Nike Did the Right Thing by Dumping Penn State Over Sandusky Report

Nike was right when it removed Joe Paterno’s name from the child-care center named after him at their corporate headquarters.  Cars.com and Sherwin-Williams also rescinded their sponsorship.  Decent people everywhere should stand up and demand that many more follow Penn State.

The late Zionist thinker Ze’ev Jabotinsky said “Silence is Despicable”, and as Penn State was silent, the  crisis PR situation which the university faces is about as bad as it gets. The University's board admit that its leaders knowingly covered up the crimes and disgusting deeds of former football assistant coach Jerry Sandusky, the child molester to prevent marring the "good name" of the school and its sports team.  Administrators, including Joe Paterno were complicit in the silence.

The report says that the powers that be at Penn State did what they did "to avoid the consequences of bad publicity." Allow kids to be molested and avoid media? Penn State's values can’t be any clearer than that. Penn State needs to remove the Joe Paterno statue immediately and send the message that they won’t honor people who are aware of child molesters and do nothing about it - regardless of what they do in sports.  They should also suspend the football program for a few years - focus on other matters instead of sports.  There's plenty of education needed at this supposed “school of higher learning.”

Penn State has to begin to show that values and decency are more important than protecting football - How many kids were molested in part because Paterno and others did not act upon their knowledge? One wonders how many will be comfortable having their children attend and be educated at an institution where university presidents, “hero” coaches, and students not only accept, but celebrate those who witness – and do nothing – about disgusting, illegal behavior.

Will alumni start to move Penn State to the bottom of their resumes?

There's not much that can be said about - or at - Penn State.  It's time for actions, as clearly the leadership of Penn State took none while Sandusky was very active.

In the world, there’s the court of law and the court of public relations – at least in the court of public opinion, the fate of Penn State is in their hands.

Ronn Torossian is CEO of 5WPR, a US PR Agency.

Leading black developer sets sights on a Phila. casino

As owner and chief executive of one of the nation's largest African American real estate development companies, R. Donahue "Don" Peebles has an impressive resumé.
The multibillion-dollar portfolio of the Peebles Corp. includes luxury hotels, high-rise apartment buildings, and Class A office space in Washington, New York, Las Vegas, and Miami. Missing from that list: a casino, though he has made close-but-no-cigar efforts in Atlantic City and in Yonkers, N.Y.

 By Suzette Parmley

Philadelphia Inquirer Staff Writer

Read more about Don Peebles in the Philadelphia Inquirer: http://www.philly.com/philly/business/155859505.html#ixzz1wSQCEWCK

Show Up for Israel at the Celebrate Israel Parade June 3rd

By: Matthew Hiltzik and Ronn Torossian

We are two proud Jewish New Yorkers (and fathers) of the same age. While we may differ in some of our approaches and styles in business and politics – one of us aligns more with conservative causes and one of us leans more liberal – we share a strong interest in celebrating Israel. And we agree that this year’s 48^th Annual Celebrate Israel Parade is a unique chance for people with far more divergent philosophies than ours, to come together to demonstrate to the world the common love and support we all share for Israel.

Like many others in New York’s Jewish community, we are very concerned about Israel’s image and pay close attention to the never-ending public relations battles against the Jewish State. We each make our living in the world of public relations with our own communications firms - building brands and enhancing images – so we are also uniquely positioned to see these battles from a different perspective, one that can occasionally be unsettling.

We fear many American Jews are losing sight of our sense of community, allowing differences of opinion that are extensions of the larger left vs. right, “religious” vs. “non-religious,” to polarize the Jewish community. It’s true that not everyone who supports Israel has the same way of expressing their support. We can’t agree on everything, but June 3^rd is a day to put differences aside and focus on what unites us: our appreciation for Israel and our fellow Jews. This day is about Israel, what Israel means to us, and how we send that message to the world. It’s a day to celebrate the strength from the diversity of Am Yisrael.

