Hollywood PR in Real Life

The most shopworn Hollywood image of “PR Men” and publicists is that they whore themselves out for money or proximity to fame–no matter what ethical issues are at stake. I won’t stoop to dignifying those kinds of stereotypes with an argument other than to point out that money isn’t enough for a PR pro with a shred of self-respect and professional dignity.

Case in point is ironically from Hollywood. Charlie Sheen’s long-time, long-suffering publicist has decided that he can’t take two-and-a-half more seconds with the “bad boy” TV star:

Charlie Sheen’s publicist, Stan Rosenfield, has quit his long-time job, citing Sheen’s increasingly erratic and bizarre behavior and public statements. The final straw seemed to be Sheen’s appearances Monday on “The Today Show,” in which he vowed to battle CBS violently and demanded a raise for his postponed show, “Two and a Half Men,” and then his long, unwieldy backyard appearance with TMZ.

“I worked with Charlie Sheen for a long time and I care about him very much, however, at this time, I’m unable to work effectively as his publicist and have respectfully resigned,” Rosenfield said in a statement to TMZ.

via Charlie Sheen’s ‘Today Show’ & TMZ Interviews Lead To Publicist Stan Rosenfield Quitting.

As in any business, sometimes you get to a point where a client–no matter how much money they pay–isn’t worth aggravation or loss of self-respect. Also, it would be unethical to take Sheen’s money because the bizarre star obviously isn’t taking advice from his public relations consultant. I applaud the man for walking away.

And that’s a wrap.