October 9, 2017: MGM Resorts Drops Brand Campaign After Vegas Shooting, Vice President Mike Pence Leaves N.F.L. Game as Players Kneel for National Anthem, How Desert Oasis Pushed On After Route 91 Harvest Festival Tragedy


1. MGM RESORTS DROPS BRAND CAMPAIGN AFTER VEGAS SHOOTING: MGM Resorts International had launched its first corporate branding campaign two weeks before a gunman used its Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino property to conduct a mass shooting at a Las Vegas music festival. Because of the tragedy, the hospitality and entertainment company has dropped the campaign. Adweek: "The entertainment company shut down the campaign Sunday night as its employees worked to help the wounded, said Lilian Tomovich, MGM’s chief marketing and experience officer, at the ANA Masters of Marketing conference in Orlando, Fla., today. The ill-timed campaign from McCann was called 'Welcome to the Show' and featured a line that MGM had 'one mission: blow the mind of all mankind.' You can watch the 60-second TV spot below. Tomovich had clearly planned to unveil a success story at the conference, where CMOs of major companies like Walmart and P&G share their greatest challenges and triumphs in TED-style talks to thousands of marketers. But instead, she spoke of how her city and co-workers are reeling. The gunman fired shots from a window of the Mandalay Bay resort, which MGM owns. ... MGM spent 18 months crafting and implementing the initiative internally before debuting its integrated campaign to the public. The goal was to transform it from a hotel and casino business to a global entertainment brand, a move it saw as vital after the recession of 2008 nearly bankrupted the company." http://bit.ly/2gkHhhA

2. VICE PRESIDENT MIKE PENCE LEAVES N.F.L. GAME AS PLAYERS KNEEL FOR NATIONAL ANTHEM: Vice President Mike Pence left a N.F.L. game between the Colts and 49ers on Sunday, after numerous members of the 49ers took a knee during the national anthem. Pence and his wife were attending the game to celebrate Peyton Manning, whose number was being retired. Washington Post: "The former governor of Indiana and his wife, wearing a Manning No. 18 jersey, left Lucas Oil Stadium after the national anthem, following instructions from President Trump after a number of San Francisco 49ers players, as they usually do, took a knee during the anthem. 'I asked @VP Pence to leave stadium if any players kneeled,' Trump posted on Twitter. 'I am proud of him and @SecondLady Karen.' Pence said he chose to leave because 'we should rally around our Flag.' ... Pence left after more than a dozen members of the 49ers took a knee during the anthem, as many NFL players have done to raise awareness of social injustice and racial inequality. Members of the Colts stood for the anthem with arms linked. Although players have stressed that the demonstrations are not meant to disparage military members of the anthem, Pence’s departure revives the story of player demonstrations during the anthem. Critics called it a political stunt carried out at taxpayers’ expense. Pence’s media schedule for Sunday showed him attending the Colts game from 1-4 p.m. Eastern. But given Trump’s instructions, an early departure seemed likely because at least one member of the 49ers has protested during the national anthem at every game this season, a practice that originated with the team in 2016. Protests by the 49ers, and from players across the NFL, intensified after Trump called upon league owners to fire or suspend players who did not stand for the anthem last month." http://wapo.st/2xtqw9Q

3. HOW DESERT OASIS PUSHED ON AFTER ROUTE 91 HARVEST FESTIVAL TRAGEDY: Desert Oasis Music Festival in Indio, California—the site of Coachella—was one of the first outdoor music festivals to take place after the Route 91 Harvest Festival. While many are concerned for the future of music festivals, the reggae-focused event still managed to be a haven for music festivalgoers just one week after a mass shooting left 58 dead at the Las Vegas country music fest. The Desert Sun: "The Oct. 1 incident, just one week ago, still weighed heavy on some festivalgoers’ minds, but many at the polo grounds said they wouldn’t be held captive by fear and had to go on with their lives, which includes having fun at music concerts. With temperatures flirting with 100 degrees on Saturday, early in the day the scant crowds set up shop underneath the big white tents and anywhere there was shade. By late afternoon more festivalgoers started filling up the venue, perhaps waiting until the temperatures cooled a bit. ... The festival, which was anticipated to attract about 10,000 people its first year, only used a fraction of the grounds utilized for the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and Stagecoach country music festival. It did have a mini-Coachella festival vibe though, with three stages – Oasis, Mirage and Mecca – large art installations, a variety of food options and camping. However, unlike Coachella  and more in line with Stagecoach, festivalgoers were allowed to walk around with alcohol. There were lots of families and parents pushing strollers around the venue and as an homage to the reggae genre, the three large lions that overlook the grounds, were painted red, yellow and green." http://desert.sn/2gnMJjM

* LOCAL NEWS *

CHICAGO:  The Center for Information and Study on Clinical Research Participation, a nonprofit that educates patients and the public about clinical research and trial participating, will host the Aware for All educational event on October 26 at the University of Illinois Chicago. The event will provide information and resources about the clinical research process. 

LOS ANGELES:  MPI Orange County will celebrate its 30th anniversary with a beach party at Sea Legs at the Beach in Huntington Beach on October 24.

WildAid will hold its annual fund-raising gala, “An Evening With WildAid,” on November 11 at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. The event, which aims to reduce demand for illegal wildlife products through public awareness campaigns, will honor actor Josh Duhamel. 

George Clooney will receive the 46th A.F.I. Life Achievement Award, to be presented at a gala on June 7, 2018. 

For information on upcoming events in Los Angeles, visit Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/losangeles

MIAMI/SOUTH FLORIDA:  Marlins Park will host disaster relief concert Somos Live on October 14. Marc Anthony, Camila, Gente de Zona, Nicky Jam, DJ Khaled, Prince Royce, Romeo Santos, Alejandro Sanz, and Daddy Yankee will perform, and proceeds from the event will go to the American Red Cross, Feeding America, Habitat for Humanity International, Save the Children Federation, U.S. Fund for Unicef, and United Way of Miami-Dade.

NEW YORK:  Avenue magazine will host its inaugural Avenue Altruism Awards, in partnership with the U.N., on November 13 at the United Nations Delegates Dining Room. The event will benefit Mission Blue, an alliance comprising more than 180 ocean-conservation organizations.  

For information on upcoming events in New York, visit Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/newyork

SAN DIEGO:  Rancho Bernardo Inn’s signature restaurant, Avant, has announced several new hires: Christopher Carriker is chef de cuisine, Andrew Seagrave is general manager, and Tammy Hoops is assistant general manager. Margaret Nolan Carvallo also received a promotion to executive pastry chef. 

TORONTO:  The 38th annual International Festival of Authors will take place October 19-29 at Harbourfront Centre. 

WASHINGTON, D.C.:  Events DC and Bob Geoghan, founder of the McDonald’s All American Games and the Capital Classic, plan to bring the 2017 Nell and John Wooden Leadership in Coaching Awards dinner, presented by Pepsi, to the Watergate Hotel on October 12. The event will honor Roy Williams, 2017 N.C.A.A. Men’s Basketball Champion, with the Nell and John Wooden Leadership in Coaching Award, and welcome Washington Metropolitan Basketball Hall of Fame inductees Walt Williams and Danny Ferry. 

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With contributions from Claire Hoffman in Los Angeles, Mitra Sorrells in Orlando, and Beth Kormanik, Michele Laufik, Jill Menze, Rayna Katz, and Ian Zelaya in New York.

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