Amid Scrutiny from Press, Senate, PR Leaders to Speak at O'Dwyer's Event.

NEW YORK -- Following U.S. Senate hearings and front-page examinations of the public relations field in two of the country's top newspapers, five of the PR industry's most influential figures are among those set to address hundreds of PR practitioners at the Yale Club in New York on May 17 at 8 a.m.

The "Greatest Generation in PR" event includes two panel discussions. The first celebrates the professional contributions to the PR and media businesses made by Harold Burson, (founding chairman of Burson-Marsteller), Daniel Edelman (founder and chairman of Daniel J. Edelman), David Finn (chairman of Ruder Finn), Al Golin (chairman of GolinHarris) and Margery Kraus (founder & CEO of APCO Worldwide).

These leaders will discuss the rapidly changing role of PR in today's society and the impact of globalization on the communications business. They will also talk about ethics and how PR can make corporate America more socially responsible.

The New York Times and Wall Street Journal have both recently taken in-depth looks at PR tactics like video news releases and satellite media tours on the heels of USA Today's groundbreaking story about the Dept. of Education and PR firm Ketchum paying commentator Armstrong Williams to tout the No Child Left Behind Act.

A second panel on Tuesday will include members of the PR services business, which has come under particular fire in recent months amid the video news release and Armstrong Williams scandals. Legislation has been proposed in the Senate by Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Frank Lautenburg (D-N.J.) to identify video news releases used in TV and radio newscasts. The PR industry has come out against the measure. Panelists will include Doug Simon (D S Simon Productions), one of two representatives of the PR industry to testify this week before the Senate Commerce Committee, Don Bates (Media Distribution Services), Larry Moskowitz (Medialink), Peter Wengryn (VMS), Robert Waggoner (BurrellesLuce) and Mark Weiner (Delahaye unit of Bacon's).

Mort Kaplan, professor of marketing communication and director of PR studies at Columbia College, Chicago, will moderate the sessions. The event is free to the press. Contact Fay Shapiro, publisher of J.R. O'Dwyer Co., at [phone] or e-mail [e-mail] to attend.

"This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to hear from the leaders of our profession," said Jack O'Dwyer, founder and president of PR trade publisher O'Dwyer's. "This illustrious group has set the standards to which our industry adheres and has elevated the PR discipline to an influential position in the corporate suite.