On the positive side, this person had the persistence to repeatedly call me.
When they got a hold of me, here was the gist of the conversation:
PR: Hey I am the PR person for X, X has news for ISC West, do you want to take an embargo for the news?
JH: No, I am not really interested enough in your company.
PR: Ok, I'll send the release to you when it is announced.
JH: Ok
End Conversation
Now, this conversation ranks in the top 20% of my interactions with PR people, in the fact that the person had enough guts / determination to reach me on the phone. Most just bcc people on a generic pitch and hope that someone will take pity on them.
But think about it. The PR person had me on the phone. No attempt to build good will? Ask open ended questions? Try to learn something about how or why we might cover them? Try to pitch me then and there?
I've said it before and I'll say it again. Paying a PR person is spending money to hurt your brand. If you are a serious exec, make your own direct connections with the handful of people who have media impact in the industry and stop letting your PR people embarrass you.