Introduction to Public Relations

Part One
Public RelationsThe Profession
Chapter 2
A Brief History of Public Relations, Part 2
Lesson 2B

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2004 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Introduction to Public Relations

History

An Assignment Reminder

Before viewing this lecture, please read the

following material:
Public Relations: The Profession and the
Practice, Chapter 2: The History of Public
Relations

Slide 2 of 35

A Conceptual Schema for Studying Public Relations

Part 1

The Profession
Introduction

History

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

The Process

The Publics

The Practice

Research

Media
Relations

Financial

Chapter 2
falls here.
Strategic
Planning

Employee
Relations

Public
Affairs and
Government
Not-forProfit

Theory
Corporate
Law and Ethics

Action and
Communication

Community
Relations

Emerging
Trends

Evaluation

Slide 3 of 35

Consumer
Relations

Introduction to Public Relations

History

In Part OneChapter 2, Our

Focus is the History of PR
We will look at the history of Public Relations
after the industrial revolution and the changes
that have occurred in the field.

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

Todays Learning Objectives are

1.

Discover how two major forces influenced the

development of public relations in the United States
during the 1930s.

2.

Trace how PR became a respected and sophisticated

profession during the post-WWII era.

3.

Comprehend how public relations is currently

changing at the start of the 21st century.

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

Events That Reinforced the Idea of

Mutual Influence

Two mid-20th century events significantly

shaped the American culture.

The Great Depression

World War II

Those events also influenced the development of

public relations as an agent of mutual influence.
How did the Depression affect public relations?
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Introduction to Public Relations

History

The End of Corporate Americas Era of

Success

The Great Depression (1929-1939) witnessed thousands

of bankruptcies and the vanishing of great wealth.

Business was viewed as a failed

institution, unable to sustain
prosperity.

Corporate public relations

became less negative and
more of a positive and
continuous program to rebuild
confidence.

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After the Wall Street crash of 1929, the Dow

Jones did not recover its lost stock points until
the mid-1950s.

Introduction to Public Relations

History

The Depression Brought Compassion

Workers looking for work in the

Great Depression. Click the
image to see what life was like
in the 1930s.
Photo 2001 Britannica.com Inc

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Public relations people began to

emphasize a new approach to their
publicsone of seeking mutual
influence through understanding
(Stage 3).

They sought to understand the

desperate needs of their publics.

They facilitated acts of

compassion on the part of their
clients.

Introduction to Public Relations

History

The Prestige of the Populace

Increased

The flow of capital and production evaporated after the market

crash of 1929.

The need for an informed public became more vital as government,

business and labor competed for public support for the use of limited
resources.

Persuasion and publicity could be effective only when they

were coupled with responsible performance.

The practitioner was called upon to help organizations pursue

responsible performance to increase public respect.
War gave PR a permanent place in government

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

Military Adopted Public Relations

in World War II (1939-1945)

The deteriorating military and political situation in

Europe caused the military to increase its practice of
public relations in the 1930s.

Each branch of the service built its own public relations

apparatus to promote its particular form of warfare.

The Army's PR efforts employed 3,000 military and civilian

personnel.
How Hitler captured public relations

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Hitlers Nazi Party Became

Masters of Public Relations
The greatest application of public
relations techniques in the 1930s occurred
in Germany.
Click
Clickhere
heretotoread
read
The Nazi propaganda machine under
Joseph Goebbels viciously used press
agentry.
The Nazis demonstrated both the dangers and
the effectiveness of propaganda.

Slide 11 of 35

about
aboutthe
theAmericanAmericanborn
bornAxis
AxisSally.
Sally.She
She
made
propaganda
made propaganda
broadcasts
broadcastsfor
forRadio
Radio
Berlin
in
Berlin in
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Germany.

Introduction to Public Relations

History

US Office of War Information

Mobilized a Nation

In June 1942, with America fully engaged in the

war, the Office of War Information (OWI) was
established under Elmer Davis.

