This year, LIA has invited top professionals and practitioners to the 2026 Creativity in PR Jury, who are experts inbuilding brands through their PR skills. As in previous years, all jury members will convene in Las Vegas for for in-person judging at Encore @ Wynn, from the first round of judging through the final round of judging, which culminates in awarding statues.
Rachel Sansom, CEO UK and Europe, Havas Red, who has been named in PR Week’s Power Book list consecutively from between 2020 and 2026, will chair the Creativity in PR jury for 2026. As Rachel so aptly put it: “Asearned creativity becomes more important than ever in helping brands earn trust, visibility and reputation; I am honoured to be chairing the creativity inPR Jury, looking at the best that the PR industry has to offer globally.”
Rachel also gave three very helpful tips about how to approach the category: “Ensuring the idea is earned in its design, not just an earned exploitation of a concept designed for another discipline; demonstrate effectiveness to show how it really turned the dial with audiences, reputation or business performance; demonstrate how earned attention is generated organically.”
Undoubtedly, earned media is one of the most powerful ways to help a brand build credibility and reach new audiences as it is generated from third-party sources that the audience trust. Statistics tell us that authentic third-party endorsements drive 4 times higher consideration for a brand than paid advertising. Media coverage of a brand makes the brands more trustworthy to the target audience. Consumers are seeking recommendations from trusted sources to help them make the right choices.
“PR is no longer just disseminating a release or news. It’s about telling a narrative that engages emotionally with the audience. The jury we have assembled for our 2026 Creativity in PR categories are practitioners who have first-hand experience in creating successful PR strategies and ideas that have won the hearts and minds of audiences. They will be able to pick out the pieces of work that will elevate the PR landscape in 2026,” added Christina Shaw, VP – Awards Director, LIA.
LIA judging in Las Vegas will run from 25th September through 3rd October, 2026. There is no pre-judging, as all judges must sit through all stages of the judging process before setting the standard of excellence for the year.
CREATIVITY IN PR JURY
Jury President
Rachael Sansom
CEO UK & Europe
HAVAS Red
Pepe Aguilar
Global Head of Creative
FINN Partners
Khaled AlShehhi
Executive Director of Marketing and Communication
UAE Government Media Office, Dubai
Rony Castor
Group Creative Director, SVP
BarkleyOKRP, Chicago
Florence Fahmy
Senior Creative
Billion Dollar Boy, New York
Tetsuya Honda
CEO / PR Strategist
Honda Office, Tokyo
Duncan Killick
Head of Creative
Special PR
Santiago Lucero
Global Chief Creative Officer
SAMY
Karan Novas
Partner / Chief Creative Officer
Tulom, São Paulo
Laura Petruccelli
Co-Founder / Chief Creative Officer
nice&frank, New York
Ellie Tuck
Chief Creative Officer, Americas
FleishmanHillard, New York
For more information on the juries, categories and/or requirements, visit our website: www.liaawards.com
