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Chapter – 4

Public Relation Practices of Print and Electronic Media

4.1 Introduction

India, as is well known, is a nation of diverse and divergent cultures and sub-

cultures, languages and dialects that run into several hundreds, varied religions and

faiths. An ancient country with civilisation some 4,000-year-old, India, now a land of

teeming millions, is abounding with challenging themes and problems of

development. The 640 million people are waiting for a revolution in all aspects of

human endeavour, a rich field for mass media to exert the influence and cast their

impact.

It is unfortunate that prior to 1947, when India formed a part of the British

rulers acted only in those directions which either aided in extending their influence or

perpetuating their power.

With the consequences that no consistent attitudes or patterns of behaviour

could be formed or inculcated among the masses. Newspapers were not permitted

freedom of writing, radio was under the control of the government, television had not

even been conceived, although Britain had a well-established television radio

networks at home, black and white cinema was unaware of developments in colour

techniques in the west and other media of mass communication did not progress in

any systematic, planned direction to assist the country in any way.

The advent of independence in August 1947 removed the shackles of the

colonial era and a new horizon breathed in all aspects of the country's life. The media

of mass communication also rose to the occasion. There was a tremendous progress in

the fields of print and the broadcast media, the rate of literacy rose, more cinemas

came into being, more and more people came in contact with one another in the

countryside and the urban areas. The impact of the wide world was beginning to be

felt at large.

This chapter discusses the theoretical aspects of public relation practices of

print and electronic media. The chapter is divided into following sections –

1. Print Media in India

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2. Electronic Media in India

3. Public Relation Practices in Print & Electronic Media

These aspects are discussed in this chapter.

4.2 Print Media in India Indian print media is one of the largest print media in the world. The history of

it started in 1780, with the publication of the Bengal Gazette from Calcutta. James

Augustus Hickey is considered as the "father of Indian press" as he started the first

Indian newspaper from Calcutta, the Calcutta General Advertise or the Bengal

Gazette in January, 1780. In 1789, the first newspaper from Bombay, the Bombay

Herald appeared, followed by the Bombay Courier next year this newspaper was later

amalgamated with the Times of India in 1861.1

Even though the age of electronic media has started; printed information is and

remains omnipresent. The market for print products offers more variety than ever

before. Usually, printed products are categorised into commercial printing and

periodicals. This classification differentiates printed matter with regard to its

frequency of publication. Since the production process also depends largely on these

basic conditions, printshops usually specialise in one or the other market segment.

Commercial printing refers to print products that are produced occasionally

Periodicals are printed matter that appears periodically. Publishing houses and

companies are the typical clients for periodicals printing.

New techniques to store and communicate textual information have emerged,

and these techniques will affect libraries. But none of the new techniques seems likely

to replace the printed, page as the primary carrier of knowledge and literate

entertainment, at least not within the next few decades. New techniques may

substantially reduce the use of printed books for large and specialised reference

works, but that seems to be the only area where the printed page is in serious

jeopardy.

The printed book developed its independent appearance over time. The form

of the type used moved away from imitated script types to its own type forms. The

number of new book titles produced has grown continually since Gutenberg's

invention. Even today, in the age of electronic media, annual growth rates in book

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production are still recorded. With close to eighty thousand titles produced annually,

Germany is one of the biggest markets for books in the world today. 2

Books have four things in common: some form of press, that may or may not

involve mechanical pressure, is used to transfer some form of ink, that may or may

not be liquid, onto some form of paper or other flat, thin surface, following some

intentional pattern that can be replicated many times. Beyond that basic description,

technologies used in printing have varied quite extensively throughout the history of

the book, and show greater variation today than ever before. New printing techniques,

new inks, and new methods of creating printing masters supplement older methods

but almost never completely replace them.

Newspapers

James Augustus Hickey is considered as the "father of Indian press" as he

started the first Indian newspaper from Calcutta, the Calcutta General Advertise or

the Bengal Gazette in January, 1780. In 1789, the first newspaper from Bombay, the

Bombay Herald appeared, followed by the Bombay Courier next year. 3

The first newspaper in an Indian language was the Samachar Darpan in

Bengali. The first issue of this daily was published from the Serampore Mission Press

on May 23, 1818. In the same year, Ganga Kishore Bhattacharya started publishing

another newspaper in Bengali, the Bengal Gazetti,. On July 1,1822 the first Gujarati

newspaper the Bombay Samachar wa& published from Bombay, which is still extant.

The first Hindi newspaper, the Samachar Sudha Varshan began in 1854. Since then,

the prominent Indian languages in which papers have grown over the years are Hindi,

Marathi, Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu and Bengali. The Indian

language papers have taken over the English press as per the latest NRS survey of

newspapers. The main reasons being the marketing strategy followed by the regional

papers, beginning with Eenadu, a telegu daily started by Ramoji Rao. The second

reason being the growing literacy rate. Increase in the literacy rate has direct positive

effect on the rise of circulation of the regional papers. The people are first educated in

their mother tongue as per their state in which they live for e.g. students in

Maharashtra are compulsory taught Marathi language and hence they are educated in

their state language and the first thing a literate person does is read papers and gain

knowledge and hence higher literacy rate in a state the sales of the dominating

regional paper in that state rises. The next reason being localisation of news. Indian

regional papers have several editions for a particular State for complete localisation of

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news for the Teader to connect with the paper. Malayala Manorama has about 10

editions in Kerala itself and six others outside Kerala. Thus regional papers aim at

providing localised news for their readers. Even Advertisers saw the huge potential of

the regional paper market, partly due to their own research and more due to the efforts

of the regional papers to make the advertisers aware of the huge market. 4

The newspaper is still one of the most significant mass media today. The first

newspapers appeared at the start of the seventeenth century. Pamphlets in the

sixteenth century were the precursor of the newspaper. Most newspapers are produced

daily and have a high circulation. Some daily papers even appear a few times per day,

to ensure that their content is very up-to-date. The two most important categories of

newspapers are daily papers and weekly papers. The external appearance of

newspapers differs considerably from that of magazines. Newspapers normally

consist of large-size loose sheets. Several of these loose sheets are combined during

production and form an individual section of the paper. A newspaper consists of

several sections/parts with varying content called "newspaper books".

