information overload*

Between the celebrities in rehab, Young Hollywoodites in jail and the rest of it, lately, I’m feeling a little overwhelmed by information. I don’t know how critical it is that I know exactly how Mr. Ledger passed away. Or that I hear every detail of the bubbly Kirsten Dunst’s alcohol treatment. While simultaneously trying to process a stock ticker of details about house fires, pipe bombs and end-of-days weather reports.

When it comes to stuff on TV, most of the time, I just feel like I’m on information overload.

I like to watch BBC news. At least they talk about something other than U.S. home foreclosures and celebs who abuse drugs and alcohol. They have a world view that I like a lot. Local and national news leaves me feeling uninformed, despite the many stories that they report. It’s like so much empty bubblegum for my brain. After a while, I need something with a little more substance.

But lately I’ve been thinking that in some ways, I’m the worst kind of purveyor of information. Many think that people who do PR, SEO and the rest of it are pretty much at the bottom of the barrel. Because we get paid to put information out there that influences what you read.

A big component of what I do has to do with changing public perception of companies or individuals who… may not have the best track record in the public eye. Whose reputations need a little polishing, to make them shiny again.

I take this kind of work on a case by case basis. Hearing the stories of the people involved, I can only hope they are telling the truth. That they are sorry for their past transgressions. That they were wrongly implicated in the first place. That they made a mistake a long time ago that they wouldn’t make today. That all speaks strongly to me. And if I don’t believe in the project, I won’t do the work. That’s the deal I made with myself when I became self employed.

But sometimes, I look at my body of work and wonder what kind of contribution I am making to a society already full up on information. What am I doing that makes the world a better place? Nothing, I guess. Maybe I’m just another one of the bubblegum-information providers, creating stories to fill up Web pages and press baskets. All for profit.

Rose City Journal: We’re not just whores. We’re pimps, too.

*post happy hour post