Today’s Wall Street Journal:

PR Firm in Williams Scandal Adopts New Contract Policies
(Subscription Required)
By BRIAN STEINBERG
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
January 20, 2005

The statement also said: “There was a lapse of judgment in this situation. We regret that this has occurred.”

Ketchum says it is putting in place a new policy for the signing and authorization of contracts with spokespeople.

Now, for Ketchum – such a large company with so many divisions and offices, I can’t beat up the whole company completely for this lapse by a few. No pass, though. Their actions are still troubling. But, it isn’t as troubling to me as the failure in this whole fiasco by the PRSA and the Council of Public Relations Firms. PRSA is still fairly weak in their public leadership. As for CPRF, at least they took to the web with a criticism – front page – after an early falter which lost them one member (Sloan). At least Ketchum is starting to deal with the problem – in some form.

And, here are the two buried … ok, not buried – but ‘barely visible’ PRSA statements under ‘Leaders Speak Out’ and not under ‘Latest Press Releases’ … not linked directly with a headline from the front page.

There is something else that’s questionable. Can’t say for certain. A Google search shows that they were either posted, or cached, on the 18th or 19th [yesterday, or the day before - (yet dated the 14th and 11th) - "prsa.org/_News/leaders/disclosure0111.asp - 26k - Jan 19, 2005"]. Did anyone else see them earlier? I cannot say when they were actually posted. Didn’t see them yesterday. The most recent Internet Archive Wayback Machine is from February 25, 2004. Might be interesting to see their .htaccess file to see if PRSA is blocking caching by some bots. Hmm? I’m just asking. Don’t know the answers. Maybe nothing to it.

Judith Phair is, at least, seeming to be opening up. But it is not nearly enough. Not nearly as aggressive as it should be.

Statement on Senate Investigation of Government Public Relations Contracts

Public Relations Society of America
January 14, 2005

“The Senate’s proposed investigation of government so-called ‘Public Relations Contracts,’ is a natural fallout of the recent ‘No Child Left Behind’ issue,” said Judith T. Phair, APR, Fellow PRSA, president and CEO of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA). “We are confident that this effort will find what we know to be the truth – that the daily practice of ethical public relations by government employees and the public relations agencies they work with represents a critical government function that serves both the government and its citizens by encouraging the free flow of information.

Our Society, which represents 20,000 public relations professionals, would welcome the opportunity to provide the Senate subcommittee with counsel on what is and what is not legitimate public outreach. All public relations, whether for government agencies, nonprofit organizations or corporations, should be conducted in an ethical manner. We believe the Senate investigation will conclude that the vast majority of government public relations efforts are credible and legitimate outreaches to the public.”

“As public relations professionals, we are disheartened by undisclosed ‘pay for play’ tactics,” Phair continued. “This method of promotion does not describe the true practice of public relations. PRSA strongly objects to any paid endorsement that is presented as objective news coverage and is not fully disclosed. Such practices are clearly contrary to the PRSA Member Code of Ethics, which requires that public relations professionals engage in open, honest communications, and fully disclose sponsors or financial interests involved in any paid communications activities. We encourage all public relations professionals to follow the responsible and ethical practice of public relations, as outlined by our Code of Ethics.”

Statement on Disclosure of Financial Interests

Statement on Disclosure of Financial Interests;
U.S. Department of Education/No Child Left Behind
January 11, 2005

Yesterday’s public apology by a media commentator who promoted “No Child Left Behind” in his broadcasts without revealing that his comments were paid for by a public relations agency under contract to the government, was a welcomed response, said Judith T. Phair, APR, Fellow PRSA, president and CEO of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA.) However, she added, the tactic is not in keeping with the ethical practice of public relations. “The relationship should have been disclosed up front, no question.”

Speaking on behalf of the 20,000 public relations professionals who are members of PRSA and subscribe to the PRSA Member Code of Ethics, Phair said, “As public relations professionals, we are disheartened by this type of tactic. It does not describe the true practice of ‘public relations.’ PRSA strongly objects to any paid endorsement that is not fully disclosed as such and is presented as objective news coverage. Such practices are clearly contrary to the PRSA Member Code of Ethics, which requires that public relations professionals engage in open, honest communications, and fully disclose sponsors or financial interests involved in any paid communications activities. We encourage all public relations professionals to follow the responsible and ethical practice of public relations, as outlined by our Code of Ethics.”