October Ethics Minute from PRSA Central Illinois

Well, it’s the silly season again. After a long, long, run up to the presidential primaries and conventions, we finally have arrived at the weeks after Labor Day leading to the November election. And what have we heard? We’ve heard both candidates accuse each other of being “celebrities,” and what was fine for Barack Obama to say against Hillary Clinton’s policies (i.e., “like putting lipstick on a pig”) became a sexist slur on Sarah Palin when Obama used the same phrase to describe McCain’s proposals for governance. What has happened to ethical, reasonable debate on the issues?


Well, if you want a good catalog of other bad examples, see Joe Klein’s article in Time magazine, “The Lying Game,” published online September 17 and released in print September 29. For other examples of messages out of control, check out the “Screwups of Campaign ‘08” on the same magazine’s website. What’s unfortunate is that many equate political “spin” with the public relations profession at large.

What is fortunate is that PRSA has undertaken an effort to encourage ethical communication during these last weeks of the race. In early August, PRSA National's Advocacy Advisory Board set up a Facebook group – Clean and Fair Campaign 2008 – to promote one of its proactive themes for the year, civil discourse in the presidential campaign. According to the initial call via e-mail, the board’s thinking was to” garner a large group of members who would, effectively, constitute a nationwide ‘petition’ on behalf of the principles of the group.” As of mid-October, the group has nearly 2300 members.

I’m also pleased to report that our chapter has had a role in the national effort. PRSA Associate Director Joe DeRupo sent a call out to the group to obtain possible contacts with the two presidential campaigns. I was able to put him in touch with Audrey Till, an alumna of the Illinois State University public relations program, who is working on the Obama campaign.

For more information about the Clean and Fair Campaign, check out its page on Facebook, letters issued to the McCain and Obama campaigns on September 10, and the PRSA Advocacy Media Room.

Also, if you hear of any issues of communication ethics or advocacy that our chapter should address at the state level—political or otherwise, please contact me at jlcourt@ilstu.edu  – I’ll be glad to bring them to the chapter executive board for discussion and attention via this website and other venues with the board’s approval!