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Donald A. Baer

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Donald A. Baer
NationalityAmerican
EducationUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (BA)
London School of Economics (MA)
University of Virginia School of Law (JD)
OccupationCommunications executive, former White House official, journalist and lawyer
CompanyBrunswick Group
TitleSenior Partner, Brunswick Group
SpouseNancy Bard (m. 1987)
Children2

Donald Aaron Baer (born 1954), known as Don Baer, is an American communications executive, former White House official, journalist and media lawyer. He was Worldwide Chair and Chief Executive Officer of the public relations firm Burson-Marsteller from 2012 to 2018 and Global Chair of its successor firm, Burson Cohn & Wolfe (BCW), until 2019. Since February 2021 he has been a senior partner in the Washington, D.C. office of the advisory firm Brunswick Group.[1][2]

Baer began his career as a media lawyer at the New York firm Patterson, Belknap, Webb & Tyler, then spent about seven years as a journalist at U.S. News & World Report, where he covered politics and the White House and rose to assistant managing editor.[3] In 1994 he joined the administration of President Bill Clinton as chief speechwriter and director of speechwriting and research, and later served as Assistant to the President and White House Director of Strategic Planning and Communications, a role that covered the 1996 re-election campaign.[4][5]

From 1998 to 2007 Baer was Senior Executive Vice President for Strategy and Development at Discovery Communications, where he reported to the chief executive, sat on the executive committee and oversaw new ventures, acquisitions, digital media, marketing and corporate communications.[6] He moved to Burson-Marsteller, a unit of WPP, in late 2007 as Worldwide Vice Chairman, and succeeded Mark Penn as worldwide chief executive in July 2012.[6][7]

Outside his executive roles, Baer was a member of the board of directors of PBS from 2011 and chaired it from 2014 to 2021, and he sat on the board of the publicly traded Meredith Corporation from 2014 until the company's sale in 2021.[1][3] He has also written for the annual Kennedy Center Honors television broadcast, work for which he received two Writers Guild of America awards.[1]

Early life and education

Baer is the son of Ervin Baer, a partner in the Fayetteville, North Carolina law firm Butler, High & Baer, and Helga Baer, a psychologist for the Fayetteville school system.[8] A 1996 profile in The Weekly Standard described him as "a lanky North Carolinian".[9] American Journalism Review gave his age as 39 in May 1994, and Meredith Corporation proxy statements gave it as 60 in September 2014 and 67 in October 2021.[4][10][11]

Baer earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.[8][3] He then took a master's degree in international relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science, which he attended on a Rotary International fellowship, and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Virginia School of Law.[6][3]

Career

Media law, 1980s

After law school Baer practised media law in New York City as an associate at Patterson, Belknap, Webb & Tyler, the firm where Brunswick Group says he started his career.[8][1] American Journalism Review reported that he joined U.S. News & World Report from legal practice in 1987.[4]

Journalism, 1985 to 1994

Baer's official biographies date his journalism career to 1985, and he worked at the legal magazine The American Lawyer before joining U.S. News & World Report.[3][1] By September 1987 he was an associate editor at the magazine's Washington bureau.[8] Over about seven years there he worked as a national political reporter and White House correspondent and then, as an assistant managing editor, oversaw the magazine's national and international coverage.[3][1] At the time of his departure he was in charge of the magazine's opening "Outlook" section, in which he was succeeded by Lewis Lord.[4]

Baer came to know Bill Clinton while writing a profile of the then Governor of Arkansas in 1991. American Journalism Review reported that after the article appeared, Clinton told Baer "he felt like I got him so right... that it scared him."[4] The Weekly Standard later wrote that Clinton had liked the pieces Baer contributed to the magazine during the 1992 presidential campaign.[9]

