I work in public relations.

In one form or another, I’ve worked in PR for the last 34 years. It’s a profession I love. It’s an outlet for creative expression. It lets me see projects through to completion and assess their effectiveness.

In my three-and-almost-a-half decades in PR, I’ve met thousands of dedicated professionals who also work in communications. I’ve been fortunate to work with many of them.

I am proud to work in this field. I cannot imagine one in which I would feel more fulfilled.

And yet there are times I weep for my chosen field. The night before last, I watched an outstanding documentary on HBO. Hot Coffee (according to the website) “examines the dangers of tort reform using the now-infamous legal batter of a spilled cup of McDonald’s coffee as a springboard.”

The McDonald’s case is a famous source of ridicule and a cause celebre among supporters of tort reform. The facts, however, are often misrepresented. The spill caused third-degree burns (pictured at left) that required multiple surgeries and skin grafts. The coffee, per McDonald’s policy, was maintained at a standing temperature of 180-190 degrees Farenheit, too hot for anybody to drink without causing significant damage. Dozens of previous burn cases had been reported to McDonald’s, which had done nothing to rectify the situation before the Liebeck suit was filed.

It’s one of several case studies the documentary examines.

I strive to avoid politics on this blog. This post is no different. The worst outcome from writing this would be a string of comments that debate tort reform. There are plenty of other places for that kind of discussion.

What disturbed me about the documentary (among other things) was a focus on PR as a villain. As tort reform became a conservative rallying cry, organizations sprung up that gave the appearance of having formed at the grass roots. These “Citizens for Tort Reform” and “Citizens Against Frivolous Lawsuits” organizations funded advertising and other efforts aimed at limiting what juries can award defendants.

None of these organizations were, in fact, formed by outraged citizens. They were created by the public relations agencies employed by organizations like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in their efforts to establish liability limits.

In other words, they were a lie. They were the diametric opposite of how the various PR codes of ethics require us to behave.

Front organizations don’t represent the only despicable tactics employed by PR professionals. You don’t have to dig far into the past to find the “whisper” campaign against Google launched by two employees of one of the world’s largest PR agencies. The list goes on. And on. And despairingly on.

There isn’t a profession on the planet that doesn’t have its share of members without whom the world would be better off. Unethical practices are not unheard of in medicine, law, accounting, engineering, construction, politics, the priesthood, you name it.

But because the efforts of PR practitioners are, for the most part, public, they tend to be more visible. And when exposed, these scandals are bound to color public perception of PR, leading to the contempt in which we’re held by so many people, not to mention all the distasteful portrayals of PR counselors and agencies in the media. (This week’s episode of Leverage, for example, featured a crisis counselor who used dramatically deplorable tactics on behalf of his evil clients.)

As far as I know, none of the thousands of PR people I have met and worked with have ever engaged in these kinds of behavior. I have long maintained—and still do—that the vast majority of people working in public relations behave ethically, believe in transparency and and produce work of which both they and their clients can be chest-puffingly proud.

In a perfect world, there would be far less of the heinous behaviors that so many people believe are the routine work of PR. There is, however, no certification required before someone can be a communications practitioner. Anybody can hang out a shingle and call themselves a PR counselor. And there are people within some agencies who are happy to hire and promote those who produce results, regardless of the approach they took to achieving those results. (As long as they didn’t get caught.)

I’m not arguing for certification. Doctors have to pass boards and get licensed. Lawyers must pass the bar and get licensed. It doesn’t keep bad doctors and lawyers from practicing.

Nevertheless, it pains me when I watch a brilliant documentary like Hot Coffee, only to see PR demonized as a primary source of the problem.

There is much that can be done to address the situation. I’ve repeatedly called on professional associations like PRSA and IABC to take stronger actions when made aware of a violation of their ethics policies.

Ultimately, though, it is up to you and me—the people who couldn’t imagine working in any other field, the people who burst with pride when we produce work that blows away expectations and thrills clients—to vilify those who engage in such practices.

While the front organizations and whisper campaigns and deceitful spin may be the work of PR agencies, I don’t consider it PR. Public relations, as the very name implies, is the practice of helping an organization build and maintain good, strong relations with its publics. Creating front organizations and whisper campaigns isn’t that. It’s hackery. I condemn it.

You should, too. Vocally. Frequently. It will never go away, but the least we can do is make it clear to the world that it’s not what most of us are about.

I’m ashamed for my profession that such practices continue. But it’s just a dark, ugly corner of the PR world.

It’s not my world.