Latest news with #Holtzman
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
As an Historic Olympic Games Milestone Nears, the Architect of its Triumphant PR Campaign Reflects on its Lessons
Rally International Public Affair's Mike Holtzman Was Named "PR Professional of the Year" for His Role in China's 2008 Games Bid NEW YORK, June 23, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- When Beijing won the hosting rights for the 2008 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games on July 13, 2001, it was a pivotal moment not only for the Olympic movement but in China's development, signaling the country's growing stature and readiness to be a major global player. Mike Holtzman, the architect behind the unlikely international public relations campaign that propelled China's historic win, was named "PR Professional of the Year" by PR Week Magazine in recognition of his sophisticated, globe-trotting strategy to build a new bridge between China and the world. Today, Holtzman reflects on his game plan, and the long term-impact the Games have had on China, sport, and the world. "At the time, there was a significant debate about whether the west should engage or isolate China, which was operating largely outside of global institutions and norms," said Holtzman. "I had just spent some time as an Advisor to the US Trade Ambassador helping anchor China to the west by joining the World Trade Organization, and the feeling was that hosting the Olympic Games would throw open a window on China, get them further bound to the rule of law, and on the track to modernization." Holtzman, who now leads Rally International Public Affair's roster of international clients across the developing world, was a young executive with PR powerhouse Weber Shandwick when the Chinese, facing serious diplomatic headwinds to its nascent 2008 Olympic Games bid, came knocking. Beijing had lost a previous bid for the 2000 Games due to geopolitical factors. "The Olympic Games are not about politics, but friendship. Still, a nation's bid does not exist in a vacuum," Holtzman said. "There needed to be this undertone that hosting the Olympics would somehow change China for the better. This would give IOC voters and critics a reason to champion the Chinese bid. Paris (another 2008 competitor) would always be Paris, but a vote for China could change history." A team of professionals was assembled —including the global sport marketing team of Terrence Burns and George Hirthler, who were among the creative forces behind Atlanta's successful bid for the 1996 Games, plus sports branding specialist Jon Tibbs in the United Kingdom, to deliver this message of change to a skeptical global community. "China was the second most populous country in the world and had never carried the torch of the Games. Tens of millions of young Chinese had never been imbued with the values of Olympism," Holtzman said. "This made a very compelling case to the International Olympic Committee." When framed as an opportunity to spread and achieve the ideals of the Games and to modernize China, support for the bid grew, even among critics. "When the Dalai Lama and Luciano Pavarotti both jumped on board, we knew we had a winning message," Holtzman laughs. But what of the end game, where today's modernized China is now a global economic power and seen by some as a geopolitical competitor? "The Olympic movement did its job. The Games helped open China and allow the world in. They served as a catalyst for lasting change in Beijing's physical infrastructure and environmental sustainability. The question today, as it was then, is, 'what will you do with this newfound goodwill and clout? How will you use it?' And that is a question for others to answer." Media Contact:Julia@ View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Rally International Public Affairs
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
As an Historic Olympic Games Milestone Nears, the Architect of its Triumphant PR Campaign Reflects on its Lessons
Rally International Public Affair's Mike Holtzman Was Named "PR Professional of the Year" for His Role in China's 2008 Games Bid NEW YORK, June 23, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- When Beijing won the hosting rights for the 2008 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games on July 13, 2001, it was a pivotal moment not only for the Olympic movement but in China's development, signaling the country's growing stature and readiness to be a major global player. Mike Holtzman, the architect behind the unlikely international public relations campaign that propelled China's historic win, was named "PR Professional of the Year" by PR Week Magazine in recognition of his sophisticated, globe-trotting strategy to build a new bridge between China and the world. Today, Holtzman reflects on his game plan, and the long term-impact the Games have had on China, sport, and the world. "At the time, there was a significant debate about whether the west should engage or isolate China, which was operating largely outside of global institutions and norms," said Holtzman. "I had just spent some time as an Advisor to the US Trade Ambassador helping anchor China to the west by joining the World Trade Organization, and the feeling was that hosting the Olympic Games would throw open a window on China, get them further bound to the rule of law, and on the track to modernization." Holtzman, who now leads Rally