At The Morris + King Company, our team is composed of highly talented, motivated and creative professionals with extensive public relations and marketing experience and expertise. Every member of our staff is committed to providing clients with consistent and inspired service and achieving outstanding results.
Adam Nelson, president of The Morris + King Company, oversees the firm's Consumer Group and co-leads new business development. He is actively involved in strategic development, branding initiatives and enlivening and executing marketing and promotional campaigns for MKC's formidable client roster.
Widely regarded for his original thinking, imaginative ideas and strikingly unique hands-on approach, Mr. Nelson brings a keen understanding and deep expertise of the fashion and consumer spaces to MKC, which has achieved extraordinary success in providing thoughtful strategy, flawless execution as well as a broad array of digital and social media capabilities to its clients.
Before joining MKC, Mr. Nelson was founder and CEO of Workhouse Publicity, a leading boutique agency specializing in fashion, publishing, luxury, consumer and lifestyle accounts. Workhouse developed stylish marketing campaigns and programs as well as successful worldwide events and initiatives for a wide range of legendary clients, including Francis Ford Coppola, David LaChapelle, Interview Magazine, International Emmy Awards, Galleries Lafayette, Virgin, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Saks Fifth Avenue and Versace.
Prior to launching Workhouse, Mr. Nelson was a senior publicist at Jason Weinberg & Associates, where he represented Pepsi, Joe Boxer, Detour Magazine, Tim Burton, David LaChapelle, Lennox Lewis and Sean "P Diddy" Combs, among others. Previously he was a senior publicist at the Peggy Siegal Company, overseeing the Warner Brothers account and the premiere of more than 100 films including “Batman,” “Run Lola Run” and “Flawless.” Mr. Nelson also served as a public relations executive at Saks Fifth Avenue and the publicity director for the Irving Plaza Concert Hall.
Mr. Nelson has been recognized for his outstanding and creative marketing campaigns, receiving the U.S. Commerce Association's 2009 New York Award in the Marketing/Branding division. He won the National Congressional Committee’s 2003 National Leadership Award and was elected to serve as an Honorary Chairman of the Business Advisory Council. In addition, Mr. Nelson was selected by the International Who's Who of Executives in 2004.
Mr. Nelson earned his BFA from the University of the Arts and attended certificate programs at both Yale and Oxford University.
Adam Nelson, his wife and two children reside in New York City.
Caren Browning is a Senior Vice President at The Morris + King Company (MKC) and directs the company’s health care and public initiatives division.
Among Ms. Browning's clients are the University of California, San Francisco, and other prestigious medical centers and institutions throughout the country. For UCSF, Ms. Browning led the hugely successful and acclaimed opening of the Helen Diller Family Cancer Research Building. She also heads up media relations for the renowned surgeon/scientists at UCSF’s Department of Neurosurgery, and has led several cancer research initiatives including the national launch of BreastCancerTrials.org. For the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health and The Biomarkers Consortium, her team announced the highly anticipated I-SPY 2 clinical trial for breast cancer at the National Press Club. She also proudly manages media relations for several programs with The Visiting Nurse Service of New York, including VNSNY’s Center for Home Care Policy & Research.
Ms. Browning and her team provide strategic public relations counsel and oversee all media relations for Beliefnet.com, the leading spirituality and inspiration Web site, and the Diller Teen Tikkun Olam Awards for the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco and the Helen Diller Family Foundation.
Before joining MKC, Ms. Browning served as Senior Media Director with Hunter Public Relations, linking that agency with the nation's top print and broadcast outlets on behalf of such iconic consumer brands as Campbell's Soup, Jell-O, Balance Bar, McCormick, Hasbro, Scotch Tape, Post-it, E &J Gallo and Pernod Ricard. For previous clients she teamed with actress Holly Robinson Peete and Olympic Gold Medalist Sheryl Swoopes on health awareness campaigns for low-income families, and with Dr. Ruth Westheimer on a widely acclaimed safe-sex campaign.
Landing in New York as a professional actress two decades ago, Ms. Browning earned credits on Broadway and in major theatres from London to California. She still makes regular appearances as Captain Judy Siper on “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.”
Ms. Browning is a proud resident of Manhattan’s “Hell’s Kitchen” neighborhood.
Lane Buschel, president of SeisMK and a vice president at The Morris + King Company (MKC), brings more than a decade of public relations and marketing experience with an emphasis on media, entertainment, technology and B2B clients. He has spearheaded MKC’s tech group for the past three years, and since the mid-90s has been an acknowledged expert in online marketing, holding top account positions with Peppercom and Dan Klores Communications. He has advised clients including such companies as Glam Media, Heavy.com, TheFunded, Jajah, AdBrite, Special Ops Media, frogdesign, CartoonNetwork.com, VerticalNet (and IPO) and UGO Networks.