In 1976, twenty-nine years after independence, India had 13,320 newspapers

in 65 languages. Of which, 10,947 or 78 per cent were started after independence. The

largest number of newspapers was in Hindi - a language spoken by about 40 percent

of the country's population, followed by English. The number in Hindi was 3,289 and

in English 2,765 next probably only to the USSR. The total circulation of all the

newspapers, though not very large as compared to the Western standards, amounted to

over 34 million copies. Weekly and other journals in the Indian and regional

languages numbered 12,445. The progress has continued unabated, despite several

hurdles of low advertising and shortage of newsprint, specially in the field of regional

and provincial languages. 5

A newspaper is a publication containing news, information, and advertising.

General-interest newspapers often feature articles on political events, crime, business,

art/entertainment, society and sports. Most traditional papers also feature an editorial

page containing columns that express the personal opinions of writers. Supplementary

sections may contain advertising, comics, and coupons. Features in a newspaper

include editorial opinions, criticism, persuasion, entertainment and op-eds; obituaries;

comic strips and other entertainment, such as crosswords, sudoku and horoscopes;

weather news and forecasts; advice, gossip, food, and other columns; critical reviews

of movies, plays, restaurants, etc.; classified ads and display ads.

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Daily Newspaper

A daily newspaper is issued every day, sometimes with the exception of

Sundays and some national holidays. Saturday and, where they exist, Sunday editions

of daily newspapers tend to be larger, include more specialized sections and

advertising inserts, and cost more. Typically, the majority of these newspapers' staff

work Monday to Friday, so the Sunday and Monday editions largely depend on

content done in advance or content that is syndicated. Most daily newspapers are

published in the morning. Afternoon or evening papers are aimed more at commuters

and office workers.

Weekly Newspaper

Weekly newspapers are common and tend to be smaller than daily papers. In

some cases, there also are newspapers that are published twice or three times a week.

In the United States, such newspapers are generally still classified as weeklies.

National Newspaper

Most nations have at least one newspaper that circulates throughout the whole

country: a national newspaper, as contrasted with a local newspaper serving a city or

region. In the United Kingdom, there are numerous national newspapers, including

The Independent, The Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Guardian, The Observer, The

Daily Mail, The Sun, The Daily Express and The Daily Mirror. In the United States

and Canada, there are few national newspapers. Almost every market has one or two

newspapers that dominate the area. Certain newspapers, notably The New York Times,

The Wall Street Journal and USA Today in the US, and The Globe and Mail and The

National Post in Canada are available throughout the country. In India, were Internet

penetration is too low as comparable to other developed countries therefore

newspaper like Times of India, The Hindu, Hindustan Times etc. are the only source

of information for rural and urban people. Large metropolitan newspapers with also

have expanded distribution networks and, with effort, can be found outside their

normal area. 6

International Newspapers

There is also a small group of newspapers which may be characterized as

international newspapers. Some, such as The International HeraldTribune, have

always had that focus, while others are repackaged national newspapers or

"international editions" of national-scale or large metropolitan newspapers. Often

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these international editions are scaled down to remove articles that might not interest

the wider range of readers.

English has become the international language of business and technology,

many newspapers formerly published only in non-English languages have also

developed English-language editions. In places as varied as Jerusalem and Bombay

(Mumbai), newspapers are printed to a local and international English-speaking

public. The advent of the Internet has also allowed the non-English newspapers to put

out a scaled-down English version to give their newspaper a global outreach.7

Magazines

Magazines are usually published by publishing houses just like books. Unlike

books, magazines usually have a shorter lifespan. This is due to the content and it is a

major characteristic of the periodical. Since magazines have a limited length of use

and differ from books greatly in terms of content, their external form also differs from

that of books. The range of magazines consists mainly of periodicals, including trade

magazines, journals, and illustrated magazines. Trade magazines cover a limited field,

thus attracting a limited specialist readership. Unlike books, production costs for

magazines are not paid for exclusively by the final consumer. Often more than half of

the costs are financed by advertising.

Magazines are generally multi-coloured booklets with a flexible cover. They

often have a high circulation and are bound using simple binding processes.

Depending on the circulation, magazines are printed with sheet-fed offset or web

offset presses, but rotogravure presses are also used for magazines with a very high

circulation.

Brochures

Brochures are commercial print work. They are often get circulated along with

newspapers and magazines. Unlike magazines and newspapers, they are not published

periodically. Another significant difference from newspapers or magazines is the

usually low print volume of brochures. Today, brochures are generally printed in

colour and are available either as folded individual sheets or bound copies. They are

of better quality than newspapers. Brochures are mainly used to describe something

particular. Brochures are mostly used for advertising; therefore production costs are

normally borne by the advertiser and not by the reader.

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Packaging

Packaging can be made of very different materials such as paper, carboard,

plastic, metal, glass and so on. Packaging is used to protect the actual goods inside,

but it also makes for an attractive presentation. Packaging is also printed on to provide

information about package content.

These are in brief the various types of print media in current usage.

4.3 Electronic Media Electronic media were developed in the twentieth century and together with

printed products became important for communicating information. This trend

continues today and is characterised particularly by the use of computers and the

internet. In addition to the latest developments in the Internet and World Wide Web,

electronic media also include the more conventional radio and television along with

the corresponding forms of storage such as video and audio recordings on CDROM

and DVDROM as well as animations.

Electronic media, as is the case with print media, also involve a chain of

creation and transmission which depends on the specific form of the media. As a rule,

the first stage in this process consists in generating the contents, for instance, for

recordings onto audio or video tape. In some cases, information is converted from one

medium to another, such as from conventional film video. In the case of web pages

though, content can also be computer-generated, thus allowing for the use of content

from both the real and the virtual worlds.8

Electronic media also include in particular interactive applications: media

which appear differently depending on user intervention. These include computer

games, interactive simulations, or virtual reality applications.

