Eric B. Dezenhall (born September 9, 1962 in Camden, New Jersey) is an American crisis management consultant, author, and founder of Washington D.C.-based public relations firm Dezenhall Resources. His aggressive tactics on behalf of his clients have made him both a target of criticism and a quoted pundit on crisis communications.
Dezenhall grew up in New Jersey and studied news media and political science at Dartmouth College. Dezenhall worked briefly in President Ronald Reagan's White House communications office. After a four-year stint at Porter Novelli, Dezenhall and boss Nick Nichols left to form Nichols-Dezenhall Communications Management Company in 1987. The company's name was shortened to Dezenhall Resources Ltd. in 2004 after Nichols retired in 2003. Dezenhall and fellow principal John Weber oversee offices in Washington DC, Sacramento, Los Angeles, London and Brussels.
Dezenhall is founder and CEO of public relations firm Dezenhall Resources, which represents high-profile clients facing "crisis, conflict, and controversy." Dezenhall's published writing on public relations focuses on how a celebrity or corporation can successfully defend their reputation in the face of "a lawsuit, a sex scandal, a defective product, or allegations of insider trading," among other crises.
Clients
Although Dezenhall does not comment on clients and contracts, Business Week reported that Dezenhall had been hired by ExxonMobil/Public Interest Watch, lawyers representing former Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling, O'Melveny & Myers, Mark Geragos (attorney for Michael Jackson), and Eli Lilly and Company; TIME identified Procter & Gamble and General Electric; and The Hill cited Community Financial Services Association of America as clients of Dezenhall.
He was contracted by the Association of American Publishers to run an up to half million dollar campaign against the open access movement. In a series of emails that were leaked to the journal Nature, Dezenhall concedes that "it's hard to fight an adversary that manages to be both elusive and in possession of a better message: Free information," and suggests joining forces with think tanks like the American Enterprise Institute in an attempt to persuade key players of the potential risks of unfiltered access. "Paint a picture of what the world would look like without peer-reviewed articles," he added. AAP CEO Patricia Schroeder praised Dezenhall and told The Washington Post that the association hired Dezenhall's firm when members realized they needed help. "We thought we were angels for a long time and we didn't need PR firms."
Dezenhall writes both non-fiction and novels. His non-fiction works include Nail 'em: Confronting High-Profile Attacks on Celebrities and Business and he co-authored Damage Control: Why Everything You Know About Crisis Management is Wrong.
Dezenhall's novels include Turnpike Flameout, Shakedown Beach, Money Wanders, Jackie Disaster, and Spinning Dixie.
Kevin McCauley from O'Dwyer's PR Report called Dezenhall "the pit bull of public relations", and journalist Bill Moyers, discussing Dezenhall's firm's involvement with the chemical industry stated, "I consider [Dezenhall Resources] the Mafia of the industry." Dezenhall has been criticized for being a "spin doctor" who lowers the quality of public debate for the sake of protecting business interests. The perils of PR pitbulling - Information World Review His effort on behalf of Exxon to pressure the Internal Revenue Service to revoke Greenpeace's tax exempt status was condemned by environmental advocates. Spinwatch - "The Pit Bull Of Public Relations" His efforts on behalf of traditional publishers to combat open access to scientific research have been an ongoing source of controversy in the academic community. Open Access to Science Under Attack: Scientific American
