UK Cops to Cops: Don't Sit Too Close to the Media

OK. Now I’ve heard everything. A new 50-page-plus guide has come out in the UK for how the police should deal with the media. Right up at the top of the list? Don’t flirt. According to a story by Gil Rudawsky at prdaily.com, there are caveats against “late-night carousing,” and not sharing a bottle of wine “because it might make you spill the beans.” Laughable to us in the U.S., of course, because there’s long been a fine line between journalists and the people they cover. In fact, some of our best have even gone to jail to protect who they write about. But apparently in the UK, things are a little different. Seems the media knows how to ingratiate itself with the innocent people who keep the peace, and will do anything to get their story. Imagine that! So why am I telling you this? Don’t we know better than that? We’d never tell journalists who are nice to us things they shouldn’t know. . .right? OK, so this isn’t the UK. And in this country, we don’t routinely hack into phone calls, or hang around in the bushes until we see a Congressman go get his morning paper in his briefs while his lover waits at the front door. Well, maybe… I guess all the cops are trying to say is respect each other’s rights, and know the boundaries. Hmm….Not bad advice for any of us. Deborah Hirsch PR BLOGGER (deborah-hirsch.blogspot.com)