Edward Bernays, The Engineering of Consent

8/11/2019 Edward Bernays, The Engineering of Consent

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http://bul.sagepub.comNASSP Bulletin

DOI: 10.1177/0192636586070494121986; 70; 52NASSP Bulletin

Edward L. BernaysEfforts

The Engineering of Consent: An Organized Approach To PR

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The Engineering of Consent:An Organized Approach

To PR Efforts

Outlined here is an eight-step plan for achieving your publicrelations goals.Among the writers many credits is CrystallizingPublic Opinion, which-although written in 1923is still usedin journalism and public relations courses today.

BY EDWARD L. BERNAYS

EDWARD L. BERNAYS, called the "Father of

Public Relations," has provided public rela-tions counsel to Enrico Caruso, Woodrow

Wilson, andAlexander Graham Bell, among

many others.

SCHOOL PRINCIPALS play a keyrole in ensuring that this nation willremain a democracy. It is vitally

important for our democratic leaders-of whom our school principals are

among the most important-to knowhow to deal with the public, upon whom

everything in a democratic society de-pends.

Public relations is that field of appliedsocial science which deals with the rela-

tions of a unit in our society to the pub-lics upon which that unit depends. The

public schools of this country depend onthe voter and the taxpayer, upon public

opinion, andon the appointed or elected

individuals serving on school boards.The approach I have used in dealing

with public relations problems-and Ihave been in public relations work since1913-I now call the engineering ofconsent. In 1946 I wrote a piece by that

title for theAnnals of Political andSocial Science. I called it that because

the consent of the public is basic to any

successful activity. I use the word engi-neering to emphasize that an organizedapproach is essential to cope with the

myriad of other appeals the public is

subjected to.The engineering of consent is made

up of eight steps that the principal mustwork out before initiating an activity.

1. Determine your goal. You may havemany goals or one goal in mind in plan-ning your campaign. Determine yourgoal and think of it in as simple termsas, &dquo;Fifty four forty or fight,&dquo; or &dquo;Outof the trenches by Christmas,&dquo; or as theFourteen Points of Woodrow Wilson.

2. Research your publics. Your re-

search may be conducted by an organi-


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zation engaged by you for the purpose.Or, you can do the research yourself.You can get a book at any good li-

brary on how to conduct polls to deter-mine public attitudes. After you havedone the reading you can make yourdecision on the type of research to use.

You might involve sociology students in

making telephone polls to the audiencein question. Polls may also be made on a

sampling basis by letter or by personalvisits, either on a fair sampling of the

publics in question, or to group leaderswho know their publics, or even to opin-ion molders who know the publics in

question.These polls will give you a clear pic-

ture of the three activities you will be

able to carry out after you have made the

polls. You can intensify favorable atti-

tudes, you can convert people to yourgoal, and you can negate negative atti-tudes.

You can use authorities to bring about

changes of attitude. You can use reasonwith individuals and groups who will

accept reason. You can use persuasionwith those who will respond to that ap-proach, and you can use tradition withthose who will respond to tradition in

the formulation of their opinions.3. Modify your goal if necessary. If

your research discloses that it is impos-sible to reach your goal, you may mod-

ify it to meet the realities the polls haverevealed.

4. Plan your strategy. I use this term in

the sense used by military strategists-with what strengths and timing you will

proceed toward your goals. I call theelements you have to deal with in de-

termining strategies the four Ms. Theyare mindpower, manpower, mechanics,and

money.The heart of the

problemlies in determining the proportions in

which you will need to use your re-

sources.

5. Establish your organization. The or-

ganization you will need to carry out

your campaign will depend on howbroad your objectives are. Your school

public relations professional can do a

great deal of the work. But if you are

dealing with a vital broad problem thattakes more time and effort than one or

two people can handle, they will needreinforcements. Such resources need not

be expensive, however. Often you canfind volunteers or in-kind support

among those who sympathize with yourefforts.

6. Identify themes and appeals. Yourresearch should have shown you what

themes and appeals to use to influence

your

public.A good

psychologybook

will give you all kinds of appeals to use.A very effective approach is to givesupporters the moral equivalent of im-

mortality. Place their names on a plaqueat the entrance to the school and have a

ceremony at which you unveil the

plaque to the public. Be sure to invitethe local

pressand radio and TV stations

in your locality. Or, use the symposiumtechnique. Ask opinion leaders for50-word statements of support for your

project, and release the statements to themedia.

7. Determine timing and plan tactics.

Support for your goal can be developed

througha series of acts that build

publicsupport and lead to a final culminatingevent.

Or, the tactics could consist of a con-

tinuing effort of teaching the publicconcerned. This can then be dramatized

at the end of a campaign by an overtaction such as a luncheon or dinner,

with participation bynames that

makenews or letters or telegrams from news-


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worthy individuals in support of theissue.

Any good text on public relations will

provide additional ideas.

8. Create a budget. For most projectsof the kind discussed no great amounts

of money are needed. The polling or

opinion appraisals can be made by the

originating institution.Advice can oftenbe obtained from a public opinion expertbecause of the public interest involved.

Or, a

professorof

public opinionat a

nearby university can be invited to as-sist.

Additional expenditures are minimal,

except for postage, duplicating, and, ofcourse, the salary of the public relations

professional now on the staff of mostschool systems throughout the country.The returns from such a plan as I have

outlined often surprise those who havebeen invited to initiate them, and often

they accomplish what could not havebeen accomplished in any other way.

Whats Wrong with Our Schools?

The publics attitudes about what is wrong withAmerican schools have changeddramatically in several areas during the past four years, according to the Gallup Poll.

For example, in 1981, approximately 15 percent of those responding indicatedthat drugs are a major problem. In 1986, almost 30 percent cited it as one of theirbiggest concerns.

In 1982, lack of proper financial support was a problem cited by almost 25percent of the respondents. That concern dropped during the next three years, withapproximately 10 percent citing it as a problem in 1985 and 15 percent in 1986.

As an indication of the times, almost 15 percent of the respondents said that

integration/busing was a problem in 1981, while less than 4 percent cited it as a

problem in 1986.


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Edward Bernays, The Engineering of Consent

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