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{{Short description|Public relations firm with co-headquarters in the United States and China}}
'''Ruder Finn''' is an ] ] firm.
{{Infobox company
| name = Ruder Finn
| type = Private
| logo = Ruder Finn logo.png
| founder = ]<br/>Bill Ruder
| foundation = 1948
| location = ]<br />]
| industry = ] <br />]<br />]
| key_people = Kathy Bloomgarden <br><small>(CEO)</small><br>Nick Leonard <br><small>(managing director, UK)</small><br>Elan Shou <br><small>(managing director, China)</small><br>Atul Sharma <br><small>(managing director, India)</small><br>Michael Sschubert<br><small>(Chief Innovation Officer)</small><br>Peggy Walsh <br><small>(Chief Operating Officer)</small><br>Ian Glover <br><small>(Chief Financial Officer)</small><br>Tejas Totade <br><small>(Chief Technology Officer)</small><br>Adeline Phun <br><small>(General Manager, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)</small><br>Hilal Khashan <br><small>(Managing Director, Norway)</small>
| area_served = Global
| homepage = {{Official URL}}
}}
'''Ruder Finn''' is a ] firm with headquarters in the ] and ]. It is a large privately-owned ]s agency, serving ], ], and ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/17/business/keeping-it-in-the-family/index.html |title=Keeping a legacy alive: CEO puts her stamp on the family business |publisher=CNN |date=2014-04-17 |access-date=2019-11-07}}</ref> It also has offices in ], ], ], ], and several ] metro areas including the ].


==History==
Founded in 1948 by ] and ], Ruder Finn is a privately held, family-owned communications agency with over 450 employees. The leader in many areas of public relations, Ruder Finn has a strong global presence in healthcare, technology, consumer, interactive, media, arts and culture, and environmental programming.


=== Origins: 1948-1960's ===
Originally called Art In Industry, Inc., their first client as Ruder & Finn was ]. His success that year led to other celebrity clients, including ], ], ], ] and ].
Ruder Finn was established in 1948 in ] by ] and Bill Ruder.<ref>David Finn, {{cite book|title=The Way Forward: My First Fifty Years at Ruder Finn|url=https://archive.org/details/wayforwardmyfirs0000finn|url-access=registration|year=1998|publisher=Millwood Publishing|location=New York|page=}}</ref>


The firm's first client was country singer ]. Its success at promoting Como attracted more clients in show business, including ] and ].<ref name=NYT1>{{cite web |last1=Rifkin |first1=Glenn |title=David Finn, Co-Founder of a Public Relations Power, Dies at 100 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/19/business/david-finn-dead.html |website=nytimes.com |publisher=New York Times |access-date=1 February 2022}}</ref> Ruder Finn eventually expanded to represent consumer product companies and government agencies.<ref name=NYT1 />
⚫ ==External links==


In the 1960s through late 1990s, while representing long-time client ] (now ]), Ruder Finn was instrumental in crafting the public relations campaign that disputed the evidence tobacco smoking is hazardous to health.<ref> {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110614120649/http://legacy.library.ucsf.edu/tid/ekw82f00/pdf |date=June 14, 2011 }}</ref><ref> {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110614120711/http://legacy.library.ucsf.edu/tid/wvg98e00/pdf |date=June 14, 2011 }}</ref><ref> {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110614120721/http://legacy.library.ucsf.edu/tid/vhr02a00/pdf |date=June 14, 2011 }}</ref><ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160603155408/http://legacy.library.ucsf.edu/action/search/basic?fd=0&q=%22Ruder+Finn%22&df=er&c=pm |date=June 3, 2016 }}</ref>
Ruder Finn is a privately held, family-owned communications agency with over 450 employees. The leader in many areas of public relations, Ruder Finn has a strong global presence in healthcare, technology, consumer, interactive, media, arts and culture, and environmental programming.


