We debated whether to put our heads together, conduct a survey, consult the Twittersphere and create the definitive list of 2012′s most important/influential PR stories. But then we just decided to put all that reasoned analysis aside and go completely subjective—so we compiled our 12 favorite stories that appeared on PRNewser in 2012.

Some are serious, some are silly and some are nearly unbelievable. Do they all reveal some larger truth about the PR industry? No. Are they the most important stories of the year? Definitely not. Then why did we choose them? Because we really enjoyed reading and writing them. That’s pretty much it.

Here are the first six, in no particular order:

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November brought news of kids’ network Nickelodeon creating educational apps for kids, and a recent New York Times article clarified the purpose of these apps: promoting Nickelodeon’s TV properties.

Think about it: As television ownership and cable subscription rates decline, parents “are increasingly putting mobile devices into preschoolers’ hands and laps”–which creates some great new promotional opportunities for brands that appeal to young kids.

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Protecting the interests of Big Bird, Cookie Monster and the press-averse Snuffleupagus seems like a fairly low-risk job, but Sesame Street deals with more PR challenges than you’d expect–even if we leave out the Elmo kerfuffle. Day-to-day crises range from longtime fans’ “sellout” accusations to a multitude of unlicensed usage cases involving trademarked and extremely valuable characters.

This year, for example, the team had to do its best to “clamp down on” a glut of sexy Big Bird costumes—and we didn’t even mention the Change.org petition demanding that the company force Bert and Ernie out of the closet. Must have been hard to write a serious press release about that one.

Ironically or not (depending on your political sensibilities), the team’s leader is whip-smart Sherrie Rollins Westin, a veteran of the George H.W. Bush White House and former wife of longtime Republican strategist Ed Rollins (who briefly managed Michele Bachman‘s amazing 2012 presidential campaign). The team also includes former Newsweek CEO Tom Ascheim and Myung Kang-Huneke, who previously represented the New York City Housing Authority (an organization that’s perpetually defending itself against lawsuits). In other words, these guys do NOT mess around.

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According to TMZ, an unnamed accuser in his 30′s filed a lawsuit against Clash today. He claims that the two met on a gay phone chat line when he was 15 and Clash was 32–and that they maintained an ongoing relationship.

And now for the predictably gory details: This latest accuser claims that, although the relationship began nearly 20 years ago, he did not take legal action until now because he “did not become aware that he had suffered adverse psychological and emotional effects from Kevin Clash’s sexual acts and conduct until 2012″. The lawsuit even veers into character assassination, citing Clash’s “depraved sexual interests” and claiming that he used his status as an entertainer to “[prey] on teenage boys.”

Oh, and this guy’s legal team learned something from the first settlement: their filing included a demand for “more than $5 million.”

We wish we had no more to report on this unfortunate story. Even if the latest case ends with a settlement or a dismissal of all charges, the legal saga will continue to be a major headache for the Sesame Street brand.

UPDATE: Sesame Workshop just released a statement announcing that Kevin Clash has resigned from Sesame Street in the wake of these newest allegations, citing the puppeteer’s conclusion that “he can no longer be effective in his job”. A sad day for the whole team.

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According to the law firm that planned to represent the man (who shall remain unnamed), “he wants it to be known that his sexual relationship with Mr. Clash was an adult consensual relationship. He will have no further comment on the matter.”

Of course Clash expressed relief through a spokesman, and Sesame Workshop responded in turn, stating, “We are pleased that this matter has been brought to a close, and we are happy that Kevin can move on from this unfortunate episode”. It would seem that the organization’s reported investigation into the matter was not simply an attempt to “discredit” the accuser after all.

Sometimes the threat of a lawsuit is just that–and nothing more.

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Clash, who is openly gay, acknowledges having a relationship with the man, now 23. The two differ, however, on the accuser’s age at the time of the affair. In a statement, Clash said that “I had a relationship with the accuser. It was between two consenting adults, and I am deeply saddened that he is characterizing it as something other than what it was”. The accuser has not denied the consensual nature of the relationship; he and his lawyer simply assert that it began while he was only 16 years old.

The Sesame Workshop first learned of the accusations several months ago and conducted an independent investigation. Yesterday a spokesman stated, “We met with Kevin, who denied the accusation. We also conducted a thorough investigation and found the allegation of underage conduct to be unsubstantiated”. The accuser’s law firm sees things differently, claiming that Sesame Workshop aims to “discredit the victim” in order to preserve the Elmo brand.

Clash’s publicist declined to comment further, and we can certainly see why: In order to clear his name, the puppeteer has no real choice but to let the legal case run its course. The story will almost certainly taint the public’s perception of Mr. Clash even if he’s vindicated–and it will certainly prove a big impediment to an otherwise charmed career.

But will it damage the Elmo character or the larger Sesame Street brand?

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The night’s most contentious moment, however, clearly concerned none other than Big Bird. When listing public entities that he would stop funding if elected, Romney took a moment to pick on perennial bogeyman PBS, telling Public Broadcasting employee Lehrer that he would have to cut funding for the channel despite the fact that “I like PBS. I love Big Bird. I actually like you, too.”

The Internet quickly made it a meme, and a predictable number of mildly amusing tweets ensued. So yeah, it was a weird line—but it wasn’t quite accurate. (In case you hadn’t noticed, this is a common problem in presidential debates.)

Unfortunately, we have to ruin everyone’s fun by calling an official end to this non-scandal. Take it away, Sherrie Westin, executive vice president and chief marketing officer of Sesame Workshop–give CNN’s Soledad O’Brien some of that sweet, sweet damage control!

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Here we see the very first appearance of The Count (official name: The Count of Count), who made his on-screen debut in 1972 helping Cookie Monster figure out how many sugary treats he had on hand (this was well before the blue man turned to broccoli and bean sprouts):

Rest in peace, Jerry. You had a great run.

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Lily will be introduced in an hour-long special airing Sunday called “Growing Hope Against Hunger” that’s sponsored by Walmart. Lily is seven years old, her family goes to a food pantry, and she also volunteers in one.

Here’s a short list of hunger relief groups from Yahoo if you’d like to take up the fight. The clip above is a heartbreaking but uplifting preview.

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Katy Perry

In the video (which you can watch after the jump), Perry is singing a kiddie version of her song “Hot N Cold” with Sesame Street star Elmo. In the video, she’s wearing a yellow dress that, according to The Daily Beast, is designed with a mesh fabric covering most of her chest. Parents thought the dress too revealing.

A portion of the statement from the children’s program states, “In light of the feedback we’ve received on the Katy Perry music video, which was released on You Tube only, we have decided we will not air the segment on the television broadcast of Sesame Street, which is aimed at preschoolers.”

[Image of Katy Perry on the Today show via KatyPerry.com]

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