Seminar paper from the year 2002 in the subject Communications - Media and Politics, Politic Communications, grade: 1, Macquarie University, language: English, abstract: There is a widely held perception amongst the general public that there is no genuine difference between propaganda and public relations. This is a view also advocated by some communication scholars who equate these two terms. The truth lies somewhere between this perception and the one stated in the introductory quote. Although there are a number of parallels between public relations and propaganda, there are also fundamental differences. The definitions of public relations are so numerous that it is difficult to give one which would find universal consent. For this paper and in order to illustrate the difference to propaganda most efficiently a definition, which stresses the importance of mutual understanding between the organisation and the public, as well as the benefaction to both, will be used. According to Long and Hazelton public relations is ”a communication function of management through which organisations adapt to, alter, or maintain their environment for the purpose of achieving organisational goals”.

How Propaganda Became Public Relations pulls back the curtain on propaganda: how it was born, how it works, and how it has masked the bulk of its operations by rebranding itself as public relations. Cory Wimberly uses archival materials and wide variety of sources — Foucault’s work on governmentality, political economy, liberalism, mass psychology, and history — to mount a genealogical challenge to two commonplaces about propaganda. First, modern propaganda did not originate in the state and was never primarily located in the state; instead, it began and flourished as a for-profit service for businesses. Further, propaganda is not focused on public beliefs and does not operate mainly through lies and deceit; propaganda is an apparatus of government that aims to create the publics that will freely undertake the conduct its clients’ desire. Businesses have used propaganda since the early twentieth century to construct the laboring, consuming, and voting publics that they needed to secure and grow their operations. Over that time, corporations have become the most numerous and well-funded apparatuses of government in the West, operating privately and without democratic accountability. Wimberly explains why liberal strategies of resistance have failed and a new focus on creating mass subjectivity through democratic means is essential to countering propaganda. This book offers a sophisticated analysis that will be of interest to scholars and advanced students working in social and political philosophy, Continental philosophy, political communication, the history of capitalism, and the history of public relations.

Public opinion is an important factor affecting the political decision-making process. In almost every community, the ones in power—no matter what type of political system is established—want to be aware of the ideas and opinions of the rules regarding policies that they have implemented. The factors that take part in the determination of public opinion must be explored further. Political Propaganda, Advertising, and Public Relations: Emerging Research and Opportunities is an essential reference source that discusses public opinion on policies as well as political communication activities. Featuring research on topics such as campaign management, branding, and political marketing, this book is ideally designed for campaign managers, social media mangers, government officials, advertisers, media consultants, public relations specialists, researchers, politicians, academicians, and students seeking coverage on current technological trends and political communication.

All PR, whether for charities or arms manufacturers, is weak propaganda. Though it has its undeniable benefits (it grabs attention and helps circulate more information), it also has costs (such as selective messaging). This extensively revised edition of a classic text fully investigates PR, updating and expanding earlier arguments and building upon the successful first edition with new thoughts, data and evidence. Thought-provoking and stimulating, Rethinking Public Relations 2nd Edition challenges conventional PR wisdom. It develops the accepted thinking on the most important question facing PR - its relationship with democracy - and finds a balance of advantages and disadvantages which leave a residue of concern. It tackles topical issues such as: PR as a form of propaganda which flourishes in a democracy the connections between PR and journalism the media, promotions culture and persuasion. Designed to appeal to final year undergraduates, postgraduates and researchers studying public relations, media and communications studies, this book explores the most important relationship PR has – the connection with democracy – and asks what benefits or costs it brings to politics, markets and the media.

In addition to traditional management tools, government administrators require a fundamental understanding of the tools available to address the ever-changing context of government communications. Examining the ins and outs of the regulations influencing public information, The Practice of Government Public Relations unveils novel ways to integrate cutting-edge technologies—including Web 2.0 and rapidly emerging social media—to craft and maintain a positive public image. Expert practitioners with extensive government communications experience address key topics of interest and provide an up-to-date overview of best practices. They examine the specifics of government public relations and detail a hands-on approach for the planning, implementation, and evaluation of the wide-ranging aspects of government public relations—including how to respond during a crisis.In addition to the tools provided on the accompanying downloadable resources, most chapters include a Best Practice Checklist to help you successfully utilize the communication strategies outlined in the book. Focusing on the roles of government managers enacting policies adopted by elected officials and politicians, this book is ideal for program managers seeking innovative and inexpensive ways to accomplish their programs’ missions. While no manager can be an expert in all aspects of public administration, this book helps you understand the external communications tools available to advance the mission and results of your agency.

Though historians have largely overlooked Robert Horton, his public relations campaigns remain fixed in popular memory of the home front during World War II. Utilizing all media -- including the nascent technology of television -- to rally civilian support, Horton's work ranged from educational documentary shorts like Pots to Planes, which depicted the transformation of aluminum household items into aircraft, to posters employing scare tactics, such as a German soldier with large eyes staring forward with the tagline "He's Watching You." Iconic and calculated, Horton's campaigns raise important questions about the role of public relations in government agencies. When are promotional campaigns acceptable? Does war necessitate persuasive communication? What separates information from propaganda? Promoting the War Effort traces the career of Horton -- the first book-length study to do so -- and delves into the controversies surrounding federal public relations. A former reporter, Horton headed the public relations department for the U.S. Maritime Commission from 1938 to 1940. Then -- until Pearl Harbor in December 1941 -- he directed the Division of Information (DOI) in the Executive Office of the President, where he played key roles in promoting the New Deal, President Franklin D. Roosevelt's unprecedented third-term reelection campaign, and the prewar arms-production effort. After Pearl Harbor, Horton's DOI encouraged support for the war, primarily focusing on raising civilian and workforce morale. But the DOI under Horton assumed a different wartime tone than its World War I predecessor, the Committee on Public Information. Rather than whipping up prowar hysteria, Horton focused on developing campaigns for more practical purposes, such as conservation and production. In mid-1942, Roosevelt merged the Division and several other agencies into the Office of War Information. Horton stayed in government, working as the PR director for several agencies. He retired in mid-1946, during the postwar demobilization. Promoting the War Effort recovers this influential figure in American politics and contributes to the ongoing public debate about government public relations during a time when questions about how facts are disseminated -- and spun -- are of greater relevance than ever before.

Public relations and journalism have had a difficult relationship for over a century, characterised by mutual dependence and - often - mutual distrust. The two professions have vied with each other for primacy: journalists could open or close the gates, but PR had the stories, the contacts and often the budgets for extravagant campaigns. The arrival of the internet, and especially of social media, has changed much of that. These new technologies have turned the audience into players - who play an important part in making the reputation, and the brand, of everyone from heads of state to new car models vulnerable to viral tweets and social media attacks. Companies, parties and governments are seeking more protection - especially since individuals within these organisations can themselves damage, even destroy, their brand or reputation with an ill-chosen remark or an appearance of arrogance. The pressures, and the possibilities, of the digital age have given public figures and institutions both a necessity to protect themselves, and channels to promote themselves free of news media gatekeepers. Political and corporate communications professionals have become more essential, and more influential within the top echelons of business, politics and other institutions. Companies and governments can now - must now - become media themselves, putting out a message 24/7, establishing channels of their own, creating content to attract audiences and reaching out to their networks to involve them in their strategies Journalism is being brought into these new, more influential and fast growing communications strategies. And, as newspapers struggle to stay alive, journalists must adapt to a world where old barriers are being smashed and new relationships built - this time with public relations in the driving seat. The world being created is at once more protected and more transparent; the communicators are at once more influential and more fragile. This unique study illuminates a new media age.