International Public Affair's roster of international clients across the developing world, was a young executive with PR powerhouse Weber Shandwick when the Chinese, facing serious diplomatic headwinds to its nascent 2008 Olympic Games bid, came knocking. Beijing had lost a previous bid for the 2000 Games due to geopolitical factors. "The Olympic Games are not about politics, but friendship. Still, a nation's bid does not exist in a vacuum," Holtzman said. "There needed to be this undertone that hosting the Olympics would somehow change China for the better. This would give IOC voters and critics a reason to champion the Chinese bid. Paris (another 2008 competitor) would always be Paris, but a vote for China could change history." A team of professionals was assembled —including the global sport marketing team of Terrence Burns and George Hirthler, who were among the creative forces behind Atlanta's successful bid for the 1996 Games, plus sports branding specialist Jon Tibbs in the United Kingdom, to deliver this message of change to a skeptical global community. "China was the second most populous country in the world and had never carried the torch of the Games. Tens of millions of young Chinese had never been imbued with the values of Olympism," Holtzman said. "This made a very compelling case to the International Olympic Committee." When framed as an opportunity to spread and achieve the ideals of the Games and to modernize China, support for the bid grew, even among critics. "When the Dalai Lama and Luciano Pavarotti both jumped on board, we knew we had a winning message," Holtzman laughs. But what of the end game, where today's modernized China is now a global economic power and seen by some as a geopolitical competitor? "The Olympic movement did its job. The Games helped open China and allow the world in. They served as a catalyst for lasting change in Beijing's physical infrastructure and environmental sustainability. The question today, as it was then, is, 'what will you do with this newfound goodwill and clout? How will you use it?' And that is a question for others to answer." Media Contact:Julia@ View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Rally International Public Affairs
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
As an Historic Olympic Games Milestone Nears, the Architect of its Triumphant PR Campaign Reflects on its Lessons
Rally International Public Affair's Mike Holtzman Was Named "PR Professional of the Year" for His Role in China's 2008 Games Bid NEW YORK, June 23, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- When Beijing won the hosting rights for the 2008 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games on July 13, 2001, it was a pivotal moment not only for the Olympic movement but in China's development, signaling the country's growing stature and readiness to be a major global player. Mike Holtzman, the architect behind the unlikely international public relations campaign that propelled China's historic win, was named "PR Professional of the Year" by PR Week Magazine in recognition of his sophisticated, globe-trotting strategy to build a new bridge between China and the world. Today, Holtzman reflects on his game plan, and the long term-impact the Games have had on China, sport, and the world. "At the time, there was a significant debate about whether the west should engage or isolate China, which was operating largely outside of global institutions and norms," said Holtzman. "I had just spent some time as an Advisor to the US Trade Ambassador helping anchor China to the west by joining the World Trade Organization, and the feeling was that hosting the Olympic Games would throw open a window on China, get them further bound to the rule of law, and on the track to modernization." Holtzman, who now leads Rally International Public Affair's roster of international clients across the developing world, was a young executive with PR powerhouse Weber Shandwick when the Chinese, facing serious diplomatic headwinds to its nascent 2008 Olympic Games bid, came knocking. Beijing had lost a previous bid for the 2000 Games due to geopolitical factors. "The Olympic Games are not about politics, but friendship. Still, a nation's bid does not exist in a vacuum," Holtzman said. "There needed to be this undertone that hosting the Olympics would somehow change China for the better. This would give IOC voters and critics a reason to champion the Chinese bid. Paris (another 2008 competitor) would always be Paris, but a vote for China could change history." A team of professionals was assembled —including the global sport marketing team of Terrence Burns and George Hirthler, who were among the creative forces behind Atlanta's successful bid for the 1996 Games, plus sports branding specialist Jon Tibbs in the United Kingdom, to deliver this message of change to a skeptical global community. "China was the second most populous country in the world and had never carried the torch of the Games. Tens of millions of young Chinese had never been imbued with the values of Olympism," Holtzman said. "This made a very compelling case to the International Olympic Committee." When framed as an opportunity to spread and achieve the ideals of the Games and to modernize China, support for the bid grew, even among critics. "When the Dalai Lama and Luciano Pavarotti both jumped on board, we knew we had a winning message," Holtzman laughs. But what of the end game, where today's modernized China is now a global economic power and seen by some as a geopolitical competitor? "The Olympic movement did its job. The Games helped open China and allow the world in. They served as a catalyst for lasting change in Beijing's physical infrastructure and environmental sustainability. The question today, as it was then, is, 'what will you do with this newfound goodwill and clout? How will you use it?' And that is a question for others to answer." Media Contact:Julia@ View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Rally International Public Affairs Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yomiuri Shimbun
