Desiree Peterkin Bell, President and CEO
Philadelphia, PA — Desiree Peterkin Bell, President and CEO of DPBell & Associates, joins the distinguished faculty of the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg School for Communication this spring. Bell complements the 32.5% of notable female faculty members for the university as one of PR Week’s “40 under 40” recipients and one of Philadelphia Tribune’s “Most Influential African-American Women.”Additionally, Bell brings her expertise as an accomplished communications strategist, brand builder, and problem solver from the mayoral administrations of Mayor Michael Nutter (Philadelphia, PA), Mayor Cory Booker (Newark NJ), and Mayor Michael Bloomberg (New York, NY) and having served as Senior Advisor for President Barack Obama’s Reelection efforts in 2012 for Pennsylvania.
Bell’s course, Urban Communication, expounds on how cities and their leadership communicate with the public. The course highlights topics like “Fake News”, the Black Lives Matter Movement in Cities, and Crisis Communication. In addition, it tackles communicating with ordinary citizens in an age of social media and 24/7 cable news presents new challenges to municipal leaders, particularly in times of crisis.
Bell began her government career as the Special Assistant to Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson. Immediately after she accepted the position of VP of Government Affairs for New York City Marketing Development Corporation and Supervising Legislative Representative for Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
As the former Director of Communications for the City of Newark, Bell transformed the communications paradigm and built a positive brand for Mayor Cory Booker and Newark, New Jersey. Moreover, she cultivated the city’s social media, led crisis communications, and created public private partnerships through a host of events.
Following the City of Newark, Bell served as the Director of Communications and Strategy for the City of Philadelphia and later as City Representative strengthening their social media presence and national media presence. Bell also worked and in many cases lead the development of numerous big events including but not limited to Jay Z’s Made In America concert series, Forbes 30 under 30 and the successful and historic visit by Pope Francis, these events resulted in millions of dollars in economic impact for the City of Philadelphia and the region. Bell also lead the team that successfully drafted, secured and negotiated the DNC bid for the City of Philadelphia.
DPBell & Associates is a boutique public affairs firm serving clients nationally and internationally in areas such as branding, media, political consulting, and crisis communication. For more details, visit www.desireepeterkinbell.com
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