• Brandweek, Friday, January 22, 2010 10:26 AM

Virgin America's six-figure ad spend through the first 11 months of 2009 was meager compared to its competitors, but Todd Wasserman reports that it's flying high with savvy PR and integration deals. Google provided free hi-fi -- and a lot of buzz -- on holiday flights; this month a flight of rescued Chihuahuas purportedly suffering from "Paris Hilton Syndrome" garnered international headlines.

Wasserman talks to Porter Gale, Virgin America's vp-marketing, about these coups, as well as a new CW reality show, "Fly Girls," that will follow five Virgin flight attendants. Gale acknowledges that the show risks turning off some viewers but feels that as a co-producer she will have enough input to insure that the production focuses on the "team members" and not the operation of the airline.

"Is every single person going to love this show? Probably not," Gale admits, "but I think we're going to have a lot of people that will love it and it will show there can be fun and excitement in the travel category."

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