有很多次，我坐在自家车道上的车里，等着关掉引擎，这样我就能听到最后一点迷人或感人的节目，通常是美国国家公共电台（NPR）的节目。 Those types of stories have been dubbed “driveway stories” to describe any authentic, well-told narrative that grabs your attention and won’t let go.
对我来说，讲述这些引人入胜的故事才是公关的真谛。 Good PR people connect with and captivate their audience, turning storytelling into an art form.
One person who truly understood the value of good PR was 威廉·唐纳德·谢弗. Schaefer, the former Baltimore mayor and Maryland governor and comptroller credited with revitalizing Baltimore with his “do-it-now” work ethic, passed away last week at age 89. 谢弗一生都在不知疲倦地宣传他所热爱的这座城市。 He wanted everyone to see his hometown as he saw it: not as a laughing stock, but as a unique and delightful place to live, work and visit that ranked among the nation’s best.
An example of his PR prowess occurred back in 1981, when Schaefer famously followed through on his promise to jump into the seal tank at the National Aquarium if the new harbor attraction he spearheaded didn’t open on time. Behind the scenes, he dreaded donning the old-fashioned bathing suit and straw boater hat for fear he’d look like an idiot, or worse, make Baltimore look ridiculous in the process. 但他还是跳了进去，手里拿着一只充气橡皮鸭。 The rest, as they say, is 历史. He caught the attention of the nation and was subsequently featured in 《时尚先生》 magazine as “the best mayor in America.”
随着这座城市本周告别谢弗， 巴尔的摩太阳报 quoted many notable Baltimoreans who reflected on their feelings about the legendary figure’s impact.
A former client of mine, Bronwyn Mayden, who worked for Schaefer when he was mayor and now serves as assistant dean of continuing professional education at the University of Maryland School of Social Work, commented on Schaefer’s devotion to Baltimore, saying, “His heart was in the city.”
Baltimore filmmaker John Waters, an adept storyteller in his own right, summed up Schaefer’s keen understanding of the value of telling Baltimore’s story this way: “He was always great to me, even when everybody else thought my movies were obscene. He used to say, ‘I don’t care what they are, just keep making them.'”
“I think it was just to keep the name of Baltimore out there,” Waters said.
Schaefer’s legacy will live on in the hearts and minds of the thousands of people he touched during his lifetime. 但更重要的是，也许，他的成就是用真正的骄傲、激情和爱讲述巴尔的摩的故事，只有他才能做到这一点。