Allison Carter
Verified
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Professionally curious wordslinger. Executive editor of @prdaily. Show me your pets. She/her.
Articles by Allison Carter
Good news for communications practitioners even amid AI boom, HarrisX-Ragan CEO survey finds Original
Listen to this article·4:09min Learn more Last year, a HarrisX-Ragan survey finding startled the comms world: 57% of CEOs would rather have their speeches written by an AI trained on all their past speeches rather than an experienced human communicator. It was a frightening, even existential finding that seemed to show that leaders prioritized the precision and breadth of knowledge from an AI over the experience and humanity of a person.
Get started measuring GEO
GEO has swiftly become one of the most important disciplines in PR. But as with most things, figuring out how to measure it is tricky. “We can’t just ask AI, ‘Hey, what are the top 10 things people are asking you today?’ That’s not data that’s available,” explained Michael Lamp, chief digital & transformation officer at Hunter. But there are some ways to better understand how your brand is showing up on AI. Here’s how to get started.
‘You don’t need to be an influencer to think like a creator’
Communicators are already creators, whether they recognize it or not. While perhaps they don’t have the breezy, “what’s up chat, smash that like button!” persona many influencers are known for, the key skills and competencies one needs to reach modern audiences are the same that influencers have mastered over the last decade. “You don’t need to be an influencer to think like a creator,” declared Shira Lazar during the opening keynote of Ragan’s Future of Communications Conference.
The Scoop: How companies are preparing for wave of Congressional investigations
The American public’s concerns over affordability and corruption helped propel a Democratic majority to Congress. Now, that sentiment is emboldening legislators to wield their investigative powers against big companies and their policies. Among those firmly in the crosshairs for the incoming Congress are Amazon, Apple, Walmart and Live Nation, which have already received demands to produce records by Jan. 4, the first full day of the new Congress, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The Scoop: What Jensen Huang, Nvidia board say about CEO’s affair with Chinese spy
It sounds like something right out of an espionage novel: Jensen Huang, CEO of chipmaker Nvidia, has admitted he had an extramarital affair with a woman accused of being a Chinese spy. Now, a tawdry private scandal has become a matter of international security and economic concern. In an email sent to workers at Nvidia, Huang spent as much time apologizing to his wife and children (some of whom work at Nvidia) as to his colleagues. “To my wife and family: I love you.
The Scoop: What the blue wave means for America’s economy
With Democrats poised to sweep into Washington with sizable (but not filibuster- or veto-proof) majorities, businesses are trying to figure out what happens next. Successful Democrats ran on platforms stressing affordability, a desire for guardrails on AI data centers and development, and accountability for businesses and politicians.
3 ways Nuveen built an employee app people actually use
So the internal communications team built one that puts nearly the entire finance dashboard in every employee’s pocket. Adoption is now in the 80% range, said Dan Mulcahey, vice president of internal communications at Nuveen, during Ragan’s Internal Communications Conference.
Stop exporting your why: A preview of the Future of Communications Conference
J.B. Sauceda has sat on both sides of the table. He’s worked in communications, he’s currently a producer and he’s an entrepreneur with a focus on storytelling. He’ll be taking the stage as one of the hosts at Ragan’s Future of Communications Conference in Austin, Texas, Nov. 11-13. Ahead of that, we sat down with Sauceda to discuss storytelling, media pitching and where to eat BBQ in Austin. This interview has been edited for brevity and style. Tell me a little bit about yourself and what you do.
Stop exporting your why: A preview of the Future of Communications Conference
J.B. Sauceda has sat on both sides of the table. He’s worked in communications, he’s currently a producer and he’s an entrepreneur with a focus on storytelling. He’ll be taking the stage as one of the hosts at Ragan’s Future of Communications Conference in Austin, Texas, Nov. 11-13. Ahead of that, we sat down with Sauceda to discuss storytelling, media pitching and where to eat BBQ in Austin. This interview has been edited for brevity and style. Tell me a little bit about yourself and what you do.
The Scoop: New data shows what’s changed in GEO. It’s still good news for PR.
