I read an article on Gawker today that said New York Times reporter Raymond Hernandez, who covers members of Congress from New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, is dating Shrita Sterlin, the communications director for Rep. Edolphus Towns, a Democrat representing parts of Brooklyn.

According to Gawker:

“Sterlin gets paid to make Towns look good, a task that’s presumably made considerably more easy when the guy who’s supposed to cover him for the most important newspaper in local politics is your boyfriend.”

…and I got to thinking: Is it ethical for a reporter to date a PR pro if the reporter covers the same topic(s) the flack is pitching?

IMO…you can’t help who you love! Of course, that’s not to say that I can vouch for the relationship at hand. However, if it’s real and true, then I’m on board with it! And apparently, the Times is too…as long as the relationship is disclosed and the reporter doesn’t give special treatment to the flack (at least regarding news coverage).

But let’s talk in general here…is it ethical for a reporter and flack to date when their job directly intertwine? And what would need to be done to make the relationship work?

I can’t speak from personal experience here, but I still default to the idea that the heart wants what the heart wants and nothing (like a job) should come between that. But of course, I’m a romantic : )

I just think that this is a situation where your job and your personal life need to stay separate and there are a few things you shouldn’t do. Essentially, the flack shouldn’t get special treatment. But he/she also shouldn’t be denied coverage. The news outlet needs to review pitches in the same way it would from another flack. After all, lots of us have relationships with journos (not just romantic ones), and that often helps us get coverage…so the in-love PR pro shouldn’t be denied coverage either.

For the relationships sake, it would also be important not to bring work home…at least when both parties are involved. I could see situations where someone’s feelings could get hurt. I assume the whole scenario would work best with some ground rules set out right from the get-go.

But as I said, I have no experience with this…so my opinions could be completely wrong. (I’m just tossing around ideas in my head.)

What do you think? Are you a flack who has dated (or is dating) a journo? Let’s discuss…