategic communicators and content creators, named by Adweek as "Marketing Podcast of the Year," nominated for a Webby award and nominated for "Best Business Podcast" in the Podcast Academy awards.

Tune in monthly for new episodes. Visit podcampmedia.com/leadballoon to learn more.

Marketing
Business News
Documentary
26
37. Blue Angels Ride Along: Lead Balloon Become...
Dusty gets strapped into an F/A-18 Super Hornet to learn how the US Navy does media relations.
46 min
27
36. The US Navy Blue Angels: Public Affairs and...
Lead Balloon embeds with the world's most elite, "high-tempo, ready-to-rock-and-roll" public affairs and marketing team.
49 min
28
35. Post-Cold War PR Trip to Uzbekistan Boosts ...
Fundraising was a challenge in the wake of the iconic Rabin-Arafat handshake at the White House in 1993.
34 min
29
Trailer—The Lead Balloon Podcast—PR, Marketing ...
Re-creating old "war stories" with the biggest brands and the most compelling strategic communicators.
1 min
30
34. Murder in Boston Blamed on Sega's Virtua Co...
Did a shooter train for his revenge rampage by playing a hands-on arcade game? A public relations true crime investigation.
56 min
31
33. National Airlines' Saucy "Fly Me" Ad Campai...
The ads may have been cringe-y, but they led to heated protests that actually helped improve working conditions for stewardesses.
38 min
32
32. Tesla’s Elon Musk Fires the Entire Public R...
How and why Tesla's approach to communication went from unconventional to nonexistent.
50 min
33
31. Snapple: Pitching the Best Catchphrase On E...
A world-class slogan crashes and burns, and then an iconic brand burns all its bridges.
50 min
34
30. Inside the PBR "Eating Ass" Tweetstorm, wit...
In our first NSFW episode, we try to decide whether social media manager Corey Smale deserved to get fired over the faux pas.
45 min
35
29. Ukrainian Creatives Waging an Information W...
Ad agencies and freelancers across Ukraine have banded together to pierce the veil of Russian propaganda--and they need your help.
40 min
36
28. Wendy's Twitter Account Manager Recounts Ba...
How Can Social Media Managers "Take a Break From Social Media?"
50 min
37
27. Sherwin-Williams Paints Itself Into a Corne...
A Plucky TikTok Superstar Gets Fired for Finding Unexpected Brand Success on Social Media
45 min
38
BONUS: Milwaukee Bucks Senior VP Alex Lasry on ...
Alex had so much to say, it didn't all make it into Episode 26 of Lead Balloon.
16 min
39
26. Bigger Than Basketball: The Milwaukee Bucks...
With a title within reach, players refusing to take the court is a sports marketing nightmare... unless it's for a good cause.
55 min
40
24. The Dreaded Grand Jury Subpoena, with Duct ...
Host of one of the web's longest-running marketing podcasts, John Jantsch shares a cautionary tale from early in his career.
32 min
41
23. Bridgegate: Behind the Scenes at the Port A...
Known as the scandal that ended Governor Chris Christie's presidential ambitions, we look back at Bridgegate from a PR perspective.
43 min
42
BONUS: Bulletins From an NBA Title-Winning Terr...
Milwaukee's NBA title victory is about so much more than basketball. Come celebrate with us.
9 min
43
22. Scandal at Foresters Financial, with former...
As spokesman for the company, Henry DeVries's moral fiber is tested when he's dragged into a torrid affair between two Foresters executives.
41 min
44
21. Hip-Hop Mogul Russell Simmons Hijacks the M...
When the co-founder of Def Jam Records goes off in front of a live audience, emcee Justin Shriber tries to save face.
43 min
45
20. Plane Crash in Colombia: American Airlines ...
Three weeks into her role as an American Airlines spokeswoman, Jennifer Hudson is called to Colombia following an air disaster that claimed 159 lives.
47 min
46
19. Coca-Cola and the Masters Tournament, with ...
When women's rights activists take aim at a last-bastion boy's club, Coke has to navigate a Public Relations lose-lose.
57 min
47
18. Coca-Cola's Retired Comms VP Ben Deutsch on...
Overseeing communications for one of the world's largest corporations is not a job for the faint of heart, as these tales illustrate.
44 min
48
17. The Lincoln Project’s Rick Wilson: Insurrec...
January 6 was a dark day for America, with lasting ramifications for how businesses talk about politics and Trumpism.
44 min
49
16. Vaccine Messaging: How Comms Professionals ...
There's a new front in the war on Covid, and comms professionals have a chance to fight on the front lines.
65 min
50
15. Going Rogue, Battling Bears, Government Shu...
When a government shutdown threatened to cancel her National Parks press junket, Julie Wright took a group of reporters and went rogue, creating a legendary story in the process.
42 min