=== 1990's ===
Bill Ruder and David Finn were childhood friends who, in 1948, decided to start a business which would focus on what was then an innovative concept. The idea was to interest the business community in fine arts programs as a way of achieving corporate public relations benefits, and in the process provide new sources of support for contemporary artists. They originally called their company Art In Industry, Inc. and had their first office in a tiny space that was the linen closet of the Lombardy Hotel at 111 East 56th Street in Manhattan. They were both 27 years old.
In the early 1990s, Croatian nationalists initially (and later the Bosnian and Albanian sides) hired the American PR agency Ruder Finn for the “information war.” They unleashed a wave of press releases, press conferences, press materials, and even established a “Bosnia Crisis Communication Center.” The carefully and consciously constructed narrative interpretation by this agency of Serbia as the new Nazi Germany and Slobodan Milosevic as the new Hitler laid the fertile ground on which the very complex civil war – with war crimes committed by all involved parties – could now be distorted and portrayed as a new extermination war and genocide by the Serbs against their own population. The horrors of the terrible massacres and genocides of World War II were invoked, rising like ghosts and overshadowing the current events. The “Račak Massacre,” extensively reported worldwide for days, became a turning point in NATO policy toward Belgrade and changed public perception in Europe and the USA regarding airstrikes on Yugoslavia.


In 1997, Ruder Finn ran the ], a group of mainly United States businesses opposing action to reduce ].<ref>{{cite news |last=Hammond |first=Keith |title=Astroturf Troopers, How the polluters' lobby uses phony front groups to attack the Kyoto treaty |date=December 4, 1997 |url=https://www.motherjones.com/politics/1997/12/astroturf-troopers |magazine=] |access-date=February 6, 2016 |quote=The Global Climate Coalition (GCC), run by Washington P.R. firm Ruder Finn, represents the big oil, gas, coal, and auto corporations.}}</ref>
A prominent lawyer friend, Jack Katz, was impressed by the comprehensive presentation they had put together for Art In Industry and suggested that they apply their creativity to other fields as well. He helped them get their first client (for what they then decided to call Ruder & Finn Associates) � to promote the records of a young singer named Perry Como. At the end of the first year of working together, Perry Como won first place on the "Billboard" poll of the most popular recording artists and he took out a full page advertisement thanking Bill Ruder and David Finn for their fine work. Subsequently Ruder Finn had many other top entertainment figures as clients, including Dinah Shore, Frankie Laine, The Mills Brothers, Jack Lemmon and Rosalind Russell. That was the beginning of what later became a broad-gauged public relations firm.
In 1998, the firm was caught in a ] after it was revealed that it represented both the ] and the ].<ref name="jf">{{cite web|url=https://www.jweekly.com/1998/05/15/leading-p-r-firm-caught-in-fray-between-swiss-jewish-clients/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120609120832/http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/8282/leading-p-r-firm-caught-in-fray-between-swiss-jewish-clients/|archive-date=June 9, 2012|title=Leading P.R. firm caught in fray between Swiss, Jewish clients|last=Cohen|first=Deborah Nussbaum|publisher=Jewish Telegraphic Agency}}</ref> The Jewish Agency's World Jewish Restitution Organization was pursuing a settlement with the Swiss government over its financial dealings during ]. Ruder Finn responded to this news by severing relations with the Jewish Agency.<ref name="jf" />


In 1999 Ruder Finn established RFI Studios, a digital practice, to help clients protect and build their reputation online.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://everything-pr.com/ruder-finn-office/|title=Ruder Finn Pays $30 Million for New Office - PR News|date=2015-04-28|website=Everything-PR: Public Relations, Marketing and Social Media News|language=en-US|access-date=2019-08-18}}</ref> The agency expanded in ], establishing offices in ], ], ], ], Singapore, ], ] and ].
The founders never lost the original commitment to the arts and over the years they have been credited with having given important impetus to the whole concept of corporate involvement in the cultural world. A key element of the firm's tradition, this role is today carried on by its division, Arts & Communications Counselors.


