Voice Matters is an anthology of non-fiction essays. Noted contributors like former New York Times columnist Bob Herbert, CNN Top 10 Hero Susan Burton and award-winning filmmaker Larry Adelman illustrate how McKinney & Associates enlivens public relations with a conscience, amplifying the voices of those who are too rarely heard. Voice Matters describes the journey of communications strategist Gwen McKinney, launching her two-woman P.R. firm from a humble church basement to Washington, D.C.'s bustling K Street power corridor. The fledgling firm, with no start-up money and a battered IBM Selectric typewriter, grew to represent clients from Eleanor Holmes Norton, Lani Guinier, Elaine Jones and Randall Robinson to Jean-Bertrand Aristide and Nelson Mandela. The anthology offers critical insights on the public relations and communications professions, criminal justice and health equity issues and social media. The book was written to capture and memorialize the work of McKinney & Associates over the past 20 years, highlighting some of the firm's remarkable clients and memorable, winning campaigns. Voice Matters is a resource for public relations, social justice and policy advocates professionals looking for ways to advance big narratives on small budgets, and for socially responsible entrepreneurs who want to pursue their passions while making a profit. McKinney & Associates is a boutique firm specializing in representing nonprofit organizations dedicated to elevating the voices of those who are marginalized. McKinney is the first public relations firm owned by an African American woman in the nation's capitol that expressly promotes social advocacy. The firm specializes in social policy and social justice communications strategy and serves as a trusted advisor to many of the nation's most influential civil rights leaders.
About the Author: Gwen McKinney is founder and president of McKinney & Associates, the first African American female-owned firm in the nation's capital promoting social justice communications. McKinney's career in communications began as a Philadelphia Tribune reporter. Later, she became a Washington correspondent covering Congress and national policy for several newspapers, and she has written for Essence and Black Enterprise magazines. Press secretary for Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton during her first bid to Congress, Gwen specializes in social-policy and social-justice communications strategy and serves as a trusted advisor to many of the nation's most influential civil-rights leaders.