Radio

Most of the laws restriction or controlling the activities of the journalists and

writers were either withdrawn or suspended. Freedom of speech and expression

(including thereby the freedom of the press) was guaranteed by the Constitution as a

fundamental right (Article 19-A). The Constitution also granted freedom of

movement, right to profession and property and also to hold meetings and cultural

gatherings. All this added to the momentum of growth of mass media immensely.

Since the Indian Constitution racognises 16 provincial and regional languages, equal

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opportunities were available to all of them for instituting newspapers and periodicals

in their respective regions for their proliferation and development. Radio though

remained under the control of the Central Government, but several new stations were

planned to give coverage to all national and regional languages including several

dialects. 9

Started with only six broadcasting stations in 1947, All India Radio (AIR) has

also greatly extended its services and progressively created its impact on the masses.

In 1977, 155 radio stations including relay station, were functioning and these stations

were broadcasting in several foreign, national and regional languages. A regular

feedback was in existence in most languages wherein listeners could have a say in

programming and broadcasting scheduled in these languages. AIR went commercial

in 1967.

Television (TV)

Television arrived in India in 1959, though pretty late and on a rather too

restricted scale. The United Nations Educational, 'Scientific and Cultural Organisation

(UNESCO), the USA, West Germany, Yugoslavia and Japan helped India in

establishing, extending and programming of the television network in India.

In 1975, the US- loaned satellite enabled India to initiate the SITE (Satellite

Instructional Television Experiment) programme. It was the first experiment of its

kind ever made in the world. Some 3,000 villages in the six Indian states were

brought under the focus of the television programs for four hours every day. This was

the greatest achievement for the country's mass media. Although, the /- NASA

(National Aeronautics Space Administration of the USA) has now withdrawn the

satellite, the Indian Government is determined to establish the television link to the 70

per cent of the 3,000 villages to the television stations to be started in the near by

states to these villages. This is being done expeditiously with a view to keeping these

villages further exposed to the new medium the "magic box." 10

Besides the seventeen television stations set up in various towns of the country

are now covering 15 per cent of the population, as per the UNESCO figures published

in the publication entitled "World Communication."

The Indian cinema has also taken rapid strides: some 619 films in 15 Indian

regional languages were produced in 1978 and there were over 8,000 cinemas in the

country's various states.

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Online News Paper

Diario de Pernambuco, founded in 1825 is the first newspaper in all South

America. With the introduction of the Internet, Web-based "newspapers" have also

started to be produced as online-only publications. The oldest example may be The

Weekend City Press Review, set up in 1991. A weekly online newspaper released on

a subscription basis, it provides a summary of the weekend articles from 13 UK

newspapers and has a online archive back 1995, containing 60,000 indexed business

articles. Another example is a local paper called the Southport Reporter. 11

On-Line Magazines

Because so much of the expense of producing a magazine is related to paper,

postage, and circulation costs, magazine publishers have been closely following the

development of the Internet as an alternative distribution method. Not only could

magazine publishers save more than half of their operating costs by electronic

publishing, but they would be able to deliver much more timely content. However, to

date most of the experiments with subscription-based Internet magazines have not

been successful. Internet users are simply not in the habit of paying for content.

But there are exceptions. For example, there are the specialized services, such

as financial web sites, that for a price hold the promise of offering competitive

advantages by providing expert advice. 12

Impacts of Electronic Media on Print Media

There are three areas in which the computer can improve the traditional book

without compromising the look and feel of this most successful product in history.

Those areas include: the cost of publications, the storage of those publications, and

access.

Cost: Forty to 60 per cent of the price of a mass market publication goes to

distributors and retailers. Forty percent of books consigned to large bookstores are

returned unsold-to be remaindered, pulped or burned. Production costs in reference

and educational textbooks can climb as high as 18 per cent of the list price. By ending

the production process at the editing of a publication, print-run risk, returns,

distribution costs, and retail costs all fall significantly. The least expensive way to

accomplish the goal of reducing publication cost is NOT to modify the file that the

publisher has already paid to compose for print. Today that means the Postscript or

PDF format.

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Storage: To the reader, storage and portability of publications are synonymous.

Publishers and readers are sensitive to the size of a book depending on its intended

use. Readers are sensitive to the size of books within collections when those

publications must be transported for work or enjoyment. The computer offers to store

publications much more efficiently than traditional books.

For much of the history of electronic composition, limitations of storage

devices gave cause to keep publication files small. Publishers have accepted the PDF

format as their standard because it is universal, platform-independent, read only, and

the smallest file format available. The small-form storage device that has the greatest

degree of engineering standardisation and independence is the PCMCIA card. Each

storage card has its own controller on board, freeing the system electronics from

keeping up with the rapid improvements in storage technology. Current ATA Type III

cards-no larger than a stack of five credit cards, can hold up to a gigabyte of data. In

PDF file terms, a GB can hold 200 moderately illustrated college reference books, or

350 legal volumes, or approximately 2,500 600-page novels.13

Access: The physical requirement of going to a bookstore or library to read, borrow,

or buy a publication has limited the number of books read, borrowed or purchased.

Mail order and web order for publications have improved the ability of the consumer

to access publications. The limitation to access is now delivery. The limitation to

delivery is the physical nature of the book, requiring production, storage, and

transportation. Delivering the book instantaneously, across a universal communication

system, in the same format in which it was printed, from a virtually limitless

collection, obviously maximises access. Today that means the internet, touch-tone

phone lines, PDF files, and a medium that will not change the physical form of the

book.

4.4 Public Relation Practices in Print & Electronic Media A huge part of media use is for Public Relations (PR) persuasive messages

used to influence the populace's opinion of a person, organization, or product.

Corporations and other organizations often use advertising for PR, but many other

types of media are also used. For example, the US government and other groups

sometimes use the Fourth of July as a PR effort to induce patriotism.

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George Washington recruited Thomas Paine to write the Crisis Papers, which he read

to the US troops. They went on to a great victory. P.T. Barnum used PR for

huckstering. Teddy Roosevelt was the first US president to hire a press secretary.

