It is their right to plow on, but they may find over time, that others will not deal with them. On the other hand, there are times when reporters should not play along, and they should break through walls blocking their stories. One person's rogue is another's Pulitzer. Still, there is give and take. Reporters who forget that find themselves frozen out.
Public relations works in two directions.
PR on behalf of a worthy cause is good. Too much PR on behalf of a worthy cause can become special pleading. I bring this up because of history that has bothered me. After World War II, the Jews of the world performed a great deed for humanity and themselves by exposing Hitler's systematic executions. For decades, they have told and retold stories of the Holocaust.