Is War Brewing Between PR and Blogs?

Paul Graham has written a great article about PR and blogging called The Submarine. Paul doesn't get to talking about blogs until about halfway through the article. That's just fine. There's really great information in his pocket summary of the PR business.

So who's going to win the war between the blogs and the PR firms? There isn't going to be a war. Paul nails it when he says "As this new kind of writing draws readers away from traditional media, we should be prepared for whatever PR mutates into to compensate."

When he says "prepare" and "mutate", I wonder if he means "evolve". Good PR already has a dose of truth in it. As Paul points out, a PR firm that squanders its reputation on empty claims can't win credibility with reporters. Just so a blog has to maintain credibility with its readers or they will go elsewhere. Good PR gives small companies a chance to get their message out. Yep, that's blogs too.

The question is, what are PR firms going to learn from bloggers? What are guys like me, who know something about blogging and are ready to teach, have to learn from PR?

There's a current crop of fake blogs, fiction blogs, and viral marketing launched by PR firms that want to cash in on the next trend. I predict these won't go far. They're a weak first stab at evolution.

Thanks to philaros for pointing this out to me.