Our Experts

Jessica Berg

Jessica Berg's background in campaign politics and media strategy led her from Washington, D.C. to San Francisco where she established the professional consulting firm BergDavis Public Affairs with her partner Evette Davis. Ms. Berg and Ms. Davis supervise a staff which offers the highest quality counseling in media relations, community outreach, government affairs and lobbying. Ms. Berg specializes in crisis communications, community relations, reputation management, land use and labor relations practice areas.

Ms. Berg has advised numerous clients throughout California and beyond. She can often be found coordinating high level public affairs strategies in coordination with clients and their teams; supervising press outreach and fielding press inquiries; developing coalitions of community, business and political leaders; writing and producing persuasion materials, briefing papers, and press kits; serving as client spokesperson; conducting briefings for government officials; and organizing community outreach strategies and events.

Ms. Berg manages several of the firm's marquis clients including providing strategic guidance for Wal-Mart throughout Northern California. She is overseeing the firm's work to guide its clients in their efforts to build hundreds of units of housing throughout San Francisco and the greater Bay Area. Ms. Berg is also leading the communications and outreach team working to resurrect the historic Moulin Rouge Hotel & Casino in Uptown Las Vegas on behalf of Republic Urban Properties.

Ms. Berg has proven especially effective in bringing together coalitions to support proposed development projects, often bridging divergent community interests with those of the project sponsor. Her goal is to develop grassroots support for her clients which is both qualitative and quantitative in nature. She also counsels clients that there is a time to use the media for productive purposes, as well as a time to avoid the spotlight.

Additionally Ms. Berg is skilled at jumping into difficult crisis situations to provide common sense advice in the heat of the moment. In the past couple of years she has counseled entities dealing with sensitive issues that range from the unexpected arrest of a school teacher for inappropriate conduct to the unanticipated announcement of a new major league ballpark.

Before returning to the Bay Area, Ms. Berg worked for one of the nation's leading political consulting firms, Doak, Shrum, Harris, Carrier, Devine, assisting in the creation of political and communication strategies for state-wide and national political and public interest campaigns. Her work contributed to the election of numerous Senators, Governors and Congressional representatives, as well as the passage of legislative efforts aimed at reforming telecommunications and youth anti-smoking efforts.

Ms. Berg is an active member of San Francisco Planning and Urban Research (SPUR) and Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW). She is a former member of the Board of Directors for the Boys and Girls Club of Oakland. Ms. Berg holds a Bachelor's Degree in Political Science from the University of California, Los Angeles.