The very first task I was given on a newspaper was to rewrite a press release. In fact I was given a whole pile of them. I was told to transform them into a column of briefs (brèves) which would run down the side of the page. This was easy and fun: it meant turning promotional and over-written prose into short, sharp and purely factual news stories. But I had no illusions: rewriting press releases was not journalism, which requires investigation and analysis.
Recently, though, I've noticed that press release rewriting is beginning to replace journalism. I was particularly struck by a PR operation for Moynat, the vintage luggage brand recently re-launched by LVMH. They cooked up a nice little stunt involving Michelin-starred chef Yannick Alléno making delicious food on a trunk that had been converted into a portable kitchen. This story turned up in magazines everywhere, accompanied by the same picture of Alléno and his magical Moynat trunk. A rewritten press release masquerading as journalism. No analysis of the brand; no facts about its revamp. Just PR puff. Maybe the press can no longer afford to pay journalists to spend time researching stories. Or perhaps it's the influence of blogging culture, with its endless recycling of existing material. But press release journalism seems to have become acceptable. Good news for PR agencies. Bad news for readers.