A massive public relations effort was mounted to

rally the home front.

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

OWI Developed a Broad PR Campaign

The goal of the Office of War Information was

to implement massive mobilization strategies:

selling war bonds

rationing food, clothing, and gasoline
planting victory gardens
recruiting military personnel
promoting factory productivity and efficiency
Read these posters through
the eyes of a soldiers wife

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Images that Mobilized a Nation at War

These posters were printed for the Office of War Information and retrieved from the
National Archives and Records Administration web site at http://www.archives.gov.
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Introduction to Public Relations

History

Influx of PR Practitioners after WWII

Click on the picture to hear about PR after WWII.

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

The Legacy of the OWI

Remains Today

Several important communication agencies that are still active

today trace their beginnings to OWI:

United States Information Agency (USIA)

The Voice of America radio network

The first broadcast (1942) of the VOA was in German, intended

to counter Nazi propaganda. By 1945 the VOA was
broadcasting in 40 languages weekly.

The Advertising Council

In war the foundation was laid for sophistication of
public relations in business.

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

Post World War II Era Saw

Increased Sophistication

The post war era witnessed tremendous growth of public

relations as a sophisticated profession.

Practitioners such as Earl Newsom with Standard Oil (1945) were

increasingly invited to participate in policy decision making.

During this period, new emphasis was placed on public relations

functions (other than marketing) and on more sophisticated PR tools
(e.g., audience analysis).

Carl Byoir used public relations techniques to raise money nationally

to help polio victims and to find a cure for the crippling disease.
A place in the university

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

Development in Education and Ethics for

Public Relations

Boston University established the first school of

public relations (1947).

Two years later, one hundred colleges and

universities offered classes in the subject.

In 1954, the Public Relations Society of America

(PRSA) developed the first code of ethics for the
profession.

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The society set up a grievance board for code

enforcement in 1962 and a program of voluntary
accreditation in 1964.

Introduction to Public Relations

History

Moss Kendrix Changed Perceptions

about African-Americans

Moss Kendrix (1917-1989) was a public

relations pioneer in transforming racial
stereotyping.

Kendrix used advertising to influence

how Americans viewed black citizens.

American icons such as Carnation, the

Ford Motor Company, and the Coca-Cola,
employed Kendrix to create campaigns
that targeted the black community.
Click on the image to read about
Kendrixs amazing legacy. Photo
from www.prmuseum.com.
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Introduction to Public Relations

History

Increased Role of Government in

Organizational Life
Business/government relations became increasingly
important as the federal government entered a new era
of regulation.
Such regulations came in part because
of several issues in the 1970s-80s:

civil rights and equal opportunity

environmentalism
consumerism
urban problems
nuclear power

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March 1965 civil rights march travels 54

miles in Alabama regarding voting rights.
Photo taken from www.msnbc.com.

Introduction to Public Relations

History

The Present and Future Developments

Profound Current Changes in Public Relations

From external counselor to

internal team member

From marketing to
management

From illegitimacy to
legitimacy

From program to process

From U.S. profession to global

profession

From manipulation to
adaptation

From craftsperson to manager

From items to issues

From output to input
From firefighters to fire
preventers

Lets briefly define each of these changes

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

From Manipulation to Adaptation

Organizations continue to rely on practitioners
not to manipulate public opinion but to help the
organization adapt to it.
Organizations realize that differing needs and
interests of relevant publics serve as legitimate and
interactive forces on company goals.

This transition leads to successful two-way

communication based on willful acceptance and
mutual benefit.
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Introduction to Public Relations

History

From External Counselor to Internal

Team Member
The practice of using outside hired guns for crisis
management evolves into the practitioner participating on
the policy/decision-making team.

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Leaders understand that

interpreting and applying insights
from public opinion require
specialized knowledge and skills
possessed by the PR practitioner.

Organizational decision making

begins with a wiser foundation
that increases company prestige
and helps avoids crises.

