Couldn’t agree more. Let me address the issue at its core: PR is not synonymous with “publicist”. Check out my post at
http://www.techprnibbles.com/pr-is-not-synonymous-with-publicist/

@simple so, you’re contributing to the improvement of a tired, aging pr industry by complaining about those showing that there are better ways to practice PR today? Your tips: keep your hand down, let bloggers continue to beat a dead horse, and focus on doing your own work?

Anyone with something to sell has something to say.

It was true in 1930, it was true in 1970, and it is true today.

Yes, many agency-based PR professionals don’t understand enough about digital communications.

But you know what, plenty of blog-savvy people don’t understand the type of fortitude and detail orientation it takes to execute a world class event.

They also seem to forget that the best PR people are invisible… they don’t need to raise their hands to the sky like a second-grader yearning to blurt out the right answer, “Me, me me!”

Everyone who discusses “PR 2.0″ (give me a break…get a new catch phrase) seems to think their a rocket scientist for realizing the power of self-publishing.

Yes, many traditional PR people may not “get it.”

But the only thing worse than that is having to listen to the the ground-hog-day-like cacophony of “digital savvy” PR people and marketers regurgitate the same blather 24/7.

Talk less, do more.

The PR field seems a lot like a high school football team. Every guy on the team thinks he’s good enough to play in the NFL, but there’s only a handful of stars. The talented ones are absolutely wonderful – true Pro players, but right or wrong the stars will be judged by the overall performance of the group.

PR isn’t dead but it’s reputation may be tarnished. To restore respect and professionalism to the field, the challenge is getting the rest of the team up to speed.

Francisco Dao
http://www.thekillerpitch.com
Fast Company Buzz blogger

no thanks.

Sure there are bad examples, as many comments have suggested, but I think we’re on the cusp of a real opportunity and hope we make the right move engaging it.

Thus, the behavior of the blogger is impacted. The blogger tends to be more free-formed and less interested in someone’s point of view, and more their own.

Bloggers are columnists, not investigative reporters.

I have sound reasons for why I state that, but I can’t discuss them in detail at all. But I will say that I’ve achieved a level of success with a different approach.

In my first role I watched enviously as the account director took journalists out every week,often with the objective of just getting to know each other or re-affirming an existing relationship. Now neither hack nor flack seems to be able to spare the time out of the office. Which is understandable with the decrease in newsroom staffing levels over the past decade.

PRs have also been made lazier by media databases and email. When you were hand stuffing press releases into envelopes you paid more attention to who was going to receive them, now it costs nothing to add an extra 20/30 /100 names to email list just in case they might be interested.

@Martin Edic is alsoright, with the advent of social media, PR needs to go back to its core competency. Developing mutually beneficial relationships with the most relevant people.

The problem we face is persuading clients and colleagues that just because something is online doesn’t necessarily mean that it will happen faster or we have a magic shortcut.

It’s about process changes and education.. the best experiments today are the practice of tomorrow.

http://furrier.org/2008/08/13/yes-pr-is-changing-get-used-to-it-its-about-dialog-collaboration-transactions/