Clinton White House, 1994 to 1998

Clinton began courting Baer for a White House post in the autumn of 1993. Baer told American Journalism Review that he had initially worried the job would take too much time away from his wife and two young sons, but changed his mind after two meetings with the president, saying he "saw this as a rare opportunity to effect some positive change."[4] He joined the White House in 1994 as director of speechwriting, the second U.S. News staff member to move to the administration in a matter of months after editor at large David Gergen.[4] In the same interview he described Clinton as "a wonderful writer" and said he hoped eventually to return to journalism, while acknowledging that news organisations "have to protect their credibility".[4]

Baer served first as Chief Speechwriter and Director of Speechwriting and Research and then moved to the communications office as Assistant to the President and White House Director of Strategic Planning and Communications.[5][3] By September 1996 he had held the top communications post for about a year.[9] His biographies say that he managed message strategy across domestic and foreign policy agencies, led the development of major presidential addresses and worked on every State of the Union address from 1995 to 2000.[3][6] Accounts of the end date differ: a 2010 biography published by Politico gives his White House service as 1994 to 1997, while later biographies give 1994 to 1998.[6][3]

In a profile published during the 1996 campaign, Christopher Caldwell of The Weekly Standard wrote that the Clinton White House was more consistently "on-message" than any administration in memory, citing the staff's uniform use of phrases such as "Opportunity, Responsibility, and Community", and attributed much of that discipline to Baer. Caldwell reported that Baer worked from "a windowless and much-visited office in the West Wing" and described his job as "using all the tools of the presidency to convey the message", while colleagues said his role went further than that.[9]

The William J. Clinton Presidential Library holds a collection of Baer's White House files released under a Freedom of Information Act request, comprising 544 folders and approximately 23,733 pages. The material includes speeches, drafts, talking points and memoranda on subjects including affirmative action, the budget, crime, education, health care, immigration, the Contract with America, the Summit of the Americas and State of the Union addresses.[5]

After leaving the White House, Baer worked as an on-air analyst for CBS News in 1998.[6]

Discovery Communications, 1998 to 2007

Baer joined Discovery Communications, the owner of the Discovery Channel, in 1998 and stayed until 2007. As Senior Executive Vice President for Strategy and Development he reported to the chief executive and was a member of the company's executive committee. His remit covered global brand-building, new ventures and acquisitions, new media strategy and operations, and corporate functions including business development, communications, research and public policy.[6][3] Brunswick Group's biography of Baer describes him as having been "a principal deputy to the CEO" and adds corporate responsibility to the list of functions he led.[1]

Baer also had a role in Discovery's programming. He supervised the company's public affairs content, including the series Decisions That Shook the World, which won an Emmy Award in 2004, and a documentary series with The New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman.[3] His productions included the feature-length documentary With All Deliberate Speed, made to mark the 50th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of Education decision.[1] His Politico biography states that he helped to hire the former Nightline anchor Ted Koppel for Discovery.[6] He also managed Discovery's partnership with the American Film Institute to found the Silverdocs documentary festival.[3][1]

Burson-Marsteller, 2007 to 2018

In late 2007 Baer became Worldwide Vice Chairman of the strategic communications firm Burson-Marsteller and chairman of the research firm Penn, Schoen & Berland, both owned by WPP.[6] When his promotion to chief executive was announced in 2012, the firm said he had served on its senior management team as Worldwide Vice Chairman and Chief Strategy Officer and had led many major client engagements.[12] His biographies say he led engagements for clients in every sector and region, especially technology, communications, media, consulting and financial services businesses.[13] In 2011 he became co-founder and chairman of Palisades Media Ventures, a public affairs and news media development company co-owned with WPP.[14]

On July 19, 2012, Burson-Marsteller named Baer worldwide chief executive, succeeding Mark Penn, who had led the firm since 2005 and was leaving to become corporate vice president for strategic and special projects at Microsoft, a long-standing client.[7][12] Baer kept his role as chairman of Penn Schoen Berland.[7] WPP chief executive Martin Sorrell said he was "confident the firm's track record of success and its reputation for delivering results for its clients will continue under Don Baer's leadership."[7] The firm's founding chairman, Harold Burson, called the appointment "a master stroke" as the firm prepared to enter its seventh decade, and Penn described Baer as "my trusted adviser".[12] At the time, the firm reported a network of 73 offices and 83 affiliate offices operating in 108 countries.[12] Roll Call noted that the change came as some of WPP's Washington, D.C. businesses, including QGA Public Affairs and Ogilvy Government Relations, had experienced staff departures.[7]