Journalists followed his "Rough Riders." Rockefeller broke up striking miners with

gunfire. The media called it a "massacre." He hired Ivy Lee (the "Father of Public

Relations") to improve his image. 14

It was Edward Bernays who established PR as an industry, and wrote the first

PR book. He was called the "Master of Spin." When a hair net company came to

Bernays with poor sales, he helped by urging labour commissioners to require female

workers to wear hair nets in the interest of safety and hygiene. His campaign was

successful. All organizations have PR. PR is used in the military to indoctrinate

soldiers. PR activities include issuing press releases, various community work, and

media manipulation. PR workers believe that "journalists report bad news, PR men

report good news." 15

Press releases are papers written like a news article. They are sent to media outlets in

the hope of getting them turned into news stories. They may be part of a press packet,

which contains supporting material, such as a video-tape for TV news. Press

conferences are meetings of organization spokesmen with various members of the

media. The spokesmen discuss issues in the hope of getting into the news. A pseudo-

event is a staged event for PR purposes. Two important rules for PR are to break a

story right before the newscast and to never lie.

The Concept of Public Relation

Defining the domain of public relation in media management is analogous to

the larger problem of separating the study of public relations in media into a separate

domain of inquiry. As for almost any speciality area of media research, part of the

difficulty for public relations in media in particular lies in the relative youth of the

field.

Schramm16 noted a generation ago that public relations in media was not a

discipline like mathematics, but "an academic cross-road where many have passed,

but few have tarried". Since then, however, public relations in media has acquired

"the trappings of a discipline". As the study of the public relations in media has grown

— most noticeably in its diversity of journals and institutions — the domain has

widened considerably. Qualitative methodologies first developed in Europe are

probably responsible for the broadening of the public relations in media discipline.

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Assuming that defining public relations in media is possible, such an activity has been

the most common first step toward delineating its domain of inquiry.

Krippendorf17 defined public relations in media as "a process of transmission

of structure among the parts of a system which are identifiable in time and space".

This accounts for a wide range of emphases: public relations in media as messages,

public relations in media as process, and public relations in media as technical

facilities.

Krippendorf18 was concerned with what distinguishes inquiries into processes

of public relations in media from other fields. He rejected the usual disciplinary

differentiations: unique method, specific subject, and narrow purpose. Instead, he

emphasized "the theoretical commitment" to the objects observed.

Definitions are somewhat less complex for a field such as interpersonal public

relations in media or mass public relations in media. For one thing, the scope is

limited to human public relations in media.

Capella19 stated that the essential feature of interpersonal public relations in

media "is that persons influence one another's behaviour over and above that

attributed to normal baselines of actions". Mass public relations in media is similar,

but with the additional filter of the gatekeeper. More than any area of mass public

relations in media theory, the idea of the gatekeeper is best suited to research on

media managers. Some writers have indicated that the quest for a domain of inquiry

for public relations in media research is independent of a given definition of public

relations in media.

Sayre20 asserted that public relations in media is not definable.

Fisher21 guessed that if one visited any International Public relations in media

Association or Speech Public relations in media Association (SCA) convention,

tripped 10 members at random in the hall, and asked for a definition of public

relations in media, there would be 10 differing answers. Fisher summarized a diverse

range of definitions, including the transmission of symbols model and the idea of

"shared meaning". The common property is that public relations in media is a process

based on social integration. He concluded that defining public relations in media is

"incredibly simple. But understanding public relations in media is considerably more

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complex". Hence, a definition of public relations in media ensues from the

perspective employed to understand it, not the other way around.

Meaning and Definition of Public Relations

The word 'public' which is found in this book throughout refers to any group

of people who share a common interest. The employees of a company are an example

of a public—good pay, the company's stability and future, and the opportunity for

advancement are a few of the common interests of members of a company. Some

publics, such as employees, are part of an organization; these are called 'internal

public'. Such publics as those who buy the products or service of the company are

called 'external public'. The internal and external publics will differ from one kind of

organization to another.

The public from whom opinion emanates is a varied creature. It comes in

many forms and sizes and has a multitude of wants and desires. For example :

Employees always desire for more and more remuneration and other benefits; the

employers, in turn, look for corresponding production increase. The Government

always expects to collect more taxes to meet the expenditure connected with its aim of

rendering social justice ; the citizens desire the taxes to be kept down to the minimum.

The politicians desire to cling fast to the office of power until death doth retire them,

and the public which voted them to power is interested in their performance. Each of

these groups is a public of a sort, and tries to attract a distinct audience.

"Relations" is the outcome of mutual understanding derived from the process

of sharing of the "common interest". By integration of these two human dements, viz.,

"Public" and "Relations" we get "Public Relations", which has been accepted the

world over as Management function.

Public Relations furnishes means whereby we, as individuals, groups and

nations can reach out to others, extend ourselves, tell our stories, in today's complex,

complicated— but still great world. In a world that constantly grows bigger, more

streamlined, faster and more complicated, the need for self-expression becomes more

difficult to fulfill. Hence tensions and conflicts between nations, groups, classes and

economic strata arise. How we, the public relations professionals, are to go about their

duties will be quite discernible from the definition.

"Public relations is the deliberate, planned, and sustained effort to establish

and maintain mutual understanding between an organization and its publics."

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Public relation practices should be deliberate because public relations practitioners try

to make it clear that the success of their job depends on the promise that nothing

should happen by accident. Starting with a set of carefully created objectives they

must ensure that whatever they do afterwards will take them accurately and inevitably

towards those objectives.

Public relation practices should be planned because a public relations

practitioner is always in control of what is being done, nothing is left to chance ; so he

must work to a plan and on a planned basis. The thought is sufficiently vital for it to

demand the double emphasis of "deliberate" and "planned".

Public relation practices should be sustained because a public relations

practitioner is always trying to implement a thought or an idea that will remain with

the person at whom it has been aimed. The pressure must therefore be maintained.

Human memories are short. There are many things for people to try and absorb.

Sporadic attacks on their consciousness and awareness merely mean that will tend to

forget easily.

