Ogilvy Leadership Confronts Staff Concerns Over Customs and Border Protection Contract [Video]

An email from global chairman and CEO John Seifert appeared to be an attempt to quell growing concern among employees in recent days after a Sludge report included Ogilvy on a list of contractors providing services to CBP and to counter claims on social media that the agency played a role in producing “state propaganda.”

The relationship between Ogilvy and CBP had not previously been reported, and many agency staffers were unaware CBP was a client, according to multiple employees speaking on condition of anonymity.

Seifert’s email to a concerned staffer was shared and quickly became a discussion point among members of an Ogilvy-only group on the anonymous messaging app Fishbowl this week, and two sources confirmed its authenticity.