One answer to the above question is that PRWeek and Max Clifford care. However, I don’t want to dwell on what ‘wise’ Max Clifford has to say about Jordan (Katie Price) and her return to I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here because quite frankly it’s boring, it's old news.As far as I am concered Max Clifford is over-quoted and represents a version of Public Relations which is base and course – simple publicity.
Perhaps you think that this is too harsh a critique of Clifford? I can respect that some of his work involves looking after reputation and image, something which is quite clearly in the domain of Public Relations. But it is misguided to idolise him as the perfect PR practitioner.
I respect that Clifford makes money out of these talentless fools who bare warts and all on reality TV and it is clearly evident that he is not the only one. Both Peter Andre and Jordan have the full time services of a PR agency. Can Associates handle the PR for Andre and Outside Organisation handle the PR for Jordan.
It must be quite exiting to work for one of those agencies. Every day something new has been said against your client and you have to adapt and come up with a counter strategy. I should imagine that it is similar to working in the communication department for a political party. Every day something new needs to be said to keep the media ball rolling.
So to answer my own question, Jordan: who cares? We may all roll our eyes at another Jordan story but perhaps it is fair to say that we all at some point care. Like the city boys who sit on the tube and devour The Sun before opening their copy of the Financial Times. Yes, celebrity PR is exiting and fast moving but it is important to distinguish it from publicity.
I think the side of PR represented by Max Clifford is really over represented in the media and it gives the whole PR profession a bad name. Personally, I can't think of anything worse than working for a Jordan or an Andre because, though I see the similarities with the pace of political PR, essentially it doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things. At least with political PR you might, sometimes, make a difference in society. What Jordon says or does is, in the end, neither here nor there!
ReplyDeleteWhether or not we as individuals enjoy the publicity stunts of Peter Andre and Katie Price we must sureoly pay homage to the army of PR grafters who must work night and day to keep the machine fed and the cash rolling in. Peter and Katie are just showbusiness professionals who have realized that their "real lives" can be dramatized along with their more formal acting/singing/modelling. However I'm sure that to draft, shape and ensure that the narrative appears in the press/TV/internet takes a lot of hard work - and we should respect that. Is it important? No - its fun. Personally I have a lot of time for Katie Price - she is a multi-talented perfomer and a smart businesswoman. It takes a lot of smarts to act that dumb.
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