=== 2000's ===
Over the years Ruder Finn grew rapidly as a leader in a variety of special areas of public relations. It devoted considerable energy to pioneering health care marketing activities, developing a premier position in science programming. Today the firm has one of the world's largest dedicated health care groups with considerable depth and breadth of agency expertise. It also has a strong global presence in technology, engineering and environmental programming. Other major specializations in the company include Corporate Relations, Public Affairs, Government Affairs, Professional and Financial Services, Investor Relations, Consumer/Product Marketing, Lifestyle Marketing, High Tech, Visual Technology, Design/Publishing, Crisis Communications, Travel/Hospitality, International. It was the first public relations firm to develop a field network of affiliates around the country and later around the world. It was also the first to develop a public relations research facility, Research & Forecasts, Inc., a full-fledged design division and a publications division.
In 2005, pro bono work done for the UN raised speculation when ]'s nephew, Kobina, worked as an intern at the firm.<ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110206150650/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,150043,00.html |date=February 6, 2011 }}</ref>


Kathy Bloomgarden, Finn's daughter, became CEO when he retired in 2011.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Rifkin |first1=Glenn |title=David Finn, Co-Founder of a Public Relations Power, Dies at 100 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/19/business/david-finn-dead.html |website=nytimes.com |publisher=New York Times |access-date=1 February 2022}}</ref> That year Ruder Finn acquired Thunder Communications, a Chinese event management, brand and marketing consultancy, and formed a partnership with ].<ref name="RFChina">{{cite web|title=Ruder Finn expands in China with four new accounts|url=http://www.prweekus.com/ruder-finn-expands-in-china-with-four-new-accounts/article/208411/|publisher=PR Week|date=July 26, 2011|access-date=July 3, 2012}}</ref>
In 1960, Bill Ruder was appointed by President Kennedy as Assistant Secretary of Commerce and took a two-year leave of absence from the firm. He later wrote a book with co-author Ray Nathan entitled A Businessman's Guide to Washington (MacMillan). In 1980 he formed his own personal consulting firm while continuing to be a stockholder in Ruder Finn and a member of its board. His office is located in the New York headquarters of the firm.


=== 2010's ===
David Finn became one of the leading writers on public relations and business. His books include Public Relations and Management and The Corporate Oligarch. His articles have appeared in The Harvard Business Review, Harper's, Fortune, Marketing News, The Saturday Review, Across the Board, Reader's Digest and other publications. He has also won recognition as a photographer with over 50 books of his photographs published, from the sculpture of ancient Egypt to the 20th century sculpture gardens in the mountains of Japan. His work has been exhibited at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Louvre, the Art Gallery of Toronto, the Yale Center for British Art and in a number of galleries in the U.S. and abroad.
In 2012, Ruder Finn accepted a controversial contract from the ] of ] that was condemned by the ] for organizing a political ] that led to the fall of the first democratically elected ].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/fury-at-lobbyists-over-lucrative-work-for-brutal-maldives-regime-7718691.html|title=Fury at lobbyists over lucrative work for brutal Maldives regime|first=Oliver|last=Wright|work=The Independent|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200304143818if_/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/fury-at-lobbyists-over-lucrative-work-for-brutal-maldives-regime-7718691.html|archive-date=March 4, 2020}}</ref> Vice-president of Ruder Finn Tchividjian "admitted there were 'diverse points of views' surrounding the circumstances around the change of government"<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.prweek.com/uk/news/article/1128604/ruder-finn-picks-controversial-maldives-brief/|title=Ruder Finn picks up controversial Maldives brief|first=Matt|last=Cartmell|publisher=PR Week|date=April 16, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160619195355/https://www.prweek.com/article/1128604/ruder-finn-picks-controversial-maldives-brief|archive-date=June 19, 2016}}</ref> The Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group reiterated its call for early elections to be held in the Maldives.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thecommonwealth.org/news/246248/160412cmag.htm|title=Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) Concluding Statement|date=April 16, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120427125407/http://www.thecommonwealth.org/news/246248/160412cmag.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 27, 2012}}</ref>


