Re: Edison

["Norm" <normanmo@clark.net>]

On Sat, 2 Jan 1999 13:18:44 -0500, Brett Glass wrote:

>>Tell me then, why are such PR campaigns successful?  What is wrong with
>>the Press that, time and time again, they fall for these campaigns?
>>
>>I think the Press are the real villains here.  They're the ones who are
>>supposed to uncover the truth.  Instead, they propagate the lies.
>
>I wouldn't say they're villains; I'd say they're HUMAN. All humans
>have weaknesses and frailties and are subject to exploitation. The
>PR industry (which doubtless dates back to heralds in the courts of 
>monarchs now long forgotten) makes its money by exploiting these
>weaknesses: laziness, arbitrarily tight deadlines, quotas that
>emphasize quantities of words rather than quality of research,
>and requirements to cover subject matter about which they are
>not sufficiently knowledgeable to write.


     Well last I heard those who manage 'the press' are just as much a
part of it as those who do the writing.  That said I believe the fault
lies with both the press and the public...the press for doing such a
lousy job and the public for allowing them to get away with it.  I'm
always amazed at the overall decline in critical thinking in an age in
which 'spin' has become an art form. 


>In short, never assume malice when incompetence will do. ;-)


     True, but in this case incompetence is still no excuse.


--
 ...Cheers,

 ...Norm

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