PRtea

Been to a PRime workshop, one in the PRtea series organised regularly at Carturesti (a very nice book&tea shop in Bucharest). I went to see what everything was about because ...well, because I like the idea of having a nice talk over my most favourite drink (and they have the best Sencha Elfentau at Carturesti!!!). And then I was so curious of what Marie-Rose Mociornita (one of the hosts at the last evening tea) would say about ethics in PR).

Although, to my shame as a professional, I had no idea that such gatherings were taking place, PRime had three PRtea meetings so far and with good themes as well. The first PRtea was about trends and practices in the Romanian PR, a discussion hosted by Crenguta Rosu (DC Communication) and Sorana Savu (Premium Communication) Thhe second meeting was about creativity in PR, a PRtea made by Gabriela Lungu (The Practice) and Andrei Bortun (Millenium Communications)

So I went last evening to listen to practitioners and students talking about Ethics in Romanian PR. A few conclusions/ideas/dilemmas/wishes, if I may:
1. youngsters are more and more interested in acceding in the PR business. especially girls :)
2. they are also extremely naive
3. Everybody agrees that it is not very important how you look in PR ... as long as you look good. At least that's the impression "PRists" give me lately
4. it was an 99.9% female audience. Scary. Especially if you consider the "have a life" rule, humourously communicated by Mociornita. Where are the boys? Are they not interested to learn. Don't they like tea? :)
5. PR professionals/practitioners don't open up and don't give examples. It was too a warm and comfortable discussion about real and uncomfortable issues in Romanian PR, especially when talking about ethics. Very little truth spoken. Very few points made, even fewer taken :)
6. 90% of the hosts conclusions started with "in my view, in my world, I'm not speaking for my PR agency but for myself" In my opinion, you can not prepare for objetive rules and act responsibly on the market within the industry if all you can decide upon is what you deeply believe. I wouldhave liked to see a PR agency leader openly taking some of the responsibility of fighting unethical PR - a reality that was acknowledged by everyone present, including the speakers. How can you tell some students to be fair and firm and reject any unethical practices at work when no head of agency has the courage to break the chain and speak up.
7. Ethics in Romanian PR is more about common sense and less about real rules, and rule enforcement. And not surprisingly so. nobody (or very few) within the industry take the responsibility of reporting the ethic infringements and of educating the stakeholders. Very little time remains for seeing to a sound industry where lie, fraud, paid news, false PR, false CSR and fowl practices are being fought and punished.
8. The press has a pile of examples of bad PR. Liliana Seban sais she hopes that at least some of them would appear on a blog, for education's sake. And then again? Why do papers keep silent about these big DON'Ts? Why don't PR professionals fight the bad practices that are affecting the whole industry's reputation and sound development by exposing them? I guess we are all waiting for the natural selection to do its job. And for the rotten apples to eventually die.
9. Meanwhile PR people in good respectable agencies work hard, stay anonymous and get low wages while the bad PR guys get all the fun, sparkle, fame and money just by playing by the "laws of the land". They will be disqualified in time and with more and more powerfull and serious competition. I'm certainly looking forward to seeing that happen. But my fear is that there will also be innocent casualties. Youngsters with no experience and no maturity to decide whom to follow. The industry itself, suffering from negative perception, wrong understanding of its areas of action, of what it can and cannot do etc. This is why I'm also hoping for more responsibility from Good PR agencies. A discussion like the one last evening would shure have been a good place to start. Maybe next-time.
10. Professionals tend to leave regulation to time and nature laws...hoping that the long time effects of bad PR will eventually turn against the currently rapidly ascending bad PR embracers. Because good PR believes in good PR's self sustainability and longevity, in the benefits of a good reputation instead of the charms of fast great image.
11. Reputation is not the same as image. The first is long term, slowly built and carefully consolidated. Reputation takes consistency, persistence, no mistakes, fairness, seriousness and patience. That's why PR is not about short term results.
More conclusions to come...