The agency has won the ] Bronze Anvils, Big Apple Awards, SABREs and PRWeek Awards.<ref>{{cite news|title=People and Accounts of Note|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/05/business/media/05adco-webdenda.html?_r=1|newspaper=New York Times|date=July 5, 2012|access-date=July 6, 2012}}</ref><ref name="bronzaanvil">{{cite web|url=http://new.prsa.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/2012BronzeAnvilAwardResults.pdf|title=2012 Bronze Anvil Results|last=|first=|date=|website=|publisher=Public Relations Society of America|access-date=July 5, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Pepsi Takes Home Top Honors at SABRE Awards|url=http://www.holmesreport.com/news-info/10366/Pepsi-Takes-Homes-Top-Honors-At-SABRE-Awards.aspx|publisher=The Holmes Report|date=May 10, 2011|access-date=July 5, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.prweek.com/article/1264849/multicultural-marketing-campaign-year-2011|title=2011 PR Week Awards|publisher=PR Week|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150910123154/http://www.prweek.com/article/1264849/multicultural-marketing-campaign-year-2011|archive-date=2015-09-10|url-status=dead|access-date=July 6, 2012}}</ref> David Finn received a Big Apple Award.<ref>{{cite news|title=People and Accounts of Note|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/05/business/media/05adco-webdenda.html?_r=1|newspaper=New York Times|date=June 5, 2006|access-date=July 6, 2012}}</ref>
Ruder Finn's New York headquarters is today the second largest in the city. It also has major offices in Washington, Chicago, Los Angeles, Raleigh, Paris, London and the Pacific Rim. At various times during its history the firm has had wholly-owned offices in San Francisco, Houston, Dallas, St.Louis, Atlanta, New Orleans, San Juan, Milan, Rome, Geneva, Toronto, Jerusalem, Stockholm and Tokyo. Today the firm's policy is to have wholly-owned offices only where clients can be served best by a full-service staff. Special assignments are handled in cities throughout the world by partners and affiliates. The Ruder Finn Field Network in the U.S. alone today includes affiliates in 100 cities.


In 2015, Ruder Finn acquired the Japanese business of ], one of the largest independent PR firms in Japan and the first PR agency to be listed on ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.prweek.com/article/1353888/ruder-finn-snaps-china-business-japans-kyodo-public-relations|title=Ruder Finn snaps up China business of Japan's Kyodo Public Relations {{!}} PR Week|website=PR Week|access-date=2016-05-19}}</ref>
Clients of Ruder Finn have included many Fortune 500 corporations as well as small and mid-sized growth companies, trade associations, colleges and universities, visual and performing arts institutions, foundations, professional firms and non-profit organizations. The firm has worked at every level of city, state and federal government, and for many foreign governments including Argentina, Colombia, France, Greece, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Spain, Sweden, Thailand and Zaire.


=== 2020's ===
As a privately held, family-owned company, management is committed to remaining independent and to running the firm very much in the spirit of a partnership. Its aim is to provide an environment in which top professionals can achieve their own personal goals while providing a valuable service to clients. Ruder Finn's commitment to independence assures its employees and its clients that it will give the highest priority to the values which are basic to its tradition. Management believes that the staff deserves to be the primary beneficiaries of the firm's success and that management's responsibility is to maintain good business practices and assure effective performance for clients. Continued growth provides opportunities for professional development and long-term security for the firm.
In June 2020, ] ]'s ] city project signed a $1.7 million contract with Ruder Finn to counter criticism and controversies surrounding the project and its founder,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://asiatimes.com/2020/07/saudi-prince-defends-trophy-projects-amid-crisis/|title=Saudi prince defends trophy projects amid crisis|date=2 July 2020|access-date=24 August 2020|website=Asia Times|first=James M.|last=Dorsey|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806135918/https://asiatimes.com/2020/07/saudi-prince-defends-trophy-projects-amid-crisis/|archive-date=6 August 2020}}</ref> such as ], the ], and conflict over forced evictions on ] tribal land.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://asiatimes.com/2020/04/saudi-tribesman-killed-resisting-futuristic-city/|title=Saudi tribesman killed resisting MBS backed project
|website=Asia Times|first=Alison Tahmizian|last=Meuse|date=24 April 2020|access-date=24 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200430224910/https://asiatimes.com/2020/04/saudi-tribesman-killed-resisting-futuristic-city/|archive-date=30 April 2020}}</ref>


