Censorship and Control by Publicists or Public Relations Firms Affects Long-Term Relationships with Journalists

Just when you think you can't be shocked by anything anymore, think again. I was recently shocked and surprised when I was ordered by a publicist not to write a story.

I was planning to write a positive story, a reflective story and yet I was being censored and controlled by a person from a public relations firm. Shocking, especially because I was writing a positive piece.

Immediately after instilling the censorship on freedom of speech and attempting to prevent and control every word to be written, this person offered me an opportunity: You may only write a promotion article.

What?

A promotional press release reads far differently than an actual article, which entertains readers, shows feeling and offers a point-of-view. Readers are smart - they know the difference between a promotional press release and an article written independently. Readers want to know how a person feels experiencing something. Maybe they'll want to try it, use the business or see the show. I have developed a huge trust with my readers as they know I'm not going to sell them on anything I don't honestly believe in.

Even more shocking after the diatribe, this public relations person handed me a press kit with several press releases, photos and fact sheets to be used in conjunction with my "promotion article."

I have never been shy about standing up for myself. My husband, who was also present during this discussion and often serves as my photographer for stories, was furious at the way I was being treated. He had to walk away at one point because he couldn't believe how someone was ordering me, controlling me and censoring me in the writing of a single story.

Will I ever cover their events again? Probably not.

Will it affect our long-term relationship? Yes, absolutely.

Should they care? Yes, they should.

The worst part of this is that the people on the top don't even know how the publicist or public relations specialist is representing them or their business.

It makes me wonder how this PR specialist is treating other media that cover events. This only raises more questions.

Is every article fine-tooth combed before it's published?

Will I ever believe another piece written about their organization? Probably not. Especially, if the same publicist is still on board.

I've been writing professional news articles since 1985. I started in the radio news business where I wrote dozens of stories every day, conducted interviews, and delivered live shots at breaking news locations. As a result, our news team won awards while I won individual awards for news coverage.

As a news anchor, many organizations were grateful for the stories I delivered on the air. Later, I was hired by a television news station and on the side, I also wrote for newspapers. There were tough stories to cover, trials to attend and facts to deliver. I'm sure there were organizations or people who didn't like that we shared all of the facts, but a publicist or public relations firm never censored me. Not once.

Experiencing no interference in writing has only elevated my concern about those who attempt to control what people write or report in the media.

I have never stopped being a journalist and the Internet has opened huge opportunities for writing online for even novice writers. We live in a different world where any person can attend an event and write a blog on it, reviewing it for other readers.

I expanded into my Celebrant work, writing original funeral services, which has only seemed to compliment my work as a journalist. As I started helping families write obituaries, I met with professional obituary writers from across the country about the job of writing news obituaries. The professional obituary writers reminded me time and again that they answer only to their editors not to anyone else. Imagine if every paid obituary looked like a fancy tribute without mentioning poignant facts about the famous decedent.

While I've worked with incredible independent publicists and public relations teams, especially when I interview someone high profile in Los Angeles, I've never experienced censorship such as this.

The bottom line: No writer should be told, "You can't write this story." It's not up to a publicist or a public relations firm what stories are written and what stories are not. They can't control the world. They can't control people. They can't control writers.

This experience has only heightened my gratitude. Thank you to all of the professional publicists and public relations firms who encourage articles with a grateful attitude. They know the power of information sharing as a positive article has a life shelf on the Internet forever.

I am grateful that I live in the United States of America where we all have freedom of speech. That freedom of speech entitles me to write this article. Thank you to all of my readers!