Dear Cousin
I have decided that I am going to major in public relations. Since I knew little about how to describe to someone else what public relations actually is, I hope I do not come across as presumptuous to assume that you also know very little and would not mind a little education in the form of this letter.
Public relations as a profession is hard to define because it covers a very broad spectrum of different experiences. One public relations practitioner may do very different things than another public relations practitioner, but it is still under the umbrella of public relations. Public relations, as a simple definition, is communicating effectively with the public and organizations in a way that will benefit both parties. A mediator of sorts, employed to bridge the gap of misunderstanding between the two. Within that duty to communicate are many other responsibilities as well. Counseling management is a big responsibility that falls somewhat, but not entirely, on the shoulders of public relations professionals. Should a company or organization propose a plan of action contrary to what I believe would be beneficial to relevant or affected publics, it would be my obligation to speak up in their defense. I cannot, however, give advice based on my opinion or “hunches” alone. Numbers tell a better and more believable story. Meaning that sometime previous to this situation I would have had to conduct some kind of research backing up my claims, that yes, this in fact is not a good idea and a fall out of public support is a likely result.
Another side of public relations is more obvious, getting publicity for an organization. There is a blurry line there between publicity and advertising. Simply put, advertising is content paid for and controlled by the buyer. Publicity is information free to the public. Getting that information to the public in an attractive and understandable way is the job of public relations. Do not confuse a publicist with a public relations professional. A publicist simply disseminates information while public relations takes into account possible consequences and monitors the output of information all with the idea of maintaining a credible image in the eyes of an ever skeptic public. There are also many different types of publics to write for. Knowledge of what type of public you are writing for is crucial in order to make the message relevant to them. It would be ignorant to assume that one form or style of writing is best and therefore most persuasive to all who will read it. One small example of the diversity of publics is in the form of press releases. They are not actually written for the public at all, they are written for news medium. You provide them with newsworthy information and they, in turn, make it public. Press releases are specific tasks with certain goals prepared beforehand. They have a target public in mind as well. Presenting that information in a way that is considered newsworthy is the challenge.
This is a very basic description of public relations and some things they do in the real world. This should at least get you started down the road to understanding a little more what this relating to the public stuff is all about.
Matt
I have decided that I am going to major in public relations. Since I knew little about how to describe to someone else what public relations actually is, I hope I do not come across as presumptuous to assume that you also know very little and would not mind a little education in the form of this letter.
Public relations as a profession is hard to define because it covers a very broad spectrum of different experiences. One public relations practitioner may do very different things than another public relations practitioner, but it is still under the umbrella of public relations. Public relations, as a simple definition, is communicating effectively with the public and organizations in a way that will benefit both parties. A mediator of sorts, employed to bridge the gap of misunderstanding between the two. Within that duty to communicate are many other responsibilities as well. Counseling management is a big responsibility that falls somewhat, but not entirely, on the shoulders of public relations professionals. Should a company or organization propose a plan of action contrary to what I believe would be beneficial to relevant or affected publics, it would be my obligation to speak up in their defense. I cannot, however, give advice based on my opinion or “hunches” alone. Numbers tell a better and more believable story. Meaning that sometime previous to this situation I would have had to conduct some kind of research backing up my claims, that yes, this in fact is not a good idea and a fall out of public support is a likely result.
Another side of public relations is more obvious, getting publicity for an organization. There is a blurry line there between publicity and advertising. Simply put, advertising is content paid for and controlled by the buyer. Publicity is information free to the public. Getting that information to the public in an attractive and understandable way is the job of public relations. Do not confuse a publicist with a public relations professional. A publicist simply disseminates information while public relations takes into account possible consequences and monitors the output of information all with the idea of maintaining a credible image in the eyes of an ever skeptic public. There are also many different types of publics to write for. Knowledge of what type of public you are writing for is crucial in order to make the message relevant to them. It would be ignorant to assume that one form or style of writing is best and therefore most persuasive to all who will read it. One small example of the diversity of publics is in the form of press releases. They are not actually written for the public at all, they are written for news medium. You provide them with newsworthy information and they, in turn, make it public. Press releases are specific tasks with certain goals prepared beforehand. They have a target public in mind as well. Presenting that information in a way that is considered newsworthy is the challenge.
This is a very basic description of public relations and some things they do in the real world. This should at least get you started down the road to understanding a little more what this relating to the public stuff is all about.
Matt
I really liked your letter. You explained things very well. I liked how you added your opinion and didn’t just state the facts about PR. One thing I really liked is that you mentioned how publicizing is a part of PR but not all of it. I think that too often we get caught in the publicizing part of PR and don’t pay attention to the other aspects of PR. I like how you pointed out that PR does not just deal with communication from the organization to the public, but you have to take into consideration how the public will react as well. You pointed out how being a public relations professional means that you need to know what audience you are speaking to and how to communicate with them. This is very important especially if you are working for a world wide corporation. A letter or release that you would use or send in the U.S. might not be as suitable for a place outside this country. I learned a lot from your letter and enjoyed reading it.
ReplyDeleteI thought your letter was very well written. I dont know how old you cousin is, but there was lots of big(non laymans terms) words. But I liked how when the letter started you addressed that, I thought that was very effective. Good Job
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