Baer held the title of Worldwide Chair and Chief Executive Officer until 2018.[13] PRovoke Media, the trade publication formerly known as the Holmes Report, described his tenure as lasting nearly nine years when his time as vice chair is included.[2]

Burson Cohn & Wolfe, 2018 to 2019

In 2018 WPP merged Burson-Marsteller with its sister agency Cohn & Wolfe to form BCW under chief executive Donna Imperato. Baer stepped down as chief executive and became chairman of the combined firm, which he left the following year, according to PRovoke Media.[2] His Brunswick Group biography gives his time as Global Chair of BCW as ending in 2019, while a biography published by the Planet Word museum gives the dates as 2018 to 2020.[1][15] In 2020 Baer was a Walter Shorenstein Media and Democracy Fellow and a Hauser Leader at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.[1]

Brunswick Group, 2021 to present

In February 2021 Baer joined the Washington office of Brunswick Group as a senior partner, advising clients with a focus on technology, communications, media, consulting and financial services. Brunswick chief executive Neal Wolin called him "one of the most experienced, strategic and creative practitioners in our industry" and said his experience would support the firm's expanding Washington office.[2] Baer said the times "call more than ever for the unparalleled strategic service Brunswick provides".[2] As of November 2026, Brunswick lists him as a senior partner in Washington, D.C.[1] The PBS Foundation also describes him as the founder and chief executive of Palisades Strategic Advisors.[13]

Major deals and strategic decisions

At Discovery, Baer managed teams that expanded the company's online business, including the acquisitions of the digital media businesses Petfinder.com, Antenna Audio and United Learning.[6] He oversaw the launch of Discovery's first mobile video services, the company's first video partnership with Google Earth, and initiatives with Nokia, Qualcomm and Samsung.[6][3] He also helped found and then managed the joint venture between Discovery and The New York Times Company in the Discovery Times Channel.[16][6]

At WPP, Baer co-founded Palisades Media Ventures in 2011 as a joint venture with the holding company.[14] The 2018 merger that created BCW, a decision taken by WPP, ended his tenure as chief executive and moved him into the chairman's role.[2]

Board memberships and outside roles

PBS and the PBS Foundation

Baer joined the board of the PBS Foundation, which raises philanthropic support for PBS and its member stations, in 2008, and joined the board of PBS itself in 2011.[3] Before becoming chair he served as vice chair of the board and chaired its finance committee.[3] On October 29, 2014, PBS announced that the board had elected him chair of its 27-member board of directors.[3] PBS President and CEO Paula Kerger said Baer "understands both PBS and the complex, rapidly evolving environment in which we operate", and Baer said that digital media gave PBS "an extraordinary opportunity to build upon public television's legacy".[3] As chair he led the PBS executive committee and sat ex officio on the national policy advisory, nominating and corporate governance, finance and diversity advisory committees, as well as the PBS Foundation Endowment Fund Committee.[17] He chaired the board until 2021 and remains a member of the PBS Foundation board.[1]

Meredith Corporation

Meredith's board nominated Baer as a director in August 2014, and shareholders elected him in November 2014.[10][18] The board determined him to be an independent director. In 2019 he served on the compensation and nominating/governance committees, and by 2021 on the audit and nominating/governance committees, with the board naming him one of its "audit committee financial experts".[18][11] His total director compensation was $255,233 for fiscal 2019, paid in stock and options rather than cash fees, and $278,222 for fiscal 2021.[18][11] PBS chief executive Paula Kerger also sat on the Meredith board during this period.[18] Baer remained a director until the company's sale in 2021.[1]

