From {Young Minds}: Coming up with a Whopper

LAF Note: This Young Minds post was written by Isis Hargrave.

In these hard economical times, people are anxiously employed and scared they may lose their jobs at any time. That anxiety may lead them to do things they wouldn’t normally do for their employer and it holds true for companies that cant afford to lose their clients.

At some point in your career, you might be asked to come up with a whopper. Be very careful in this situation. Nothing is worth losing your integrity.

I was once asked to write a story and embellish some of the facts. It took me back to my PR 101-college class when my teacher told us to adhere to the PRSA Code of Ethics. She said if you ever were caught being unethical, that it could possible ruin your career. In an industry that is all about relationships, it’s understandable that when you lose the trust… it’s over.

With that fear looming over my head, I went to my director and expressed my concern. I take pride that I can be trusted and things that I say or write are fact. It’s inevitable that at some point, you might be put in a situation that you aren’t sure how to handle.

How far are you willing to go to please your employer or client? Have you ever been asked to lie on behalf of a client? How should we handle the situation when being ask to spin the truth?

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nadinebonner

In my last job, a situation like that proved to be a tipping point for my boss. The agency was keeping some money it was not entitled to keep, and the executive director refused to turn it over. It was a complicated situation revolving around a rebate the agency received for some merchandise that they thought was defective. In reality, the vendor had sent a different item than was ordered, so it was not defective. My boss was prepared to defend on TV the position that the agency had accepted the rebate because they had ordered an item that turned out to be defective. But he was not prepared to argue that they should keep the money and strongly advised the exec to return it.

My boss left shortly the agency shortly after for a number of reasons, claiming his new job offered better hours, more time with his family, yada yada. But he had had many such offers over the years. Most of of thought he just wasn't prepared to go on TV and argue an unethical position.
Isis Hargrave

Tom and Katie,
My director was great at listening to my concern and helped me go in a direction that was different than what was instructed. When I was originally asked to do the piece, I was given verbiage that I thought I had to include from brainstorming.... rookie mistake. So, the whole thing turned into a learning experience and had a happy ending.

David,
I completely agree that people should voice their opinion and definitely leave a bad situation. Unfortunately, I have seen the majority stay quiet and go with the flow resulting in a promotion. Then you have all these upper level people training the new hires to do the same.... and yes, it's everywhere!
David Spinks

It's not just PR. In any professional field, I always encourage people to stand by their moral code.

In previous jobs, I've been asked to do things that, in my opinion, were unethical. I have never hesitated to voice my opinion on the matter right away. If I'm working for someone that won't respect my opinion, and would have me violate my own ethical code to benefit them... I'll quit. I can't be happy working for someone like that.

David
Community Manager at Scribnia.com
GoKTGo

I think you bring up some great points - and very popular points for YPs (see @JackieAdkins YoungMinds post from 10-21)

Sometimes it's hard to be 100% behind an idea, and I think if you are that uncomfortable that you should say something.

Sometimes I think it could be misinterpretation on all levels - Who knows, maybe you just could have misunderstood what your boss was asking you to do!

Either way, I believe that all work we do as PR professionals should be values driven and ethics based - We are supposed to earn positive coverage for our clients, I would hate it if a rash, unethical decision were to be made that would harm a client's reputation.

I absolutely did the right thing - and I'm sure it wasn't easy!! :D

Like Tom, I would also be interested in hearing your director's response!

-Katie
Tom O'Keefe

Good post, Isis, and an important subject for PR pros (and interns). It's easy to sit back and say, "Oh, I'm better than that. I'd never do something unethical like that," but when push comes to shove and jobs or clients are on the line, it's easy to fall into the whopper trap. So, I applaud you for recognizing this and airing your concern to your director. It also speaks to the support system at your workplace that you feel comfortable enough to speak up.

I have to ask, though (and you don't have to answer if you don't want to), what did your director say?

Thanks,
Tom
@TomOKeefe1