A Brisk Discussion of Advertising/PR

A record crowd (top photo) greeted NCTC President Mary Miller and panel members (from left) Thomas Becher, John Carlin and Ernest DelBuono^

A sterling panel of public relations/advertising professionals jumped all over some tough questions this morning in Blacksburg at the NewVa Corriror Technology Council's monthly breakfast, one that set a record for attendance.

The 119 people at the breakfast was the second attendance record in a month under the tenure of President Mary Miller of Interactive Design and Development (IDD). The organization's annual awards banquet last month had its largest turnout ever.

The panel of Thomas Becher of tba, John Carlin of Access and Ernest Del Buono of Neathawk, Dubuque & Packett, all of Roanoke and all carrying some heavyweight credentials, attacked a a couple of tough questions from Editor Dan Smith of the FRONT:

"At what point does your involvement in a story affect the credibility of the message?" And this one, "If I'm following your story idea or giving you a column, how do I convince the public that we are independent of your influence?"

DelBuono, who at this moment is representing the principal of William Fleming High School who has been accused of some unethical behavior in regards to test scores, took the initiative. He says his job is to find "the truth of the message" and to try to relay that. "I don't take a client on if he's not willing to tell the truth," he says.

DelBuono emphasizes that "I hate the word 'spin.' If we can't tell the truth, I want no part of the ... discussion."

Carlin, an award-winning television newsman in days past and a recent convert to PR, says, "If I'm representing a point of view, I've become an advocate. Folks will always take [an advocate's words] with a grain of salt" but he insists that the client's message deserves to be heard, regardless of who the spokesman is. DelBuono and Carlin agree that if the client is capable of speaking for himself, that is by far the preference, but the client often needs some intensive coaching in dealing with the press and other interested parties.

"My mode," says Becher, "is to operate behind the scenes, [preparing] the client. Everyone has a story to tell, but not all are capable of telling it well. At the end of the day [the message] has to come from the client's heart."