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| Public relations practitioners involved in politics. (Source) |
Public relations and politics may sound as if they not clicking together but hey they make a good collaboration which ensures success. Public relations stands out as one of the most undermined professions in South Africa, and I think it’s all because most organisations do not have an understanding what public relations is all about. I was taught that public relations practitioners are somehow organisational journalists, watch-dogs for organisations.
Politics is one of the most controversial things you can find in the world or is maybe we seem not to get what politics is all about because of the way the media has framed the concept politics. Well politics is all about influencing the people around you through the state of organisational knowledge and I know that everyone has his or her own take of what politics means him/her when internalising the word or concept.
One of the reasons why this blog is emphasising that politics and public relations make a good collaborations is because most of our South African politicians and the government for that matter are in need of good public relations communications. Public relations is there to manage any communication risks and business opportunities internally and externally (link). It is the job of a public relations practitioner to manage communication to wide spectrum of stakeholders and to be able to manage any publicity an organisation may come across.
Public relations play a role in politics in many ways. I mean it plays a role of awareness, good media relations, good communication and all these I have mentioned is are all public relations functions that could help politics in any way. While public relations can help the voters understand the candidates more and what their mission is all about and it can help enhance the messages from the candidates to the voters. One of the breaking-point that could help politics is that public relations allows two-way communications and well I truly think it could help manage the communication between an organisation and its stakeholders a lot more better in the world of politics.
Imagine a political campaign without any publicity wow, I mean it will never work at all and that is why politics need public relations to help generate publicity, to manage and control the image and brand of the organisation through its persuasive methods of communication. Well what’s your take on this one?
i think Public Relations is the future, for the sucess of an organisation you need stakeholders and to keep those stakeholders happy you need to build relationships with them, which is also done by PRP....PR is the foundation af all successful organisations
ReplyDeleteOf course PR is the future every organisation needs public relations to be their eyes and ears because its is all about understand your target audience.
DeleteWell, public relations is an important tool to have in any organisation. I think, as you mentioned that many organisations do not understand public relations, therefore having knowledge about it can really help a company.
ReplyDeleteAwareness campaigns should be done to help people and organisations understand what PR and communication is all about, thus it is the fundamental to a good working relationship within an organisation and with the stakeholders at large.
Deleteit is very suprirsing that tthere are still companies out there who still do not see the importance of PRPs. each and every company cannot really survive without a good PR department and i agree with you when you say PRPs are the watchdogs
ReplyDeleteYes it is very much indeed, Imean public relations has been around for a very long time but they lack the knowledge to put public relations on it's own and not under a marketing department.
DeleteYou raised a valid point in saying that our politicians and the government really need to re-look their PR representatives as they are not doing a good job at the moment. The governments name is being dragged through the mud and nothing has being done about that,I think if the government were to incorporate good public relations into their communication system, things will be better and maybe the public will start viewing the positive side of the state and the media might start framing the government in a positive manner.
ReplyDeleteYes especially our South African governement and political groups. Public relations makes things in an organisation more linked because public relations practitioners are ones who know and understand how to relate with outside world better than any other form of department in an organisation. If our governement can employ good PR then it will go far in terms of relating to with the public at large.
Deletei never linked PR with Politics but after reading this blog, i must say that the two professions be connected...good blog
ReplyDeleteThank you very much. The two have a very strong link if just corroborate them and get to an understanding of what the two mean. Politics is all about people and everything that is happening within your context and so is public realtions, remember in PR publi opinion matters the most and so is politics. The two have so many things that you can link to as one.
DeleteIt is sad how organisations undermine the importance of public relations. No wonder most organisations fail to handle issues that bring a bad reputation to their image especially the government and some of the issues could be dealt with. It is important to have good public relations within an organisation.
ReplyDeleteExactly, if people and organisations knew and understood the importance of public relation then probably so many things regarding public opinion, management of information could have been avoided a very long time ago. But this goes with also employing very good PR, who know and understand what the profession entails.
DeleteAlmost any organisation need Public Relations to function well, PR understand organisations needs so with politic will be a great collaboration as politics are all over the media with PR it will get enough assistance to get things well done.
ReplyDeleteYes not almost every organisations needs PR. For the politic it will help push positive messages and sustain the brand image of different public figures and they are their own brands.
DeleteI agree with cresentia organisations undermine public relations and the things it could do to their organisation. No wonder many organisation fail to handle or deal with situation on their companies. I think the sooner organisations out there start taking public relations seriously the sooner they could be able to manage situations related to their companies
ReplyDeleteYes but the sooner the better that should change before images start getting deteriorated for the worst.
DeletePublic relations goes with most of what we do and I think organisations are starting to see the importance of it. we'll benefit as PR students from the way I see it.
ReplyDeleteYes, you could be having a valid point but I last heard one staudent who said that she was put into a marketing department whe staring her intern and she only knew little about marketing and that is IMC.
Deletewell public relation is one of the most important role to a sucessful organisation without it you company will not survive i think companies should adopt to it so they can be an effective organisaion
ReplyDeleteIndeed public relations brings people together from all genres so it is all about acquiring the necesaary information about what under-lies PR and ho it would help organisations to survive un this ever-changing world.
DeletePublic Relations made politics what it is today and with out it, many people would be in the dark with a lot of issues.
ReplyDeleteBut why are they still over looking public relations as a profession and putting under the same umbrella as marketing? I think thers is still a lot of work to be done so as to help politics within this context of South Africa as public relations.
DeleteObama used PR to good effect in his quest for presidency; each an every state had a interactive media handle your Facebook & Blogs etc. and he put people with a communication background of some sort to oversee the running of the handles.
ReplyDeleteYes I agree with you has knows just how much PR can get him far as a president and it is because PR is not undermined in the overseas countries and they they emploty very good PR to get them ahead of their brand names.Social media can get you far if you know how to use it.
Deletedont you worry about the thin line that politics walks on in terms of corruption and moral misbehaviour as compared to public relations
ReplyDeleteYes that is why politics need to have public relations to help sustain good ethical behaviour. Public relations is there to shape people and organisation into a positive light.
Deleteyes it is true,PRPs are the watch-dogs for organisations as they have an activity to know what the public,Shareholders,Clients are saying about their company.politics are always framed and most cases its framed in a negative way because of the way in which the political leaders are acting towards the public.
ReplyDeleteThat's what it's all about to become the watch-dogs of the organisation, to keep a close look on smooth going of the organisations communication. Thus public relations is all about leading people to the right directions and that is something that can help our politians in South Africa and the whole world only if they realise that PR is essential at all times.
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