ANALYTICAL DEFINITIONS OF PUBLIC RELATIONS

Public relations can be examined from variety of processes, the angle that we look at it tend to reflect our attitude, concerns and objectives about the discipline. What appears to be a consensus is the fact that it is a field of communication. The British Institute of Public Relations (BIPR) which now bears chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) defines Public Relations as “a planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain goodwill and mutual understanding between an individual or organization and its public”.

An analysis of the Institute’s position with regards to what public relations is indicates that public relations is not an effort made haphazardly, it is therefore a deliberately organized campaign usually informed by the need to optimise the benefit of planning which include effectiveness, conforming to the research steps. A saying goes “He who fails to plan, has planned to fail”. It should not be taken for granted that professionalism in public relations emphasizes goals normally guided by clear objectives and pursued via carefully selected techniques. We also find in the BIPR definition that public relations practitioners are disposed to avoid the absence of continuity; they believe that the maintenance of helpfully healthy relationship is like a seed that can only grow into a tree and produce fruits, if well nurtured with rich manure and regular watering. This is to say that we should cultivate and nurture our relationship in the profession of public relations so we can enjoy the goodwill it would bring to us through recommendations from clients and prospective customers. The definition equally suggests that public relations practice aims at reputation management and image building. This brings a very valuable and tangible benefit to the practitioner by making him a cynosure of reputation. The ultimate goal we are pursuing is managing information flow from us to the various individuals and groups we deal with on a regular basis, ensuring not to allow information gap; as it is one of the parasite that destroys a good image. This will limit the activities that go on in the rumour mill thereby helping the relationships we have by avoiding information gap. Having diligently managed our information flow, the opportunities to make ourselves including our policies, objectives, visions, mission, programmes and activities understood, appreciated and supported will become realistic.

Take special note of the word “Publics”, it is a public relations register, this refers to the various groups that have clearly defined characteristics and who by their position and interest can help us achieve our objectives, thereby providing the need for us to keep communicating with them e.g. customers, government, student union, media, transporters etc.

There is also the Mexican statement which defines public relations as “the art and science of monitoring and analyzing trends, predicting their consequences, counseling organizational leaders and implementing planned programme of action that can serve both the organization and the public’s interest.”

This definition was arrived at in the city of Mexico in 1978 at the gathering of public relations practitioners around the world. From all indications, this definition appears to be more comprehensive and instructive than the one earlier analyzed. Public relations is an art because it takes creativity to do it. This is so because the job of communication and dealing with people can hardly be done effectively while following only routine. It is a science because there are settled matters in the field which provide understanding that can be applied when dealing with problems that have common features. The definition also reveals that this science has a social base, meaning that human beings are involved; the implication of this is that it is not a precision science where 1+1=2, though there are some precise steps needed to be followed to achieve a public relations goal.

In the definition, we also find emphasis on research, this encourage us to monitor trends in order to establish possibilities and prepare to launch into a public relations task as well as evaluating it. The information emerging from the analysis of trends will inform the counsel the public relations practitioner would give to his employer. When agreements are reached with respect to what needed to be done concerning the observed trends, the practitioner executes a programme that can exploit opportunities and mitigate problems.

It should be underscored that public relations practice does not pursue selfish objectives; it accommodates not only the interest of the user but also the interest of the larger society e.g. Customers, suppliers, investors, members of local communities, government etc. Its focus is on the demonstration of social responsibilities which help the organization to put up a conduct that will benefit society and help it to survive; so that it can survive too. Needless to underscore the fact that in the absence of the society, organization which are mere elements hanging on the system cannot exist.

Public relations, particularly during a conversation about marketing and social media makes participants liable to have vastly different and holistic perspectives on any topic or event happening around them. Traditionally, public relations referred to the art of getting mentions of a person, company or other organization placed in the media, namely print, radio and television.

Harold Burson’s perspective of public relations is drawn from the practice of the profession as it relates to our daily lives. His grievance stands on the complexities other practitioners brought into defining what public relations is. In 2001, Harold posits

Even though not offered as a commercial service until the first year of the 20th Century, public relations has, mostly unknowingly, been practiced from the time humans began interacting with one another. But its basic principles have been recognized through the ages. The Ten Commandments were chiseled in stone; the broad boulevards of ancient Rome were built not to accommodate a heavy stream of traffic but to demonstrate the power and grandeur of the Roman Empire; Martin Luther's 95 theses were nailed to the cathedral door, not tacked on the bulletin board; the horrible Boston massacre was the term used to describe the killing of five patriots at a time when American colonists were seeking independence from England.

Public relations is a process that impacts public opinion. Its objective is to motivate individuals or groups to take a specific action. Like buying a certain brand of toothpaste or automobile; voting for a specific candidate; supporting one side or the other of a political issue; signing up with one cable provider over another. As such, public relations is an applied social science that draws on several social sciences, among them psychology, cultural anthropology, sociology, political science, economics, geography and so on. Actually, one could more accurately describe public relations as a maturing applied social science. It is all too slowly developing theories and a body of knowledge, mainly case histories, that can bring about greater discipline, uniformity and predictability in delivering our services.

