Public Relations vs. Journalism
Understanding the differences in PR and a journalistic approach in writing
Two types of communication, two different approaches in writing.
To begin, I will start with public relations. Public relations is defined as,
“… a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics.”
PR is notably used as a way of keeping a good reputation alive. PR is meant to take a negative situation and clear the air with a positive spin. That is typically how it has been perceived in the media world.
Journalism on the other hand is not always so positive. Journalism is defined as,
“…the activity of gathering, assessing, creating, and presenting news and information. It is also the product of these activities.”
Journalism, unlike PR, does not have to cover news in a positive manner. Journalism has the capability to cover from all different kinds of angles and can present more than one opinion on the matter. There is no limitations to what they can cover or discuss in their writings.
There has been a long debate between the similarities and differences of PR professionals and journalists. In reality they are not only fairly similar but, they need each other. Both professions feed off of each other and what they publish.
They are similar in their end goal. PR is there to persuade you think differently and truly change your feelings towards an issue. Journalist want you to understand their writing and the point that is trying to be made.
In the grand scheme of things, both communication outlets want people to hear what they have to say and have a reaction whether it be positive or negative. With that being said, they are still two different professions that each deserve their own recognition.
One of the main differences between PR and journalism is how they spread their news. Journalism is typically only distributed through one medium, while PR can be spread across several different mediums.
PR professionals have the ability to reach a significantly larger number of people than a journalist does through different content. This could be part of the problem that stems between the two professions. Journalists are giving the hard hitting facts whereas PR representations are only giving one side, typically the positive one.
It is of no surprise that the two professions have disagreements when it comes to their techniques used. Journalists write about what PR representatives don’t want you to know. Public relations is there to cover up the mishaps of a business or individual and make it seem less significant.
This happens all the time in terms of small or large businesses, people in the public eye and even to educational institutions. PR will protect said groups, while journalist will dig deeper and find out exactly what happened.
While both professions have their differences and similarities, they are both very important in the communication field. They both serve their purposes well and they strive to present the news to the public.
In addition, I am adding this link below because I found it to be very interesting and provide an entirely different perspective on the relationship between journalism and public relations. It provides a different outlook and goes against a lot of what was said in all other articles.