Good Thursday! Peruse today's Daily PR Brief - January 8, 2026
Hilton distances itself from hotel accused of turning away ICE; Most in-demand PR skills for success in 2026; B2B PR's creativity problem; more!
Survey Opportunity: USC Annenberg’s 11th annual Global Communication Survey
USC Annenberg’s 11th annual Global Communication Survey is open through the weekend, and PR and communication professionals are invited to share their perspectives. The survey takes about 15 minutes, and participants can enter to win one of five $100 Amazon gift cards.
Add your voice to the future of our profession: https://bit.ly/USC_PRSurvey26
Read some of today's best PR and Comms industry news clips:
The Scoop: Hilton quickly distances itself from hotel accused of turning away ICE workers (PR Daily - January 7, 2026)
Communicator spotlight: Catherine Newman of U.S. Soccer (Axios - January 8, 2026)
The Most In-Demand PR Skills for Success in 2026 (Cision Media Research - January 8, 2026)
The Brand Factbook: Build a 'Single Source of Truth' AI Can't Misquote (PRsay - January 8, 2026)
B2B PR has a creativity problem—and the agencies solving it will shape the future of enterprise storytelling (Agility PR Solutions - January 7, 2026)
The future of PR in 2026 is personalization & trustworthiness (Axia Public Relations - January 1, 2026)
Why AI Platform Performance Matters for Communicators Heading Into 2026 (CommPRO - January 7, 2026)
Brittany Nycole: Balancing motherhood and helping brands stand out in an AI-driven PR industry (EIN Presswire - January 8, 2026)
From Paralysis to Partnership: How to Build a Winning AI Strategy in 2026 (GFM|CenterTable - January 7, 2026)
From tool to teammate: How leaders need to reshape the comms playbook for 2026 (Ragan Communications - January 8, 2026)
How to create content AI will cite with experts from Reddit, Medium and Quora (Muck Rack - January 8, 2026)
Summary Section:
The Scoop: Hilton quickly distances itself from hotel accused of turning away ICE workers
By Courtney Blackann
PR Daily - January 7, 2026
Hilton quickly distances itself from hotel accused of turning away ICE workers. Plus: McDonald's defends McRib ingredients; Caltech prioritizes communication for president pick.
Communicator spotlight: Catherine Newman of U.S. Soccer
By Eleanor Hawkins
Axios - January 8, 2026
The spotlight will be on soccer with the Men's World Cup this year, the Women's World Cup in 2027 and the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028. As the chief marketing and communications officer of the U.S. Soccer Federation, Catherine Newman is responsible for helping the sport attract new fans in the region.
The Most In-Demand PR Skills for Success in 2026
By Simon Reynolds
Cision Media Research - January 8, 2026
Cision's Inside PR 2026 Report, created from a survey of nearly 600 public relations professionals, sheds like on where the industry stands today, where it's going, and what success will look like in the year ahead – including the most in-demand skills and how to leverage them for success.
The Brand Factbook: Build a 'Single Source of Truth' AI Can't Misquote
By Dave Burnett
PRsay - January 8, 2026
Here's the uncomfortable truth: It's not always "AI making things up." Sometimes it's AI doing exactly what it's supposed to do which is summarizing what it can find. And if the public internet has five versions of your story, then you've just asked a machine to pick one.
B2B PR has a creativity problem—and the agencies solving it will shape the future of enterprise storytelling
By Matt Caiola
Agility PR Solutions - January 7, 2026
Traditional B2B content often prioritizes product attributes over narrative purpose—which is why B2B messaging falls flat. Here’s a modern approach.
The future of PR in 2026 is personalization & trustworthiness
By Jason Mudd
Axia Public Relations - January 1, 2026
Read predictions about what public relations might be like in 2026, what PR practitioners should take from Spotify Annual, and more.
Why AI Platform Performance Matters for Communicators Heading Into 2026
CommPRO - January 7, 2026
Futurm Intelligence has released a comprehensive new analysis of AI platform performance for the second half of 2025, and while the report is deeply technical, its implications extend well beyond IT and engineering teams. For communicators, marketers, investor relations leaders and corporate affairs professionals, the findings offer an important window into how AI infrastructure shifts will reshape enterprise narratives, credibility and competitive positioning in the years ahead.
Brittany Nycole: Balancing motherhood and helping brands stand out in an AI-driven PR industry
By Issac Morgan
EIN Presswire - January 8, 2026
It’s rare to find a publicist who knows how to use branding and public relations tactics to execute campaigns that drive awareness for clients, all while balancing life as a dedicated mother and working tirelessly to elevate brands.
From Paralysis to Partnership: How to Build a Winning AI Strategy in 2026
By Jon Woods
GFM|CenterTable - January 7, 2026
By Rishad Tobaccowala, author of Rethinking Work, and Jon Woods, founding partner of GFM When an independent marketing agency committed to forging authentic…
From tool to teammate: How leaders need to reshape the comms playbook for 2026
By Robbie Caploe
Ragan Communications - January 8, 2026
AI is moving from a productivity enhancer to an embedded collaborator — drafting, monitoring, analyzing and recommending in real time. The communicator's role, in turn, is shifting upstream, toward orchestration, judgment and accountability.
How to create content AI will cite with experts from Reddit, Medium and Quora
By Kristen Dunleavy
Muck Rack - January 8, 2026
Three experts from Medium, Reddit and Quora unpacked how communicators can adapt publishing strategies so content registers with both journalists and machines.
If you're interested in setting up a customized report for your company or need any help with monitoring or media research feel free to reach out.
All reports made with the help of Report Mule.