In July 2020, Ruder Finn acquired the video content studio Osmosis Films, headquartered in ], ].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ruder-finn-expands-multi-platform-video-storytelling-capabilities-with-acquisition-of-osmosis-films-301096328.html|title=Ruder Finn Expands Multi-Platform Video Storytelling Capabilities with Acquisition of Osmosis Films |date=2020-07-21|access-date=2020-07-21}}</ref>
Early in its history, Ruder Finn recognized that ethical behavior is not something that can be decreed but rather requires continuous self-examination. As a result, Ruder Finn established an Ethics Committee to consult with outside scholars to study the ethical aspects of issues which arise in the course of the practice of public relations. Many decisions in the areas of human resources, client acceptance and staff assignments have been made as a result of discussions in Ethics Committee meetings.


In 2021, ] spent $3.5 million with Ruder Finn according to media reports and public records.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cook |first=Sarah |date=June 27, 2023 |title=China’s Foreign PR Enablers |url=https://thediplomat.com/2023/06/chinas-foreign-pr-enablers/ |access-date=2023-06-28 |website=] |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2023, the two companies ended their partnership.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Larkin |first=Ewan |date=30 October 2023 |title=Huawei and Ruder Finn cut ties after nearly three years |url=https://www.prweek.com/article/1845714 |access-date=2023-12-07 |website=PR Week |language=en}}</ref>
The offices of Ruder Finn are surrounded by works of art and the walls of its conference rooms are lined with quotations from different sources combined with photographs of sculpture reminding the staff that original thinking is one of the firm's hallmarks. A series of portfolios of these "Thoughts & Images" have been published over the years for the benefit of clients, friends and in some cases for sale to the public.


In 2021, Ruder Finn was ranked 30th on the Global Top 250 PR Agency Ranking.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Top 250|url=https://www.provokemedia.com/ranking-and-data/global-pr-agency-rankings/2021-pr-agency-rankings/top-250|access-date=2022-01-18|website=www.provokemedia.com|language=en}}</ref>
Strategic planning skills in public relations require a knowledge of a client's business, an awareness of social, economic and political trends and a capacity to develop a perspective on future trends. Ruder Finn's background as an intellectual and cultural leader in the field of public relations, combined with its extensive involvement with the top management of major corporations, its unique research capability and its strong marketing orientation, has enabled the firm to function at the highest level of strategic planning for its clients.


In October 2023 Ruder Finn was named the PR Agency of the Year. This award was given at the (MM+M), in New York.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Finn |first=Ruder |title=Ruder Finn Named PR Agency of the Year at Medical Marketing & Media Awards 2023 |url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ruder-finn-named-pr-agency-of-the-year-at-medical-marketing--media-awards-2023-301949759.html |access-date=2023-11-30 |website=www.prnewswire.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=MM+M |date=2023-07-17 |title=MM+M reveals its 2023 Awards finalists |url=https://www.mmm-online.com/mmm-awards/mmm-reveals-its-2023-awards-finalists/ |access-date=2023-11-30 |website=MM+M - Medical Marketing and Media |language=en-US}}</ref> In the same month, Ruder Finn acquired Pandan Social, a Malaysian firm that was founded in 2018.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ruder Finn Acquires Malaysian Digital Agency |url=https://www.provokemedia.com/latest/article/ruder-finn-acquires-malaysian-digital-agency |access-date=2023-12-07 |website=PRovoke Media |language=en}}</ref>
Ruder Finn has the most comprehensive executive development program in the public relations business. Between thirty and forty interns are selected each year for a 4-month training program in which there are regular classes as well as work assignments. Five hundred to six hundred applications are received each semester from individuals with undergraduate degrees as well as M.A., M.B.A. and Ph.D. degrees. Interns also include young executives who have had work experience in other fields and would like to change to public relations. The firm usually hires the top individuals from this program for its permanent staff.


