PRSA Calls Flacks Out for PR Malpractice

by lisa ~ August 31, 2009

Aug. 31, 2009 - The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) has reprimanded the industry for a recent uptick in so-called public relations malpractice. “While each tactic varies in method and medium, PRSA states categorically that misrepresenting the nature of editorial content or intentionally failing to clearly reveal the source of message contents is unethical,” says the article on its web site.

The tactics mentioned by the PRSA include writing positive product reviews on online message boards, paying for positive blog posts or other coverage with corporate swag, paying for buoyant Twitter posts…you get the idea.

Los Angeles Public Relations News mentions an additional no-no: PR agencies shouldn’t post negative reviews of their competitors’ clients, and the offended agency shouldn’t respond by posting multiple positive rebuttals using fake names. “Deceptive communication goes against everything PR agencies have always stood for. In the age of anonymity across the internet it may be tempting to engage in the gray areas of deceptive marketing/public relations. Be careful; these practices do more harm than good,” it wrote.

This practice has become so common that it’s even been given a name: Astroturfing. It essentially means creating what appears to be a grassroots movement to give the impression of wide support for an issue, group, product, etc.

One of the incidents to which the PRSA is referring was the subject of a PRWeek article last week. It claims that Northern California-based Reverb Communications used interns to post positive reviews to its clients’ tech products.

Adfero Group, a Washington, D.C. public affairs shop, is being attacked by bloggers for purportedly creating a fake association known as the Federation for American Coal, Energy and Security (FACES) in support of the coal industry.

It’s unclear whether this kind of behavior comes about as a result of overzealous agency directors or overly demanding clients. One thing is certain, though: As long as the economy continues to struggle, there will be flacks who will bend the rules to keep clients happy.

Back in February, I encountered a client who ordered me to pose as a potential customer and call its competitors. If that wasn’t bad enough, I was to use what I’d gleaned to write a press release and to reach out to reporters and the social media set. I suggested alternate ideas but the client insisted. A senior person made the first false phone call to show me how to do it, apparently assuming I was a slow learner. The project ended that day.

Lisa Tibbitts is the principal of Tibbitts Creative, a public relations and marketing service that emphasizes corporate communications. She has an extensive background in financial services and an MBA in marketing. Follow her on Twitter: http://twitter.com/FinancialPR.

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