So what exactly is Public Relations?

 

Oftentimes when I tell people I am graduating with a B.A. in Public Relations they ask me, ‘So what EXACTLY is public relations?’

I’m definitely not the only public relations professional who has to answer this question on a regular, if not daily, basis. I think it comes down to how new the industry is and the fact that people don’t know what we do besides the fact that some of us are called ‘spin doctors’ (not a proud moment for any pr professional). Wikipedia defines public relations as “the practice of managing the spread of information between an individual or an organization and the public.” This is a great, back-to-the-basics overview of what we do.

‘Managing information can be a variety of tasks. Reputation management, crisis management, information dissemination, strategic planning, event planning, program managing, etc. the list could go on and on. There are so many different facets of our job as public relations professionals sometimes it is hard for people to wrap their mind around the idea that one profession could cover so many areas of corporate and nonprofit communication.

Public relations specialists spend most of their time meeting with clients, working on teams to create plans for programs, events or public relations strategies. Sometimes, during a crisis or event there needs to be a pr manager on staff to field phone calls. My aunt works for FINRA, a national nonprofit law firm  that works to monitor the stock market and goes after the guys who steal our money. During the Madoff hearings, FINRA pr specialists in 5 offices around the united states were taking up to 50 phone calls from press agencies per hour. This is by no means the best part of the job but it is something that we are responsible for.

The director of the CWU Public Relations program, Cesar Garcia put the public relations field into perspective during our Corporate Public Relations class. “As public relations specialists you will act as a wall between corporations and the public. No information goes out that you don’t see, no information comes in without you analyzing it and you will be responsible for maintaining a positive reputation for your client.” Beyond that, you will be asked to plan events, manage people, be creative and take risks. It is a fast paced environment that leaves many behind in the dust.

I have a great passion for the work I do and I’m looking forward to my future and where I end up putting my experience to use. I have room for so much growth and I am 14 weeks away from jumping into the real world!