Beuerman Miller Fitzgerald

I ran across an article from the Nashville Tennessean this weekend: "Governor's announcement timed to skirt the press." While I don't routinely condone hiding things from the media, in this era of 24-hour news cycles the headline left me wondering how that was even possible. While it could well be that Tennessee's new Governor was hoping to make an announcement below the radar and with a minimum amount of fanfare, the fact that it was an "announcement" at all seems to contradict that he was really serious about hiding anything.

It also reminds me and I'm sure other in the professional PR world, that some reporters often employee similar tactics, one that even first year journalism majors are told reek of Junior League journalism. I'm referring to the tactic of waiting until just before deadline or often waiting until normal corporate office hours are wrapping up to seek comment from a company or individual they don't particularly like or don't want to treat fairly. "Could not be reached for comment" or "Did not respond to requests for comment" are no substitute for an honest effort to make contact and get both sides of the story.

To be sure, many reporters--the vast majority--don't engage in those kinds of games. But some do--even big names who should know better.

Neither reporters nor PR people should expect anything less than honest and fair engagement. It's the height of hypocrisy for both sides to demand open access without being willing to give it.