The power of these unified publicity companies is so intense that editors have largely given up the job of controlling Hollywood content. They don't even ask the questions. Few in the entertainment business doubt the influence publicists such as Kingsley wield. By virtue of their proximity to often difficult, spoilt and insecure clients they have transformed themselves from press agents into career power brokers. In exchange for access to stars, some editors allow publicists to dictate when and where a story will run, which photographer and writer will be hired, which quotes from the star can be used, which of the star's friends can be interviewed and which questions or subjects will not be allowed.
Glossy magazines employ 'celebrity wranglers' whose only job is to liaise with publicists.
The merger 'has the potential to water everything down to utter irrelevance, if we aren't there already', said the former editor of one well-known magazine. Publicists are drawn as the evil villains, but they're only doing what their clients are paying them to do. Without success, rival magazines have attempted to band together to change the balance of power. The move flopped because they knew that, if any one of them were offered 'an exclusive', they'd break the agreement. Moreover, media-watchers say, the idea that celebrity journalists should expect the same freedom as regular journalists is a misunderstanding.