PR Should Embrace Mommy Blogger Blackout

I know I should feel insulted by the call to arms on website MomDot for Mommy Bloggers to reject all overtures from PR people the week of Aug. 10-16.

Instead I'm actually thankful, because the move will call more attention to the unseemly practice of pay-for-play in blogs of all shapes and sizes. Nowhere is the practice more abused than with the mom blogs, whose authors are usually well-intentioned but typically unfamiliar with the principle of editorial objectivity.

I suspect an unintended consequence of this "Flak-out" will be a deeper appreciation among some bloggers of the value good PR people provide in helping them share useful information with their readers. We all have our roles to play, and recognizing that we can't do our jobs without each other is an important step toward a harmonious existence.