Biting the Hand that Feeds You Information

A publicist caught communications blogger B.L. Ochman in a pissy mood the other day.  She sent B.L. an e-mail with a large attachment, which according to B.L. is a major no-no.

After telling the publicist not to send large attachments, B.L. did what many of us do - she vented. 

But in this case, instead of venting to the wall, or grumbling out loud after a phone call, B.L. posted a short note on her blog Why Do Clueless Publicists Still Have Jobs?, naming the publicist and ending with "Please, someone fire this woman."

Whoa.  That seems a bit extreme, all because of a 1 MB e-mail attachment.  Let's count the mistakes.

1) Publicist clogs Inbox unnecessarily (try optimizing the graphics for the web, to reduce file size)
2) Confronted with a common newbie error, B.L. makes a serious personal attack (when other suggest she went too far, she doesn't back down)
3) B.L. spells the woman's name wrong (if you really want to damage someone's career, get the facts right)

In B.L.'s view, she has patiently waded through tons of PR crap that anybody with half a brain would know didn't apply to her. And she has publicly posted her rules of engagement when presented with an inappropriate or "lame" pitch:

"Don't forget that I am a blogger. A traditional journalist might simply decline to cover a company that makes a lame pitch or a lousy product. I consider those open game."

Sorry, I don't buy that.  I can't find anything on B.L.'s site that looks remotely like a link to instructions for people who want to pitch to her.  Saying "I warned people in a blog posting two months ago" is like the corporate exec who thinks that once they've distributed a memo, everyone in the company will change their behaviour instantly. People aren't like that. In the absence of easy-to-find instructions, B.L. can expect to continue to receive information that doesn't conform to the clear instructions that she published a while back.

John Wagner notes the discussion and suggests PR practitioners and wannabes should study the dynamics of B.L.'s experience.  In earlier postings he warns PR people to do some homework before trying a shotgun information blitz.  He also warns journalists and bloggers that whining about being inundated with inappropriate news releases and pitches isn't going to change the situation. It will just make them look bad:

"I always thought reporters made themselves look bad with the constant grumping over pitches. It's why most young PR people -- and some older ones, too -- hate dealing with the media. But PR bloggers who slam PR people are taking it a step further ... in the wrong direction."

A writer named Paul, responding to B.L.'s complaints, notes that too many high-profile bloggers are displaying the same elitism and superiority that get the mainstream media into trouble.  He says:

"Many bloggers criticize the traditional media for a prima donna attitude. I hope the blogger community sees that bloggers are at risk of developing the same prima donna attitude. It comes with celebrity status...

Try to remember, compassion, kindness and respect are GOOD things. And remember what Spiderman's uncle told him: "With great power comes great responsibility," or something like that."

I think it's okay to take people to task for things they do that cause you grief.  I just don't think calling for an individual to be fired is an appropriate response in this case.

Update:  I came across another posting that references this. InfOpinions: Rubel and Ochman, What to Make of This?

 

Comments

[Jeremy Pepper]

Man, this is the best post I have read yet on the idiocy of the situation. That was going to be my next Cluelesstrain post, and now I feel that I should just link to this post and write - yah, that.

Well, there's always the hoopla over character blogs.

[Robert]

Hey Eric,

I tell ya', I have to agree with Jeremy. It is the best post, with the most rational and well-thought out examination of the episode.

My only thoughts after this for my students are (1) don't do what the publicist did with the release and (2) don't do what B.L. did in response. Both were regrettable and avoidable. The reaction made the release/attachment look quite innocent and easily forgiven by comparison.

Thanks for this post and the mention.

All the best.

Robert