PR WINNER OF THE WEEK: “A” (PR PERFECT) to Joni Ernst, the conservative Republican senator from Iowa whose victory in her state’s senate primary this week may be due largely to a shockingly candid political ad. While her bona fides (growing up on a farm, serving in the military) made her a good contender in her home state, her 30-second spot put her in the National spotlight. “I grew up castrating hogs on an Iowa farm,” Ernst begins, “so when I get to Washington, I’ll know how to cut pork… Washington’s full of big spenders. Let’s make ‘em squeal.” What more need be said?

PR LOSER OF THE WEEK: “F” (FULL FIASCO) to the National Football League, which faces a lawsuit now joined by Football Hall of Famer Dan Marino of the Miami Dolphins. The legendary quarterback, along with over 40 others from the Pro Football Hall of Fame and thousands of other players, charge that the NFL concealed information about the effects of concussions on the brain. The league continues to deny wrongdoing while seemingly unable to back up their claims.

THE PRV “THERE’S NO ‘THERE’ THERE” AWARD to detractors, and supporters, of President Obama’s prisoner exchange for POW Bowe Bergdahl. Republicans have been focusing on the possibility that the Exchange of one American soldier for the release of five members of the Taliban may cause grievous harm in the long run. Democrats are leaning on the patriotic credo of leaving no man behind. Both sides seem to be going through expected motions, though, because as pundits point out, there may be far more to these negotiations than the general public will ever know.