As fathers of children in Jewish day schools here in Manhattan, we wonder: what message are we sending our children, on a day that is supposed to stand for unity? New generations cannot offer us hope unless we plant the seeds ourselves, and it starts with showing up.

The Jewish people’s willingness to challenge one another is one of our greatest collective strengths, but when we put aside those differences and come together we are even stronger. Though challenging, this ability to elevate ourselves above conflict is what sets us apart and has been displayed through our resilience, as a people, for thousands of years. A recent example of this strength is when Jews of different political backgrounds came together to defeat a local attempt to boycott Israeli products.

Considering this positive example, as well as the challenges facing Israel - like the Iranian nuclear threat and the uncertainty around surrounding countries - this is a time for us to stand together and show the world that we can put aside our differences. So it is particularly inexplicable, disappointing and more than a little ironic to see Jews who claim to oppose the boycott of Israel suggesting the boycott of this day of solidarity. Above all, it undermines our common goal: wanting to display to the world a strong, united front in support of Israel.

June 3^rd is a day, this year of all years, to celebrate the beauty of Israel – the land and her people, our children and families marching in the parade, and the diversity of the American Jewish community.

With that in mind, the theme of this year’s parade is “Israel Branches Out.” 40 new groups – including 15 new congregations – have signed up to march in the parade this year. With over 30 thousand marchers, this is the largest celebration of Israel in the world- and intended to be nonpartisan and apolitical. It is the perfect opportunity to celebrate all of the wonderful things about Israel that the general public does not have the opportunity to hear about in the news every day. And from a public relations perspective, this is an annual golden moment that is not to be wasted or misused. Let’s make the most of it, together.

So let’s look forward to June 3^rd as an opportunity to celebrate what we have in common - our care and love for Israel. Enjoy yourself, enjoy your family and enjoy all that we have to celebrate as Jews today. We will both march in the parade and show up for Israel – we hope you will too.

Matthew Hiltzik is President and CEO of Hiltzik Strategies, and Ronn Torossian  is President and CEO of 5WPR. They are both proud, committed Jews.

500 TO RALLY FOR JACOB OSTREICHER WHO HAS BEEN ILLEGALLY IMPRISONED BY THE BOLIVIAN GOVERNMENT

REQUEST FOR COVERAGE                                                   Contact:  Rena Resnick

                                                                   212.584.4323

rresnick@5wpr.com

AN AMERICAN NAMED JACOB OSTREICHER HAS BEEN ILLEGALLY IMPRISONED BY THE BOLIVIAN GOVERNMENT

IT’S TIME TO TAKE NOTICE AND DEMAND HIS FREEDOM
500+ WILL CONVERGE ON THE BOLIVIAN MISSION IN NYC

April 30, 2012 – A press conference will be held in front of the Bolivian Mission to the United Nations to rally support for Jacob Ostreicher, an innocent New York businessman who has now been confined for 11 months in one of Bolivia’s most notoriously dangerous prisons without being charged. 

Bolivian authorities have spent the time investigating Ostreicher for money-laundering, after nearly 30 hearings, prosecutors have presented no evidence to back their allegations that the American did anything wrong.  The United States Department of State has had no luck talking to the Bolivian government, and the United Nations Human Rights Commission is “monitoring” Jacob’s situation.

On Tuesday, May 8^th, ABC News Nightline hosted by Terry Moran will air a segment about Jacob’s plight.  In advance of this airing, Jacob’s family is holding a rally at the door of the Permanent Mission of Bolivia to the United Nations. 211 East 43rd Street at 11:00 AM on Thursday, May 3^rd, 2012.

Jacob’s wife Miriam, his children, grandchildren, community and public leaders along with 500 of his friends and supporters will stand in solidarity with Jacob Ostreicher to demand that Bolivia end his wrongful imprisonment and release him immediately.

