Reflecting on PR, the media and society. Communications & Media Essay

Redefining Public Relations in The 21st Century
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Redefining Public Relations in The 21st Century
Public relations (PR) involve the strategic management of relationships between an organization and its diverse publics, through the use of communication, to achieve understanding, fulfill organizational objectives, and satisfy the public interest. It is a combination of practices aimed at enhancing a good public image for organizations or public figures via the cultivation of a positive relationship with the public. The public relations function is prevalent and growing, and can be found in virtually every industry, government, and non-profit organization. The fragmentation of media and growth of multiple message sources means that PR is on the ascent while traditional forms of mass communication including newspapers are on the decline. Modern PR has evolved from what traditional PR used to be during the ages of banners, television, and clever marketing adverts (Bourne, 2015). A lot has happened and most organizations have missed such changes while others are yet to catch up with contemporary issues that face their publicity. The paper investigates the traditional approach to public relations and its effectiveness in tackling contemporary trends facing the publicity of companies in the 21st century.
Definition, Functions, And Scope of Public Relations
According to Sassatelli (2006), public relations comprise the information given to the public, persuasion directed to the public to modify attitudes and actions, and efforts to integrate attitudes and actions of an organization with its publics and of publics with those of that organization. Jenkins (2004) asserts that PR is the management of communication between an organization and its various publics. In this case, management refers to the body of knowledge on how best to coordinate the activities of an enterprise to achieve effectiveness. Communication includes sending, receiving, and understanding messages as they flow between the organization and its publics. While an organization is an organized group (a business, corporation, a government agency, or a non-profit group) with a common purpose, the publics entails a group or groups of people with a common interest. Publics are not necessarily the stakeholders who have financial stakes that link them to specific organizational goals or consequences.
The overall objective of public relations is to achieve a mutual adaptation between an organization and its publics. It assists society to make decisions and function more effectively by contributing to mutual understanding among groups and organizations (Edwards, 2018). It serves to create harmony between policies that govern private and public institutions. Through public relations, organizations can serve a variety of communal and societal roles in public institutions such as schools, hospitals, voluntary associations, trade unions, government agencies, businesses, and religious institutions. They achieve their objectives by pursuing effective and sustainable relationships with a variety of audiences or publics including employees, members, customers, local communities, shareholders, and other institutions, and the entire society.
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