Via Loose Wire, a pretty compelling view from The Guardian on not so great PR engagement. I sympathize; time is a precious asset for everyone and having a PR person call and steal time without adding anything of value has got to be an intensely frustrating experience. It feels like we go through waves (usually during a bubble, hmm) where the rise in number of people (many uninformed) chase after journalists in an almost Dilbert-like way. That's bad. The piece that really pains me here is the fact that the caller pitching Panasonic DIDN'T KNOW anything about the product. We used to call this "smile and dial" and I thought that brand of PR went out of fashion in 2001. Here's a good rule: If you can't answer questions, then don't make the call.