thoughts on advertising, pr, branding, entertainment, technology and other musings

Husband. Son. Brother. Friend. American. Soldier. Communicator.

I’m an officer in the U.S. Army, and have been for 21 years. Well, I’ve been an officer for 20 years, I was enlisted for one…the first one. I enlisted in the Army to earn money for college…film school really. I initially joined for two years, and ended up staying 21…so far. I’ve been an Infantry Soldier, a Signal Officer (telecommunication networks) and have spent the last 10 years as an Army Public Affairs Officer. I worked in Army advertising for the Army’s Recruiting Command, spent two years in graduate school at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism where I earned an MA in Strategic Communication (paid for by the U.S. Army…and you taxpayers, thank you!), two and a half years as a public affairs officer for a brigade combat team in the 101st Airborne Division (one tour in Iraq),  18 months as the Deputy PAO for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and my current job is in branded entertainment for the U.S. Army in Los Angeles where we help filmmakers, TV producers, and video game producers create products that accurately depict the U.S. Army. I’ve worked on films like “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” and “GI Joe: Rise of Cobra,” and television shows (“Army Wives” and various TV documentaries) and the video game “Medal of Honor” due out in 2010. Our mission; educate the American people on THEIR Army through entertainment media. I tell my friends that I joined the Army to get money for film school, but the Army got me to Hollywood faster than film school ever would have.

So you can see from my career why I’m interested in communication, public relations, advertising, branded entertainment, technology and the confluence of all of these elements and how they are changing the way individuals and organizations interact.

I’m also a college sports fan (USC football and University of Louisville basketball), a movie buff, foodie, wine/beer

Triumph Bonneville - T100

/bourbon enthusiast, news junkie, politics junkie, and recent motorcycle owner/rider (I ride a Triumph Bonneville T-100)…and blogger.

This blog reflects my personal opinions and in no way reflects the official positions of the U.S. Army, the Department of Defense, or the U.S. Government.