Vice President, Earned Media Strategy (Sports & Entertainment)

Weber Shandwick is more than a leading global PR agency – we’re an engagement agency and we’re working in and around the cutting edge of the new media landscape. We’re storytellers, content creators, and we engage people IN the story. Our success is built on a deep commitment to client service and to our people. We embrace creativity and collaboration, and we engage stakeholders in new and creative ways to build brands and reputations.

About The Opportunity

We’re looking for a Vice President, Earned Media Strategy to help lead earned media for one of the world’s most iconic beer brands.

And this isn’t your typical media relations job.

We need someone who lives at the intersection of sports, entertainment, culture, media and the internet — and knows how to turn what’s happening in those worlds into opportunities for a brand to show up in ways people actually want to talk about.

You should be the kind of person who knows the biggest sports story of the weekend, understands why a random TikTok is suddenly everywhere, has opinions on which podcasts actually move culture, knows what reporters are chasing, and can spot the difference between a fleeting trend and a genuine earned opportunity.

One day you might be building an earned strategy around a major NFL moment. The next, reacting to something happening in entertainment, working with talent, or figuring out how a brand can credibly jump into a conversation unfolding in real time.

This role requires someone who can move at the speed of culture without sacrificing strategic thinking.

About You

You’re an earned media leader, but you’re also a culture junkie.

You genuinely love sports and entertainment. You follow the NFL, NBA, NHL and major sporting moments because you want to — not because they’re on the client calendar. You know the personalities, fandoms, traditions, rivalries and storylines that make sports culture bigger than the games themselves.

You’re equally plugged into entertainment, music, celebrity, creators and internet culture. You understand what people are watching, sharing, debating, memeing and obsessing over — and you’re constantly thinking about where brands can credibly enter those conversations.

You understand that “media” today is much bigger than traditional press. You have strong relationships with journalists, but you’re just as comfortable thinking about podcasts, newsletters, creators, social-first publishers, Substack, TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and whatever platform or personality is becoming influential next.

Your group chat probably doubles as cultural research.

Most importantly, you know how to translate all of that knowledge into smart, strategic earned ideas that generate attention for brands.

You know when a brand should jump in, when it should sit something out and how to turn a cultural observation into a headline-worthy idea.

You’re also a confident senior leader who can sell ambitious thinking to clients, inspire teams, build strong media relationships and stay calm when something unexpected happens five minutes before kickoff.

Responsibilities

• Put the brand at the center of culture. Identify opportunities across sports, entertainment, music, fandom and internet culture where the brand can credibly show up and earn attention.
• Lead earned strategy for major brand moments. Develop integrated earned approaches around tentpole sporting events, entertainment moments, partnerships, product launches, activations and cultural happenings.
• Operate in real time. Track what’s happening across media and social every day and quickly identify conversations, headlines, trends and moments the brand can capitalize on.
• Know sports beyond the schedule. Understand the personalities, traditions, memes, rivalries, fan behaviors and emerging storylines surrounding major sports leagues and events — particularly football and other major U.S. sports.
• Stay relentlessly plugged into the media landscape. Know which reporters, creators, podcasts, newsletters, social accounts and emerging platforms are actually shaping conversation.
• Build relationships that matter. Maintain strong relationships across national news, sports, entertainment, lifestyle, business, culture and digital media.
• Turn insights into headlines. Find the sharp cultural observation, tension or behavior that can become an earned idea — not just another press release.
• Think beyond traditional PR. Develop ideas designed to travel across earned media, social, creators, experiential, talent and paid channels.
• Work with talent and creators. Help identify the right athletes, entertainers, musicians, celebrities and creators for brand programs and develop earned strategies that make those partnerships newsworthy.
• Be a trusted client counselor. Advise senior clients on cultural opportunities, media strategy, brand positioning, talent, risk and real-time decision-making.
• Bring strong opinions and great instincts. Develop POVs on where media and culture are headed and what those shifts mean for the brand.
• Lead integrated teams. Partner closely with creative, strategy, social, influencer, experiential and account teams to turn cultural insights into breakthrough ideas.
• Sell the idea. Confidently present strategies and creative thinking to senior clients, agency partners and new business prospects.
• Develop the next generation of earned talent. Mentor teams to become sharper storytellers, stronger media strategists and more culturally curious thinkers.

What We’re Looking For

• 8+ years of PR, communications or earned media experience, including significant experience leading work for major consumer brands.
• A genuine passion for sports, entertainment and culture — this is essential to the role, not a nice-to-have.
• Deep knowledge of the sports landscape, particularly major U.S. sports and the fan cultures surrounding them.
• A track record of developing earned ideas that have broken through around major cultural moments.
• Strong relationships across sports, entertainment, lifestyle, business, culture and national media.
• Deep fluency in the modern media ecosystem — from traditional outlets to TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, podcasts, newsletters, Substack, creators and emerging platforms.
• An instinct for what will get people talking and the ability to turn that instinct into smart, ownable opportunities for a brand.
• Experience working with athletes, celebrities, musicians, creators and other high-profile talent.
• Experience leading integrated campaigns across earned, social, creator, experiential and paid channels.
• The ability to move quickly. Really quickly. You’re comfortable developing a smart recommendation when the cultural window might be measured in hours, not weeks.
• Strong judgment and an understanding of the difference between a culturally relevant opportunity and a brand trying too hard.
• Excellent storytelling, writing and presentation skills.
• Confidence counseling senior clients and navigating large, complex marketing organizations.
• A collaborative leadership style and a track record of building teams that are curious, ambitious and excited to make work people notice.

Salary range: 125,000 – 165,000