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Lies, Damned Lies, and Spokespeople… Why Do We Even Listen to Them?
By letterhead | September 11, 2008
Debated putting this one up. And I promise no more politics. But we in the PR profession often decry our image as liars, when the most high-profile “PR” practitioners (those in the political field) have raised it to a high art form.
And the kind of “lie” I am referring to is not about economic growth, or tax cuts paying for themselves, or nowhere bridges, or the war in Iraqnistan… it’s a big lie, the worst biggest lie, the lie that the person speaking actually believes what they are saying, and that we should believe them because they know what they are talking about.
In fact, they spin wildly from one p.o.v. to its direct opposite without missing a beat. As if they never believed what they said in the first place, and can be trusted only to spout whatever meaningless bullshit happens to best support the position of the moment.
This kind of gyration creates a lasting, gut impression among the public that any talking head, on any issue, for any organization can’t be trusted to tell the truth… only to fudge the stats and game the refs.
Whom does it help to undermine the idea that objective reality even exists? No one, least of all our own profession, which REQUIRES objective references and authoritative sources to establish credibility.
By undermining shared reality, these people undermine the validity of PR itself.
Why do they even get airtime?
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