PR NEWS spoke with PR guru, Alan Caruba, to get an insider's perspective on PR and how the field is changing. Caruba, 59, is CEO of The Caruba Organization, Maplewood, N.J., (201/763-6392) which he established in 1970 after a career in journalism.
Caruba is widely known as the founder of the popular media spoof,
"The Boring Institute," which annually spoofs "what's hot and what's not." He is a veteran PR counselor and, in addition to being a frequent guest on radio and television, also lectures to trade and professional organizations.
Q: How has the PR industry evolved through the decades?
A:
I, personally, don't view PR as an industry or a profession. To me, it's always been more of a craft or trade. PR is about packaging information, whether it's about a product, service or issue, and finding the newsworthy elements to present to those who determine each day what news is or is not.
Q: What is your view about PR practitioners needing to be accredited?
A:
I think accreditation is an issue that's been dreamed up by PRSA (Public Relations Society of America) to fatten its coffers. I see few parallels between PR and, for example, medicine or law. Moreover, there's a lot of amateurism in public relations today.
I find it a bit disconcerting that more people are studying PR in college today than journalism. Ultimately, of course, what works best in PR is experience and, to the extent possible, knowing the colleagues in various media to hom you're pitching a story. I'll never believe that you can be as effective in PR if you haven't first been a journalist or worked in some media occupation.
Q: You've found a lot of humor poking fun at how the media covers the news. What prompted you to create The Boring Institute?
A: The Boring Institute
began in 1984 and reflects my having been in PR for close to 30 years. It's a reflection on the growth of hype - with its roots in the entertainment industry - but now being used by both businesses and governmental entities. It does get tiresome hearing or reading about the same famous people over and over again, particularly when many reflect a lack of moral values essential to a health society.
Q: But aren't you using the press to generate publicity for yourself?
A:
To some extent, yes, but mostly The Boring Institute and other creations such as the National Anxiety Center and International Forum of Alans are, for me, a PR exercise. They satirize the media in general and the process by which news is determined. Frankly, many in today's print and broadcast media are utterly, totally dependent on PR people. They could not function without us. Too much of what passes for news today lacks depth, insight or value.
Q: Who's on the top of the list this year?
A:
No. 1 on the list this year is the crossing-dressing basketball player, Dennis Rodman. He is the role model from hell.
Q: What's your biggest criticism of the media?
A:
Too many journalists and others in the print and broadcast media appear to be rather shallow. Often distressingly poorly educated. They wait for TV or the tabloids to break a story. Journalists just aren't doing sufficient investigative work or producing stories of real merit. I think this has contributed, in part, to the loss of readers among daily newspapers; it's dropped from 63 million readers in 1987 to about 58 million now. News, of course, is being written in a hurry. It's a snapshot of how our nation and the world is changing, but too many reporters with whom I speak have an agenda and they're simply looking for someone to confirm their point of view. And, if someone contradicts that, they're just dismissed or quoted briefly.
Q: How can PR practitioners help journalists do their jobs better?
A:
I think PR people do their jobs best when they present an interesting, well-documented, story as concisely as possible. It's important, too, to be able to generate a story rapidly and to respond to the media rapidly.
We're drowning daily in poorly written press releases, produced by committees or vetted by lawyers, and cumbersome press kits. PR people serve their clients and society best when they're providing good, solid information in a timely fashion. Media coverage is best achieved when one's personal credibility establishes a good rapport with editors, reporters and news directors.
Powell Tate Exec Name Urban League Chairman
Jonathan Rinehart, chairman of the Washington, D.C., operations of Powell Tate, a public affairs and PR firm, was named chairman of the board of directors for the New York Urban League, the widely known community service organizations
Rinehart succeeds Susan Dryfoos Selznick, who served as chairman since 1994. An affiliate of the National Urban League, the New York Urban League, which was founded in 1919, serves nearly 50,000 client. (N.Y. Urban League, 212/521-5215)