• Last year was not great for global PR firms. Edelman reported a 5% drop in 2024 revenue while WPP fell 1.7%. “It was a challenging year for PR, but also for the entire communications sector,” said Edelman CEO Richard Edelman.
• Denver Broncos outside linebackers coach Michael Wilhoite was arrested on felony assault charges after allegedly punching a police officer in the face in a disagreement about his unattended vehicle at DIA.
• Computer and printer company HP has been caught trying to force customers to use its online support channels by setting a minimum 15-minute wait time for anyone phoning its call center. The wait applies even if representatives are available to talk with customers.
• Bowers & Wilkins sound systems are options in a number of higher-end cars ranging from Aston Martin to McLaren to BMW. Volvo even offers it as an option, but some buyers in China were surprised to find that their brand new Volvos featured knock-off “Bovvers & VVilkins” sound systems. Volvo has launched an investigation into the dealers.
• The Westernaires, the Golden-based organization that features youth horseback riders who perform tricks, is rolling like it’s still the 1990s. The organization has refused repeated requests to stop dressing up “non-Native riders in Indigenous-inspired clothing to perform sacred Native American dances and reenact Custer’s Last Stand.”
• A Buffalo Sabres announcer stationed next to the ice between the team benches dropped an “Ah, f—!” live on air after he was hit in the forehead by an errant puck. Don’t know if there is an FCC exemption for that, but there should be.
• It was a tough week for property developers with Denver connections. Brad Eide, a developer with Elevate Cos., was allegedly body slammed by Nick Steitz, a former NFL lineman-turned-CBRE-real estate broker, at a golf outing in Lakewood. Meanwhile, The Denver Post reported that former Colorado real estate developer Boris Mannsfeld “was found face down in a pool of blood … at his Belize luxury development project…. Police told local reporters that Mannsfeld died from a gunshot to the back of his neck.”
• The NBA playoffs are still almost two months away, but a time-tested rule of thumb says only one of three teams is likely to win the championship: the Boston Celtics, Oklahoma City Thunder and Cleveland Cavaliers. The Denver Nuggets did not meet the “40-20 rule” by winning 40 games before they lost 20, a litmus test that 90% of NBA winners achieve.
• If you are looking for real-estate bargains, good news! The asking price for a Palace of Versailles-like castle in Evergreen was reduced by $10 million. You can now have it for a mere $50 million.
• Hundreds of NOAA and National Weather Service employees were laid off this week, potentially threatening the flow of information that local meteorologists use to create accurate forecasts.
• At one time, Skype was king of the video chat services, but then the pandemic hit and Zoom, Teams, FaceTime, Webex and Google Meet, among others, took off. Skype announced this week it is shutting down.
• Two strip clubs – Diamond Cabaret and Rick’s Cabaret – have been ordered by the Denver auditor to pay nearly $14 million in back pay and penalties to dancers and other workers. Expect them to pay all $14 million in one-dollar bills.
• You may have had a bad week, but it could have been worse – you could be the family of a two-year-old who was mistakenly named “Unakite Thirteen Hotel.”

Who won the week?

• Kristy Bassuener is the new Vice President of Communications and Outreach at the Rose Community Foundation.
• Former 9News and MSNBC producer Kerry Leary has joined Be Clear Communications as a senior associate.
• My GFM|CenterTable colleague Carissa McCabe has joined the board of Project Angel Heart.
• Vail native Mikaela Shiffrin won her 100th World Cup race, a quest that had been sidelined by injuries she suffered in a crash in November.
• “NBC Nightly News” anchor Lester Holt announced he will step down from that position after a decade. He said he will remain with the network and continue to host “Dateline.”