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LeBron James could use some sound advice; that much has been clear since his much-criticized decision to announce that he would be joining the Miami Heat in a one-hour ESPN special that shot that network’s credibility and enraged the city of Cleveland. And now he’s getting some, from a most unexpected source: an Israeli rabbi who speaks no English and bases his teachings on the Kabbalah.

In a move likely to puzzle some of his fans, James met Tuesday with Yishayahu Yosef Pinto, a 37-year-old spiritual leader whose following in the business community is as intense as it is mysterious to the uninitiated. According to TMZ, the NBA star was seeking guidance in advance of a major merchandising meeting set to take place on a yacht later in the day.

A follower of Pinto’s tells DailyFinance that the meeting was arranged by Jay Schottenstein, an Ohio retail executive who himself has become acquainted with Pinto in recent months. The relationship between James and Schottenstein, who serves as chairman of the boards of both American Eagle Outfitters and DSW, is no secret: When Time asked James whom he would nominate to the magazine’s annual list of influential people, he suggested Schottenstein, prompting speculation that he was interested in converting to Judaism. The follower of Pinto’s adds that James made a “six-figure payment” to Pinto’s organization, Shuva Israel, in the course of arranging the meeting.

Strange as that sounds, James is far from the only well-known personage to seek Pinto’s counsel on worldly matters. A descendant of famous Moroccan rabbis on both his parents’ sides, Pinto has for several years been regarded as something of a guru in the New York real estate community.

“Rabbi Pinto, who has no formal business education, only speaks Hebrew and won’t meet with women, is considered by Israeli real estate professionals as well as people in other professions and of different faiths to be a holy man,” wrote The Real Deal, a real estate industry publication, in a 2008 profile. Others who have attended his sermons or waited on him in person include former Congressman Anthony Weiner, New York governor Mario Cuomo, ad executive Donny Deutsch, jeweler-to-the-stars and convicted felon Jacob Arabo, and public relations man Ronn Torossian, according to various published reports.

When he’s not advising real estate moguls on whether to sell buildings, Pinto runs a number of Jewish educational and philanthropic organizations. His name recently surfaced in the press after a Hasidic real estate broker with whom he’d had business dealings, and with whom he’d had a falling out, died in an apparent suicide.

It was absolutely amazing to see this unfold. Kymaro, which brings you Body Shaper products, came up with a brilliant idea to combine Social Media, PR, and Sales together. As June 1st approached, Kymaro made note that it was supposed to be Marilyn Monroe’s 84th birthday. So.. as our image of Monroe remains quite vivid on her sex appeal and stark beauty, Kymaro wished to remind us that after all, she too would have probably been a good Kymaro customer. She’s known for embracing her body, being a real woman and didn’t hide it - with her size 10 and all.

In her honor, Kymaro, the body shaper linegave away free products! The first 84 people who uploaded their pictures to the Kymaro Facebook Fan Pageon June 1st received a free Kymaro body shaper! How clever!

Although Kymaro is sold at stores like CVS and Target, online is a huge outlet for both its sales and its PR. the combination is effective Social Media marketing is just one smart way of doing it right. Bu this simple, quick, creative promotion Kymaro attracted new Facebook fans, created a buzz around the promotion, introduced its flag product and made 84 happy consumers share the joy with their family & friends who will probably become the next 500 clients.. Now THAT’s marketing!

What’s so special about the Kymaro Body Shaper? Well it comes in a variety of styles and shapes that range from cami with clear straps for tank tops, to full upper body and leg and butt shapers. They’re Adjustable, comfortable and non-rolling, this line will reign you in without wearing you down.

http://www.odwyerpr.com/members/0430torossian-ny-times-delivers-pr-goods-for-killer.html

April 30, 2010

NYT TIMES DELIVERS PR GOODS FOR KILLER

By Ronn Torossian

It’s said that PR professionals read the newspapers not to get the news, but to study angles and understand what stories are planted in newspapers by people with PR in mind.

Take the April 29 New York Times, which ran a pretty laudatory piece about a confessed killer. That item would be a feather in the cap of any PR person.

Jeffrey Conroy was convicted of killing Hispanic immigrant   Marcelo Lucero in a hate crime in Long Island New York. He’s in jail, awaiting sentencing on May 26th.   Written by Manny Fernandez, the fawning article softens the image of Conroy, and may result in a lighter sentence. The power of PR, indeed.

Amidst pictures of his smiling, All-American looking family, we learn in this page-long NY Times story at:  

He’s 19 years old “and it shows…. he has the face, the demeanor and the vocabulary of a boyish teenager.”
Sub-text: He’s young and made a mistake – Give him another chance.

He was a “friendly, athletic teenager willing to stick up for others, of someone who counted several Hispanics among his closest friends, including the girl he had been dating off and on for years.”
Sub-text: He’s no racist.

He spoke of his “love and concern for his family: After the guilty verdict was announced in the courtroom… he turned and saw two of his sisters in tears, and told them not to worry, that everything would be all right.”
Sub-text: His family will suffer too.  

He spoke of “praying in his cell, for his family and for Lucero’s family” and his mother “had taught Sunday school for seven years at her church…” and his father is now “on disability… and is who a leader in organizing youth sports.”
Sub-text: Good people – Religious & helps kids.

He was a “mentor to children… and helped coach 11-year-old football players at age 16, and spent one summer improving one boy’s lacrosse skills, because the boy’s mother had asked him to help her son.”
Sub-text: He’s a good kid.

He recounted confronting two white men outside a convenience store in 2007, defending a Hispanic man.  He warned men not to steal the Hispanic’s man bike “whom he believed to be an immigrant day laborer.”
Sub-text: Conroy (the only of the 7 defendants who has received any media coverage) doesn’t hate Hispanics and in fact has helped some.

