By Linda Forrest
A few weeks back, I wrote a post on copyright compliance, a subject near and dear to my heart given that I used to make my living in the music industry, a business that once derived much of its revenue from the proper and fair restitution for copyrighted musical compositions and master recordings. The fact that neither I nor my husband, both music industry veterans, make our current livings in music should speak volumes and somewhat inform readers as to where we stand on the issue.
Yesterday, Canada’s media was aflutter with the announcement of the introduction of new copyright legislation, meant to quell the tide of copyright infringment in this country and to update an archaic law that was in effect long in advance of the past decade’s digital revolution. Just what this means in terms of its application to PR and the appropriate handling of clippings remains to be seen but as the big hole in the plan at this point seems to be the lack of a clear plan on how to enforce the law. This has always been the challenge in the music industry as well. A running joke amongst my former music industry colleagues used to be the vision of the SOCAN police charging into Mom and Pop shops to collect tariffs and license fees for playing CDs. Rightfully, the owners of the copyright should have been paid for the “public performance” of their works, but in reality, it just wasn’t feasible to “catch” everyone infringing on these rights, so the industry let it slide. It’s been an excedingly slippery slope…
I could go on all day, but I won’t.
I did also have a comment about Francis’ post about the interview never being over and wanted to say that this extends to PR folks as well. More than once, early in my career, my name ended up in the paper when I thought that I was just having a casual, off-the-record conversation with a reporter or journalist. The last thing you want as a PR practitioner is to be caught unawares and having to respond to your client’s concerns when they read in the paper “company spokesperson, YOU, said (something that hadn’t yet been announced or ananecdotal quote that’s off message… or worse).” Always remember you are the steward of the relationship between your client and the media and act accordingly.
When dealing with the media, always ensure that the boundaries are clear. If you’re going to spill the beans on an announcement early, make sure that the reporter understands the terms of the embargo and get them to agree to the embargo in writing, if possible. Embargoes are not necessarily water tight, but they’re useful for communicating to the media that you’re keeping an announcement under wraps until the appointed date and for communicating to your client that you aim to protect that information or, (if this is the unfortunate case) that you had written agreement with the reporter or editor or outlet and that they breached that arrangement and there will be stern words and potentially further action on your part for them breaking that agreement.
Just like in life, it boils down to a) watch what you say and b) watch who you say it to!
