Bios

Don Baer

Don Baer is Chairman of Penn, Schoen and Berland Associates and Vice Chairman of Burson-Marsteller, responsible for helping drive new business initiatives and providing strategic counsel to clients at both firms.

Don Baer has had a career that has spanned the worlds of media, communications, politics, government, journalism and law. He has worked across a wide range of enterprises in the public and private sectors, focusing on strategy as well as business and creative operations and development.

From 1998 to 2007, Don Baer worked at the top level of Discovery Communications, where he was Senior Executive Vice President for Strategy and Development in charge of new ventures and acquistions; new media strategy and operations, and corporate affairs, communications, research and public policy. On the content and creative side, Baer led Discovery's efforts to establish itself as a leader in the current affairs and contemporary history categories. In brand marketing, Baer led numerous efforts to extend Discovery's reach in partnership with major non-profit groups.

From 1994 through 1997, Baer served as a senior adviser to President Bill Clinton and helped manage the Clinton administration's coordination and promotion of all domestic and foreign policy and political activities. He was a key member of the Clinton/Gore 1996 re-election team. From 1995 - 97, Baer was Assistant to the President and Director of Strategic Planning and Communications, and from 1994 - 95, he was Director of Speechwriting and Research/Chief White House Speechwriter.

From 1987 - 94, Baer worked at U.S. News & World Report in Washington, D.C., as both an Assistant Managing Editor and national political reporter. He has written for publications including The New York Times, GQ and The Politico.

From 1985 - 86, he was a writer at The American Lawyer magazine in New York. He is the recipient of two Writers' Guild of America awards for his work on the annual Kennedy Center Honors television show.

From 1981 - 85, Baer was a litigation associate at the New York City law firm of Patterson, Belknap, Webb & Tyler, specializing in media litigation and was a recipient of the Thurgood Marshall Award in 1998 from the Bar Association of the City of New York for his work on behalf of a Florida death row inmate.

Baer has served on a number of for-profit and non-profit boards, including: Fora.tv, City Year DC, Georgetown Day School, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Board of Visitors (1997 - 2000), the National Education Association Foundation (2003 - 05), Arena Stage (2003 - 05). He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Baer received a B.A. (Phi Beta Kappa) from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a Master's in International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science (Rotary International Fellowship) and a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law.

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