Muck Rack has released the fourth edition of its report “What is AI Reading?” The data provides new insight into how paid, earned, social and owned media feeds into the answers served up by LLMs. The data isn’t drastically different from what was returned in the last report, published five months ago. But there are some tweaks PR pros trying to play the GEO game should stay on top of: • 84% of AI citations come from unowned, unpaid media.
Turn internal events into external wins
At toymaker Hasbro, “inspiring a lifetime of play” began as a tagline used by the CEO from a company meeting. But it was so powerful, they spun it into an external campaign. “It acted as the creative north star for how we developed partner presentations, pitch decks, the corporate sizzle reel we present to partners and the design of our booth when we show up at trade shows,” explained Natalie Cross, senior director of content at Hasbro.
Be the CCO: What The Cheesecake Factory should do about its political moment
It was a double-whammy: Not only did The Cheesecake Factory find itself drawn into a bizarre political tiff less than two weeks before the U.S. midterm elections, they also were invoked in the same sentence as Saddam Hussein.
The birth of the press release is rooted in tragedy
It’s almost difficult to imagine a world without the good old press release. But Oct. 28 marks the 120th anniversary of this public relations stalwart. Like so many things in the profession, it was invented by Ivy Lee. The first release was sent in the wake of tragedy: Two railcars in Atlantic City plunged into the water, killing more than 50 people. At the time, the standard practice was to withhold details in the wake of disasters. Lee bucked this trend.
The Scoop: Marissa Mayer wanted to tout her new AI product. She painted a picture many found dystopian.
Marissa Mayer rose to prominence as the first female engineer at Google and the ill-fated CEO of Yahoo! Now, she’s returned to the spotlight with a new AI product aimed at women. Dazzle is a personal AI assistant that works by analyzing your camera roll for clues about your life. Women, Mayer believes, are more visual and will be drawn to this model.
Issue or crisis? 8 critical differences and why it matters.
Tony Jaques is CEO of Issue Outcomes P/L in Melbourne, Australia. It’s a dangerous mistake to treat issue and crisis as interchangeable terms. Yet that is precisely what some organizations do. Too often, managers “inflate” routine issues into crises, through ignorance or to command executive attention, justify headcount or accelerate approvals. Or maybe to unlock some additional budget. Certainly, issues and crises are interconnected, but they need fundamentally different responses.
From doers to thinkers: How the Comms Week Advisory Board sees the profession changing Original
AI is changing the way we communicate with each other and our audiences, but also presenting vast new opportunities for both internal and external communicators. That’s the big takeaway as some of the biggest names in the communications industry gathered for the Communications Week Advisory Board ahead of the Future of Communications Conference, Nov. 11-13.
The Scoop: Six Flags announces new safety precautions after death of roller coaster rider
Just shy of two weeks after Hassan Kariem was flung out of Six Flags Over Georgia coaster Goliath and killed, John Reilly, CEO and president of Six Flags Entertainment, has announced new safety measures. “Our hearts remain with the family and loved ones of Hassan Kariem, those injured, and everyone impacted by the tragic incident at Six Flags Over Georgia,” the statement begins, appropriately keeping the focus on the victim, including using his name.
The Scoop: Etsy bans some types of AI content, says it’s become ‘top-three barrier’ to customers
Etsy, which began as a site focused on handmade and vintage items, is cracking down on sellers who use AI to create patterns or recipes. The news was announced via dual updates, one aimed at customers, the other at sellers. The one aimed at customers is more philosophical in nature, titled “Creativity and Trust in the Age of AI” and signed by James Ossman, VP of customer operations. Our marketplace only works when buyers and sellers trust each other.
Measuring the fallout of a crisis
It’s just as vital, if less pleasant, to quantify the fallout of a crisis. That goes way beyond measuring media mentions or social media chatter, however. “So here’s the trap almost every comms team falls into,” explained Sean Wilson, principal director, corporate affairs and communications for The Aerospace Corporation during Ragan’s recent Communications Measurement Virtual Conference.
4 things to stop worrying about when pitching
When you send the pitch Every time we write something about research on the best time to send a pitch, it gets great traffic. And it makes sense: It feels like one small thing you can control to increase your chances juuust a little bit. It’s almost more of a superstition than something grounded in truth. The fact is, every journalist’s routine is different.