A 40-year-old is quoted as saying: “I believe that he got roped into events that others had started, and being 17 and filled with testosterone, sometimes you do things that get the best of you before you can think about it clearly.”  (The next line goes on to state that: Conroy’s intent to kill was evident because the entire blade went into Lucero’s chest area and was stopped only by the handle.”)
Sub-text: He made a mistake – Maybe don’t let him play video-games for a few weeks?

The article ends by stating:

If Conroy were not in jail, he said he could imagine the life he would be leading: playing midfield on a college lacrosse team, either at the State University at Albany or at Plattsburgh. And his thigh would no longer have the swastika. “It doesn’t mean anything to me at all,” Conroy said.

The PR agency which I own does a tremendous amount of crisis communications and litigation work which we cannot often discuss, and PR firms absolutely are hired to influence judges & juries.

Public relations pros read the papers differently – Or did this article simply belong as an Op-Ed?

Food for thought. 

* * *

Ronn Torossian is CEO of NYC-based 5W Public Relations, a top 25 independent PR firm which has no stake in the Conroy legal case.  

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/magazine/20100325_Oh__woe__No_O.html

“For someone like Oprah Winfrey who is really like untouchable, any public court at all can only do harm,” says crisis PR expert Ronn Torossian, CEO of 5W Public Relations. “A trial like this has very high stakes and very high risks,” including the possibility of embarrassing disclosures about Oprah’s life or character, he said.

http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/video?id=7167202

Ronn Torossian, CEO of 5WPR on ABC News – Starts at 1:55 in.

As seen in The Charlotte Observer today, an op-ed on Tiger Woods by Ronn Torossian, CEO of 5W PR: Tiger’s botched crisis management provides lessons for others

“It’s not uncommon for celebrities to face a potentially image-killing crisis. It is, however, uncommon to see one handled as poorly from start to finish as Tiger Woods’ recent wreck and subsequent sex scandal. At each step, Tiger made missteps that could have been avoided, leading to unflattering stories.”

Read more at:

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/viewpoint/story/1114791.html

 Courtesy of top media trainer Matt Eventoff…

“Whether you are campaigning for elective office, to get/keep the public trust, to get promoted, to get a job, to keep your job – it is paramount to define yourself before anyone else does.  How do you define yourself? Messaging.

Tiger Woods defined himself early on in his career, very successfully.  The past few weeks have unraveled all of that.  He is now defined by nearly everyone but himself on an hourly basis, and the definitions are not only sticking but have taken on a life of their own – and people are paying attention. ”

Read more at:  Tiger Woods and President Obama

(more…)

Ronn Torossian, CEO of 5WPR on Sphere News/AOL -
http://www.sphere.com/2009/12/07/opinion-how-tiger-should-have-dealt-with-his-crisis/
(Dec. 7) — It’s not uncommon for celebrities to face a potentially image-killing crisis. It is, however, uncommon to see one handled as poorly from start to finish as Tiger Woods’ recent wreck and subsequent sex scandal.

At each step, Tiger made missteps that could have been avoided, leading to stories along the lines of “Tiger’s real crime? Not playing the media’s game” and “Tiger Woods Dodges Cops for Third Time.”

There’s no excuse the behavior that led to Tiger’s predicament, but the still-expanding fallout from his mishandling of these events provides lessons to celebrities, companies and anyone else who suddenly finds themselves at the center of a crisis.

Here are my top three crisis management rules:

Rule No. 1: Come clean and come clean quick. Instead of accepting his role in the spotlight and addressing the facts head on, Tiger ran for cover hoping it would all go away. But the fastest road to redemption in the public’s eye is an early and honest mea culpa.

That’s what Alex Rodriguez did earlier this year, when he stood in front of his teammates and the media and addressed his alleged steroid use head on. While certainly not an easy statement to make, it undeniably saved A-Rod’s career from taking the Barry Bonds route, and served as a launching pad for the best season of his career and praise from many of his former critics.

Rule No. 2: Keep your message consistent. As Bill Clinton can attest, the truth eventually comes out. So be clear, be honest and keep the story consistent. When similar allegations arose regarding David Letterman and young staff members, Letterman immediately took to the airwaves, admitted his wrongdoings and the circumstances surrounding them, and saw no ill effect in his ratings.

In contrast, Tiger’s only message for nearly five days after the accident was silence. And while he did eventually admit to his “transgressions,” his promise to “strive to be a better person and the husband and father that [his] family deserves” seemed to ring hollow as information surfaced regarding a renegotiation of his prenup in an effort to keep the family together.

Rule No. 3: Leave no gray area. From the moment reports of the accident happened, the only color surrounding the facts was gray. How did Tiger sustain the injuries he did in such a slow-moving, low-impact crash? Was his wife chasing him with a golf club? Was he impaired? And so on until another round of questions surfaced regarding alleged romps with various women. Tiger then made his brief admission of guilt but still failed to explain how the accident happened, why he was reportedly snoring on the ground as the family waited for an ambulance, etc.

Fortunately for Tiger, most if not all of his sponsors remain by his side, and his mastery of golf will continue to wow fans for years to come.

But no one will ever look at him the same way again, and this distinctive trademark is tarnished. The days of invincibility are over, if not on the course then in relationships, honesty and integrity.

Let’s hope others who make mistakes in life and business take a look at Tiger’s self-inflicted wounds and choose a different path of redemption in the public’s eye.
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Ronn Torossian is president and CEO of 5W Public Relations, one of the 25 largest PR firms in the U.S.