Home » Blog Talk

Publicists Who Capitalize on Calamity :: They Reflect Badly Upon PR … They Are Not PR

25 January 2009 8 views 3 Comments

PRMindshare offered up this query today.

Publicists that take on this type of work have never struck me as particularly worthwhile. Further, the tendency for much of the general public to regard this type of publicity work as PR / public relations practice does nothing for the discipline. Publicity is, after all, only a small part of the larger practice of public relations today.

You watch. TV and print reporters won’t refer to the practitioner or the firm as a publicity agent or publicity firm. They will mostly call it PR. That irks me beyond anything you can imagine. It is an underserved guilt by association.

What would you do?

Would you really want to respresent the clients this firm takes on?

What does it do to you’re credibility?

Question: What would you do if you were Glenn Selig — Blago’s new
publicist, who says he specializes in crisis management?
– http://www.thepublicityagency.com/crisis_management_pr.htm
and
– http://www.thepublicityagency.com/

Answer choices:

(A) Follow Blago’s lawyer’s lead and resign.
(B) I’d advise the following strategy . . . (insert your answer here)
(C) Part of Glenn’s answer is a media blitz to include Larry King Live on
Monday — http://tinyurl.com/bwk64f Do you agree with that?

I’m posting my initial response here.

Considering that this is the same person that is representing Drew Peterson, are these questions even necessary?

(A) Follow Blago’s lawyer’s lead and resign.

Heh, well — I wouldn’t even take the client. Would you? Considering that Selig took the client, he doesn’t seem to care. I bet he got a retainer up front, too.

Would you touch those clients – Blagojevich and Peterson? What does representation of those clients do to your own firm’s reputation? If you’re Selig, it puts you in line for the next ‘story to ridicule’ of the moment — not much else.

(B) I’d advise the following strategy . . .

Stay away from this client and case. Better to address the overall issues of political corruption.

This case is essentially over except for the drama. The Governor isn’t going to win his fight with the legislature re: impeachment. That seems a done deal except – again – for the drama of the hearings.

The Governor should keep quiet. With each press conference, he makes himself an even greater target for ridicule in the press. The Governor is his own worst enemy. Best advice is likely – plea bargain.

His lawyer (if he can keep one) should make all public statements. He’s the Governor, for crying out loud. Try to retain at least a wee bit of dignity. Albeit – at this point – it seems to be a lost cause.

(C) Part of Glenn Selig’s answer is a media blitz to include Larry King Live on Monday.

There really isn’t any positive way to respond to the wiretap transcripts released by the U.S. Attorney. Larry King has become the king of these “rubber necking” “gawking” tabloid fodder stories. If Blagojevich wants to further fit himself into that category, hey … let him dig his own hole.

Come on, a publicity agency that puts out a news release – http://is.gd/hbG8 – to promote their Twitter page … Hello?

This firm is just one more pseudo-Hollywood agent specializing in drawing more attention to train wrecks. Call it publicity, if you want. Don’t call it PR and please, goodness, don’t call it reputation management. This is more like taking advantage of a situation for a fee … or promotion strategy … than reputation management, if that at all.

3 Comments »

  • Virtue IMC UNITED STATES Windows Vista Internet Explorer 8.0 said:

    Robert,

    Where is the code of ethics that these “practitioners” are bound by as PR professionals? My guess is that they are not “active members” of their local PRSA chapter.

    Back in September I posted a small tidbit on marketing communications ethics – http://virtueimc.wordpress.com/2008/08/28/a-thought-on-marketing-virtuously – that discuss the ethics of being a PR professional. A perspective that seems to be lost on these “flacks” – and I do not use that term with affection – is that in any “profession” there is a code of conduct. Lawyers, doctors, etc. all have a code by which they conduct themselves. As PR PROFESSIONALS, we have a code of conduct by which we are to conduct our business:

    “Each member of PRSA is bound by the following Code of Ethics:

    I pledge:

    To conduct myself professionally, with truth, accuracy, fairness, and responsibility to the public; To improve my individual competence and advance the knowledge and proficiency of the profession through continuing research and education; And to adhere to the articles of the Member Code of Ethics 2000 for the practice of public relations as adopted by the governing Assembly of the Public Relations Society of America.

    I understand and accept that there is a consequence for misconduct, up to and including membership revocation.

    And, I understand that those who have been or are sanctioned by a government agency or convicted in a court of law of an action that is in violation of this Code may be barred from membership or expelled from the Society.” http://www.prsa.org/aboutUs/ethics/preamble_en.html

    It is this code of ethics that allows us to call ourselves PROFESSIONALS. Without this, we are nothing but a bunch of wannabes that pimp out our services to the highest bidder.

    Isn’t the relationship with our publics the basis of OUR credibility? And if these “flacks” are selling those people a line, doesn’t that denigrate the profession as a whole? It is these “practitioners” that create a mistrust of those of us with legitimate practices – clients think that we all work the way that “celebrity” publicists do; media outlets become wary of our pitches; and the public looks at us like the silver-tongued serpent selling miracle water.

    Celebrity or infamous clients should receive the best counsel that we can provide as PROFESSIONALS. When all else fails and the client chooses to pursue a course that is counter to counsel – sometimes we have to fire ourselves and walk away.

    Personally – I’m with you Robert… I would NEVER touch a client that tells me what the PR strategy should be, just as I would never pretend to be a maven on their practice. You wouldn’t want me poking around in your brain would you?

    # 25 January 2009 at 3:10 pm
  • Ethics & the PR practitioner - or Marketing Virtuously, Redux « Marketing Communications- Virtuously WordPress MU said:

    [...] is a link to his blog – and my response. I have a hard time digesting it when PR “practitioners” [...]

    # 25 January 2009 at 6:53 pm
  • Robert UNITED STATES Windows Vista Mozilla Firefox 3.0.5 (author) said:

    Thank you for the comment and the post. I left a comment on your site, too.

    As I said there, the real worry I have is for what these instances continue to do regarding the perception of PR practice. I dream of the day (most will say it is a pipe dream) when students will enter the practice of PR and have their work viewed as different and better than these DIY and pseudo-ambulance chasers.

    # 26 January 2009 at 9:26 am