The Scoop: After a decade of turmoil, Boeing finally wins FAA approval of 737 Max 10
A decade after the design was revealed, Boeing has at last earned regulatory approval to ship its 737 Max 10 plane. The narrow-body plane style had been marred by years of production and safety woes and delays. Stephanie Pope, president and CEO of the company’s commercial airline division, was clear on the importance of the plane in Boeing’s overall trajectory. “Today is a very, very special day. It caps years of hard work and dedication by many.
Population-level impact of doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis on bacterial sexually transmitted infections
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Abstract Bacterial sexually transmitted infections (STIs) continue to increase in many high-income settings, disproportionately affecting gay and bisexual men (GBM). Doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis (doxyPEP) is a highly efficacious strategy for preventing syphilis and chlamydia; however, its population-level impact following national implementation remains uncertain.
By Michael Traeger, Jason Asselin, Htein Linn Aung, Allison Carter Verified, Anna Wilkinson, Vincent J Cornelisse, Dash Heath-Paynter, Eric Chow, Jason Ong, Rick Varma, Daniel Vujcich, Caroline Thng, Jenny McCloskey, Tom Rees Verified, Brendan Quinn Verified, Bridget Haire, Margaret E Hellard, Rebecca Guy, Mark Stoové
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Nature
Verified
Ready, Listen, Action: Turning Employee Feedback Into Meaningful Change
About LineZero As a leading employee experience consultancy and technology reseller globally, LineZero is focused on creating the best full journey for organizations trying to create better at-work experiences for their people. LineZero believes that organizations drive innovation and become leaders in their field when they enable their people with the best tools and technology.
The Scoop: In a hyper-politicized moment, every social media action is scrutinized
Social media sites hand out thousands of bans or other disciplinary actions each day. Some are warranted. Some are caused by overzealous automation systems. And some are just plain confusing. But two weeks out from the U.S. midterm elections, each of these actions can seem suspicious if the account impacted is at all controversial or political. That’s what happened with two liberal accounts on separate social platforms this weekend.
The Scoop: Tons of AI-generated deepfakes are flooding social media. No one really seems to care.
Just after Mia Goth announced her divorce from Shia LaBeouf, an image of the actress wearing a sweatshirt emblazoned with “MY EX IS MY BIGGEST FAN” began circulating on Instagram. It received more than 500,000 likes. When Googling the actress, a whole section of the AI overview was dedicated to the image, treating it as real. For her team, the most frustrating part was that they’d already complained to Instagram about the fake account that posted it.
Stop measuring the easy stuff just because it’s easy
These are important signals for communicators, but they aren’t the kind of bottom-line metrics that leadership craves.
Microsoft clarifies new comms leadership; Netflix is light on details in layoff memo
Listen to this article·4:59minLearn more A few weeks ago, Microsoft announced three major changes to the comms function: Longtime CCO Frank Shaw would be retiring. Vice President for Global Public Affairs Brent Colburn would serve as interim CCO. The function would now report up through President Brad Smith. We now have details directly from Colburn about what his interim tenure looks like — and why he isn’t in the running for the job permanently.
Stories of ‘badass do-gooders’ are the secret weapon of UNICEF USA CMO and Top Women in Marketing Hall of Famer
Ask people of a certain generation about UNICEF, and many will tell you about the little orange box they carried while trick-or-treating to help raise money for the organization. Shelley Diamond would like them to also know about the nurses who helicopter into northern Nigeria, risking their lives to safely deliver babies. As chief marketing officer at UNICEF USA, Diamond has made it her mission to close the gap between a brand everyone recognizes and the important work they do.
The Scoop: Cornell stages largest PR response yet after gang rape allegations
Almost a month after the disturbing news of the mishandling of an alleged gang rape at a Cornell University frat party became national news, the university is mounting its most vigorous response yet. The university released a multi-pronged strategy that included a lengthy website statement outlining action items, the first major media interview with President Michael Kotlikoff and an email sent directly to high school counselors. Each piece of this strategy fulfills a different purpose.
