Advertising Age reported on responses to Goldilocks—er, Stagwell—being involved with global governmental contracts, including the White holding company’s work for Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In this tale, Goldilocks finds comfort with things being just right—just right-wing, that is.
How Stagwell’s work for the Israeli government is bringing Mark Penn’s politics to the fore
By Ewan Larkin and Brian Bonilla
Concerns over Stagwell’s recent work for the Israeli government led the holding company to postpone a company event due to safety concerns, exposing long-simmering employee worries about Chairman and CEO Mark Penn’s political ties and their impact on company morale.
Last week, the Substack newsletter Drop Site reported on a leaked Stagwell deck showing that the holding company had conducted surveys, message testing and focus groups for Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, aimed at rehabilitating Israel’s image. The deck’s findings quickly drew backlash as they spread on social media, with claims that Stagwell employees were upset over the work, which comes as Israel fights Hamas in a war following the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks.
The situation prompted Stagwell to postpone its annual “Festival of Stagwell” scheduled for today in London. In a statement confirming the postponement, James Townsend, CEO of Stagwell’s Europe, the Middle East and Africa region, said, “The safety of our people and guests is our top priority,” without elaborating. He added: “The environment would not have been conducive to a productive afternoon as originally intended.”
A Stagwell spokesperson confirmed the company’s work for the Israeli government, the work was handled by a small Stagwell team and that “our agencies work across the political and issue spectrum.” The spokesperson declined to discuss details of the leaked deck or whether Stagwell would continue to work with the Israeli government.
Penn’s politics come under scrutiny
The situation shines a light on the elephant that has been lurking in the room since Stagwell merged with MDC in 2021: Penn’s politics. Multiple current and former employees said concerns about the CEO’s public political affiliations—particularly his support for the Trump administration—have simmered inside the company for years. One executive described the Israel work as the “iceberg” that could have a lasting impact on the holding company.
Penn has longstanding connections to Israel, dating back to his role as a pollster for Menachem Begin’s 1981 re-election campaign for prime minister. Penn gained notice working on political campaigns—particularly the successful 1996 presidential run for Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton’s failed 2008 run—and has since become a vocal supporter of President Donald Trump’s policies.
In an interview, David Sable, vice chair of Stagwell, pushed back against the notion that Penn has political bias. “Mark is one of the most sought-after sources and speakers, particularly because he’s so open and honest in what he says,” Sable said. “He never speaks with a particular political bias, and that’s just nonsense.”
While Stagwell employee pushback on the Israeli government work at the moment appears concentrated in Europe, Ad Age has identified three of its U.S. agencies where staffers have sounded an alarm.
“There are a lot of young people inside the Stagwell group of companies who are angry,” said one employee of an undisclosed Stagwell agency. “If you are in the agency business these days and you value young creative talent, you do not get involved in the hot geopolitical issues of the day.”
Another employee of the holding company professed to be “paralyzed with disgust” after reading the language in the leaked deck. “Everyone’s just at a loss right now,” this person said. “This is really heartbreaking.”
Sable said that Penn’s political views do not negatively affect Stagwell, describing the company as an open environment where employees hold diverse political perspectives, which he sees as a strength.
“Why would anybody’s political views have an adverse effect on anybody?” Sable said. “Not everybody agrees. Not everybody is in the same place. What a boring place we’d be if we all had the same political view.”
Some of Stagwell’s agency leaders report little to no pushback from staff. “Personally, I have no problem with them doing it and have not fielded one question from one employee about it,” said a senior executive at one of Stagwell’s largest agencies.
Sable emphasized the lack of dissent: “I have honestly heard no complaints.”
Meanwhile, some Stagwell agency staffers, speaking on the condition of anonymity, pointed to incidents they said have affected morale this year, including an interview Penn did with Elon Musk on X, and expressed worries about upcoming work. Stagwell’s polling firm, HarrisX, is set to receive a no-bid contract from the Department of Health and Human Services to survey Americans on their views about vaccines, according to The New York Times. This bid comes at a time when HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is attempting to roll back parts of the nation’s vaccine infrastructure.
Even those who have been highly critical of the work Stagwell is currently doing have supported the agency’s response to employees concerned that the holding company CEO’s values do not reflect their own.
“There’s been some really great communication after this has happened and the HR teams and the people teams and everyone have responded really quite well, openly, positively, empathetically,” one person at a Stagwell agency said.
Despite this first step, “there are still some questions to be answered and ultimately it’s what happens next [that] is the biggest thing, like will they keep doing this work, what else will they kind of work on,” said this person. “Hopefully this will spark change.”
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