Other boards and memberships

As of 2026, Brunswick Group lists Baer as a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and of the boards of directors of Planet Word, the National Democratic Institute and the nonprofit news organisation The City, and of the governing council of the University of Virginia's Miller Center of Public Affairs.[1] Planet Word also lists the Carolina Beacon among his boards.[15] In 2021 Meredith's proxy statement listed him as a member of the advisory board of NewsGuard.[11]

Earlier outside roles included the boards of the Urban Institute, the News Literacy Project, the PR Council, Project Word and the online video business Fora.tv, membership of the Reuters Editorial Advisory Board, and a seat on the advisory council of the Miller Center's "First Year: POTUS 2017" project.[17][3] In 2010 he sat on the boards of Fora.tv and Whitney International University System, was a venture partner in Legend Ventures, a Washington investment firm, and served on the nonprofit boards of the Georgetown Day School and City Year DC.[6] He has also served on the Board of Visitors of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and on the board of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation.[17][16]

Writing and commentary

Beyond his work at U.S. News, Baer has written for The New York Times and Politico and has appeared as a commentator on national television news programmes.[3] Starting in 2000 he wrote for the annual Kennedy Center Honors television production for 15 years, winning two Writers Guild of America awards.[1][3]

As a contributor to Politico's "Arena" forum in 2010, Baer argued after that year's midterm elections that staff changes would not help President Barack Obama unless Obama changed his own understanding of his role. He wrote that the president "needs to approach the presidency as much more than just being legislator-in-chief" and should emphasise "the central role the private sector and hardworking, ingenious individuals play in creating jobs and opportunity".[6]

Personal life

Baer married Nancy Alison Bard on September 20, 1987, at the Harmonie Club in New York, in a ceremony conducted by Rabbi Henry A. Sosland. Bard, a graduate of Brown University and the New York University School of Law, was then a law clerk to Judge Raymond J. Dearie of the federal district court in Brooklyn and was about to join the Washington law firm Williams & Connolly. She kept her own surname.[8] The couple have two sons and live in Washington, D.C.[3][13]

Recognition

  • Two Writers Guild of America awards for his writing on the Kennedy Center Honors broadcast.[1]
  • 2004: Emmy Award for Decisions That Shook the World, a series whose content he supervised at Discovery.[3]
  • 2013: inducted into the North Carolina Halls of Fame in Journalism, Advertising and Public Relations, now known as the North Carolina Media and Journalism Hall of Fame.[3][1]
  • 2020: Walter Shorenstein Media and Democracy Fellow and Hauser Leader, Harvard Kennedy School.[1]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 "Don Baer, Senior Partner, Washington DC". Brunswick Group. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Diana Marszalek."Brunswick Group Hires Former Burson-Marsteller CEO Don Baer". PRovoke Media. February 5, 2021. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  3. ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 3.19 3.20 3.21 3.22 "Donald A. Baer Elected Chair of PBS Board of Directors". PBS. October 29, 2014. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 Heidi Bittner."Baer With US". American Journalism Review. May 1994. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Don Baer, Speechwriter (2006-0458-F)". William J. Clinton Presidential Library. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  6. ↑ 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 6.11 6.12 6.13 "Arena Profile: Don Baer". Politico. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 Kate Ackley."K Street Files: Mark Penn Out, Donald Baer Up at Burson-Marsteller". July 19, 2012. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 "Nancy Alison Bard Weds Donald Baer". September 21, 1987. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Christopher Caldwell."The Baer in the Woods". September 23, 1996. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 "Meredith Corporation Proxy Statement (Schedule 14A)". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. September 26, 2014. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 "Meredith Corporation 2021 Proxy Statement (Schedule 14A)". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. October 27, 2021. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 "Burson-Marsteller names Donald A. Baer as Worldwide CEO". July 23, 2012. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 "Donald A. Baer". PBS Foundation. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 "Donald A. Baer". Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 "Don Baer". Planet Word. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 "Don Baer". Information Technology and Innovation Foundation. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 "Donald A. Baer, Board of Directors". PBS. 2016. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 "Meredith Corporation Proxy Statement (Schedule 14A)". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. September 27, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
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