Public
relations for DaimlerChrysler
What
public relations does
How
public relations helps management
What is public relations?
The
formal practice of what today is called public relations is less than 100 years
old. Yet during its relatively brief history, public relations has been defined
in widely differing ways. Not unsurprisingly, the earliest definitions
emphasized the roles of press agents and publicity since these were major
elements from which modem public relations grew.
Later
as public relations was recognized and employed by more organizations,
definitions began to include:
·
the need
for research prior to initiating actions, careful planning and thorough
evaluation or measurement of results.
·
a
continuing, systematic process instead of a one-time or single activity.
·
multiple
audiences or publics.
·
its role as
an essential function of management.
·
public
participation, mediation, conciliation, arbitration and accommodation as
important tools.
·
the need,
in most instances, for long-term commitment.
Many of
these definitions were lengthy, so they tended more to describe what public
relations does than what it is. In 1988, in an attempt to solve this dilemma
the governing body of the Public Relations Society of America formally adopted
a definition of public relations which has become most accepted and widely
used: "Public relations helps an organization and its publics adapt
mutually to each other." In this definition, the essential functions of
research, planning, communications dialogue and evaluation are implied. Key
words are "organization" rather than the limiting implication of
"company" or "business", and "publics" which
recognizes that all organizations have multiple publics from which they must
earn consent and support.