CASE STUDY
MEDIA RELATIONS & THOUGHT LEADERSHIP: PLOUGHSHARES
The Challenge
Ploughshares is the world’s largest grantmaking foundation singularly dedicated to eliminating the threat of nuclear weapons. Ploughshares utilizes its grantmaking to support the organizations and people who drive policies and activities that make the world safer and more secure. With rising geopolitical tensions and the uncertain future of arms control agreements, Ploughshares engaged The TASC Group to elevate the thought leadership and subject-matter expertise of Ploughshares’ president, Dr. Emma Belcher, and position her as a leading voice on national and international nuclear security policy. The organization also sought to educate the public by increasing awareness and understanding of complex nuclear policy issues, connecting them to popular media, culture, art and entertainment.
The Challenge
Ploughshares is the world’s largest grantmaking foundation singularly dedicated to eliminating the threat of nuclear weapons. Ploughshares utilizes its grantmaking to support the organizations and people who drive policies and activities that make the world safer and more secure. With rising geopolitical tensions and the uncertain future of arms control agreements, Ploughshares engaged The TASC Group to elevate the thought leadership and subject-matter expertise of Ploughshares’ president, Dr. Emma Belcher, and position her as a leading voice on national and international nuclear security policy. The organization also sought to educate the public by increasing awareness and understanding of complex nuclear policy issues, connecting them to popular media, culture, art and entertainment.
The Strategy
The TASC Group devised and executed an earned media campaign to position Dr. Emma Belcher as a leading expert amid rising geopolitical tensions and public interest in nuclear security. TASC engaged with legacy foreign policy and global affairs journalists from outlets like Foreign Policy Magazine and Reuters to provide third-party validation of Dr. Belcher’s thought leadership. This included proactive outreach around President Donald Trump’s nuclear testing plans, the expiration of the New START Treaty, the Russia-Ukraine war, attacks on Iran’s nuclear program and the Iran war. These opportunities enabled TASC to leverage the news cycle to build Dr. Belcher’s subject matter expertise in the media.
To break through the nuclear policy echo chamber, TASC also identified relevant cultural moments, including the premiere of Fallout’s second season, to connect the real-world dangers of nuclear conflict with mainstream entertainment. This approach extended Dr. Belcher’s policy expertise to broader consumer audiences, effectively reaching Gen Z and millennial viewers.
Throughout the engagement, The TASC Group monitored global developments to identify timely outreach opportunities. TASC developed statements alongside Ploughshares, secured media placements and built lasting relationships with key journalists.
The Results
TASC secured hundreds of placements, generating over 500 million media impressions, across national and international outlets, including The Atlantic, CNN, Foreign Policy magazine, Reuters, NBC News, Newsweek, ScreenRant and Rolling Stone. TASC also developed and distributed PR Newswire releases resulting in major media pickups.
TASC’s persistent outreach and constant oversight of the media landscape positioned Dr. Belcher and Ploughshares as trusted sources on national and international security issues, while strengthening the organization’s overall visibility in the nuclear threat reduction space.
In addition to media coverage, TASC facilitated dozens of informational conversations between Dr. Belcher and key journalists, positioning her as a trusted source for future reporting. TASC was also able to secure a guest appearance from Noah Oppenheim, writer of the film “House of Dynamite,” for the organization’s NukeTalk podcast
MEDIA COVERAGE
