Meeting News - September 8, 2008 - (Page 4)

S e p t e m b e r 8 , 2 0 0 8 Vo l u m e 3 2 , N u m b e r 1 5 Perspectives We Threw In the Towel It started when our art director, Rich Prestia, created an irresistible logo for our MeetingNews 25 Most Powerful list in the July 21 issue. I thought the logo was begging to be put on a T-shirt, but then Jennifer PepperStam, MN’s senior marketing manager, said,“What about beach towels?” And thus was born the first 25 Most Powerful commemorative beach towel. It was an inspired choice: Since powerful leaders seldom take a break from working, the towel serves as a reminder for them to occasionally relax and savor life. We sent one out to each of the 24 people in the list (the barrel of oil, LEED certification, and social media sadly went towel-less). So far, the response has been warm and appreciative. “Sooooooooooo cool!” said recipient Joan Eisenstodt, adding, “it’s the first time we’ve gotten anything!” EIBTM’s Paul Kennedy and Pineapple Hospitality’s Ray Burger also thanked us, and Ben Bernanke’s office at the Fed expressed appreciation but curiosity about its cost, since its Terri Hardin, rules “restrict the acceptance of gifts valued at Editor-In-Chief more than $20.” A few of the letters—and a photo of the towel—appear on page 6. The beach towel reminds us of what’s important to the meetings industry: recognition, giving back, and accountability. (Speaking of accountability, some other letters, also on page 6, called us on the carpet and asked us to get the story straight. This we will always endeavor to do; if we fall short, feel free to tell us.) Committed to you, our industry coverage, which includes the annual meetings for MPI and ASAE, begins on the cover and extends from pages 10 to 17 and to page 120. Enjoy! r Editorial Editor-In-Chief, Terri Hardin (646) 654-7364; terri.hardin@nielsen.com Executive Editor/Hotels, Rayna Katz (646) 654-4421; rayna.katz@nielsen.com Managing Editor/International, William Ng (646) 654-4451; william.ng@nielsen.com Research Director, Nancy Lazarus (646) 654-7272; nancy.lazarus@nielsen.com Editorial Fax: (646) 654-4428 Editorial Address: 770 Broadway, New York, NY 10003-9595 Corporate/Sales Nella Veldran, Vice President Travel Group Phone: (646) 654-7325 Southeast/Mid-Atlantic/Ohio Larry Mischik, Ad Director/Account Manager 3054 Four Oaks Drive, Atlanta, GA 30360 Phone: (770) 604-9641 NY/NJ/New England/Bermuda/Caribbean Diane DiMaggio, International Advertising Director 770 Broadway, NY, NY 10003; Phone: (646) 654-7332 Contributing Editors Corrie Dosh, Kinley Levack, Vincent Alonzo Robert Carey, Gretchen Kelly, A.E. Smith Brad Crawford, Joy Anderson, Marc Boisclair Marshall Krantz, Fred Gebhart, Rowland Stiteler Edward Schmidt Jr., Matt Alderton Florida/Cruise Arthur Hyman, Associate Publisher/Account Manager 1267 Via Fiume, Boynton Beach, FL 33436 Phone: (561) 736-5374 Art Art Director, Richard Prestia (646) 654-4424; richard.prestia@nielsen.com Midwest/Texas/Louisiana Patrice Carman, Account Manager 200 West Jackson Blvd., 27th floor, Chicago, IL 60606 Phone: (312) 583-5522 Marketing Sr. Marketing Manager, Jennifer Pepper (646) 654-7263; jennifer.pepperstam@nielsen.com CA/HI/Colorado/Arizona/Nevada/NM Sharon Freeark, Account Manager 2950 31st Street, Suite 100, Santa Monica, CA 904053037; Phone: (626) 578-0700; Fax: (626) 578-0720 Production Production Manager, Adam Schaffer (646) 654-7295; Fax (646) 654-7318 adam.schaffer@nielsen.com Subscription Information: (847) 763-9050 Subscription Fax: (847) 763-9037 Single Copy Sales: (847) 763-9050 Asia/Pacific/Southwest/Colorado Edie Garfinkle, International Advertising Director 2510 G Las Posas Road, #505, Camarillo, CA 93010 Phone: (805) 383-1326; Fax: (646) 654-4456 Digital Sales Jared Smith, National Account Manager 770 Broadway, NY, NY 10003; Phone: (646) 654-5520 Custom Media Editorial Director, Marilyn Moore (305) 884-0295 Executive Editor, Alison Golub