Monday, Jan. 4, began early for the Weber Shandwick media relations team assigned to promote the 2010 census.
First there was an appearance they arranged on the "Today" show where Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and Census Bureau director Robert Groves were interviewed on Rockefeller Plaza by the morning show's hosts, Matt Lauer, Meredith Vieira, Al Roker and Ann Curry.
Then it was on to CNN, CNBC, BusinessWeek and Time magazine.
On Tuesday, it was 30 back-to-back prearranged satellite interviews of Groves with local TV stations across the country, then a meeting with the New York Times followed by publishers of such magazines as Better Homes and Gardens and Ladies Home Journal.
The Weber Shandwick-engineered media blitz, dubbed the "Portrait of America Road Tour," was officially off and running.
The media-heavy launch was a success for the Bloomington-based team that has spent the past 2 1/2 years helping the U.S. Census Bureau get ready for the 2010 headcount, which officially begins Monday.
Weber Shandwick is one of 12 organizations working with a $340 million budget to spread the word about the census.
It's a plum assignment for the 150-employee outpost of the global public relations firm, which has offices in 77 countries, both in prestige and financially. Sara Gavin, president of the Bloomington office, won't disclose how much the agency is being paid for its work, but she acknowledged the relationship is "a significant engagement" that helped the office weather the 2009 recession.