Ethics & the Public Relations Models: Press Agentry Model

The press agentry model is the lowest “level” of ethical public relations. This model focuses on publicity or press agentry to gain attention for the organization. Reminiscent of P.T. Barnum’s publicity stunts, this model focuses on self-interest or gaining attention, whether good or bad. As a result, this model can be used to exploit a situation for personal gain. For example, pharmaceutical CEO Martin Shkreli hiked the price of daraprim from $13.50 per pill to $750 per pill overnight, a 5,000 percent price increase. In response to the uproar, Shkreli replied that his responsibility was to the investors of his organization, not the affected patients. His actions thrust him and his organization into the media limelight and spurred many antagonistic Twitter exchanges. Some suggest that the price hike was a publicity stunt to bring daraprim to the forefront of a broader audience. If so, the maneuver was successful, as the drug currently enjoys high name recognition beyond the scope of its current patients. Examples such as this one highlight the often-seamy side of the press agentry model. Manipulation and/or deception can often be used to achieve short-term rewards.

Like the teleological approach, the press agentry model focuses on outcomes more than processes. It considers the outcome more important than the means to get to the outcome. As a result, an ethical outcome could be the result of an unethical process. Laczniak and Murphy offer a maxim to help ensure the ethical dimension of this model. They suggest that professionals use the “TV test,” by always asking if you would feel comfortable explaining the action on television. Granted, the “TV test” isn’t foolproof. Shkreli seems to have enjoyed, even acerbated, his villainous profile in media interviews and on social media. In one Twitter exchange, a user said, “you should be ashamed of yourself. You have given people their death sentences. A person’s life is not business,” to which Shkreli replied, “No, you are wrong.” It seems in his mind that the outcome of increased profits was the most important.