Executive Editor (performance), Karen Gines Associate Editor, Sara Veit Creative Director, Denniston Brown Art Director, Michelle Tropiano Associate Art Director, Jonathan Chang Associate Art Director, Tessa Sestina International CANADA: Wayne St. John, President; Penny Dickenson, VP Sales; Alex Kinninmont, VP Sales/Admin.; Francoise Chalifour, Cyndy Fleming, American Publishers Canada Phone: (416) 363-1388; Rosalind Genge, Western office, Phone: (604) 988-0730; MEXICO & LATIN AMERICA: Veronica Castro; CASS Media; Phone: 52-55/5605-1757 EUROPE/AFRICA/MIDDLE EAST: Diane DiMaggio, International Advertising Director, Successful Meetings/MeetingNews; Phone: 646-654-7332; Fax: 646-328-0218; Cell 914-299-4394; Spain Luis Andrade, Luis Andrade Publicidad Internacional; Phone: 34-91-441-6266; Fax: 34-91-441-6549; Portugal Paulo Andrade, Ilimitada Media International; Phone: 351-21-385-3598/45; Fax: 351-21-388-3283 ASIA/PACIFIC: Singapore Lavendar Tan, Al Media, 733 Bukit timah Road #03-05, Singapore 269748; Phone: (65) 469-9321; Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines Annie Blanchard & Associates, Phone: (632) 532-6827; Fax: (632) 584-2110; Korea Mr. Jung-Won Suh, President, Sinsegi Media Inc., Phone: +82 2 3275 5969; Japan Etsuko Ichinohe, Pacific Business, Inc.; Phone 81-3-3661-6138; Fax: 81-3-3661-6139; Macau, Hong Kong, China Stephen Hutton, Hutton Media Limited, International Media Representatives, Suite 2102 Fook Lee Commercial Centre, 33 Lockhart Road, Wanchai Hong Kong; Phone: 852 2528 9135; Fax: 852 2528 9281 Information Marketing Associate Director, Audience Marketing, Tracey Dwyer (646) 654-5879 tracey.dwyer@nielsen.com Reprints The YGS Group Barb Karmilowicz (800) 290-5460 x106 MN@theYGSgroup.com List Rentals Group President Sabrina Crow Business Manager Leslie Musick terri.hardin@nielsen.com IN THIS ISSUE ® ® ® ® ® ® ® ® ® Letters to the Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 What’s Up @ MeetingNews.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Inside the Meetings Industry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Social Scene . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 People Making News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 Green Beat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37 MN Webcast Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .119 Advertisers Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122 Live from the Forum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123 President, Greg Farrar Senior Vice President, Human Resources: Michael Alicea Senior Vice President, Marketing: Mark Hosbein Senior Vice President, Finance: Derek Irwin Senior Vice President, Entertainment: Gerry Byrne Senior Vice President, Marketing, Media & Visual Arts: Sabrina Crow Senior Vice President, Retail: David Loechner Senior Vice President, Online: Linda McCutcheon Senior Vice President, Building & Design: Joe Randall Senior Vice President, Central Services: Mary Kay Sustek Vice President, Licensing: Howard Appelbaum Vice President, Manufacturing & Distribution: Jennifer Grego Vice President, Audience Marketing: Joanne Wheatley Correction In the July 21 issue, MeetingNews inadvertently referred to MPI as Meeting Planners International, a name that was discontinued in the ’90s. MPI is, of course, Meeting Professionals International. MeetingNews regrets the error. 4 MeetingNews September 8, 2008 www.meetingnews.com http://www.meetingnews.com http://www.meetingnews.com

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Meeting News - September 8, 2008 Contents Letters to the Editor What's Up @ MeetingNews.com Social Scene People Making News Hotels & Resorts Convention Centers CVBs International Green Beat Insider Report: Golf Destination Insider MN Webcast Report Advertisers Index Live from the Forum Mexico Hawaii

Meeting News - September 8, 2008

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