Mr. Buschel is the recipient of several awards for outstanding public relations programs, including: Entertainment Weekly's Best of the Internet, two Creativity in Public Relations Awards (CIPRA) and multiple commendations from PRWeek magazine.
Prior to moving to New York, Mr. Buschel was based in Washington, DC, where he managed in-house public relations and marketing campaigns for RAS Records, Source Theatre Company and the Studio Theatre.
Mr. Buschel holds a J.D. from New York Law School, where he specialized in Intellectual Property law. He was a Founding Producer of the annual State of Play: Law, Games and Virtual Worlds' conference, currently co-sponsored by The MacArthur Foundation and the USC Annenberg School for Communication; a Summer Fellow at the Institute for Information Law and Policy, and a Visiting Scholar at the Centre for Asia Pacific Technology and Legal Policy, in Singapore. Lane was also a research assistant for then-ACLU President Nadine Strossen, and for Beth Noveck. He earned his B.A. in English Language and Literature from the University of Maryland at College Park.
Lane Buschel is a native of the northeast corridor and currently resides in Brooklyn, NY, where he co-founded Wiimbledon, the world’s first Wii tennis tournament.
Amanda Deveaux joins the Morris + King Company as an Account Supervisor. In this role she oversees multiple accounts, developing, driving and executing programs and media relations.
With more than six years of in-house and agency public relations experience, Ms. Deveaux is an accomplished public relations executive. Most recently she led the Travel and Hospitality division of Evins Communications where she worked with a range of clients from luxury hotels and a private aviation company to one of Kentucky’s leading small batch bourbons and a burgeoning Napa Valley Vineyard. Previously, Amanda was a Senior Account Executive at PJ Inc where she launched many new travel and technology companies and led the VEGAS.com account promoting tourism to the city of Las Vegas. Ms. Deveaux began her career in retail with positions with Bloomingdales’ public relations office, Filene’s Department Store’s advertising department, and the public relations and marketing division of G+G Retail.
Ms. Deveaux graduated from Boston College with a BS in Communications. She has called Manhattan home for the past six years and still maintains her loyalty to the Red Sox.
Audrey Laricchia is a media relations consultant at The Morris + King Company. She brings to MKC more than nine years of agency experience managing product launches, special events and media relations for several high-profile clients.
Ms. Laricchia spent three years at CKPR where she climbed the ranks from account supervisor to vice president. During her time with the agency, she developed public relations programs for and oversaw daily activities on accounts ranging from retail to consumer healthcare to non-profit such as Brookstone, ITO EN and the United Services Organization (USO). Ms. Laricchia also worked with several of GlaxoSmithKline's consumer healthcare brands including TUMS/Oscal and Nicorette.
Prior to joining CKPR, Ms. Laricchia served as a senior account executive at RF|Binder Partners, coordinating public relations programs and strategy for Viactiv® Soft Calcium Chews, Viactiv® Multi-Vitamin Chews, and Lactaid® Dietary Supplements. While at RF|Binder, she also managed events for Bank of America, including the 2004 groundbreaking ceremony for Bank of America Tower at One Bryant Park.
Earlier in her career, Ms. Laricchia worked at Aronow Pollock Communications as a point person for the American Egg Board account. Ms. Laricchia helped promote health and nutritional messages surrounding one of nature's favorite foods, the "incredible, edible egg" and spent a considerable amount of time handling crisis situations, crafting standby statements and providing client counsel in dealing with media.
Ms. Laricchia is a graduate of Boston University and currently resides in New York City.
Katie Smith-Adair is an Account Supervisor at SeisMK, The Morris + King Company’s digital division, leading accounts primarily in the fields of digital media and technology, while also advising offline accounts on digital strategies. In this role she oversees multiple accounts, developing, driving and executing public relations strategies and campaigns for companies including BUZZMEDIA, Glam Media, Access 360 Media and StickerYou.com. She also spearheads SeisMK’s conferences and speaking engagements program across all accounts.
Prior to joining The Morris + King Company, Ms. Smith-Adair was a member of the Microsoft PR team at Waggener Edstrom Worldwide where she responsible for driving PR initiatives and managing projects for Microsoft's online services business. Prior to that, she worked in film publicity for numerous motion picture studios, including Disney, DreamWorks and Universal.
