Any of these:

"Champion is a one-of-a-kind agency because we are able to break through the clutter," said Brooke Johnston, the company's director of public relations.
"Champion is a one-of-a-kind agency because we are able to break through the clutter," said Brooke Johnston, director of public relations for the company.
"Champion is a one-of-a-kind agency because we are able to break through the clutter," said Brooke Johnston, Champion's director of public relations.
"Champion is a one-of-a-kind agency because we are able to break through the clutter," said Brooke Johnston, director of public relations for Champion.

I wouldn't use hyphens there, especially if you're writing for an audience that encounters the terms financial statement and individual account often. Do the hyphens add any clarity for your particular audience? You COULD use hyphens and it wouldn't be wrong. This is a case where there's no absolute right or wrong.

Yes, the Old and New testaments.

Born is correct.

We haven't really changed the hyphen guidance. We still believe firmly in hyphens for compound modifiers. Yes. Sugar-free foods. Alcohol-free drinks. Toll-free number. 

As we say in the entry:

Do use a hyphen if it’s needed to make the meaning clear and avoid unintended meanings: small-business owner, better-qualified candidate, little-known song, French-speaking people, free-thinking philosophy, loose-knit group, low-income workers, never-published guidance, self-driving car, bases-loaded triple, one-way street (Think of the different possible meanings or confusion if the hyphen is removed in each of those examples.)

Thanks for pointing this out. (And I didn't see your question a year ago, so thank you for trying again.) Interestingly, what showed up for you as no spaces showed in my browser as em dashes. A problem either way. I believe we've now fixed it. How does it look now on your end?

There may be varying viewpoints on this, but I think the way you have it in the two examples is fine. It's common phrasing and easily understood. 

On two other points: AP style says not to start a sentence (or a bullet point) with number. And we end each bullet point item with a period. You may be choosing a different style for your list.

No need for the quote marks.

This is making me laugh. I agree with you. Now, I'll head out to shop for new pant. Or a new pant.

Well, we'd never use that as a direct quotation I'd recommend that you not use it either. As we say in the Stylebook: Use quotations only if they are the best way to tell the story or convey meaning. Often, paraphrasing is preferable.

Paraphrasing gets rid of that awkward numbers situation. Why not this:

Hernandez noted three things to consider when planning Thanksgiving dinner: deciding between a sit-down dinner or buffet,  making sure you have enough chairs, and avoiding political discussions. (Yes, I'd use the Oxford comma.)

We use the state with Miami Beach in a dateline.

Use the plural.

Two words.

Your understanding is correct: A world ... awaits you. Use the singular. 

We wouldn't use it.

We don't have a style for that.

We'll go with the dictionary, using one word. Thanks for pointing it out. I'll delete the previous responses.

Good eye. We deleted the "two-thought compound" section because, frankly, the current editors couldn't figure out what it meant. Many if not most compounds consist of two (or more) thoughts. We now conform with Webster's New World College Dictionary in making the term socioeconomic with no hyphen. I've deleted the past responses referring to a hyphen in the term.

Looks like it was deleted in 2015. I can't speak to the former editor's thinking. My guess is that it was viewed as an overly picky and/or outdated admonition that the current generation didn't agree with. 

You would be exceptionally fortunate to have a 9-carat ring.

In the scenario you describe, it's NOT OK to write: “I have a problem,” she told him. I think you might have the solution.

Instead:

“I have a problem,” she told him, thinking he might have the solution.

Or

“I have a problem,” she told him. She thought he might have the solution.

We lowercase on second reference.

We'd make it Readers Choice Awards, following this guidance in the apostrophe entry:


DESCRIPTIVE PHRASES: Do not add an apostrophe to a word ending in s when it is used primarily in a descriptive sense: citizens band radio, a Cincinnati Reds infielder, a teachers college, a Teamsters request, a writers guide.

Memory aid: The apostrophe usually is not used if for or by rather than of would be appropriate in the longer form: a radio band for citizens, a college for teachers, a guide for writers, a request by the Teamsters.

I wouldn't. It's informal language in a crime story. 
Also, note the second and third sentences of this entry:

Use indict only in connection with the legal process of bringing charges against an individual or corporation.To avoid any suggestion that someone is being judged before a trial, do not use phrases such as indicted for killing or indicted for bribery. Instead, use indicted on a charge of killing or indicted on a bribery charge.

I'd make it step-grandfather.