Thomas Fladung has joined Hennes Communications as vice president. Fladung brings more than 33 years of daily newspaper and digital media experience to the agency, having served as a top editor at some of the nation’s largest newspapers such as the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Detroit Free Press.

Fladung has overseen newsrooms of more than 300 journalists and has directed dozens of award-winning investigations, breaking-news stories, human interest stories and features. Highlights include helping direct six journalists reporting from the Iraq war after the invasion in 2003 for the Detroit Free Press, where he served as managing editor; leading coverage during the Northeast blackout of 2003 in Detroit and getting the newspaper out with no power; and overseeing coverage of the Minneapolis bridge collapse of 2007 while serving as editor of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

Hennes Paynter Communications, one of the few firms in the U.S. focused exclusively on crisis communications and reputation management, today became Hennes Communications.  The firm also offers litigation communications and media training services to its clients that are “on trial” in the Court of Public Opinion.  The change follows the departure of former partner Barbara Paynter, who will continue her career with her own consultancy, where she will focus on public relations and other communications work.

Howard Fencl used to eat brown-bag lunches with Cleveland broadcast legend Dorothy Fuldheim.

He’s also crossed paths with Al Roker and Dick Feagler, and watched audition tapes from Jim Donovan, who at one time was just a “kid” trying to land a job in Cleveland.

After four tours of duty in local television at WKYC-TV and WEWS-TV in Cleveland and WBNS-TV in Columbus, Fencl has seen it all.

For the sixth year in a row, Hennes Paynter Communications has won a Gold Rocks Award from the Public Relations Society of America, Greater Cleveland Chapter.  The firm was recognized for a program it created and carried out for a forestry client in Australia.

The company retained Hennes Paynter after media coverage erroneously reported that large numbers of koala bears had been killed or injured during tree harvesting at the company’s plantations.  Although news reports were exaggerated, the misinformation spread rapidly, leading to the suspension of an important industry certification – a move that threatened the company’s reputation and its market share.

Hennes Communications received the coveted “Best of Show” award at the Greater Cleveland Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America’s annual Cleveland Rocks Awards ceremony for its work on behalf of a ferry boat operator.  The same campaign was awarded a Gold “Rocks” award in the crisis communications category.