The Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation said it paid $65,000 to hire a celebrity public relations firm to help the LAFD shape its messaging after the deadly Palisades fire.
The foundation addressed the controversy Tuesday in an email blast to supporters, about a week after The Times disclosed that charitable donations were quietly used to pay the Lede Company to help LAFD leaders communicate with the public as they faced heavy criticism for their preparations and response to the disaster.
“The Foundation’s role was straightforward — with the LAFD communications director role vacant, the previous administration requested funding to hire a consultant to fulfill those duties,” said the email, which was signed by Liz Lin, the president of the foundation, and Mike Ahmar, chairman of the board of directors. “The Foundation provided $65,000 for this purpose. The LAFD selected the consultant (The Lede Company) and identified the scope of work.”
“This is exactly how we always operate: fast, responsive, and in service to the Department’s needs,” the statement read.
The email touted the foundation’s commitment to transparency and high ratings on Charity Navigator, which evaluates the finances and impact of nonprofits.
“We have a clear policy wherein any donor can restrict a contribution to support a particular project or program. One hundred percent of all restricted contributions go directly to support whatever project, program, or item the donor identifies,” the email said. “We are transparent because our supporters and Angelenos deserve nothing less — and because we are proud of the work you support.”
But Lin has not answered multiple queries from The Times, including how the firm was chosen, as well as whether she had spoken with the offices of the mayor or fire chief about the matter. The foundation also did not provide the contract with the firm or any documentation of the expense.
The LAFD is under heightened scrutiny for altering its after-action report to downplay the city’s failures in preparing for and responding to the fire, which killed 12 people and destroyed thousands of homes. The LAFD has also declined to answer questions about the work of the PR firm, including whether any changes to the report were made at its direction.
The after-action report was meant to spell out mistakes, which included not fully pre-deploying engines to the Palisades amid forecasts of dangerously high winds, and to suggest measures to avoid repeating them. But before the report was even completed, LAFD officials worried about how it would be received, privately forming a “crisis management workgroup” to “create our own narrative” about the fire and its aftermath, internal emails show.
Fire Chief Jaime Moore said he met with the Lede Company in mid-November, on his first or second day at the helm, and thanked them for their work, but that he does not know what precisely the company did for the department, which was led by interim Fire Chief Ronnie Villanueva when the report came out on Oct. 8.
“I’m assuming they had something to do with the after-action report, because they’re a PR firm,” Moore said in an interview. “I would think a PR firm was going to give advice to the fire chief, because at the time, they didn’t have a director of public information. So my assumption would be they were using a PR firm as the PR director.”
On its website, the Lede Company says it represents “some of the biggest names and brands in entertainment, fashion, beauty & wellness, … advocacy, media, nonprofit and related industries.” In addition to performers Reese Witherspoon and Charlize Theron, the firm’s client page includes photos of actors Kerry Washington and Rami Malek and singers Rihanna and Pharrell Williams. The firm represents brands such as Isabel Marant, Clinique and Hennessy Cognac and includes a strategic corporate communications division.
The foundation bills itself as “the official nonprofit arm of the LAFD” and lists net assets of $12.3 million on its tax return for fiscal 2023-24, the most recent available. According to its website, it “provides vital equipment and funds programs that help the LAFD save lives and build resilient communities.”
According to a report the foundation published this month about its work last year, it has allocated $42 million that was raised after the wildfires “toward critical priorities.” It continued: “Of that, $15 million has ensured that new tools, necessary equipment, and vital apparatus are already in the field and in the hands of the firefighters who serve our city daily.”
Pringle is a former Times staff writer. Times staff writer Richard Winton contributed to this report.
