The Scoop: Blue Origin grabs headlines with out-of-this-world PR stunt

In between headlines about tariffs and the economy, major news sites all have another news story in common today: the blast-off of an all-female space crew, including pop star Katy Perry and TV host Gayle King, on a Blue Origin craft. The Jeff Bezos-owned company has placed six women into an autonomous rocket that will zoom up 62 miles, cross the line into what’s considered space and then return to earth via parachute. The whole process takes just 11 minutes.

The story is grabbing headlines from multiple angles: This is the first all-female crew (using that word loosely – the passengers on board are not in control of the vessel) that has reached space since 1963. Additionally, it’s packed with big-name stars, led by Perry. The women are wearing custom-made, luxury space suits.

This isn’t Blue Origin’s first time grabbing attention with a similar stunt – it also sent William Shatner into space in 2021, to similarly rapt headlines.

Why it matters: OK, you probably don’t have a rocket ship at your disposal to help you get press. You may not have celebrity endorsers, either. But there are still PR lessons we can take from this stunt.

Blue Origin chose its celebrities with care. While the target audience for this stunt is obviously women, within that huge demographic they hit multiple subgroups of age, race and area of celebrity. They’ve also focused on both the perceived feminism of the moment as well as more traditional feminine trappings such as the outfits the travelers’ wear. Bezos is even sending a subtler message with one of his passengers: his wife, Lauren Sanchez, will be on board, a clear message that he believes this venture is safe and others should pay money for the experience.

The women did extensive press before the event and will continue it after, creating a full cycle of news not only in newspapers and cable news, but also in lifestyle and entertainment press, including Variety, People and more.

Blue Origin’s care in choosing both their ambassadors and the messages they were meant to convey are powerful. Take note.

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Allison Carter is editorial director of PR Daily and Ragan.com. Follow her on LinkedIn.