Ms. Smith-Adair earned a B.S. in Marketing from Arizona State University's School of Business in Tempe, Arizona. Born and raised in Portland, Oregon, she has an affinity for great coffee and wine and also enjoys writing about owls on Owelle.com and watching Jeopardy marathons on DVR.
Katie Smith-Adair currently resides in Manhattan.
Jennifer Moses is an Account Supervisor at The Morris + King Company; she joined the firm in early 2007 as an account executive and quickly distinguished herself as an integral part of the consumer, lifestyle and luxury leadership team. She plays a primary role in new business proposals, strategy, and constructing and executing comprehensive programs for a diverse roster of accounts.
Ms. Moses provides expert media strategy and ensures ongoing press coverage for a slate of clients across a variety of digital, entertainment and lifestyle sectors, including Stardoll, New York Women in Film and Television, BUZZMEDIA, Where’s Waldo?"part of the Classic Media library of beloved characters"and renowned hairstylist Paul Labrecque.
Prior to joining The Morris + King Company, Ms. Moses was an Associate Publicist at Rubenstein Public Relations where she worked on a wide range of accounts in the fields of real estate, lifestyle, entertainment, healthcare and technology.
Ms. Moses earned a B.A. in Public Relations from the State University of New York at New Paltz, where she served as the features editor of the New Paltz Oracle.
Jennifer Moses grew up a snowball’s throw from Canada in Northern New York and currently resides in Brooklyn, New York.
Elizabeth Hanske is a Senior Media Director at The Morris + King Company. Among her primary duties are the development and implementation of media strategy plans, providing public relations counsel, writing and distributing press materials, pitching stories, researching industry profiles and ensuring ongoing press coverage across the board for such clients as Classic Media, The Ritz-Carlton Club, Marquis Jet, [212]MEDIA and Paul Labrecque.
Prior to joining The Morris + King Company as an intern, Ms. Hanske completed several other internships during her studies, including a semester with the editorial staff at Us Weekly magazine. In addition, she spent time with boutique PR companies assisting with clients and events pertaining to the CMJ Music Festival, Eve Ensler and V-Day, New Yorkers for Children, and HGTV.
Ms. Hanske graduated from New York University with a B.A. in Journalism, and a minor in French. Elizabeth Hanske grew up near Denver, Colorado, and currently resides in Manhattan.
Kayla Zerby is a Senior Account Executive at SeisMK, the digital and social media division of The Morris + King Company.
She handles the execution of public relations and social media marketing strategies for several of SeisMK’s A-list online and offline client brands, including Thumbplay, the leading provider of mobile entertainment content in the U.S., International Data Group (IDG), the world's leading technology media, events and research company, and DBG, a full-service video network specializing in the original production and distribution of video content across the Internet and other digital media.
Prior to joining MKC, Kayla worked on multi-faceted campaigns for a variety of corporate and consumer brands at Idea Hall, one of Southern California’s top integrated marketing and public relations agencies. Before that, Kayla served as Senior Account Executive in the Washington, DC office of Hellerman Baretz Communications, a strategic communications agency representing the world's leading law firms, consulting firms and financial services companies.
Kayla is accomplished in both traditional and non-traditional PR tactics and has both a personal and professional interest in the opportunities and issues that sit at the intersection of public relations and social media. And, as a former print and broadcast reporter in Rochester, NY, she has a knack for knowing how to recognize and tell a good story.
Kayla graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Science degree in professional and technical communication and graphic media from Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). She is a regular blogger for the New York City chapter of Girls in Tech, a global not-for-profit organization focused on women's innovative and entrepreneurial achievements in business and technology.
You can follow her on Twitter at @kaylazerby.
Jessica D'Amico is an Account Executive at The Morris + King Company. She joined the company full time in 2008 as an Assistant Account Executive after completing the firm's Internship program. Among her primary duties are the development and implementation of media strategy plans, providing public relations counsel, organizing and managing special events, pitching stories, researching industry profiles and ensuring ongoing press coverage for such clients as Classic Media, Paul Labrecque, New York Women in Film and Television, Ken Davenport/Davenport Theatrical Enterprises and StickerYou.
Prior to joining The Morris + King Company as an intern, Ms. D'Amico completed several internship programs, including a semester with the publicity department at DKNY Jeans where she assisted with collection photo shoots, promotional events, tracking of media placements and managing of collection samples.
Ms. D'Amico earned a B.A. in Communications and Marketing from Pace University, where she served as the entertainment editor of the Paw Print, Captain of the Pace women's tennis team and Secretary of Lambda Pi Eta, the national communication studies honor society.
