Lianna Serko thought she'd be a journalist, then landed at a Santa Barbara tech startup around 2015 that built interactive data visualizations for online news articles. Some people argued that charts meant nobody was reading anymore. Lianna saw it differently, because if a graphic kept someone on a story for two more minutes, it was helping information reach people in a way they'd actually engage with. That idea has followed her through DC agency work, an in-house role at the UN Foundation and her current job as director of strategic communications at American University's Kogod School of Business.
Kogod has embraced AI across its curriculum, and Lianna has brought the same approach to the communications and creative services team she leads. In this episode of The PR Bunker Podcast, she and Don talk about how she builds AI loops into daily work, why audience still comes first, and how earned media and owned content work together now that people find answers through AI.
A few takeaways from the conversation:
Lianna calls herself hugely impatient, and that's why she builds. Her first loop was press releases. Trained on the team's 10 best releases, it turns a 15-minute job into about 30 seconds, which frees up time for reporter research and better-tailored pitches. Her rules are simple. If you can build it in 10 minutes or less, build it now. If you do a task every day, build a loop. And always go in with your best original idea. She added a fourth on the spot, which is that a human has to check what comes out.
Lianna knows AI-generated creative is a sore subject, and she thinks the debate is worth having. But she doesn't see why her senior designer can't use AI to clear out admin work and spend more time making art. Instead of mandating tools, she asks her team to come to their Friday morning meeting and share an AI loop they built that week so everyone can learn from it.
Lianna balances volume and repute in her media mix. A Wall Street Journal hit is great but gone by the next news cycle, while steady coverage in smaller outlets shows a brand keeps showing up. She then builds owned content on the school's own site, structured so AI can crawl and cite it, including full podcast transcripts. AI doesn't remember one big moment, she says, but it does read an ecosystem of credibility. Her latest build is a media engagement lead scoring app in Google AI Studio that grades reporters by how they've responded to past pitches.
Lianna publishes mostly on LinkedIn, which is how she and Don reconnected after he read one of her posts. Find her there and start a conversation.
Listen to the full episode above.
Reading is the hello. SBGA is where we get to yes.
How can communicators use AI without losing quality?
Lianna Serko trains tools on her team's best past work, keeps a human reviewing every output, and always starts with her own best original idea. She uses AI to amplify good work, not to replace it.
What is AEO and why does it matter for PR?
AEO is answer engine optimization, the work of getting your content cited in AI search answers. Lianna pairs earned media with structured owned content, like full podcast transcripts on your own site, so AI tools see a consistent body of credibility.
Where can I follow Lianna Serko?
Lianna is most active on LinkedIn, where she writes about AI, AEO and communications strategy.
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