A Conundrum For The Counselors
By Matthew Schwartz
The Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort in Phoenix was an appropriate setting for the Counselors Academy Spring Conference last week. The sun-dappled resort resembled a maze,
and there were Counselors staffers situated throughout the hotel to help the 193 attendees get around. This sort of assistance somehow seemed fitting for the Counselors Academy,
because the group, amid a flurry of challenges and controversies in the field, still is trying to figure out what direction in which to take the PR profession.
Four months after the Ketchum-Department of Education-Armstrong Williams scandal splashed across the front pages - reinforcing the image that PR professionals are, charitably
put, ethically challenged - the Counselors have started to take steps to address the problems plaguing the business, including the creation of four separate subcommittees
addressing both ethics and media outreach (or PR for PR).
The 'Guidelines and Values' subcommittee, for example, is charged with coming up with universal values for the PR profession that could transcend the four walls, while the
'Ethics Educational Resources' subcommittee is developing ethical practices designed for specific situations PR pros might encounter.
While these actions are to be applauded, the Counselors have to be careful that, in its efforts to change the conversation about PR practices, it doesn't just preach to the
choir.
That's why the 'Media and Public Relations Industries' subcommittee - designed to strengthen the level of trust between PR execs and members of the press - is the most
crucial among the Counselors' current efforts. It's mainstream business titles like BusinessWeek and Fortune that can help to convey to business decision-makers (and
consumers) how PR pros are working hard to align communications to their company's overall business goals. With the right pitch - and some patience - Counselors could at least get
a fair hearing with mainstream media reporters and a possible story about the changing nature of PR.
However, during a seminar called 'Where do We Go Now: Challenges And Strategies For Building The Reputation of The PR Profession,' that piece of advice was met with a
lukewarm response, suggesting that PR agency reps still are spooked by the idea of talking to the press about anything other than their clients. With that attitude, Counselors
will continue to just run in place.
Plus, Counselors can't do it alone. If the profession really wants to convince reporters, editors, et al., that PR is changing fundamentally, corporate PR execs - those with
access to the C-suite, in particular - must be willing become a bigger part of the nation's business dialogue. But don't hold your breath.
"There are unquestionably some corporate PR execs who don't want to rock the boat," says Steve Cody, founder of Peppercom (New York City), a mid-sized PR agency. "A lot of
these guys are just a few years away from a big retirement package, and they don't want to jeopardize that. In a way, you can't blame them. There's also a fear that if they get
too out front they will get more press than their CEO, and no PR exec wants to get a call from the boss asking why he's suddenly in the spotlight."
Cody says the best bet would be for younger PR execs at the corporate level - whose careers are aligning with myriad changes in marketing communications - to speak out about
the issues affecting the profession because they have a more vested interest in the future of PR.
Despite their best efforts, Counselors Academy members continue to talk to among themselves when what they really need to do is rid themselves of their inferiority complexes
vis-a-vis the mainstream media; anything less means that when their next PR crises hit, the profession will once again be crouched in a defensive position.
Contact: Matthew Schwartz is editor of PR News. He can be reached at 212.621.4875, [email protected].