“Traditional PR is dead” is a claim that has circulated in our profession for years. In this article, originally published in June 2018, Charise considered what that argument could teach us about trust, purpose and the future of communications.
Former Edelman executive Robert Phillips made the case in his book Trust Me, PR Is Dead. His criticism was that the profession had not adapted quickly enough to changes in data and declining public trust. He argued for a move from public relations towards public leadership.
A brief look at PR’s past
The original article looked back at Edward Bernays, an influential figure in the development of modern public relations. Drawing on ideas associated with his uncle, Sigmund Freud, he helped businesses use communication to influence public attitudes and consumer behaviour.
That history raises questions about the relationship between corporate interests and the people receiving a message. Are audiences simply targets to persuade, or participants whose concerns should shape the organisation’s decisions?
The documentary The Century of the Self explored Bernays’s ideas and their wider influence. It offered one starting point for thinking about how the profession arrived at this debate.
From corporate thinking to public leadership
Phillips’s argument placed greater emphasis on the common good, with trust, authenticity, engagement and transparency as important principles. In this view, public leadership was not automatically opposed to profit. It asked organisations to think seriously about their purpose and the value they created.
A credible purpose cannot simply be added after the business has made its decisions. It needs to come from the organisation’s identity and be reflected in what it does. There is an obvious communications risk when a company’s claims about responsibility or sustainability are not matched by its behaviour.
The article discussed Triodos Bank as an example of an organisation associated with a wider social purpose. The useful question for other businesses is not how to copy another brand’s message, but how to explain their own contribution credibly.
Our article on turning brand beliefs into action explores the same connection between purpose and behaviour.
PR needs to adapt
Phillips raised important points, but I did not agree that they meant PR would disappear. The profession could acknowledge its weaknesses without accepting its own obituary.
In 2018, the growing role of data and artificial intelligence was already prompting questions about the work of a PR consultant. Marketing had experienced significant changes, and communications teams also needed to understand how new tools and information could affect their decisions.
The challenge was to keep learning and respond to developments quickly enough. A technology PR agency needs to understand the subjects it communicates about as well as the changing ways people find and assess information.
From news value to added value
My conclusion was that the future of PR should involve more than creating a news angle. It should also mean creating value: helping an organisation understand its audiences, communicate honestly and build relationships that have a reason to last.
Headlines can be useful, but they do not replace substance. The communication needs to connect with something the business actually does and something that matters to the people it wants to reach.
For a practical perspective, see our five communication tips for earning attention. To discuss what added value could mean for your organisation, contact our team in Amsterdam or Antwerp.
Charise
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