In March 2024, Ruder Finn acquired the digital marketing agency Flightpath.<ref>{{cite news|title=Ruder Finn acquires digital marketing agency Flightpath|url=https://www.prweek.com/article/1864638/ruder-finn-acquires-digital-marketing-agency-flightpath|work=]}}</ref>
There are many specialists at Ruder Finn who have extensive experience in different fields. There are also a number of subsidiary divisions which represent key elements of the company's structure.


==References==
� Arts & Communications Counselors is the largest organization of its kind in a public relations agency. It provides services for corporations sponsoring arts programs as well as for museums and arts groups.
{{Reflist|2}}
� Ruder Finn Design is one of the most outstanding design facilities in any public relations firm and represents Ruder Finn's commitment to visual as well as verbal communication.
� Visual Technology produces VNRs, video and film features, hologram and laser displays and other projects involving cutting edge technology.
� Public Relations Production (PRP) is responsible for all of Ruder Finn's extensive printing and mailing services, maintaining client mailing lists on computer tapes and producing and distributing an enormous volume of printed materials each year. PRP is also a Specialty Advertising Agency, a prime source of advertising specialties and premium gifts.


⚫ ==External links==
Over the years members of the staff have written many articles and given speeches at important occasions. Reprints are available for members of the staff as are a series of brochures describing Ruder Finn capabilities in different fields. Case histories of work done for clients in a variety of fields are also available.
* {{Official website}}

Each year the firm presents Paul Zucker Awards for staff achievements that exemplify the values which are part of our tradition. Paul Zucker was executive vice president of the firm until his tragic death at the age of 43 in 1967 and these awards carry on the dedication to excellence and integrity which his accomplishments represented.

Thus Ruder Finn looks to the future with a sense of history about its origins and a feeling of excitement about the opportunities that lie ahead. The quality of services rendered by the firm increases as new people join the staff and bring their individual experiences to bear on the way public relations at Ruder Finn is practiced. Management's long term goal is to encourage initiative by all members of the staff as we explore new horizons, keeping in mind that continuity of commitment is central to the firm's character and key to its future direction.


{{Authority control}}
*


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Latest revision as of 02:59, 31 December 2024

Public relations firm with co-headquarters in the United States and China
Ruder Finn
Company typePrivate
IndustryCommunications
Public Relations
Marketing
Founded1948
FounderDavid Finn
Bill Ruder
HeadquartersNew York City
Beijing
Area servedGlobal
Key peopleKathy Bloomgarden
(CEO)
Nick Leonard
(managing director, UK)
Elan Shou
(managing director, China)
Atul Sharma
(managing director, India)
Michael Sschubert
(Chief Innovation Officer)
Peggy Walsh
(Chief Operating Officer)
Ian Glover
(Chief Financial Officer)
Tejas Totade
(Chief Technology Officer)
Adeline Phun
(General Manager, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)
Hilal Khashan
(Managing Director, Norway)
Websitewww.ruderfinn.com Edit this at Wikidata

Ruder Finn is a public relations firm with headquarters in the United States and China. It is a large privately-owned communications agency, serving corporations, governments, and non-profits. It also has offices in San Francisco, London, Washington, D.C., Singapore, and several Indian metro areas including the National Capital Region.

History

Origins: 1948-1960's

Ruder Finn was established in 1948 in New York by David Finn and Bill Ruder.

The firm's first client was country singer Perry Como. Its success at promoting Como attracted more clients in show business, including Dinah Shore and Jack Lemmon. Ruder Finn eventually expanded to represent consumer product companies and government agencies.

In the 1960s through late 1990s, while representing long-time client Philip Morris (now Altria), Ruder Finn was instrumental in crafting the public relations campaign that disputed the evidence tobacco smoking is hazardous to health.

