According to Food Product News, "a new report shows the risk associated with having an obese sibling is more than twice as great as that of having an obese parent, and that risk is even stronger among siblings of the same gender." I read this story with tremendous interest, because the issue of childhood obesity is truly important to me.

Landing media coverage for your brand is not a science – although us public relations professionals would like to think so. Most of all it requires time, attention and dedication. The media relations process boils down to three key essentials. 1. Identify the Correct Media Contact: Not matter how amazing your pitch is, if you don’t have the correct contact, it's a waste of time.

Despite all the chatter, the annual B2B Content Marketing Trends Report from CMI and Marketing Prof confirms that only 4 in 10 marketers actually have a content marketing strategy. And maybe – just maybe – that's because no one really knows what they are talking about.

Timing is everything. Back in 1981, I was hired as an account executive at Burson-Marsteller/Chicago. Harold Burson was still very active in the business, working out of our New York headquarters. But Bill Marsteller retired in 1979 (selling the ad business to Young and Rubicam) and was immediately inducted as a member of the Advertising Hall of Fame.

Sweeney Names Renwick Assistant Account Executive WILMINGTON, N.C. – June 19, 2014 – Sweeney, a leading full-service marketing and public relations agency, announces the hiring of Taylor Renwick in its Wilmington, NC office. As assistant account executive, Renwick will play a key role in digital and social marketing efforts supporting leading consumer and business-to-business accounts.

Sweeney Promotes Lang to Assistant Account Executive WILMINGTON, N.C. – June 19, 2014 – Sweeney, a leading full-service marketing and public relations agency, announces the promotion of Morgan Lang to assistant account executive. In her new role, Lang will be responsible for traditional and digital marketing support of Acuity Brands® and Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores® accounts.

So Facebook is going to let us control the ads we see, huh? Meanwhile, inbound marketers and digital soothsayers are going to lead us to the promised land with content that is... wait, what did Michael Brenner call it? Oh yeah, "It's not advertising.  It's storytelling and human connection and funny." Just exactly how dumb do some marketers think the public is? Apparently pretty dumb.

If you haven’t already, it’s time to changeover your Facebook brand/company pages to the new layout. Beginning June 13, all pages will automatically change to the new layout. The changes are not drastic, but do require some tweaking here and there to make sure the transition is seamless for your followers.

I received two separate emails yesterday reporting on the "big news" about Michael Brenner. Wait! You say you don't know who that is? Well, you are not alone.  But Ad Age thinks anyone who works for a billion dollar company is ordained a genius.