Kudos to the Public Relations Society of America for updating its Code of Ethics to require greater transparency with regard to "pay for play," the exchange of products, services or any inducement that encourages a journalist to provide editorial coverage.
Notably absent, though, in PRSA's new guidelines is any mention of the thousands upon thousands of quasi-journalists -- bloggers and other online influentials -- who hold sway over an increasing percentage of the opinion-seeking population.
The vast majority of bloggers have no Code of Ethics . . . they're just highly engaged, mostly well-intentioned individuals whose interest or passion for a particular subject has led them to a position of influence most never sought or envisioned. They don't know it's wrong to accept freebies, even if there's no quid pro quo requested or implied.
PR professionals should know better. In fact, most do. But to protect the profession from a handful of rotten apples, PRSA should put more teeth in its Code to address to address the potential abuse of the continually evolving digital landscape.
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