PR and Celebrities

Since I live downtown, I have passed by the memorial of Darcy Allan Sheppard on Bloor St. several times. One of the sub-plots of this ongoing tragedy is the role of PR in Michael Bryant's defense tactics.

Personally, Navigator is not what I would call a PR firm and one that operates largely in the shadows unlike most others. Certainly in this case they are acting more like a publicist for a Hollywood star. In addition, given the political backgrounds of their principals, they certainly move in spheres that would put them into the Government Relations area of activity. I am sure they could mount a full defense of their PR credentials, but then they would have to talk about some of their clients a bit more openly!

So what is PR then? I have worked in the public, private and non-profit communications and PR areas. Clearly, regardless of the type of organization, there is a lot of overlap and common purpose. We work to ensure that our organization's messages are heard and that our organization is well perceived.

So is it fair to call it being a publicist when you do it for an individual but PR when you do it for an organization? My heart tells me yes although my head does not fully agree. Building a brand for an organization is a larger and more complex task than for an individual.

Certainly, in this case, given Mr. Sheppard's death, the association of PR with Mr. Bryant's overall defense strategy has understandably raised a negative backlash. He may be fully entitled to it, but the optics of it look and feel all wrong.