Like many other areas of the business world today, the field of PR is experiencing its share of difficulties (see my recent post on the topic, in which I described some depressing numbers about the state of traditional PR).
That is why I was glad to see that we actually are in an "age of publicists, communications staff members and strategists," right there in black and white in the NY Times.
OK, it was a throwaway comment, part of larger story about how Andrew Cuomo shuns press conferences but loves to mix it up via DIY media relations. And the headline rankled a bit: "Behind the Curtain, Cuomo Runs his PR Machine." (Do we talk about journalism "machines?" See my post, which includes a tag cloud of the modifiers typically used with PR – many of them are negative).
I suppose what the Times giveth to PR, the Times also taketh away.
Anyway, looking beyond my obsession over how the field is portrayed, it is a good article that demonstrates that conventional wisdom is not always correct. Many in the field feel that media relations is best done up close and personal. But Cuomo's style of eschewing press conferences and in person or onscreen briefings in favor of mixing it up from a distance via phone calls is effective. As the article reports:
Still, whatever the grumblings, Mr. Cuomo’s strategy has largely worked:
He has avoided taking positions on controversial issues, even as the
state, facing a large budget gap, grapples with the prospects of laying
off state workers, raising taxes or eliminating programs.
Mr. Cuomo has managed to steer clear of much of what is messy about
Albany, and any politician would be delighted to draw the approval
ratings he routinely does.
