Piaras Kelly PR - Public Relations in Ireland

It has been fascinating to watch the breakup of Prince William and his girlfriend Kate Middleton in the media over the weekend. The sheer hypocrisy of the coverage was mind-boggling. I don’t know how many times I watched the same Sky News report list the intense media focus on Ms Middleton as one of the factors behind their split, but then show coverage of the paparazzi swarm around the poor girl as she tried to make her way to her car. Was I the only person to find it funny that the media should list their intrusion on her private life as a reason for why they broke up and then devote hours and pages to the story? If that isn’t the sign of a vicious circle then I don’t know what is.

Colin Byrne, CEO of Weber Shandwick in the UK has interesting commentary on a similar topic - the criticism of the Iran hostages who sold their story to the press upon their return. In this instance the media dangled a carrot in front of these servicemen and then beat them with a stick for grabbing it. In most other industries this would be called entrapment, but I guess in this instance it’s called moral outrage.

Rant over. Thoughts?

Technorati Tags: Media, Piaras Kelly