A frequently-quoted authority on media culture and hype, Richard Laermer is a PR visionary, former journalist, and author of five bestselling books including 2011: Trendspotting, Punk Marketing and Full Frontal PR. As a blogger he pens the infamous industry watchdog Bad Pitch Blog and does his best to combat insanity on Huffington Post. His PunkMarketing.com is among the marketing industry’s favorites and he contributes to several other blogs on a constant basis. Laermer’s work as a reporter dates to 1979; his columns, reporting and reviews have been published in The New York Times, New York Daily News, Reuters, USA Today, New York Observer, People, US Weekly, Chief Executive, Washington Post, Rolling Stone, Editor & Publisher, and others. He founded RLM PR in 1991 after a stint as PR Director at Columbia Business School; there he recognized companies’ increasing need for effective media representation and saw clearly that publicists were not grasping the intricacies of their clients’ businesses. Laermer understood how to deliver results for his clients while respecting the demands placed on overburdened reporters, and created a new PR methodology to do just this. Over 18 years, RLM has gotten results for its clients by capitalizing on current and emerging trends. A sought-after media trainer, Laermer has taught hundreds of CEOs, celebrities and spokespeople (even a chimp for e*Trade) to deliver messages skillfully and with no punches pulled. A renown speaker, his outlandish — though logical — speeches, about trends, media, and marketing have wowed audiences on five continents; and thanks to those travels, Laermer lives behind a seatback. Laermer is a frequent guest on CNN, FOX News, CNBC, National Public Radio’s Marketplace, Hints with Heloise, FOX’s Good Day New York and CNNMoney.com. His “Unspun” media commentary regularly runs on radio and his columns on the PR business appear in Advertising Age, Ad Week, Meetings magazine, and PR News. Never one to mince words, Laermer knows the real meaning — and value — of aggressive, smart PR.