What employees actually want their employers to speak up about
Listen to this article·4:17minLearn more Most employees aren’t looking for their employers to take stances on social issues, according to new data from Gallup and Bentley University. But there are clear exceptions — and plenty of questions remain. According to the survey of more than 3,000 Americans, only 44% want their employers to speak out on social issues as a whole.
What AI in comms will look like in 5 years
Listen to this article·5:21minLearn more The year is 2031. You still look great, by the way. That gray in your hair suits you. AI has been a part of the business world for nearly a decade. No longer is it a shiny label slapped onto a product to make it seem cutting-edge. It’s as quotidian to professionals as an Excel document. But that doesn’t mean the communications profession looks the same. This is a look at what AI in comms might look like in five years — the good, the bad and the ugly.
The Scoop: Target is in the middle of an ICE controversy. Again.
Target is finding itself in the center of yet another social-political scandal that’s earned the ire of both the public and politicians. This one focuses on the use of a Target parking lot in New York City that ICE agents used as a staging area after shooting a man who was in a car with his 5-year-old son. City official Naveed Hasan claimed ICE has used the parking lot as a staging area regularly since March.
The Scoop: How Microsoft responded to H-1B visa suspension
Microsoft and several other tech companies are now forbidden from using H-1B visas after the Trump administration claimed fraud. The visas allow highly skilled workers to enter the United States. Vice President JD Vance said that Microsoft circumvents rules that require companies to first advertise jobs in the United States before importing talent from abroad. “They’ll put an advertisement in a small-town newspaper.
Internal Email Best Practices Guide: Strategic Corporate Communications for Higher Engagement
Internal Email Best Practices Guide: Strategic Corporate Communications for Higher Engagement Email is still the top channel for reaching employees — so why are so many messages getting skimmed, ignored or lost in the inbox? In the “Internal Email Best Practices Guide,” PoliteMail draws on its analysis of billions of internal emails sent to millions of employees worldwide to show what separates high-performing messages from the rest.
What AI in comms will look like in 5 years
The year is 2031. You still look great, by the way. That gray in your hair suits you. AI has been a part of the business world for nearly a decade. No longer is it a shiny label slapped onto a product to make it seem cutting-edge. It’s as quotidian to professionals as an Excel document. But that doesn’t mean the communications profession looks the same. This is a look at what AI in comms might look like in five years — the good, the bad and the ugly.
The Scoop: An OpenAI spokesperson’s attempt to control the interview became the story
Vanity Fair recently sat down for a lengthy interview with OpenAI’s Sam Altman. It was part of the magazine’s New Establishment series and accompanied by Annie Leibovitz portraits. It’s a wide-ranging, two-part interview that covered everything from his children to the new film “Artificial” to stock prices. But it also touched on how artificial intelligence impacts people considering suicide.
A 3-step framework for explaining metrics to leadership
But that kitchen sink strategy can backfire. “From a leadership standpoint, every single department is coming with numbers,” Meaghan Baumwald, senior director of internal communications at XPO, said during Ragan’s recent Communications Measurement Virtual Conference. “It’s a veritable number soup.
The Scoop: California implements bill that would help fund local media
It’s a rare spot of good news in the local media space. California has enacted a law that offers sizable tax benefits for newsrooms that employ journalists: $20,000 each for the first five journalists, then $15,000 for each additional journalist, plus additional incentives for part-time and new hires, Nieman Lab reports. The outlets must focus primarily on serving news to California audiences and prove that at least 33% of their audience is based in the state.
These are the biggest changes communicators have seen in their careers
Whether you entered the field of communications last year or 40 years ago, you’ve seen some changes. From the shift to print to the shift to AI, from the fall of legacy media to the rise of social media, this industry is never boring. More than 100 communicators shared the biggest changes they’ve seen in their time as a comms pro. These range from the funny (RIP em dash) to the thoughtful. Responses have been lightly edited for brevity and style.
The Scoop: OpenAI needs better comms. They’ve been looking for a CCO for 9 months.