Introduction to Public Relations

History

From Marketing to Management

Public relations has evolved from an arm of the sales
effort to a management function.
This allows the integrated marketing strategy of using
feedback from relevant publics to drive business adaptation.

The prime responsibility of public relations becomes

providing the information and environment in which
management can function most effectively.
PR contribution to the marketing effort as a staff function
moves down a notch in priorities.

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

From Program to Process

Now it is recognized that public relations functions must
seamlessly integrate into the continuing task of how
business is done.
Producing isolated PR projects can help but will never allow
the organization to realize the potential impact of healthy
public relations.

Programs may accomplish specific goals, but the public

relations work is never completely finished as it pursues
an integrated process of:
1. Research 3. Action
2. Planning 4. Evaluation
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Introduction to Public Relations

History

From Craftsman to Manager

The specialist is now seen as an important part
of the internal management team, not just a
communications technician.
Communication skills (writing, speaking, editing,
and media) are still vital but must be a part of a
larger role.

Overall strategic integration of tasks into

corporate policy is a necessary part of the public
relations management function.
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Introduction to Public Relations

History

From Items to Issues

Issues management is the identification of key issues
confronting organizations and the management of
responses to them.
Successful issues management requires ongoing monitoring
of external and internal environments in order to evaluate
their impact upon organizational goals and objections.

Instead of being given a list of media jobs, the

practitioner now submits to management a list of
sensitive issues vital to organizational success.

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

From Output to Input

Public relations as a management function gives

input to the organization from its contact with
external publics.

This change reaffirms the need for effective twoway communication and influence with publics.

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

From Firefighting to Fire Prevention

Effective public relations does not

exist merely to clean up messes
once they are made, but seeks to
avoid such dilemmas.

A proactive approach anticipates

and acts upon potential problems
before they become actual crises
for the organization.
This role is greatly enhanced
through use of the four-step PR
process.

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

From Illegitimacy to Legitimacy

Because of the effective efforts of pioneers like

Bernays, public relations representatives are
generally no longer viewed with suspicion.

Practitioners now have professional status and

accepted standards for ethical behavior through
organizations like PRSA (Public Relations
Society of America) and IABC (International
Association of Business Communicators).

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

From U.S. Profession to Global

Profession
Borders are no longer barriers as markets and
media operate worldwide 24-hours a day.
Cultural, language, and legal differences make
global public relations more difficult, but rapidly
evolving communication technology has made
these barriers less of a factor.

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

Review of Principles from the

Second Millennium
From the second millennium lesson, we realized that
1. Historical leaders influenced their worlds through timely mixtures of
passion and words.
2. Even powerful people cannot ignore the opinion of the public.
3. Democracy is dependent on a strong, opinionated public.
4. An intentional and sustained campaign to broadly influence the public
can be very effective.
5. Publishing ones successes affects indifferent public opinion.
6. A wide distribution of rational appeal to the publics values influences
their thinking and behavior.
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Introduction to Public Relations

History

Review of Principles from the

Industrial Revolution
The public relations profession was born in the industrial age
through dynamic changes in American life.

Organizations must accept the need to deal with public opinion.

PR professionals help organizations avoid costly expressions of public

discontent in an age of fierce competition for public support.

In a media-strong democracy, the public can powerfully express its

opinion.

Public relations evolved through three stages:

Manipulation through press agentry

Cooperation through open information
Mutual influence through understanding

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

Review of Principles Since 1930

The Depression-War era led public relations to value

mutual influence and develop massive, sophisticated
strategies to communicate with and influence the public.

Public relations became a respected, sophisticated and

expanded profession during the post-WWII era, largely
through governmental and public influence.

Currently public relations is evolving as a force for

adaptation to public concerns on vital issues.

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Introduction to Public Relations

History

In Summary
Since its inception, Public Relations had
undergone several changes. These changes were
usually brought about by changes in the
environment in which people lived. Practitioners
must be aware of the history of PR and anticipate
changes in the present and future of Public
Relations.

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