Public relation practices should be based on understanding because of the

difficulty in bridging the awful gap in any process of communication between what

the 'sender' means and what the 'receiver' thinks he means; they are not necessarily the

same.

Public relation practices should have proper organization because no man can

work in a vacuvim. Everybody works for somebody. A public relations practitioner

works for an organization—a government, business, charity or any other. To put it at

its most simple, it is his job to see that the organization is understood and appreciated.

Publics because the organization for which the public relations practitioner works

wants to be understood and appreciated by the people around it, who affect what it

does or are affected by what it does.

The most important factor in Public relation practices is mutual understanding.

Without it, the public relations man can achieve nothing. At the same time, it is a

mistake to try to learn them profession. It is best to try to find alternative words to

explain them, to make the meaning clear to the person reading or hearing the

definition. Words mean different things to different people. To an antagonist of public

relations it is easy to regard the words as baleful and sinister. A protagonist will

regard them as sharp and packed with meaning.

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The induction of public relations practice in an organization will give us the

following definition:

The management function which evahiates attitudes, identifies the policies and

procedures of an organization with the public interest, and executes a programme of

action to earn public understanding and acceptance.

Thus it can be seen that public relations is an applied social and behavioural

science in that it:

1. measures, evaluates, and interprets the attitude of various relevant publics;

2. assists management in defining objectives for increasing public

understanding and acceptance of the organization's products, plans, policies

and personnel;

3. equates these objectives with the interests, needs, and goals of the various

relevant publics, and

4. develops, executes, and evaluates a programme to earn public understanding

and acceptance.

Evolution of Public Relation Management in Print & Electronic Media

It would not be out of place here to outline the evolution of public relation

management concepts with reference to print and electronic media.

The history of ancient India shows that the kings also felt the need to have

good public relations with their public. Rulers were doing something to influence

public opinion by appointing Information Officers or PR men.

Although a formal history of PR in India is yet to be written, we can trace the

development of PR in India in the following four phases. Each phase represents

certain objective needs of the situation.

In the 8th century, Shri Adi Sankara22, the greatest religious leader, went about

from place to place, engaging himself in discussions and disputations with leaders of

different creeds and sects with his superb dialectical skill deflating false dogmas and

shattering erroneous presumptions. Sankara Bhagwan travelled throughout the length

and breadth of the subcontinent as many as four times and established five

monasteries, one each at Sringeri and Kanchipuram in the South, Dwarka in the West,

Badrinath in the North and Puri in the East.

Similarly, Swami Vivekananda23, a disciple of Sri Ramakrishna Paramhamsa,

wandered all over India, from the Himayalas to Kanyakumari, to have a firsthand

knowledge about his motherland and to offer solutions to the problems of the people.

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This pilgrimage of V-ivekananda was one of the most significant events of his life and

is of great value to public relations professionals to enlarge on "mass

communication".

What of saints like Thiagaraja, Kabir, Tulsidas, Tukaram, Pvirandara Dasa,

Dyaneswar, Pothana, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu who diffused knowledge through the

traditional media of communication in the language which the people easily

understood.

Origin of the Concept

The first actual use of the phrase 'public relations' was made by President

Thomas Jefferson in 1807. While drafting his Seventh Address' to the Congress, he

scratched out the words 'state of thought' in one place and wrote 'public relations'

instead. 24

Though it would appear that Public Relations owes its origin to President

Thomas Jefferson, history points out illuminating examples set by some whose names

have gone down its pages. They did not know it was public relations that they were

practising. They went about doing good for those who came under their purview.

These were recorded in history as an act of doing good to the people by freeing them

from oppression and the like.

The study of the origin of public relations provides a helpful insight into its

functions, its strengths and weaknesses. The history is a fascinating story. But a

comprehensive history remains to be written. Published histories have been

telescoped and oversimplified. There has been an overemphasis on novelty, and on a

few of the many colourful personalities. Even a slight probing of history will quickly

dull the sheen of novelty often given to public relations.

The power of public opinion to control human affairs has been recognized

down through the centuries. Although the phrase 'Public Opinion' was not coined until

the eighteenth century, the force of peoples' opinion was demonstrated and recognized

in ancient times. With recognition of the power of peoples' opinions, there came, in

response, practices which we now call 'public relations'. They were of a most

rudimentary sort, to be sure. Public opinion played a part in shaping events among the

early Greeks and Romans, even though the publics were small in size and number,

and channels of expression limited, and the communications crude. 25

The Greek theorists studied the importance of the public will; even though not

use specifically the term 'public relations'. The urban culture of ancient Roman

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Empire gave scope to the opinion process through certain phrases and ideas in the

political vocabulary of the Romans and in the writings the medieval period related to

modern concepts of public opinion. The Romans inscribed upon their walls the slogan

"S.P.Q.R.", "the Senate and the Roman people". Later, the Romans discovered the

expression Vox Populi, Vox Dei, 'the Voice of the people is the voice of God.'

Machiavelli held that the people must either be caressed or annihilated. 26

Efforts to communicate information to influence viewpoints or actions

likewise can be traced from the earliest civilizations. Archaeologists found a farm

bulletin in Iraq which told the farmers of 1800 B.C. how to sow their crops, how to

irrigate, how to deal with field mice, how to harvest their crops. This effort was not

like today's distribution of farm bulletins by our department of agriculture.

Much of what is known of ancient Egypt, Assyria and Persia, was recorded as

efforts to publicise and glorify the rulers of that day. There is nothing strange about it;

for, even today we come across State governments run by different political parties

vying with each other to buy one, two or even three full-page space from the media to

publicise their achievements with the 'chief ministers' pictures in the centre position!27

Public Relation Practices in Modern Times

Mahatma Gandhi28, create such implicit faith among the Indian classes as well

as the masses to join hands for achieving political independence? How could beloved

Bapu succeed in his mission of waging a bloodless "war" against the then mighty

British Empire? Bapu Xbelieved in establishing contact with those in India and

abroad. He wrote thousands and thousands of words in his "Young India" and

"Harijan"; travelled the length and breadth of India; organized many meetings; spoke

and talked tirelessly until be had reasons to believe that the country had understood

his mission and what each Indian had to do to strengthen his hands. His pattern of

public relations practice (although Bapu did not say he was practising Public

Relations) and his communication with his followers was based on the concept of

credibility. This credibility over the period of years generated "mutual understanding"

between him and his countrymen. Mutual understanding is the core of Public

Relations.