WHO:                500+ of Jacob Ostreicher’s Family, friends and supporters

WHAT:                 A Rally in Support of Jacob’s plight and an appeal for his release

WHY:                   An American has been wrongfully imprisoned in Bolivia and he needs to come home

WHEN:                Thursday, May 3, 2012 at 11:00AM

WHERE:               Permanent Mission of Bolivia to the United Nations. 211   East 43rd Street

Expose: PR Firms Assist In Selling Terror And Brutality

Terrorist organizations Hamas, Hizbullah, and Arab nations who butcher their citizens have hired large PR agencies to lobby for them in the press and on the world stage. And the PR agencies go along. Money talks.  
From Ronn Torossian, CEO of 5WPR
 
The Arab nations have hired 10 New PR Agencies since last year – and these PR firms assist them in selling terror and brutality
The U.S. Public Relations industry is one which is very high profile, but is a tiny, close knit industry, with only perhaps 75 American PR firms having more than 50 employees (i.e. enough scope/influence to represent a foreign government or foreign interests).
Over lunch this week, one of my peers, who like me, owns 1 of the 25 largest USPR Agencies, explained why his firm would no longer work with Jewish organizations and Pro-Israel concerns. He explained there is simply too much money working for Arab organizations and interests, between their front groups, organizations and projects - so from a business perspective, he was no longer working for Pro-Israel or Jewish organizations because that would preclude the Arabs hiring him.
It’s a trend which will grow – and will see Arab interests even more positively portrayed in American media.
In the latest news, Bahrain in the last 12 months has hired at least ten public relations companies. Yes, you read it right – 10 – including Qorvis, the Washington company hired by Saudi Arabia to salvage that kingdom's reputation abroad after the 9/11 terrorist attack.
The regime of Bahrain, which tortures its own citizens, has an awful human rights record and doesn’t recognize the existence of Israel, also hired Joe Trippi, former campaign manager for Howard Dean’s 2004 presidential bid, Sanitas International, whose partner Christopher Harvin is a former Bush White House aide.
In the “new” Middle East a lot has changed – except for recognition of Israel, and millions are spent by Arab interests on professional public relations campaigns:
Harbour Group, a Washington D.C. lobbying firm, has been hired by the new Libyan Government, As the Hill recently revealed, Harbour recently signed a new $15,000 a month contract with the Libyan Embassy.
Patton Boggs, another large K street lobbying group, is also now representing the new Libyan regime.They previously worked with Qaddafi, alongside Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Monitor Group, which held a hefty $250,000-month contract with Tripoli, recruiting prominent American academics to praise the Libyan government.
It’s nothing new in the Middle East – Arab governments spend lots of money on public relations.
The Syrian regime continues to butcher thousands of its people in the streets – and it is, by and large, missing from the mainstream media. One of the things a good crisis PR agency is able to do is ensure that negative stories never get printed.
One day, we will read about who is working for Syria now. A few months ago, hackers released hundreds of e-mails from Syrian President Assad's office, which revealed a document preparing Assad for his December 2011 interview with ABC's Barbara Walters.
This week, the glowing profile and stunning full- page picture of Asma al-Assad, Syria's First Lady which had appeared in Vogue in February 2011 entitled: "Asma al-Assad: A Rose in the Desert" was quietly removed from Vogue’s website.  Vogue wouldn’t comment on why the story was removed – but the story which described her as "glamorous, young, and very chic - the freshest and most magnetic of first ladies," ran as the Syrian government was butchering anti-regime protesters. APR firm Brown Lloyd James worked for Syria to arrange the story at the time.
This same company, Brown Lloyd James, worked in the past to boost the regime of Libyan dictator Moammar Qaddafi. They said, "…we assisted the Libyan government in its efforts to reach out to the international political community through the United Nations and to the U.S. political and university community."
Terrorist organizations Hamas, Hizbullah, and certain Arab nations have hired PR agencies to lobby for them in the press and on the world stage.
Terror groups have engaged reporters and journalists, shared meals and drinks with them and won their favor.
Fenton Communications, a New York City–based PR firm, works with the Arab state of Qatar to develop a campaign to essentially delegitimize Israel by orchestrating an international anti-Israel campaign aimed at breaking the blockade of the Gaza Strip.
Fenton Communications also works for "Al Fakhoora," a Qatar-based pro-Palestinian initiative that has "launched an advocacy campaign to file legal charges against Israel and change the public perception in the West about its actions." An April 2012 website posting spoke of working with NYC Fenton Communications to help campaign to help end the blockade in Gaza. They continue to assist terror groups openly.
The PLO Mission in the U.S hired Bell Pottinger, a leading International PR agency, to provide "advice on strategic communications, public relations, media relations and congressional affairs."
U.S. PR giant Burson–Marsteller, in response to Israel's request for a meeting, said: "We will not deliver tender to such a project… we are running a commercial venture. If we accept this project, this will create a great amount of negative reactions…Israel is a particularly controversial project."
There's a reason the Arabs win in the media — they hire communications professionals – they spend money and will continue to win.
In the Middle East, slaughtering of innocent people continues – from Bahrain to Syria - and Public Relations pros allow them to continue to sell their stories.
I was saddened this week over lunch when my peer explained to me why his agency would no longer work for Jewish or Israel interests – and whilemy firm, 5WPR, wouldn’t work for the barbarians who slaughter innocent people, its competitors make millions selling terror and brutality.

