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Shel Holtz
Communicating at the Intersection of Business and Technology
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Another pay for placement scandal

Tens of thousands of communicators perform honest work every day, employing ethical principles of organizaitonal communication to fairly and accurately represent their organizations and clients. And, it seems, just about every couple of weeks comes the news of a PR counselor who takes shortcuts or violates ethical standards. Every profession has its share of these, but it’s particularly visible in our profession, where visibility is often the goal. While countless communicators labor in obscurity, doing honest and ethical work, it takes only one behaving badly to paint all of us with the same brush.

A New York Times article about General Motors’ agency, Strauss Radio Strategies in Washington, D.C., was reported by Mike Sacks on the Forward Blog. According to the Times story, Strauss Radio Strategies approached former Clinton Administration Labor Secretary Robert Reich:

On his personal blog on April 7 and in a subsequent article for The American Prospect magazine, Mr. Reich said, “A public relations firm working for General Motors phoned to ask if I’d say on the media that the buyback G.M. was offering its employees was a good deal for them. G.M.‘s public relations firm said they’d offer me money if I did this, as a show of respect. I told them I’d look at the deal and make up my own mind, and I told them to keep the money.”

Strauss declined to say whether his firm offered money to other commentators, but the company did apologize to its client, GM, statying that it “may” have offered Reich money in direct violation of GM’s policy of not paying opinion makers.

Despite widespread criticism of earlier-reported cases of pay for placement, some praactitioners continue to take this shortcut. You would think that they would realize such actions run the risk of winding up in the press. But press coverage apparently isn’t enough to deter this kind of behavior. The role of public relations, in instances such as the Strauss assignment from GM, is to earn coverage with substantive and relevant messages. Advertising pays for placement. I wonder how many of these scandals the profession must countenance, how low our reputation must sink, before the associations and organizations that represent us step up and make their rejection of such practices the priority it deserves to be.

04/30/06 | 11 Comments | Another pay for placement scandal

Comments

  • 1.Actually, PRSA has a history of dealing with this issue here:

    http://www.prsa.org/_News/leaders/ps60426.asp

    and here:

    http://media.prsa.org/article_display.cfm?article_id=690

    You can sign up for the RSS about the announcements in the PRSA advocacy room here to get teh latest updates on things to which PRSA is responding:

    http://media.prsa.org/item_display.cfm?show_section=1375

    PRSA hasn't commented on the latest news yet, but I am newly on PRSA's new advocacy committee, which will now include representatives from chapters.

    The committee will also move toward proactive things instead of just reactionary.

    Kami Huyse | May 2006

  • 2.Oh, and a clarification, the Advocacy committee isn't new, just teh addition of the local reps.

    Kami Huyse | May 2006

  • 3.I'm looking for more than statements, Kami; something more visible. I wish I could tell you what that was, but issuing a press release or including such language in a code of ethics just isn't cutting it!

    Shel Holtz | May 2006 | Concord, CA

  • 4.As individuals and an industry, we have to hit rock bottom (similar to an alcoholic) before looking desperately for a solution. As much as I have blamed the organizations representing us, I now pause and think that we are responsible for putting the individuals there.

    No, a code of ethics will not do a thing, but neither is leaving the solution up to the organizations. The organizations representing the communications industry must unite and work the solutions. New and old.

    The solutions come from the individuals the organization serves. I like to call it the Twelve Step Program for Communicators Anonymous. Change begins with us. We live the solutions/program and the industry will evolve.

    Lauren Vargas | May 2006 | Dallas, TX

  • 5.I know what you are looking for, and that is visibility and credibility when such an issue arises. I am not 100% sure what that looks like yet either, but I am fairly intersted, even excited, about this new advocacy network and the idea of being proactive, or selling our ideas before the crisis.

    On the other hand, I agree with Lauren that we can't leave it all up to the organizations, or have an expectation that they can "fix" things immediately. There is some inherent ineffeciency in democracies like our professional associations. Not eveyone agress, which is clear as you read any given blog post or newspaper editorial page.

    Kami Huyse | May 2006

  • 6.I wonder what the fallout will be the for Richard's business and the people he employs? It?s my understanding that Strauss doesn?t usually work directly for clients. The bulk of his contracts are subbed from generalist agencies. With his personal reputation in tatters the credibility of his agency put in question. What happens next?

    Sherrilynne Starkie | May 2006

  • 7.Richard Strauss of Strauss Radio Strategies in DC has got himself in some very hot water. The New York Times reports that he offered $$$ to former labour secretary Robert Reich to make supportive comments about GM’s employee buyout program.?? Str...

    http://strivepr.com/wordpress/?p=46 | May 2006

  • 8.My issue with associations is that the represent a large body of the profession. Look at the Council of Public Relations Firms (CPRF), which represents hundreds of agencies, including the biggest and most influential. While individuals can stand up for what's right (and should), greater visibility accrues when CPRF makes a forthright statement condemning this kind of activity whenever it arises. It would be even more significant if a code of ethics had some teeth and agencies and individuals who violate the code are expelled from the association. That would get ink and make it clear what the profession stands for. As important as our individual behaviors may be, public perception won't be affected by it because what the public reads is the New York Times account of yet another agency bribing public commentators.

    Shel Holtz | May 2006 | Concord, CA

  • 9.Yes, but you will have to talk to the lawyers about that. The risks of being sued for defamation and other items are real. I worked for an association when we looked into this. Also, people have successfully persued such cases and have one. I am not a lawyer and don't have the references on thi, so I will defer to those that do, but this is a legal issue. I think to have "teeth" you have to go to licensure, which opens up a whole new can of worms. Not one I am entirely against, mind you, but underscores the issues that organizations face.

    Kami Huyse | May 2006

  • 10.Half my family is made up of lawyers, Kami, so I'm not about to dis them. But I don't think an association needs to engage in slander or libel to reiterate the values for which it stands. I'd like to see the day when media calls CPRF, PRSA, or IABC for comment when something like this story breaks and for the association representative to respond, "We cannot comment on the specifics of this case, but our code of ethics makes is clear on pay-for-placement: It's unacceptable."

    As for taking action against a member individual or organization in violation of the code of ethics, each association has an ethics review committee that goes through a process designed specifically to ensure the association is at no legal risk in any action it takes...that is, they perform due diligence to ensure their ethics code was, in fact, violated. Members agree to abide by the ethics code when they join and, if they read the fine print, will understand the consequences to their membership if they don't.

    It's a tough issue, I know, but in other professions, associations -- particularly those with certification power -- censure members for ethics violations a lot more routinely that we do in our profession.

    Shel Holtz | May 2006 | Concord, CA

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