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Trump Attacks Watergate Laws in Massive Shift of Ethics System
Then-Rep. Elizabeth Holtzman was 32 when, as a member of the House Judiciary Committee, she voted in 1974 for three articles of impeachment against President Richard M. Nixon. She spent the next few years as part of a Congress that passed wave after wave of laws to rein in future presidents. A half-century later, Holtzman, a New York Democrat, is watching as President Donald Trump takes aim at post-Watergate reforms on transparency, spending, conflicts of interest and more. By challenging and disregarding, in letter or in spirit, this slew of 1970s laws, Trump is essentially closing the 50-year post-Watergate chapter of American history – and ushering in a new era of shaky guardrails and blurred separation of powers. 'We didn't envision this,' Holtzman said. 'We saw Nixon doing it, but he hadn't done it on this vast a scale. Trump is saying, 'Congress cannot tell me what to do about anything.'' In 1976, for example, Congress created a 10-year term for FBI directors; Trump has forced out two FBI directors. The Impoundment Control Act of 1974 aimed to prevent presidents from dismantling agencies; Trump has essentially done just that. Lawmakers in 1978 installed independent inspectors general in government offices; Trump has fired many of them and is seeking to replace them with loyalists. Trump has also disregarded post-Watergate safeguards intended to prevent the unjustified firings of federal workers. His U.S. DOGE Service has skirted rules on government secrecy and personal data. He has declared numerous emergencies despite Congress's efforts to rein them in. This broad rejection of the post-Watergate laws underlines the country's shift from an era focused on clean government and strict ethics to the rise of a president whose appeal stems in part from his willingness to violate such rules and constraints. 'There has been a collapse, at least temporarily, of the kind of outrage and ethical standards that were prevalent during the days of Watergate,' said Richard Ben-Veniste, who headed the special counsel's Watergate Task Force. 'The excesses of Watergate now seem naive. They have been overtaken by a system that is based on quid pro quo.' Many of Trump's moves face legal challenges, and they may be reversed by the courts – or the Supreme Court could enshrine them. Some scholars welcome Trump's effort to claw back presidential power, saying the post-Watergate Congresses, caught up in an anti-Nixon fervor, improperly sought to rewrite the Constitution in the legislative branch's favor. 'Congress should not be able to fundamentally change the constitutional balance between the two branches,' said John Yoo, a senior Justice Department official under President George W. Bush, referring to the legislative and executive. 'Several of the Watergate reforms went too far. The presidency functioned better, and the separation of powers functioned better, before.' White House spokesman Harrison Fields said Trump is not dismantling ethics but reviving them in a system that had become corrupted. 'President Trump is restoring the integrity of the Executive Branch following four years of relentless abuse through weaponization, lawfare, and unelected bureaucrats running the nation via autopen,' Harrison said in a statement. 'The President and his administration are the most transparent in American history, seamlessly executing the will of the American people in accordance with their constitutional authority.' Nixon's resignation on Aug. 9, 1974, was a seismic political event, as Americans at the time were far less hardened to scandal and more willing to denounce wrongdoing by their party's leaders. In November of that year, Democrats swept to historic majorities in Congress, carried on a wave of pro-reform sentiment. They crafted restraints on presidential authority that had not occurred to anyone before Nixon's startling use of government power against his adversaries. Nixon's team had broken into Democratic headquarters, spied on domestic targets, secretly taped White House visitors, misused campaign funds and even developed an 'enemies list' with a plan to 'use the available federal machinery to screw our political enemies,' as White House counsel John Dean put it. Presidents of both parties have chafed at those restrictions but largely followed them. Until now. Some Democrats say Trump, by disregarding many of the statutes, is going further than Nixon, who at least paid lip service to his obligation to follow the law. 'Nixon was essentially a criminal, but an ordinary criminal who accepted the fact that the laws applied to him and that if he tried to violate them he would be subject to punishment,' said David Dorsen, an assistant chief counsel of the Senate Watergate Committee. 