The harsh reality of the World Wide Web

I have recently read two posts, that made me speculating about the traces we leave behind, every time we post something to a blog, every time we comment on something or every time we share, for example, our pictures, with someone else online.

And if the good news is that by being "alive" for ever in the world of wide web, maybe our vanity is satisfied, (at least mine:-)), there are other, more important things that should be taken into consideration, when it comes to Public Relations.

As it is mentioned in online-pr , when a PR company has to support someone, that was busted for something in the past, how is the PR practitioner supposed to handle with that? Since the online databases, provide details and information for even a petty offence, and are available to everyone, in every corner of the planet, it is doubtful if a PR practitioner will be able to protect their client, and keep their past secret. So, how do Public Relations face the new reality? How will the practitioners support clients, whose past is not that innocent?

Another aspect of the harsh digital reality, is the traces that the PR companies leave behind, and that these traces can prove to be bad PR for themselves. As prblogger also points out, what PR consultancies do in our days, will be available many years later, so the extent to which they pay attention to their actions, will determine their future reputation. Since search engines and online databases, will for many years be the bugbears of notoriety, the actions of today should rely on honesty and openness.

To conclude, it seems that there is no degital forgiveness. Every single action is recorded, and it will not be easily deleted. And this is a new challenge for PR practitioners, in their attempt to build the image both theirs and their clients'.