It might not be moral to lie, but who said PROs should have good morals?

Mark Twain once said: “If you tell the truth you don't have to remember anything”, but just because telling the truth is easier, doesn’t mean it is always the best thing to do. There is no doubt that many PROs have found themselves erring on the side of fiction, rather than fact, when speaking to the media. And according to a recent PRmoment poll, 35 per cent of you think it is fine to lie to journalists.

Philip Young, senior lecturer in PR and media ethics at Sunderland University, recognises that PROs have a reputation for bending the truth, but defends this by saying that often it is because, “PROs need try to shape debate into a way that is favourable to their client. This is not necessarily deceitful or dishonest. Anyone who expects a PRO to give an impartial view is failing to understand the job; having an opinion or promoting a particular cause above others is not inherently dishonest.”

Handle with careHeather Yaxley, PR consultant and blogger, points out that there are times when a cautious approach is required or when absolute honesty would cause harm to others. She adds, “We also have to be aware that sometimes an instant response to a situation may turn out to be a lie – which wasn't seen at the time.“

Telling a deliberate lie is quite different from simply enhancing a client’s good points. Young believes that lying is never a good course of action. He says: “Ethically it is wrong and, pragmatically, you will probably get caught out so it will damage your own reputation and professional effectiveness. At the same time, if there is a very good reason, it is not wrong not to tell the whole truth or to evade questions. Telling lies carries a high price and it is rare indeed that the price is justified.”

Yaxley agrees that PR people should never deliberately tell lies, not just because it is wrong, but because it will damage credibility. She says: “We live in an age of increasing transparency, so even if not recognising ethical and professional reasons for not lying, enlightened self-interest suggests the truth will come out and affect the reputation of the PR practitioner and their client.”

A reputation for being honest is invaluable, and is certainly worth more than for being famous at twisting the truth. David Meerman Scott, author of The New Rules of Marketing and PR http://www.webinknow.com/, says: “Companies are measured based on transparency, not spin. The potential ramifications of being discovered are huge and with millions of bloggers out there searching, it is easy to be discovered these days.” However, Meerman Scott does agree that some interpretation of the truth may be required, adding: “smart PR people should be able to tell a version of the truth that gets their point across to a journalist in a beneficial way.”

Morals maketh manWhether or not telling a lie is an immoral act has to depend on the circumstances. And who said PR people should be moral anyway? As Young points out, a PR practitioner has no more or no less a duty to be moral than anyone else. But Young does believe that anyone working in PR has a duty to think through the consequences of their actions. He explains: “This is usually a two-step process – is it morally acceptable to work for this client, and if this is the case, they then have to ask if the actions they take are acceptable. I would suggest it is a lot easier to act in a morally acceptable way as a PRO than it is, for example, to be an ethical journalist.”

Journalists may argue that, as their job often involves uncovering the truth, they do not compromise their morals as often as PROs. But there are many who would beg to differ, as the general public does not consider journalists to be particularly trustworthy, and according to PRmoment’s research, they are seen to be less trustworthy than PROs.

If public relations professionals wish to gain more of the public’s and the media’s trust, the easiest course of action is to stick to the truth. But as Oscar Wilde once said: “The pure and simple truth is rarely pure and never simple.”