Is the communications industry fundamentally dishonest?

[TheRealGussieFinkNottle]

I'm preparing to potentially get flamed for this so, being the cowardly person that I am, I've gone and done a sneaky name-change.

My AIBU is this: AIBU to think that the communications industry/profession is fundamentally dishonest?

My reasoning is this: as corporations will no doubt want to always present themselves in the best light possible, am I being U to think that communications work for any organisation always involves a degree of spin, misrepresenting the facts and burying bad news to focus on positive things?

I was really interested in going into communications work once upon a time, but any time I went for an interview for a communications role, I've felt really disillusioned with it all because of the situation that I mentioned above. Is there some truth in what I think?

Would be interested as well to find out from anyone who's worked/is currently working in communications: what do you enjoy about the role? What are your favourite aspects of the job?

Bump.

No, it isn't.

Yes we aim to focus on the positive things about our clients, but would never misrepresent the facts or bury bad news. If there is bad news, sometimes it's important that it's seen in a broader context. Journalists can be notorious for focusing on one single tiny negative aspect about something and ignoring all the positives.

I work in a technical field which can be controversial and is often misunderstood - I see my job as countering those misunderstandings and promoting transparency. When I see evidence that people have changed their minds, that is very satisfying.

Thanks for your post Grumpy :) really interesting and actually quite heartening to read too :)

I think if you're looking at it from that particular angle, most of what we do as humans are inherently dishonest. When we go into a job interview, we dress up more formally than we would as compared to what we'd usually wear at the office, and when questioned even put a good spin or "learning point" to our flaws mentioned. Would you classify this as dishonest?

What about on first dates, for instance. I'm betting the majority out there spend more time than usual scouring for their best clothes, perfecting their makeup etc so as to impress a future partner. Would that be false advertising, and thus dishonest?

There's, in my opinion, a difference between opting to show things in a positive light and choosing to outrightly fabricate something.