'Trump considers himself above the law, so that the system is to be rejected by him when he feels like it should be.' It is far from clear that Trump is seeking to eviscerate the Watergate laws specifically. He has always taken an expansive view of his own power, and that has set up a natural collision with the rules written by lawmakers trying to rein in what they saw as rogue presidents. That collision is unfolding on numerous fronts. Watergate-era lawmakers, furious at Nixon for refusing to spend money they had authorized, passed a law forbidding 'impoundment.' Trump ignored that when he temporarily froze government grants, and he has all but dismantled an agency created by Congress, the U.S. Agency for International Development. In response to Nixon's push to replace civil servants with political loyalists, Congress created the Merit Systems Protection Board in 1978 to hear cases of federal employees claiming unjust termination. Trump, who wants to force out thousands of workers, has dismissed a key member of the board and sought to neutralize it. Among the most notable post-Watergate reforms was the creation in 1978 of inspector general offices to pursue wrongdoing throughout the government. The law has been bolstered repeatedly since then and number of IGs has expanded to more than 70, with some Republican lawmakers among their strongest supporters. Trump fired 16 inspectors general shortly after taking office, in apparent violation of the law that requires 30 days' notice and a detailed rationale for such dismissals. Previous presidents, including Ronald Reagan, have also sought to fire IGs, but not in such a sweeping, peremptory manner. For many of Trump's critics, his rejection of the post-Watergate worldview goes beyond individual laws to a broader disregard of the principle that a president should not use the federal government to advance his personal interests. When Trump dines with people who enriched his family by buying his meme coin, or rewards his top campaign donor with a powerful federal job, they say, he is obliterating the red line drawn after Watergate. 'The background was a president who, on every front that you looked, was engaged in an abuse of power,' Holtzman said of the Watergate reforms. But now, she added, 'You have Elon Musk, who can spend almost $300 million to elect a president – when we passed a law specifically to limit expenditures because of the abuses we saw in Watergate.' The courts are weighing almost all of Trump's moves; he has won some victories, and legal experts say it is likely the Supreme Court will approve at least some of what he is doing. The judiciary has become far more supportive of presidential power in the years since Watergate. Yoo said it is notable that Trump is insisting on his right to fire any executive branch employee, including those Congress sought to shield with specified terms. 'If he succeeds in that, it would end the Watergate experiment in creating these independent bureaucracies,' said Yoo, who teaches at the University of California at Berkeley. 'On issue after issue, he has either taken these Watergate laws and interpreted them way beyond what the Congress originally wanted or just directly challenged their constitutionality, and you're seeing them go up to the Supreme Court right now,' Yoo said. Still, it was clear long before Trump that some of the most far-reaching Watergate reforms were floundering. The courts struck down several campaign finance rules, for example, saying they violated the First Amendment. In 1999, Congress chose not to renew its independent counsel law, which was a response to Nixon's notorious 'Saturday Night Massacre.' After Nixon fired Watergate Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox – along with Attorney General Elliot Richardson and his deputy – Congress decreed that a three-judge panel would appoint such prosecutors in the future. But the system proved unwieldy. The Clinton administration alone faced seven independent counsel probes, many lasting for years or focused on minor allegations. By 1999, lawmakers of both parties were happy to let the statute expire and return to a system of special counsels appointed by the attorney general. The political culture has clearly shifted in dramatic ways since the late 1970s. Holtzman said her colleagues had hoped the threat of impeachment, which ultimately forced Nixon to resign, would deter future presidents if the new laws did not. Since then, President Bill Clinton was impeached once and Trump twice. But all three Senate trials resulted in acquittal largely along party lines. And Trump's impeachment did not prevent him from retaking the White House in decisive fashion last year. 'Naively, we thought the impeachment itself would stand as a warning to future presidents, and it hasn't,' Holtzman said. Rufus Edmisten, who was a deputy chief counsel for the Senate Watergate Committee, said Congress's willingness to assert itself in a bipartisan way has all but evaporated since the hot day in the summer of 1973 when he delivered a congressional subpoena to a sitting president. 'We're right back to another Watergate, except worse,' Edmisten said. 'Having been in the middle of all kinds of things for 10 years, especially Watergate, I cringe when I think how Congress has become a lapdog. It's taken a back seat in the separation of powers order of things. It's almost an afterthought.'
