PR Industry develops Media Spamming Charter

London, 29 September 2010 - The PRCA (Public Relations Consultants Association), the CIPR (Chartered Institute of Public Relations), and the IRS (Investor Relations Society) have today launched a Media Spamming Charter.

The Charter is in response to the 'Inconvenient PR Truth' campaign about how inappropriate and poorly targeted PR content can harm individuals, organisations and the PR profession as a whole.

The Charter is also based on a roundtable held by the three professional bodies and attended by the NUJ (National Union of Journalists), media, bloggers and others working in the profession.

Backed by the NUJ, the Charter provides guidance to members of all three professional bodies and the wider PR profession on standards of conduct when working with the media.

Directives in the Charter include:

    * practitioners should invest time in researching the editorial scope and interests of a journalist/blogger before approaching them, to ensure their area of responsibility is relevant to the communications programme
    * confusing, misleading, inaccurate or non-targeted emails may damage the reputations of the practitioner, the employer and the client
    * practitioners should be aware that journalists / bloggers may block individuals or companies if they believe they are being sent emails and other content that they perceive be irrelevant to their work.

Adam Parker, Spokesman for the Inconvenient PR Truth Campaign, said:

With the PR and media communities both under constant pressure to produce results, it's great to see the four professional bodies coming together to try and find ways to assist them to work more effectively.

The National Union of Journalists commented:

The NUJ welcomes and supports this Charter which aims to improve the working relationship between the media and PR practitioners and raise ethical standards.

- ENDS -

Notes to Editors:

About the Inconvenient PR Truth Campaign
The Inconvenient PR Truth campaign was started in January 2010 by members of the PR, media and distribution communities to highlight the issue of irrelevant press release emails and provoke a mainstream debate to seek to tackle this issue once and for all.

About the PRCA
Founded in 1969, the PRCA (Public Relations Consultants Association) is the professional body that represents UK PR consultancies, in-house communications teams and PR freelancers. The PRCA promotes all aspects of public relations and internal communications work, helping teams and individuals maximise the value they deliver to clients and organisations.

About the CIPR
The CIPR (Chartered Institute of Public Relations) is the professional body for PR practitioners in the UK. With over 9,500 members, involved in all aspects of the public relations profession, it is the largest body of its type in Europe. The CIPR advances the PR profession in the UK by making its members accountable through a code of conduct, developing policies for the PR profession, representing its members and raising standards through education and training.

About the NUJ
With a membership of almost 40,000, the NUJ (National Union of Journalists) is the UK voice for journalists and journalism. We are an active, campaigning organisation, both seeking to improve the pay and conditions of our members and working to protect and promote media freedom, professionalism and ethical standards in all media.

About the IRS
With nearly 600 members from across the UK, Europe and beyond, the IRS (Investor Relations Society) holds a key position within the industry. It aims to be the focal point in the UK for IR practice and professionals and to promote excellence in investor.

Contacts
Richard Ellis, PRCA Communications Director, richard.ellis@prca.org.uk / 020 7233 6026

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