1990's

In the early 1990s, Croatian nationalists initially (and later the Bosnian and Albanian sides) hired the American PR agency Ruder Finn for the “information war.” They unleashed a wave of press releases, press conferences, press materials, and even established a “Bosnia Crisis Communication Center.” The carefully and consciously constructed narrative interpretation by this agency of Serbia as the new Nazi Germany and Slobodan Milosevic as the new Hitler laid the fertile ground on which the very complex civil war – with war crimes committed by all involved parties – could now be distorted and portrayed as a new extermination war and genocide by the Serbs against their own population. The horrors of the terrible massacres and genocides of World War II were invoked, rising like ghosts and overshadowing the current events. The “Račak Massacre,” extensively reported worldwide for days, became a turning point in NATO policy toward Belgrade and changed public perception in Europe and the USA regarding airstrikes on Yugoslavia.

In 1997, Ruder Finn ran the Global Climate Coalition, a group of mainly United States businesses opposing action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

In 1998, the firm was caught in a conflict of interest after it was revealed that it represented both the Jewish Agency for Israel and the government of Switzerland. The Jewish Agency's World Jewish Restitution Organization was pursuing a settlement with the Swiss government over its financial dealings during World War II. Ruder Finn responded to this news by severing relations with the Jewish Agency.

In 1999 Ruder Finn established RFI Studios, a digital practice, to help clients protect and build their reputation online. The agency expanded in Asia, establishing offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Singapore, Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore.

2000's

In 2005, pro bono work done for the UN raised speculation when Kofi Annan's nephew, Kobina, worked as an intern at the firm.

Kathy Bloomgarden, Finn's daughter, became CEO when he retired in 2011. That year Ruder Finn acquired Thunder Communications, a Chinese event management, brand and marketing consultancy, and formed a partnership with Kyodo Public Relations.

2010's

In 2012, Ruder Finn accepted a controversial contract from the government of Maldives that was condemned by the Commonwealth of Nations for organizing a political coup d'état that led to the fall of the first democratically elected President of the Maldives. Vice-president of Ruder Finn Tchividjian "admitted there were 'diverse points of views' surrounding the circumstances around the change of government" The Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group reiterated its call for early elections to be held in the Maldives.

The agency has won the PRSA Bronze Anvils, Big Apple Awards, SABREs and PRWeek Awards. David Finn received a Big Apple Award.

In 2015, Ruder Finn acquired the Japanese business of Kyodo Public Relations, one of the largest independent PR firms in Japan and the first PR agency to be listed on JASDAQ Securities Exchange.

2020's

In June 2020, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's Neom city project signed a $1.7 million contract with Ruder Finn to counter criticism and controversies surrounding the project and its founder, such as mass arrests, the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi, and conflict over forced evictions on Howeitat tribal land.

In July 2020, Ruder Finn acquired the video content studio Osmosis Films, headquartered in Brooklyn, New York.

In 2021, Huawei spent $3.5 million with Ruder Finn according to media reports and public records. In 2023, the two companies ended their partnership.

In 2021, Ruder Finn was ranked 30th on the Global Top 250 PR Agency Ranking.

In October 2023 Ruder Finn was named the PR Agency of the Year. This award was given at the Medical Marketing and Media Awards (MM+M), in New York. In the same month, Ruder Finn acquired Pandan Social, a Malaysian firm that was founded in 2018.

In March 2024, Ruder Finn acquired the digital marketing agency Flightpath.

