Posted on PR Sphere PRoust Questionnaire

PRoust Questionnaire: Richard Bailey

Richard Bailey MCIPR experienced public relations educator (university and professional qualifications) and a former business journalist and PR manager/consultant. The PRoust Questionnaire provides a quick insight into a public relations practitioner’s interests and point of view, as well as their professional beliefs and values. If you are not familiar with the original 19th-century Proust Questionnaire, please see details at the end of this post. 1. What is your most striking characteristic as a PR practitioner?...

Posted on PR Nexus

Public relations and the public interest: a matter of opinion

Recently the phrase “public interest” started an offline debate between two PR Conversations stalwarts, Toni Muzi Falconi and Heather Yaxley. This blog exists to encourage discourse about public relations and its role from a variety of perspectives, although normally, conversations are stimulated by a post, and then move into the comments section or onto Twitter. This time, we start with a private conversation, and invite you to expand the discussion further with your own comments....

Posted on PR Axis

PR rules not OK

For an occupation that depends on freedom of expression to operate, it seems there are many who relish nothing more than imposing rules on the practice – and even the conceptualisation – of public relations. First we have calls for a licence to operate, regulation, accreditation or registration of practitioners.  Even if you voluntarily join a professional body, there are codes of practice, guidelines, “best practice” mandates and a host of other prescriptive instructions on...

Posted on PR Mediums

A private viewing inside the Museum of Public Relations

Guest interview by Toni Muzi Falconi with founder of the fascinating non-profit venture, the Museum of Public Relations (http://www.prmuseum.com) Shelley Spector. 1. Why did you decide to establish the PR museum? I had toyed with the idea for some time, but the impetus to set it up was getting to know Eddie Bernays, who offered his full endorsement and sponsorship of the project. We met in the late eighties when we were both lecturing at...

Posted on PR Techster

There’s no such thing as online or digital PR anymore…

That seems to be the message from Philip Young who, with David Phillips, is editing a special edition of the online journal, PRism on the topic: Beyond Online Public Relations (to be published early in 2012). Philip claims that “Today ALL PR is Online PR” and is interested in papers that support or challenge the view that it is no longer meaningful to discuss ‘online PR’ (abstracts of up to 500 words to be emailed...

Posted on PR Vision

Looking backwards to move forward in PR

The world’s eyes were on the British Royal Wedding on Friday with a million people on the streets of London, two billion watching live with 24:7 television coverage, tens of thousands engaged through social media or catching up via on demand after the event.  This was a world event where the opportunity for public relations was evident at every turn – not least to showcase British pageantry, with a contemporary twist. Perhaps the sight of...

Posted on PR Nexus

Future leaders need more than digital PR

Everywhere you look, those starting out on a career in public relations are urged to focus on developing skills in digital PR.  But as such competencies shortly will be little more than a commodity possessed by most young graduates and practitioners in the field (as well as many with years of experience), future leaders will need much more than an ability to craft a Tweet or build a network of Facebook friends. Looking at the...

Posted on PR Sphere PRoust Questionnaire

PRoust Questionnaire: Nelly Benova

The PRoust Questionnaire provides a quick insight into a public relations practitioner’s interests and point of view, as well as their professional beliefs and values. If you are not familiar with the original 19th-century Proust Questionnaire, please see details at the end of this post. 1. What is your most striking characteristic as a PR practitioner? Being able to gather the real picture of the situation even when the facts tell me the opposite. 2....

Posted on PR Motion

PR – it's a woman's world

It is nearly 25 years since the publication of Cline’s ‘Velvet Ghetto’ study of women in public relations which responded to the increasing feminisation of the occupation.  Undeniably today, the field is one dominated by women – indeed, based on my UK experience, 90% of the students on undergraduate PR degree courses and studying for professional qualifications are female. Both professional bodies here have women in senior positions: Sally Costerton (chairman and CEO of Hill...

Posted on PR Motion

Facing up to the PR talent challenge

One of the interesting outcomes of my position on the boundary of PR academia and practice is that I’m often asked for recommendations about finding PR talent. This frequently applies to recruiting placement students (interns) or young graduate practitioners.  However, at the PR career starting point, there are many who advocate a specialist degree is not important.  For example, a study by the PRCA in 2009 found three-quarters of its PR Leaders’ panel were unimpressed...