To say it’s been a tumultuous month for the AI industry is an understatement. You’ve likely heard that most leaders of AI companies now believe there’s a decent chance AI either destroys the infrastructure of modern life or else outright kills us all. It’s a bit of a comms challenge, to say the least. Yet OpenAI, one of the preeminent AI organizations, has been without a chief communications officer for the past nine months, since the previous occupant, Hannah Wong, resigned.
She changed everything by saying ‘thank you’
It didn’t matter what the day was like. Even if I’d made a mistake, even if we lost a big client, nothing changed. Every day as I passed by her office to leave, Lorraine Ball would stop whatever she was doing and yell in her Brooklyn accent, so incongruous in suburban Indianapolis, “Thank you! See ya tomorrow!” And every day, she meant it. It meant the world to me, too: It meant that my effort was seen and appreciated, even if it wasn’t perfect.
Proving the ROI of AI-Powered Employee Experience
Employee experience just got more expensive to defend. As organizations move quickly to add AI-powered search, assistants, content tools and personalization to the employee experience, EX, HR and internal communications leaders face a harder question heading into 2027 planning: What are we actually getting from this investment?
Salary Survey 2026: Pay is stagnant. Workload isn’t.
Listen to this article·2:27minLearn more We’ve got good news and bad news. The good news is that of the nearly 500 communications professionals surveyed by Ragan Communications, most reported that their pay held relatively steady year over year. The bad news is that the work they’re expected to do for that pay has increased. Oh yeah, and so has inflation. The findings describe a workforce that isn’t in crisis, but isn’t feeling confident either.
When It’s Urgent, Does Your Message Reach the Frontline?
About Speakap Speakap is a secure, mobile-first employee app built for frontline and deskless teams. It gives employees one easy hub on their phone to stay informed and connected, without needing a work email or desktop access. Organizations use Speakap to share targeted updates, run surveys and pulse checks, support onboarding and guided processes, manage tasks and forms, and strengthen culture through recognition and community.
The Scoop: 3 national news outlets sue after being denied access to the White House
CNN, Politico and MS NOW are joining forces in a lawsuit after the Trump administration abruptly revoked their press credentials for the White House. President Donald Trump did not cite specific reasons, only vaguely pointing to “fake news” and “negative news.” “It’s really just cumulative stories over the last few years. You get sick of it,” Trump said during a photo-op Friday.
What crisis communication framework does your team actually need?
Looking for a one-size-fits-all crisis communications framework? You’ll never find it. A hospital system, a fast-food chain and a software startup all face different risks, different regulators and different audience expectations, so their playbooks should look different, too. But there are still commonalities every good crisis plan should have, regardless of industry: escalation triggers, defined roles, pre-approved message anchors, drills and a plan for evaluation.
AI in comms: Tell us what’s really happening
Ragan’s Center for AI Strategy is exploring how communicators are putting artificial intelligence to work. The 2027 State of AI in Communications survey is your chance to weigh in. Your answers will help show how AI is reshaping internal and external communications, from big-picture strategy to the everyday workflows that keep your team moving. It only takes 5 to 7 minutes, and every response stays confidential.
Beyond Communications: How Internal Comms Can Redesign the Employee Experience
• 11 a.m.‑12 p.m. ET Internal Communications • Employee Communications • Executive Communications • HR Communications • Corporate Culture • Strategic Communications • Global Communications • Employee Engagement • Digital Workplace • Employee Experience For years, internal communications have been measured by outputs: campaigns launched, messages sent, engagement rates achieved.
The Scoop: 3 major AI leaders all agree the tech needs to slow down — immediately
It’s a rare thing for leaders of any industry to call for more regulation. It’s even more unusual for leaders of rival companies to all agree at nearly the same time. Yet that’s what’s happening in the American AI space right now. The heads of OpenAI, Anthropic and xAI have all come out with strong statements calling for strong governmental regulations on AI use, a global slowdown and extreme caution. The failure to do so could be catastrophic, they say.
Doing Global Employee Communications the Right Way
Doing Global Employee Communications the Right Way Employee communication gets harder — and higher stakes — the moment a workforce crosses borders. Messaging built for a domestic, desk-based team rarely survives once language, culture or technology access varies by location. Employees end up confused, disengaged, out of the loop — not informed or ready to act.
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