References

  1. "Keeping a legacy alive: CEO puts her stamp on the family business". CNN. 2014-04-17. Retrieved 2019-11-07.
  2. David Finn, The Way Forward: My First Fifty Years at Ruder Finn. New York: Millwood Publishing. 1998. p. 12.
  3. ^ Rifkin, Glenn. "David Finn, Co-Founder of a Public Relations Power, Dies at 100". nytimes.com. New York Times. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
  4. Ruder & Finn, Inc., "Project 'B': an alternative proposal to project 'A'", September 1995, Tobacco Institute, Bates no. TIMN0004276/4299 Archived June 14, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  5. Ruder & Finn, Inc., "Public Relations Study for Philip Morris, Inc.", January 1968, Philip Morris, Bates no. 2021280871/0957 Archived June 14, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  6. Ruder & Finn, Inc., "Preliminary Proposal for a Corporate Affairs Programme", February 1991, Philip Morris France, Bates No. 2500120377/0438 Archived June 14, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  7. 1,247 documents linking Ruder Finn and Philip Morris at the Legacy Tobacco Documents Library at the University of California, San Francisco Archived June 3, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
  8. Hammond, Keith (December 4, 1997). "Astroturf Troopers, How the polluters' lobby uses phony front groups to attack the Kyoto treaty". Mother Jones. Retrieved February 6, 2016. The Global Climate Coalition (GCC), run by Washington P.R. firm Ruder Finn, represents the big oil, gas, coal, and auto corporations.
  9. ^ Cohen, Deborah Nussbaum. "Leading P.R. firm caught in fray between Swiss, Jewish clients". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Archived from the original on June 9, 2012.
  10. "Ruder Finn Pays $30 Million for New Office - PR News". Everything-PR: Public Relations, Marketing and Social Media News. 2015-04-28. Retrieved 2019-08-18.
  11. Questions surface about Annan's nephew Archived February 6, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  12. Rifkin, Glenn. "David Finn, Co-Founder of a Public Relations Power, Dies at 100". nytimes.com. New York Times. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
  13. "Ruder Finn expands in China with four new accounts". PR Week. July 26, 2011. Retrieved July 3, 2012.
  14. Wright, Oliver. "Fury at lobbyists over lucrative work for brutal Maldives regime". The Independent. Archived from the original on March 4, 2020.
  15. Cartmell, Matt (April 16, 2012). "Ruder Finn picks up controversial Maldives brief". PR Week. Archived from the original on June 19, 2016.
  16. "Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) Concluding Statement". April 16, 2012. Archived from the original on April 27, 2012.
  17. "People and Accounts of Note". New York Times. July 5, 2012. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  18. "2012 Bronze Anvil Results" (PDF). Public Relations Society of America. Retrieved July 5, 2012.
  19. "Pepsi Takes Home Top Honors at SABRE Awards". The Holmes Report. May 10, 2011. Retrieved July 5, 2012.
  20. "2011 PR Week Awards". PR Week. Archived from the original on 2015-09-10. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  21. "People and Accounts of Note". New York Times. June 5, 2006. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  22. "Ruder Finn snaps up China business of Japan's Kyodo Public Relations | PR Week". PR Week. Retrieved 2016-05-19.
  23. Dorsey, James M. (2 July 2020). "Saudi prince defends trophy projects amid crisis". Asia Times. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
  24. Meuse, Alison Tahmizian (24 April 2020). "Saudi tribesman killed resisting MBS backed project". Asia Times. Archived from the original on 30 April 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
  25. "Ruder Finn Expands Multi-Platform Video Storytelling Capabilities with Acquisition of Osmosis Films". 2020-07-21. Retrieved 2020-07-21.
  26. Cook, Sarah (June 27, 2023). "China's Foreign PR Enablers". The Diplomat. Retrieved 2023-06-28.
  27. Larkin, Ewan (30 October 2023). "Huawei and Ruder Finn cut ties after nearly three years". PR Week. Retrieved 2023-12-07.
  28. "Top 250". www.provokemedia.com. Retrieved 2022-01-18.
  29. Finn, Ruder. "Ruder Finn Named PR Agency of the Year at Medical Marketing & Media Awards 2023". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2023-11-30.
  30. Staff, MM+M (2023-07-17). "MM+M reveals its 2023 Awards finalists". MM+M - Medical Marketing and Media. Retrieved 2023-11-30.
  31. "Ruder Finn Acquires Malaysian Digital Agency". PRovoke Media. Retrieved 2023-12-07.
  32. "Ruder Finn acquires digital marketing agency Flightpath". PRWeek.

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