Efforts to Influence Through the News Media as Lobbying

One of the news media's biggest problems is failing to look at the big picture and, instead, focusing on specific events and issues. This is especially true when it comes to government ethics, where the news media generally considers, and calls for, ethics reforms on a piecemeal basis.

An article on the Innovateli website yesterday shows that this same limited vision applies when a government ethics reform involves the news media itself. The reform derives from a December advisory opinion by New York state's Joint Commission on Public Ethics (attached; see below), which determined that communications between PR consultants and the press on public-policy issues constitute lobbying and, therefore, must be disclosed.

Quotes from news media experts focus on the First Amendment free speech implications of this opinion rather than the role of such communications in lobbying and grassroots lobbying efforts. A journalism school dean is quoted as saying that “equating lobbying public officials with talking to a reporter about a story reveals a basic misunderstanding of the role of the press. Reporters and editorial writers are not public officials, and they are not even the indirect agents of public officials. They work in what they believe is the public interest, and talking to the press does not guarantee you have any control over what is eventually published or produced.”

But all this is beside the point. Reporters and editorial page editors are certainly not public officials, but their articles and op-ed pages are commonly used as part of lobbying efforts, for example, by developers seeking approval of their developments, sports teams seeking public subsidies of their new stadiums, and universities seeking to expand. One of the most important parts of such efforts is getting editorial page editors to come out in favor of their goals in the form of editorials. Yes, these lobbying efforts do involve free speech, but that doesn't mean they shouldn't be disclosed by lobbyists.

What is especially annoying is how PR professionals equate disclosure with prohibition. One is quoted as saying, “If we can’t contact the media, that means we’ll be running more campaigns on social media.” Another is quoted as saying, “If we cannot contact newspapers on behalf of our client, we will be hampered from the operation of our business.”

But there are no prohibitions or even restrictions in the state EC's ruling; there is only a requirement of disclosure. If a lobbyist would rather not do something than do it and disclose it, perhaps it's something that shouldn't be done.

When viewed in terms of large lobbying and grassroots lobbying efforts, it seems perfectly reasonable for attempts to influence the public and government officials through the news media to be considered lobbying activities subject to disclosure requirements.

Robert Wechsler
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics