
A Reputation-Laundering Firm That Ruined Its Own Reputation - iamben
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/06/25/the-reputation-laundering-firm-that-ruined-its-own-reputation
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blindwatchmaker
This part of the article stuck out:

> “As we have known from the start, we are in the middle of a civil war with
> the Guptas and allies on one side, and Johann Rupert and others on the other
> side. More mud will inevitably be thrown. However, it is difficult to turn
> down such a large retainer.”

I feel like the blowback the Guptas and their PR flunkies got was more because
of the fact that this was a power struggle between different obligarch
factions than because of wrongdoing (although obviously they are guilty of
that as well).

If the Guptas/Pottinger had targeted people without massive wealth and clout
among global and European elite circles we might not be getting behind the
scenes exposures like these.

I think we live in era where ordinary people and interests that don't
represent the wealthy have no ability to hit back against character
assasination and PR campaigns, and with no one left to go after the future is
going to be obligarchs targetting each other, a bit like the late stage Roman
republic.

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tgp2
PR firms/people don’t die. They just reincarnate.

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flyinghamster
Kind of reminds me of trolls in NetHack, especially since trolling is their
business.

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Pulcinella
I believe that predates the modern usage of “troll.” Trolls regenerating is an
old fantasy trope.

[https://scifi.stackexchange.com/questions/103146/where-
did-t...](https://scifi.stackexchange.com/questions/103146/where-did-the-idea-
that-trolls-can-regenerate-come-from)

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sorokod
A bit like a virus that is so lethal to it's host that it extinguishes itself.

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davibu
PR is just another word for Propaganda, isn'it ?

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projectramo
In one very vague sense, marketing, communication, pr and propaganda are all
cousins.

But in a more serious sense, if you just out and out lie, and repeat the
falsehood, I would count that as propaganda. If you simply put a spin on it
but don't disavow actual facts, I would put that down in PR.

In Handmaid's Tale, when Fred goes to Canada he engages in a lot of PR. But
when he disavows actual practices, he slides into propaganda.

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Rjevski
And nothing of value was lost.

