A University of Sydney study reported in The Australian's media section this morning says it's a myth that journos don't use PR and press release content to generate their stories - instead, 30-80% of content comes from PR efforts.
The article also reports it's a myth that PR people don't spin - or to put it another way, it's true that PR people spin, when directed to do so by their clients. (You always hope that readers are smart enough to see that, equally, journalists work under the instruction of their editors. They have to espouse the party line they don't always share and sometimes put a negative spin on stories just to increase their newsworthiness.)
The study's author, Jim Macnamara, says: "PR is a fact of life. Journalists should recognise it as an important communication channel and not deny it. And if there is PR material being used, it should be open and transparent." Couldn't agree more - the more quality PR, the better the relationship with the journalist, the better you become as reliable and trusted a source as any other. Bloggers themselves have become both a source of news and a publishing vehicle for PR - there's another debate in the making.
A debate on this topic will be held on Wednesday this week in Sydney.
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