Through a special arrangement, what follows is an excerpt of a current article from Refrigerated & Frozen Foods Retailer magazine, presented here for discussion.
Writing stories using only outside sources is becoming more common in these days of spin control. A wistful reminiscence, but with no real wish to go back.
"I wanted to puke when I read your story about us," the voice at the other end of the phone said - in a tone befitting a comment about the chance of an afternoon shower.
I matched the tone - although my pulse had definitely quickened - and asked "Why?"
"Everything. It's all wrong."
I'd sent him a final draft of one of my cover stories, prior to publication, weeks after the retailer's public relations department had turned down an interview. I make a point of doing that, especially if the story has negative parts, out of a sense of fair play and old-fashioned Baptist guilt - guilt that my hard-core journalist friends laugh about and say is badly misplaced.
Things have changed since I switched from covering the police beat for daily papers to covering the grocery industry about 20 years ago.
Back then, you could call up and ask for the president of Kroger or Ralphs or Safeway and, fairly often, the next voice you'd hear would be their brisk "Hello?" They were easier to reach than desk sergeants.
Now, of course, all the major retailers have layers of public relations people. Yes, CEOs have better things to do than talk all day to the 66 puptillion trade magazines out there, and besides, spins must be controlled for Wall Street. I understand that. The reality is that, for better or worse, the trade press increasingly is shut out. (For the health of the industry, I'd say "for worse.")
This forces me to do my job differently, using outside sources such as vendors, brokers, securities analysts, former insiders and competitors. These trusted contacts have become my stock in trade. At last count, my single-spaced Rolodex was 153 pages long.
Perhaps because the stories I get from these sources rarely flatter the retailer, I make these last-ditch efforts for comment after I've finished writing. Responses vary.
Some retailers are outraged that I wrote about them when they didn't "authorize" it. I'm tempted to remind them about the First Amendment, but hold my tongue for fear of adding fuel to the fire. Twice, retailers have called me, and it's been the start of a beautiful friendship. Most retailers appreciate the opportunity to get some of their side into the story. The guy who wanted to puke never called again, but his PR person fixed a mistake in my story - I'd spelled a street name wrong.
In some ways, it would be nice to get back to when I could pick up the phone and chat with the CEO, but I know those days are gone forever. Today's stories probably better reflect reality's subtler shades, anyway. All in all, though, I wish it hadn't become so adversarial.
Discussion Questions: What do you think is driving retailers to forego talking to trade magazines? Do you see this as a positive or a negative? Do, for example, the limits companies place on providing information to the trade press contribute to the slow pace of innovation in much of retailing?