Ronn Torossian is CEO of 5WPR, a leading US Public Relations Agency, and author of "For Immediate Release: Shape Minds, Build Brands, and Deliver Results with Game-Changing Public Relations.” The book has been called “the best book ever on Israel public relations” by the Deputy Speaker of the Israel Knesset, Danny Danon

Five Unrealistic New York City Apartments on TV & Movies

A born and bred New York City boy, I love real estate, and have seen thousands of apartments throughout the years.   New York is the greatest city in the world, and I am raising my kids in the city - but the reality of New York life is rarely as glamorous as it’s portrayed in the media.  Certainly NYC apartments are rarely as realistic as those from the movies.

Watching the season five premier of Mad Men, I felt compelled to write about the five most unrealistic New York City apartments in pop-culture media portrayals:  

• Don Draper’s new apartment in the new season of Mad Men:
• With immaculate fashion style, a new Cadillac, three kids and an expensive ex-wife, the recently divorced creative director of a recently struggling advertising agency couldn’t possibly have such a large, modern large apartment.

As The NY Times noted today in discussing Draper: “financially comfortable characters are hardly spared the mess of unhappy marriages and the toll of heavy drinking.” I think this comment in reality would be much more realistic in discussing Draper: “I feel stuck,” a marketing executive earning $350,000 a year said. “The New York that I wanted to have is still just beyond my reach.”

• Carrie Bradshaw’s Upper East side apartment on Sex In the City:
• One bedroom walk-up in a gorgeous brownstone with a kitchen, bathroom, living room, walk-in closet, and bedroom – And it’s on a tree-lined block with great views. Seems like a lot for a newspaper columnist who goes out every night, with an expensive shoe (and other) habits.

•  You've Got Mail Meg Ryan's character Kathleen Kelly:
• In an Upper West Side Brownstone, filled with light and with a nice sized apartment, how could a single woman struggling to keep a small  (and inherited) bookstore open afford an apartment like this?

• Monica and Rachel's Greenwich Village apartment on Friends:
• Amazing location, huge living room, balcony, great closets – the two bedroom apartment isn’t believable even with the explanation that it seems to be an illegal sublet. A struggling chef and a waitress couldn’t possibly afford such an apartment.

• Kramer’s apartment on Seinfeld:
• Estranged from his family, this unemployed HS Dropout seemingly would have no way to live next door to Seinfeld (although raiding his neighbors’ fridge could happen). Perhaps one could make the argument that Seinfeld’s apartment was realistic, but Kramer? No Way…

Owning a PR agency, for me as for many others one of the joys of watching TV shows and movies is the “escape factor”, and watching TV shows and movies one doesn’t see a realistic portrayal of NYC real estate.  But maybe that’s part of the experience.

Ronn Torossian is CEO of 5WPR, a leading Public Relations firm, and author of PR book “For Immediate Release: Shape Minds, Build Brands, and Deliver Results with Game-Changing Public Relations.”