Newsweek
28-05-2025
- Health
- Newsweek
Psychopathy and Other Dark Traits Show in People's Faces
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Can you tell if someone is a narcissist—or even a psychopath—just by looking at their face? According to a new study, the answer is yes. Researchers from Yasar, Baskent, and Kadir Has Universities in Turkey conducted three studies involving 880 participants from the United States and Turkey. They found that people were able to accurately infer all three components of the so-called "dark triad"—psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism—based solely on looking at facial images of strangers. Psychopathy—characterized by impulsivity, deceitfulness, and lack of empathy—was the most accurately inferred of the three traits. Participants looked at composite face images created from using images of individuals with extremely high or low scores on personality inventories, and participants were asked to guess which face had more of a particular trait. Another study published earlier this year revealed that people with dark triad traits are often perceived as more attractive, but the ability to recognize and identify these people has roots in evolution. In the new study, the authors suggested that inferring personality from facial features, especially traits that signal a threat or potential harm, could be an adaptive mechanism. "Inferring personality from faces without any concrete source of information might be an evolutionarily adaptive trait," they wrote. Some of the composite face images used in the research, retrieved from Faceaurus database (Holtzman, 2011). Some of the composite face images used in the research, retrieved from Faceaurus database (Holtzman, 2011). Faceaurus database Holtzman, 2011 Spotting friendly faces The study also tested whether participants could detect traits from the "big five" personality model—traits like agreeableness, extraversion, and conscientiousness. Results here were mixed. Agreeableness, which includes qualities like trustworthiness and warmth, was the most consistently identifiable of the big five, especially in male faces. Interestingly, participants consistently struggled with identifying openness and neuroticism—two traits that were actually misidentified more often than not. Similarly, extraversion was only accurately detected in women's faces, not men's. Cultural differences and similarities What sets this study apart from earlier research is its inclusion of both WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic) and non-WEIRD populations. To test whether personality traits are visible in people's faces, researchers used composite images from the Faceaurus database, developed by psychologist Nicholas Holtzman. These images were created by blending the faces of real people who had scored very high or very low on traits like psychopathy, narcissism, or agreeableness. Although the faces were based on American participants, they were shown to people in both the U.S. and Turkey to see if judgments held up across cultures. "All dark triad traits were found to be visible in prototypical faces," the study's authors wrote. "This finding replicated across three samples spanning WEIRD and non-WEIRD contexts." Despite this, the composite images were still only made to look Caucasian, as a result study authors noted that future research should use a more diverse set of images. A file photo of a man pulling a smile onto his face. A file photo of a man pulling a smile onto his face. ajr_images/Getty Images How to spot dark triad personalities While these results show that the dark triad can be identified with looks alone, psychology professor Jason Walker of Chicago's Adler University who has studied the dark triad told Newsweek that there are other ways to detect a dark triad personality. "Stop mistaking charm for character. Narcissists are often highly performative and skilled at telling people what they want to hear," Walker said. "Watch how they treat those with less power. True character is revealed in how someone engages with people they don't need to impress." He said that while looks may open the door, trust should be earned through true personality, not charisma or curated image. "Pay attention to subtle power plays—like monopolizing credit, gaslighting dissenters, or constantly shifting blame. These are not quirks, they're red flags," Walker explained. Do you have a tip on a science story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about psychology? Let us know via science@ References Alper, S., Bayrak, F., & Yilmaz, O. (2021). All the Dark Triad and some of the Big Five traits are visible in the face. Personality and Individual Differences, 168.