The first stage of Public Relations begins with the United States of America to

which the world owes the modern development of PR. The study of various

developments in the USA shows various stages of its gradual development. According

to Scott Cutlip, PR began in America in the 16th century when Sir Walter Raleigh

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persuaded people from various parts of America to settle in rural Virginia in

pursxiance of his land settlement policy. Then, the first organized effort was made to

win and mobilize public opinion with the American Revolution. 29

The next stage came with the American Constitution. According to Dr.

Cutlip30, the declaration of Independence is a PR document written out of respect for

the opinions of mankind. The American civil war also helped the advancement of PR

in the sense that the opposing parties were represented to the public through public

relations. According to him, PR began to develop in the 1880's because this was the

beginning of American industrialisation. Next 25 years witnessed the advancement of

PR due to the advancement in the field of communications. Also, in 1896 Presidential

candidates used PR as means to reach the masses.

In 1900, the first PR consultancy known as 'Publicity Bureau' was formed in

Boston. In 1915, Ivy Lee made his declaration on truthful recording of facts on behalf

of Pennsylvania Rail-road Company for handling the Rail-road accidents. The success

he achieved proved important in recognizing the force underlying the PR movement.31

Public Relation Practices During Prior to Independence

The period from 1929 to 1941 was marked by tremendous economic, social

and political changes in America and around the world. They were accompanied by

propaganda, publicity, and PR on a scale never known before. As a result of the

depression (1929- 33), PR activities were greatly enlarged. Business now realised the

need to explain its contributions to the entire economic system.

As the decade came to a close, Europe was already engaged in the Second

World War. In 1941, the armed force became interested in PR. People had to be

formally educated in it and PR journals were Started in 1944. The importance of PR

had developed by the fifties.32

As in many other countries, PR in India has passed through a number of

phases as the profession has developed to meet changing needs. Long before the

newspapers and other media came on the scene, great men like Shankara spread their

messages throughout the country through the traditional media of communication.

Mahatma Gandhi, the greatest communicator of our time, used prayer meetings and

"Pada Yatras" as the vehicles to convey his message. As such, public relations is not

new to India.

The first phase covers the period from the nineties of the last century to the

beginning of the Second World War when PR was not practised in a deliberate

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manner, but from a policy of philanthropy or out of sheer necessity to provide

information. The notable example in this regard is the House of Tata. Another

example of PR in India during that period is provided by the Indian Railways. 33

The Tata Iron and Steel Company went into production in 1912. From the very

beginning, the House of Tata started practising community relations by building

Jamshedpur as a model township. They paid attention to the social, cultural and

economic development of the society. The establishment of Jamshedpur township

with facilities of water, electricity and schools is an outstanding example of good

community relations.

During the First World War in order to disseminate information about the war

the Government set up the "Central Publicity Board" in 1920. Later this name was

changed to "Publicity Bureau" and it was shifted to Simla. It consisted of

representatives of Army, Air Force, Navy and foreign political departments with the

Ministry of Foreign and External Affairs. In 1921, the government established a body

called 'Central Bureau of Information' which gave information other than war

information. In 1935, this bureau was merged with the Directorate of Public

Instruction. It was changed to Directorate of Information and Broadcasting in 1939.

Then, this directorate gradvially developed. 34

When the railways came to India in the 1920's as private enterprise, it was felt

necessary to attract people to travel by trains. So, the publicity of railways was started

and primary effort was made by the G.I.P Railways. The other railway companies also

started organising PR activities by showing films and by extensively advertising in

newspapers and journals. All these developments marked the birth of PR activities in

India.

After the Second World War, PR in India entered the stage of a conscious

activity. This was in response to a number of new factors, such as the emergence of a

vocal public opinion for a total war effort. The Indian public was in general, against

the war. A Department of Information and Broadcasting was created to carry on

systematic campaigns for such measures as recruitment of defence forces, price

control and rationing of foodgrains. The Department comprised a number of units

such as the War Purposes Exhibition Unit, the Films Division, and the Central Bureau

of Public Information. 35

Simultaneously, certain commercial organizations, which had already been

practising public relations in an unconscious manner, began organising their PR

91

activities in a conscious way. For example, the House of Tatas formed a Public

Relations Division at their Head Office in Bombay in 1945. Many other organisations,

during this period, conducted institutional campaigns in the Press to win public

support and sympathy for their efforts.

Public Relation Practices in Post Independence Period

The rapid development of industrialization in the West and its impact on India

led to the establishment of professional bodies of public relations practices and

management. It would not be out of place here to present an overview of the same.

The third phase of PR development is represented by the Post-Independence

period. As a result of independence and the emergence of new political, social,

economic and cultural institutions, PR activities developed. New programmes were

brought out and several media came into existence. The two important factors

responsible for the boosting of PR activities in the Post-Independence period were the

emergence of institutions of Parliament and State Legislatures and the adoption by the

government of the Industrial Policy Resolution and the Industrial (Development and

Regulation) Act. 36

The Government of India felt the need to inform the masses of its policies and

programmes in all spheres of national development in order to win public confidence

and cooperation. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting set up different

departments like Publications Division, Films Division, etc., for two way

communication between people and the government.

With the Industrial Revolution and the expansion of industrial and business

activities expansion of PR was necessitated. Business had also realised the necessity

to adjust itself to the new situations.

In 1958, PR Society of India (PRSI) was established to promote public

relations as a profession and to formulate a Code of Ethics of PR. PRSI has nine

chapters in different parts of the country. The Society is recognised as the national PR

organization by the International Public Relations Association and is one of the

founder members of the Pan Pacific Public Relations Federation.