Shame on Peter Beinart: the EU, France & London All Anti-Israel – Solace To the Enemy

The despicable journalist Peter Beinart recently wrote that his “…mission is to launch a conversation not just about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.. but about the struggle to confront the ethical responsibilities of a world in which Jewish fortunes have radically changed.” While Beinart, the esteemed Yale Graduate raises his children on the posh Upper East Side of Manhattan, a few days after the massacre in Toulouse one wonders if the Jews in Europe feel the concerns of “..the question of what it means to live an ethical Jewish life in an age of Jewish power.”
 

Mr. Beinart and all of the wonderful Jews in J Street must feel overwhelming joy with their liberal friends statements on Israel:

n  Ken Livingstone, the former mayor of London who is running for Mayor once again has been a persistent enemy of Israel & The Jews – he has stated on a number of occasions that it would be better off if Israel did not exist According to David Hirsh, “Livingstone sees Israel as a pariah state with a menacing and malign influence well beyond its borders.”

o    Just this week, he used anti-Semitic language in a meeting with the city's Jewish community leaders, the leaders said.  Livingstone said the Jewish community would not vote for him because "the Jewish community is rich," according to a letter about the meeting. They also said that Livingstone had used the words Zionist, Jewish and Israeli interchangeably and "in a pejorative manner."

§  Of course it’s nothing new for Livingstone who has vowed to “turn London into a “beacon” for the words of the Prophet Mohammed”;

§  Embraced Yusuf al-Qaradawi, a high profile member of the Muslim Brotherhood and avowed antisemite who in July 2003 spoke in favor of suicide terror attacks

§  Said the Likud party and Hamas are “two sides of the same coin”.

§  Has called for the forcible disarmament of Israel, said Israel's expansion has included ethnic cleansing, and said Jews had no right to be in Israel

 Mr. Beinart can you really believe if the world boycotts “the settlements” as you advocate then everything will be dandy, Jews won’t be killed in France, and Mr. Livingstone will love us ? Absurd.

n  EU Chief Diplomat Catherine Ashton compared the dead Jews in Toulouse, France, with the deaths of children in the Gaza Strip. Speaking at a conference on Palestinian refugees on Monday in Brussels, Ashton cited the tragedy of “young people who have been killed in all sorts of terrible circumstances.”

n  Jenny Tonge, the Liberal Democratic Member of Parliament in the UK, and party whip resigned after refusing to apologize for saying: "Beware Israel. Israel is not going to be there forever in its present form. One day, the United States of America will get sick of giving £70bn a year to Israel to support what I call America's aircraft carrier in the Middle East – that is Israel. One day, the American people are going to say to the Israel lobby in the USA: enough is enough. Israel will lose support and then they will reap what they have sown."

Amazingly, in London, Paris, and the halls of the European Union one doesn’t hear about Peter Beinart or J Street – nor are they active anywhere in the Arab Middle East. Since they are so proud to be Jewish they should don their proud kippas and build their movement in these countries – let’s see how long they last.  In fact, my PR Firm would be happy to announce to the media of their arrival to any Arab country as long as they don their religion outwardly. I’ll even buy Beinart airfare to any of the countries opposed to Israel’s existence he thinks Israel should negotiate with.

Perhaps these awful liberals like Beinart (who did his post grad in was born in Oxford, and was born in the liberal Ivy League town of Cambridge, Massachusetts) are in fact ideologically in line with Livingstone, Ashton and Tonge. 

I hope while they continue to “struggle to confront the ethical responsibilities of a world in which Jewish fortunes have radically changed” they realize the sin of their ways and pray for forgiveness. Jew-hatred is still prevalent and people like Beinart and J Street do nothing other than give solace to the enemy.

Ronn Torossian is the CEO of 5WPR, 1 of the 25 largest Public Relations Firms in the U.S..

