In a press announcement that sent ripples throughout the business community yesterday, Edelman, one of the largest PR firms in the world, proclaimed that the agency was doing a complete about-face radically shifting direction. The firm has staked "its claim in ‘Authentic Communications.’”

According to the release, Edelman is mobilizing rapidly to convert its entire ambiguous worldwide PR operation to “authentic.” In support of the initiative, the agency said that it has consolidated its three digital service practice areas into one global operating unit. The new group will be a combination of the firm’s Web design team, its social-media toy lab and a couple of ideas that were being bandied about last fall under the name “Edelman Mobile."

Heading the overhaul will be Rick Murray, former head of the Agency’s botched “Me2Revolution” Practice. Murray set the stage for the announcement a little over a year ago articulating Edelman's very public optimism regarding Second Life. Then he said, “Anytime you can bring fake people together spending real money on fake things to create value... [well] I don't really know how it's going to end up or where we're going to end up in it but it's really cool."

Along with yesterday's announcement Murray described the agency's investment: “We think authentic communications is where it's at. The debate over what is and isn't authentic is likely to be rich, complex and never-ending.”

Ask any reasonable person in the PR biz where PR 2.0 and all this newfangled social-media stuff is and you'll get the same pat answer, "the jury's still out." Indeed. Here for the benefit of the jurors, we want to review motive and method. See, when PR is done right, there are no fingerprints let alone a body. But certainly one could show definitively that the defendant had motive and method.

Here for demonstration purposes we connect a few dots. If you're tuned into PR's new 24/7 social media channel, in between all the innocuous drivel -- "I totally love my shirt;" “Love to connect. I'm around all day with no specific agenda;” and “Off to SFO. Anyone up for late drinks tonight?” -- there's evidence of subterfuge. It's subtle but it's there.

MOTIVE

"Lots of people have rightfully made fun of how much I've touted every little new site to come along. Their criticism is accurate. Let's face it, it's because of money." - Steve Rubel, Spokesperson, World's Largest Independent Ambiguous Marketing Agency

"We are trying to get companies to disadvantage themselves through the adoption of open dialogue. Yes, that's our dream. I confess." - Stowe Boyd, Social Media Guru

"Screw the owners!" - Shel Holtz, PR "Expert" and Prolific Online PR Evangelist

"Social media is one of the hottest commodities going." - Mark Ragan, CEO and Ringmaster, PR Conference Company