What is a PR Team? All about David Shane Communications as Amber Heard fires previous reps ahead of testimony 

Amber Heard is reportedly distraught over the negative press she has garnered amid the ongoing court battle with Johnny Depp that she has decided to change her public relations team. This comes as an abrupt move as she is expected to take the stand as the first witness in her defense this week.

Amber Heard had previously hired PR firm Precision Strategies, but she decided to fire the company after garnering negative press on April 11. A source told Page Six:

"She doesn't like bad headlines."

Another source revealed that Amber Heard is:

"frustrated with her story not being told effectively."

The Aquaman actress has now hired Shane Communications. According to Page Six, the actress hopes to sway public opinion to her side.

Speaking about the change in the PR team, Lis Smith, who worked on Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg's presidential campaign, told Page Six:

"It's crazy to change teams in the middle of a trial like this because you don't like the headlines."

Johnny Depp is suing Amber Heard for $50 million after the latter defamed him in a 2018 op-ed piece in the Washington Post. Heard claimed that she was a victim of domestic violence in the same.

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What is a PR team? Tasks expected to be fulfilled by Amber Heard

Public Relations is a branch of an organization that manages the exchange of information between the company and the general public. A PR person must ensure that a positive story about the person or company gets told to the public.

A company's PR team is expected to handle all branches of the company's image. The team will be involved in their advertising and marketing.

A task at hand would be to interpret and predict the public opinion of the client they are handling. They will also be responsible for creating a positive image of the brand for the public by identifying and changing negative factors which may affect public opinion.

A few matters handled by the PR team include ensuring positive press coverage for their client, responding to emergency cases in a timely and appropriate manner, seeking support from the client's community, and assuring curated and positive social media campaigns for their client.

According to their website, Heard's new PR team Shane Communications is a consulting firm that advises clients on:

"a broad spectrum of industries including media, entertainment, and tech."

The President and CEO of the company is David Shane. According to the company's website, he has previously worked at ICM Partners and served as the Vice President of Global External Communications at Hewlett-Packard. Before forming his PR firm, Shane was also the vice president of public relations at Comcast.

Shane Communications previously represented Depp's former business team, The Management Group. Johnny Depp had sued them for $25 million over a fraud lawsuit. The Management Group filed a countersuit against the actor for a "lack of impulse control" over his spending habits. The case was settled in July 2018.