Why football players should wrestle

By Matthew Wernikoff

Recently I was asked by a parent whether or not his son should continue to wrestle.  A Junior, for a good football program in NY, he was already receiving several scholarship offers from Division I football programs.  The father felt that his son benefited from wrestling but the son felt that he should just focus on the sport he was going to play in college.  The father asked me to outline the benefits of wrestling for football players and attempt to “prove” to his son that his scholarship offers would only increase if he continued to wrestle his last two seasons.  I happily agreed as there is no doubt that wrestling greatly benefits football players on all levels.

“I love wrestlers; they are tough and make great Football players.” –Mike Stoops National Championship Football Coach at Oklahoma University.

Physical Skills
Wrestling is one of the most physically demanding sports that any athlete can partake in.  It is a total body sport requiring athletes to be flexible, strong, explosive, agile; to have a great sense of balance; and have the level of conditioning that rivals any other endurance sport.  Wrestlers, through the course of their training and competition, are often subject to physical discomfort and pain at a level that far exceeds most sports.  These skills benefit football players at all levels, from the ability to move laterally, keep a man in front of you and close the distance quickly, to driving a 225lb running back into the ground and forcing the fumble.  There is no doubt that a wrestler’s physical-ness is a skill set desired by all coaches.

“Wrestlers make coaching football easy, they have balance, coordination, and as a staff we know they are tough.”  -Tom Osborne College Hall of Fame Coach for the University of Nebraska.

Stephen Neal- New England Patriots, 1999 World Freestyle Champion

Mental Skills
Weight management, the discipline to maintain a healthy diet for 6 months or more out of the year, the drive to give a 100% every practice, and the drive it takes to wake up early everyday to get an extra run in are just some of the mental skills that it takes to be a successful wrestler.  But none compare to the mental toughness it takes to walk out on a mat, alone with no teammates to help you win and take on an opponent one on one.  Nothing compares to that feeling; whether  you have a broken finger, bruised ribs, strained or torn knee ligament, a wrestler knows that for 6 minutes nothing else matters but putting his opponent on his back and getting his hand raised in the end.  What football coach wouldn’t want an athlete on their team that is always going to give them 100%  An athlete that they never have to tell, “hit the weight room,” or “you should get extra laps in after practice?”  A true wrestler always wants to be the first to arrive and the last to leave.  A wrestler is self reliant and will never blame his teammates for his loss.  Wrestlers are mentally tough.

“I draft wrestlers because they are tough, I’ve never had a problem with a wrestler.” –Joe Gibbs Hall of Fame Football Coach.

Physiological Skills
Hand eye coordination, proprioception and anaerobic conditioning are three skills that are vital to both wrestling and football player!  The definition of proprioecption is, “the ability to sense the position and location and orientation and movement of the body and its parts.”  It utilizes all of the senses in the body.  It is the ability to know where your body is in the space you are in, without having to look at your body.  In other words, when a wrestler is in a scramble and his head is stuck underneath his opponent and without looking he is able to move his whole body, all four limbs, often in different directions at the same time, while simultaneously keeping track of his opponent’s entire body and staying in-bounds to finish the takedown; this is proprioception.  On a football field an offensive linemen, for example, has to keep track of the man in front of him, his body, the bodies to his right and left and the quarterback behind him all at the same time.  A wrestler is forced to hone this skill everyday in a competitive practice environment.  This repetitive practice can only benefit a football player.

“I would have all of my offensive linemen wrestle if I could.” –John Madden, Hall of Fame Football Coach and Broadcaster

Anaerobic conditioning is defined as as your ability to perform at a rate faster than can be met by oxygen supply.  Short bursts of intense exercise tax your anaerobic system.  Wrestling is a combination of Anaerobic and aerobic metabolisms however, it relies heavily on anaerobic conditioning within a match or tournament.  It is because of this that wrestlers are often saught after by football coaches because they are in superior shape to athletes who do not work their anaerobic system.

“Once you’ve wrestled, everything else in life is easy.” –Dan Gable Hall of Fame Wrestler and Wrestling Coach

Matthew Wernikoff is a premiere Wrestling Coach based out of Bergen County, New Jersey