Red Carpet & Crisis Communications: Playbooks from the Front Lines

Red carpets are designed for spotlight—not surprises. Yet in today’s media climate, a single misstep can become a trending crisis before the step-and-repeat is even packed away. Join the PRSA Entertainment & Sports Section for a high-impact session that pulls back the velvet rope on how top PR pros plan, run, and protect marquee events—from celebrity arrivals and mixed zones to last-minute pivots and reputation risk.

Our panel will share real-world frameworks, checklists, and crisis protocols shaped on some of the biggest stages in culture and sport. You’ll leave with practical tools you can apply to any premiere, gala, game day, or brand activation.

What you’ll learn

• Pre-event architecture: timelines, zone maps, talent flows, media wrangling, and credentialing that prevent back-of-house chaos.
• On-site control: step-and-repeat strategy, camera placements, press line choreography, and troubleshooting when schedules (and egos) shift.
• Live-fire crisis response: how to assess severity, choose spokespeople, draft holding lines, and route decisions in minutes—not hours.
• Post-event reputation care: content approvals, recap reporting, and social listening to manage next-day narratives.
• Cross-functional coordination: partnering with security, legal, broadcast, and brand teams when the stakes are highest.

Who should attend

Entertainment and sports communicators, agency leads, brand PR teams, event producers, social/digital strategists, and anyone tasked with high-visibility moments where precision and preparedness matter.

Hosted by the Entertainment and Sports Section and available to all PRSA and PRSSA members. Paid registration for non-Entertainment and Sports Section members includes the live webinar and video playback for one month.

Featured Panelists

Lauren-Paige Woulard — Award-Winning Publicist & Communications Executive
Fresh off overseeing publicity for the MTV Video Music Awards, Lauren-Paige brings frontline expertise from high-profile carpets including the CMT Music Awards, the GRAMMYs, New York Fashion Week, and more. She’ll unpack red-carpet run-of-show design, talent routing, media line management, and rapid messaging alignment when the unexpected hits.

Dan Nasitka — Co-Founder & Vice President, Rocket Launch Marketing & Public Relations
A longtime PRSA member, Dan helms communications for the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation’s Blue Diamond Gala—a star-studded fundraiser featuring A-list talent, the full Dodgers roster, 40+ outlets, and major musical headliners (from Ed Sheeran to J.Lo and Usher). Dan will share playbooks for invites and credentialing at scale, show-night press operations, and crisis communications in partnership with team and foundation leadership.

Danielle Dorfman — PR Strategist
For a decade, Danielle has run the red carpet for the Emmys, orchestrating arrivals, broadcast moments, and live media hits. Over 19 years, she’s led broadcast publicity for Universal’s VOD releases—most recently on-location in Thailand for a Jurassic Park rollout. She also manages athlete/influencer campaigns, including a former UCLA gymnast’s brand activations. Expect actionable guidance on TV-ready moments, international press coordination, and talent-brand alignment.

Moderator: Brandi Sims
PR consultant in sports and entertainment, ForbesBLK ATX Advisor, and host of the Brandinc PR Podcast. Brandi will guide a candid discussion on what truly keeps red carpets smooth and reputations intact.