Ms. D’Amico grew up in Orange County, N.Y. and currently resides in Brooklyn, N.Y.
David M. Smith recently joined The Morris + King Company as an Account Executive, working with the company’s health care and public initiative accounts. Among his primary duties are the development and implementation of media strategy plans, providing public relations counsel, organizing and managing special events, pitching stories, researching industry profiles and ensuring ongoing press coverage for such clients as the Visiting Nurse Service of New York, Foundation for the National Institutes of Health/Biomarkers Consortium, the University of California, San Francisco’s Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, UCSF’s Department of Neurosurgery and the Abyssinian Development Corporation.
Prior to joining The Morris + King Company, Mr. Smith was the Deputy Executive Director for Advocacy and Communications at Garden State Equality. There he played a leading role in the enactment of dozens of civil rights laws and helped to grow Garden State Equality into New Jersey’s largest advocacy organization. His responsibilities included pitching stories, brainstorming and producing special events and serving as the representative of the organization at numerous events, conferences, and summits. Mr. Smith has also served as field representative for My Medicare Matters, where he traveled around the State of New Jersey counseling patients on Medicare Part D.
A passionate love of politics has led Mr. Smith to active participation in several Democratic political campaigns; was a delegate at the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver.
Mr. Smith grew up in Monmouth County, New Jersey, and currently resides in Hoboken, New Jersey.
Rebecca Freed joined The Morris + King Company as an Assistant Account Executive after completing the firm's internship program. Her primary duties consist of working closely with senior account executives in managing some of the firm’s most prestigious clients including Beliefnet.com, the Visiting Nurse Service of New York, the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health/Biomarkers Consortium, and several cancer research campaigns for the University of California, San Francisco, including BreastCancerTrials.org and the renowned surgeon/scientists of UCSF’s Department of Neurosurgery. Ms. Freed also plays a main role in the Diller Teen Tikkun Olam initiative for the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco and the Helen Diller Family Foundation.
Among her responsibilities in this position include tracking and archiving media coverage, writing and distributing press materials, pitching stories, forming comprehensive up-to-date media lists, and researching industry profiles.
Prior to joining The Morris + King Company, Ms. Freed completed an internship at The LGBT Community Center of New York, where she assisted the Director of Communications, conducted extensive travel and tourism research and garnered media placements in many top print and online travel publications.
Ms. Freed earned a B.A. in Culture and Communication with a concentration in social-psychological perspectives on gender from Ithaca College, where she graduated Magna Cum Laude. Ms. Freed’s media research was published in Rochester Institute of Technology’s first Journal of Undergraduate Communication Research.
Rebecca Freed grew up in Bergen County, N.J. and currently resides in Brooklyn, N.Y.
Erica Schwartz joined The Morris + King Company as an Assistant Account Executive after completing the firm's internship program. She works closely with senior account executives in managing clients such as Beliefnet, UCSF, BreastCancerTrials.org and the Abyssinian Development Corporation. Ms. Schwartz’s responsibilities entail tracking and documenting media coverage, writing and distributing press materials, participating in weekly client status calls, and most recently, managing BreastCancerTrials.org’s Twitter strategy.
Before joining The Morris + King Company, Ms. Schwartz completed several internship programs, including a summer with Dickey Publishing in Atlanta as an editorial assistant for Dickey’s three publications.
Ms. Schwartz earned an A.B.J. in Magazines from University of Georgia, where she graduated Magna Cum Laude. She has had her writing published in several publications including Jezebel, Atlanta Sports and Fitness, UGAzine, The Red & Black, Sprig, and Athens Blur Magazine.
Ms. Schwartz grew up in Atlanta, GA and currently resides in New York City.
Michael Richards is the Director of Operations for the Morris + King Company (MKC). In this role, he oversees all financial aspects of the company, human resources and the general day-to-day running of the firm's New York City office.
Mr. Richards brings to MKC corporate experience - both at the administrative and management level. Prior to joining MKC, Mr. Richards served as Office/Financial Manager for several creative firms in New York City; the most recent being Diversion Media. Prior to that, he worked for Sony Music Entertainment in A&R Administration, where he worked in contracts, royalties and tour support payments.
Outside of MKC, Mr. Richards enjoys a successful career as a songwriter. He recently spent a year in Nashville, honing his compositional skills and won First Place at the International Grand Prix of Composers for his tune “Spark,” which can currently be heard on the radio throughout Germany and will soon to be released throughout all of Europe.
Mr. Richards earned a B.A. in English from Skidmore College. Michael Richards currently lives in New York City.