Everything we do is directed at people's opinions and attitudes. We can affect opinions and attitudes in only three ways,

 we can seek to change a presently-held opinion or attitude.

 we can seek to create a new opinion or attitude.

 we can reinforce an existing opinion.

That's why we write and try to place articles and stories where they will be read or heard. That's why we think up outrageous stunts certain to attract media attention. That's why we're responsive at times of crisis and so willing to answer reporter's questions.

What Public Relations Is

Daily the world becomes more complicated and sophisticated. With such complexity, certainly, no organisation, social, cultural, economic or political can survive without accurate and right dose of communication. And as a result of its strategic nature, potentials and efficacies, public relations is the most suitable prescriptive measure for dealing with the issue. To effectively cope with rapid global trends and changes, every corporate organizations even individuals requires the services of public relations.

To Nwosu and Idomili (1992:5), Public Relations is a means of winning friends, keeping them; doing good and getting rewards for it, as well as “being guided by public interest considerations or being socially responsible in order to be socially acceptable”. Black (1989) sees it as the art and science of achieving harmony with the environment through mutual understanding based on the truth and full information “. In the view of Stan (1968) Public Relations is planned to influence public opinion, achievable by effective service delivery and symbiotic communication.

 In all, it involves programmes , activities and policies which are deliberated evolved, planned and specifically targeted at given publics, stakeholders, clients or customers. At the end, the overall aim is to attract support, rapport, solidarity, goodwill, trust and cooperation for the source.

Extolling the qualities of public relations and their implication,

Baxter (1986)quotes Abraham Lincoln as observing:

Public Relations is everything: with sentiment nothing can fail: with it nothing can succeed. He who moulds public sentiment goes deeper than he who executes statute or pronounces decision. He makes statutes and decisions possible or impossible to execute.

Public Relations News sees it as :

…a philosophy and function of management which evaluate public attitudes, identifies the policies of an individual or organisation with public interest and execute a programme of actions to earn public understanding and acceptance.

Similarly, Nwosu and Idimili (1992:5) states the international Public Relations Association (IPRA) looks at Public Relations as an act and social science used to analyse trends , predicts their aftermath and for “counseling organisation leaders and implementing planned programmes of action, which will serve public interest ”.

The British Institute of Public Relations , in its view says it is :

… “a deliberate, planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain mutual understanding between an organisation and its publics”

To the institute, Public relations is intentional and aimed at attaining set goals, among them bilateral understanding, favourable disposition between a corporate body, its publics and stakeholders, and this is done on relentless basis, not in hit and run style or fashion.

 Public relations has varied and multiple definitions as it has many practitioners. Notwithstanding, pertinent is , that no matter the source of the definition, it deals with concerted bid to project oneself or an organisation in such a way that understanding, mutuality, cordiality, and healthy relationship are attained, to the collective benefit of the practitioners and the end user/ receiver. These are the intentions, aims and what public relations stand for, and these clarification is vital following misconstrusion, misapplication , misinterpretation and misuse of the concept by quacks and interlopers, often intentionally for selfish reasons, and ugly phenomenon we can still further elaborate on.

What Public Relations Is Not

As quacks and charlatans distort and bastardise the noble profession, it becomes necessary to bring it to the knowledge of potential practitioners and indeed to none practitioners and the general public which should also protect, guide and guard the profession from such ruinous practices and misuse. So, what is public relations not?

To Nwosu and Idimili(1992:7)it is not journalism, public or press agentry ,although it can use these as instruments for accomplishing its objectives. It uses both works and well planned, focused and executed programmes of action in order to influence the audience and impact on them as well.

Public relations applies persuasion, truth, full information, inaddition to empathy. This is opposed to using force, coercion, lies, half truths, deception, fabrication, misinformation, disinformation,misleads and pernicidus propaganda. Continuing, Nwosu and Idimili (1992:7) insists that it is not offering of bribes, call-girls or use of mere beautiful and unintelligence receptionist to serve in organisatios.

 Among other things it is far from the stress, include: not dependent on chance: fire-fighting or fire brigade measure : magic or voodoo practice: window dressing: white-washing or cover-ups. All these tilt to negativity,hence, they have no place in Public relations practice. The practice is somewhat a systematic ,planned and concerted actions, sustainably used to achieve organizational long term objectives. It is therefore, not trial and error, hit and run or experimentation. It is preceded by galvanized, articulated and data-based decisions, inorder to stand the taste of time .

To avoid the above misapplications and rather understand and appreciate the vital tenets, we persist that all practitioners must:

Go through the requisite education, training and retraining.

Posses the required and necessary certification and qualification.

Registered and become members of the regulatory authority of the profession, the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR).

Strictly adhering to the ethics and social responsibility of the profession.

Most importantly, ensuring that the professional practitioner operate from the management cadre of his corporate body.

This is Nwosu and Idimili (1992:8)and Nweke’s (2001:14) position. As a management insider, the practitioner will be in better position to handle his professional obligations, especially those bothering on counseling organizational management on its ethical and social responsibilities. A management should be educated on the need for utilizing Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) as a management strategies for mitigating crisis and conflicts, like oil spillage and other environmental problems. This, the insider practitioner is better positioned to handle than otherwise.