Professional Organizations in the Area of Public Relation

The next phase saw the formation of professional organizations of public

relations practitioners in various parts of the country, notably Bombay and Calcutta.

The Public Relations Society of India was formed in Bombay in 1958. A few years

92

later, the Public Relations Circle in Calcutta reorganized itself as the local chapter of

PRSI.

Although a few localised courses in PR had previously been run it was not

until April 1968 when the first Public Relations Conference was held in Delhi through

which an organized effort was made to win national recognition; for, Public Relations

Circle in Calcutta reorganised itself as the local chapter of PR as a profession. It was

at this conference that a Code of Ethics was adopted and the parameters of the PR

profession defined. 37

The Second Public Relations Conference dwelt on the status of PR

practitioners in respective organisations. Judging from the large participation from

public sector companies, it was apparent that an awareness had been created,

particularly in government, that its public relations force needed to be more

effectively and meaningfully utilised.

The next stage in the development of public relations was a proper

understanding of the nature of the environment in the country and the changes that

constantly take place. It was the topic of the Third Conference.

The theme of the Fourth Public Relations Conference was Towards a More

Responsible Citizenship', underlining the need for meaningful and purposeful

contribution of PR practitioners to the development of a healthier society.

With the rapid growth of the PR profession in India and the entry of an

increasingly large number of men and women into the PR field, an urgent need was

felt to emphasise professionalism. The Fifth All India Public Relations Conference

was devoted to discussions in depth on the ways and means of achieving greater

professionalism. 'PR in the Eighties' was the theme of the Sixth All India Public

Relation; Conference held in Cochin in January 1978. The very choice of the theme

was a measure of the growth and maturity of the profession in India. 38

The development of PR activities in India is indicative of the acceptance of PR

as an important function of management. These activities are engaging attention of all

commercial and progressive organisations both in private and public sectors.

Public relations movement in India has travelled a long way since the early

days when it was fighting for recognition as a profession. It was then regarded only as

a junior partner of publicity and was generally ignored. And now it has come to stay

with us.

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Today, there are Public Relations 'chapters' in Bombay, Ahmedabad, New

Delhi, Kanpur, Calcutta, Visakhapatnam, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Madras, and Cochin.

More 'chapters' are likely to be organised in other areas like Assam. The 'chapters are

affiliated to the National Council of Public Relations Society of India. The

headquarters of the National Council moves from 'chapter' centres in consonance with

the workplace of the 'President' who is elected by the Central Body of the National

Council Members, generally once in two years.

That public relations profession has earned the credibility of the government

also can be noted from the fact that a 3-year degree course was inaugurated by the

University of Madras, way back in 1975. How dedicatedly the "public relations

society of India's" senior professionals were involved will be discernible from the

Vice-Chancellor's kind remarks in his "Foreword" to this book.

And that India now stands at par with other Western countries in attaining

professional excellence is proved by the International Public Relations Association

(IPRA) having accepted our invitation to hold the 9th Public Relations World

Congress in Bombay.

The International Public Relations Association (IPRA) was founded in 1955.

It is a worldwide and fraternal organization. The 1st World Congress was held in

Brussels in 1958, the 2nd in Venice in 1961, the 3rd in Montreal in 1964, the 4th in

Rio de Janeiro in 1967, the 5th in Tel Aviv in 1970, the 6th in Geneva in 1973, the 7th

in Boston in 1976, the 8th in London in 1979, and the 9th in Bombay in 1982,

between January 19 and 23.

The 9th World Congress in Bombay was attended by nearly 900 delegates

from as many as 36 countries. Some of the overseas delegates were accompanied by

their spouses, and there were few Nobel Laureates. These personalities contributed a

great deal to cross-fertilize their ideas not only on the problems and prospects relating

to public relations and communication profession but also on subjects which concern

the world today: science and technology, energy and ecology, education and the like.

Thus the theme of the Congress happened to be Interdependent World. Because it was

an international 'Congress', such a theme was considered to be appropriate. At the

same time, it was in tune with our country's heritage and philosophy on the

importance of "interdependence". "Interdependence" in this context means "mutual

dependence" aimed at each other's benefit.

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Stake Holders of Print & Electronic Media

The study of public relation practices of an industry has to be conducted with

reference to the stakeholders of that industry. Print and electronic media is not an

exception to this. Considering this the researcher has in this section highlighted the

various stakeholders of print and electronic media.

The components and boundaries of the system. We need now to begin to

identify the components and boundaries of the social system within which low-taste

content occurs so that eventually the contribution it makes to the system can be

inductively hypothesized. Rather than develop a purely descriptively scheme that will

apply only to a single medium, it will be more fruitful to attempt to develop a general

conceptual scheme into which any or all media could be placed, with suitable minor

modifications in details. Such a general scheme will emphasize the similarities

between media, particularly in terms of relationships between the components in the

system.

Audiences

The first major component of the social system of mass communication is the

audience. This is an exceedingly complex component The audience is stratified,

differentiated, and interrelated in the many ways that social scientists have studied for

years. Some of the major variables that play a part in determining how this component

will operate within the system are the major needs and interests of audience members,

the various social categories represented in an audience, and the nature of the social

relationships between audience members. These variables point to behavioural

mechanisms that determine the patterns of attention, interpretation, and response of an

audience with respect to content of a given type.

Research organisations

The rough typology of content suggested is in some degree related to the

characteristics of the audience. Organizations devoted to research, to measuring the

performances of media audiences, or to various forms of market research provide

information to those responsible for selecting the categories of content that will be

distributed to the audience. There is a link, then, between the audience as a

component in the system and the market research-rating service organizations as a

second component. In purely theoretical terms, both components are role system

themselves and are thus: actually subsystems. This is in a sense a one-way link. For

very minor (or usually no) personal reward, audience members selected for study

95

provide data about themselves to such an agency, but very little flows back. This

linkage between components is by comparison relatively simple.

