Shore Fire Media Names Childress President

Jaclyn D. Childress, a 13-year veteran of the firm, will continue leading its Nashville office while reporting to CEO Angela Barkan.

Updated on Nov. 10, 2026 in People

Shore Fire Media Names Childress President

Shore Fire Media has promoted Jaclyn D. Childress to President, elevating the 13-year company veteran who most recently served as Sr. VP. Childress will continue to lead the firm's Nashville office and report to CEO Angela Barkan.

Why it matters

The promotion places a long-tenured executive in a senior leadership role at a firm that is a subsidiary of Dolphin (Nasdaq: DLPN), with Barkan recently named CEO earlier in 2026. Nashville-based clients in sports, country music, reality TV and creator marketing will see continuity in the team that handles them.

Childress has spent 13 years at Shore Fire Media, rising from publicity coordinator in 2013 to President after promotions to VP in 2021 and Sr. VP in 2024. The announcement does not specify revenue, client count or staffing changes tied to the new role.

The players

Jaclyn D. Childress

Childress is a Tennessee-educated publicist who has built Shore Fire Media's Nashville practice across sports, country music, reality TV and creators.

Shore Fire Media

Shore Fire Media is a public relations and talent firm that operates as a subsidiary of Dolphin (Nasdaq: DLPN).

Angela Barkan

Barkan was named CEO of Shore Fire Media earlier in 2026, and Childress reports to her under the new structure.

The details

Childress has signed retired athletes including Chris Bosh, Reggie Bush, Tim Tebow, Shawn Johnson East and Adam Wainwright, as well as NASCAR driver and model Toni Breidinger. She was named to Business Insider's list of top PR pros shaping the creator economy for three straight years and is a 2012 graduate of the University of Tennessee's College of Communication and Information.

2012: Childress graduates from the University of Tennessee's College of Communication and Information.
2013: Childress joins Shore Fire Media as a publicity coordinator.
2019: Childress joins the company leadership team and signs her first creator.
2021: Childress is promoted to vice president.
2024: Childress is promoted to Sr. Vice President.

Market Landscape

Childress's three consecutive years on Business Insider's list of top PR pros shaping the creator economy place her promotion within a competitive public relations market increasingly built around creator talent. The move positions Shore Fire Media's Nashville operation to compete for sports, country music and creator clients alongside larger agencies.

For brands and athletes working with Shore Fire Media, the promotion changes who sits at the top of the Nashville office but not the day-to-day team that handles their accounts. Clients in sports, country music and creator marketing should expect continuity in the existing Nashville roster.

The takeaway

Leadership continuity matters in talent-driven PR, where long-standing relationships with athletes and creators often shape client retention. Childress's rise from coordinator to President shows how deep internal experience can translate into senior agency leadership.