By Jess Ruderman (PRWeek)
Read Full Article from PRWeek: Ebony’s CEO on hiring Allison as first PR AOR | PR Week
Black-owned media company Ebony has named Allison as its first PR AOR.
The strategic move is part of the almost 80-year-old publication’s plan to relaunch as a digital first entity and reach new audiences as one of the oldest Black-owned media publications, Ebony CEO and owner Eden Bridgeman Sklenar said.
Ebony will leverage Allison’s expertise, resources and network to elevate its brand, strengthen its position as a “cultural authority,” launch new events and initiatives and reach new audiences, including Gen Z, according to an Allison statement.
The scope of work will focus on promoting flagship and new initiatives and programming, thought leadership positioning, campaign launches, amplified editorial features and corporate news, reputation management, event support and media relations.
Ebony issued an RFP for this work this summer and began working with Allison in June.
Ebony has seen a series of different owners over the last decade. The magazine, alongside Ebony.com and JetMag.com, were acquired by Austin-based private equity group Clear View Group in 2016. After the company stopped publishing its print magazine in 2019 and went bankrupt the following year, Ebony was then purchased by ex-NBA player and Sklenar’s father Ulysses Lee “Junior” Bridgeman for $14 million in December 2020.
While the brand itself will have been around for 80 years next November, the company actually restarted in 2021, Sklenar explained. As part of its plans to “reclaim its spot in the global marketplace,” it made sense for the publication to partner with Allison and its resources to “hit the ground running much faster,” Sklenar said.
Bridgeman highlighted clear factors Ebony was looking for in an agency partner, including a true thought partner and a firm that understood the nuances and history of the Ebony brand and where the publication is going as a digital and experiential-first entity.
From a business standpoint, the publication was seeking a firm to leverage its digital covers to create necessary buzz and secure earned media.
Allison MD Claudine Moore is leading the account alongside a team of eight across the firm’s DE&I, multicultural and Africa-focused teams based in offices across the U.S..
As a Black-owned media company, it was important for Ebony to be aligned with Allison on its values, Sklenar said. While some firms and companies have pulled back on diversity initiatives in recent months, Allison has remained steadfast in its messaging.
“It’s not lost on us that we needed someone who understood the audience that we were serving, that was putting their stake in the ground as far as their DE&I work and were going to be unapologetic about it,” Sklenar explained. “Authenticity is something that Allison had and still has as we move through this changing landscape of what people want to say is DE&I moving forward, but for us and for Allison, that value alignment was necessary for us to agree on the pathway forward.”
Allison will also support the return of the Ebony Power 100 list, the publication’s annual event that recognizes the accomplishments of individuals who have made a significant impact on Black culture. This year’s event revives the Ebony Power 100 gala following last year’s SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes. Allison will assist the publication in crafting announcements and messaging.
Honorees will gather at the Ebony Power 100 gala in Los Angeles on November 17.
Additional new initiatives from Ebony include HBCU Yard Fest at the Atlanta University Center, home to Morehouse College, Spelman College, and Clark Atlanta University. The inaugural event, sponsored by Wells Fargo, took place earlier this week.
Ebony is also partnering with Allison on initial planning for its official 80th anniversary in November 2025 — a milestone that will be “historic” for a Black-owned media brand, Sklenar said.
Ahead of this November’s presidential election, Moore said that Allison is prepared to “support Ebony in whatever direction they take.” The publication will continue to be a hub of different opinions, which varies across Black communities in the U.S., she noted, adding that post-election, Ebony will continue to serve as a conduit for different concerns and point of views.
“Our goal short term, even into the long term, working with Allison, is to amplify the brand back into the daily conversation,” Sklenar said, adding that Ebony is looking to be a place that fosters conversation around ongoing events in the world. “Ebony can be that home, having Allison to help us drive that both in the short term, but in real long term planning is what we’re striving to do with this partnership.”