Distributors

The content itself, of whatever type, flows from some distributor to the

audience. The role system of the distributor component varies in detail from one

medium to another. In addition, several somewhat distinct subsystems exist within

this general component. First, there are local outlets, which are likely to be in the most

immediate contact with the audience. The local newspaper, the local theatre, the local

broadcasting station play the most immediate part in placing messages before their

respective audiences. But inseparably tied to them are other subsystems of this

general component. Newspaper syndicates, broadcasting networks, or chains of movie

theatres pass content on to their local outlets. The link between these two subsystems

is a two-way one. The local outlet provides money and the larger distributor supplies

content. Or the link age may be that the local outlet provides a service, and the

distributor (who is paid elsewhere) provides money.

The relationship between audience and distributor seems at first to be mostly a

one-way link. The distributor provides entertainment content (and often advertising),

but the audience provides little back in a direct sense. However, it does provide its

attention. In fact, it is precisely the attention of the audience that distributors are

attempting to solicit. They sell this "commodity" directly to their financial backer or

sponsor. In addition, the audience supplies information to the research component and

this is indirectly supplied to distributors in the form of feedback so that they may

gauge the amount of attention they are eliciting. The linkages between components

grow more complex as we seek the boundaries of the system.

Producers and their sponsors

To the audience, the research, and the distributing component, we may add the

role system of the producer of content. This component's primary link is with the

financial backer (or sponsor) component and with the distributor, from whom money

is obtained and for whom various forms of entertainment content are manufactured. A

host of subsystems are included in this producer component, depending upon the

particular medium. Examples are actors, directors, television producers, technicians,

foreign correspondents, wire-service editors, film producers, labour union leaders,

publishers, copyeditors, clerical staff, and many, many more.

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Advertising agencies

Linking the sponsor, distributor, producer, and research organization are the

advertising agencies. Paid primarily by the sponsor, this component provides (in

return) certain ideas and services. For the most part, it provides the distributor with

advertising messages. It may have links with the research component as well.

Subsystems of Control

Over this complex set of interrelated components, there are other subsystems

that exert control. The legislative bodies, at both the state and national level, which

enact regulative statutes concerning the media, constitute an important part of such a

control component. Another important part of this role subsystem is the official

regulative agencies, which implement the policies that have been legislated. The link

between the legislative body (control component) and the audience is, course, one of

votes and public opinion, to which the component is presumably sensitive and

dependent. Information lines between audience, legislative bodies, and regulatory

agencies are more or less open. To the regulatory components whose role definitions

are found in legal statute can be added the private voluntary associations that develop

"codes" and to some degree serve as a control over the distributors. Such distributors

provide them with money, and they in turn provide surveillance and other services.

The Characteristics of Public Relation Management

The primary purpose of public relation practices in media management is to keep

people informed. Public relation practices in media management is a reciprocal, two-

way and a continuous social process. It should serve the organisational objects. To

accomplish this, the management adopts an effective media and network of public

relation practices in media management. To make it effective the communicator

market possess certain qualities, understand the receiver, convey the message and get

to act on it. Practical experience in the field makes both the sender and receiver to

reach perfection. Public relation practices in media management translates

organisational information into the language commonly understood in the public at

large. Lack of feedback, interaction and effective decoding of signs or words into

receiver's capability are the important problems in public relation practices in media

management. But they do not alter the basic essentials for successful public relation

practices in media management. Wilbur Schramm48 has suggested for any public

relation practices in media management to be transmitted effectively from source to

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receiver, whether the source is personal or, non-personal, the message must meet the

following three requirements:

1. It must be so designed and delivered as to gain the attention of the receiver.

2. It must use signals that are understood in the same way by both source and

receiver.

3. It must arouse needs in the receiver and suggest some way of satisfying these

needs that is appropriate to the receiver's group situation when moved to

make the desired response.

Knowing the audience or receiver in the case of written public relation practices in

media management is important.

However, the important principles of public relation practices in media

management are discussed under the following paragraphs. These are essentials or

factors to be considered while initiating public relation practices in media

management to achieve the purpose of public relation practices in media management.

Clarity:

In the public relation practices in media management process, message is the

very subject matter of public relation practices in media management. Clarity of ideas,

facts, opinions in the mind of communicator should be clear before communicating. It

is a thinking process to conceive the subject. The message is always subject to the test

of principle of clarity. It is to be encoded in common, in the direct and simple and

easily understandable language. So that the receiver is able to understand it without

doubt and difficulty. According to Koontz and Donnell: "A public relation practices in

media management possesses clarity when it is expressed in language and transmitted

in a way that can be comprehended by the receiver." 39

Information:

Information is different from public relation practices in media management.

All public relation practices in media managements contain information while all

information cannot communicate a message. The word information is comprehensive

in which public relation practices in media management is a special kind of

transmitting message in symbolic form. The sender first collects and keeps before him

the relevant information concerning a particular or group or people. Principle of

effective public relation practices in media management is to have information and

communicate in symbolic form.

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Completeness:

The subject matter to be communicated must be adequate and full which

enables the receiver to understand the central theme or idea of the message.

Incompleteness of message may result in misunderstanding the subject by the

receiver. The decision-making process would be delayed and actions may be delayed

when the message is incomplete.

Emphasis on Attention:

The purpose of public relation practices in media management is to draw the

attention of the public. An effective public relation practices in media management

changes the behaviour of the public. The process is not complete just by transmitting

ideas, facts or opinions. Effective public relation practices in media management calls

that it must create interest and pay proper attention to the message and to act

accordingly. Action speaks louder than words. This is the underlying principle of

attention.

Consistency:

The message transmitted should not be contradictory. The subject matter of

public relation practices in media management is said to be consistent when it is in

agreement with the objectives and policies of the organisation. The thinking, action or

happenings should be according to the same organisational rules and principles.

Public relation practices in media management is said to be effective when it is

consistent than when it is varied or contradicted. Consistency can be achieved if the

communicator keeps in his mind the broad objectives, policies and programmes of the

enterprise. There should be some linkage and compromise between public relation

practices in media managements. One public relation practices in media management

should not conflict with the previous public relation practices in media management.

Conflict and inconsistency create confusion, chaos ultimately resulting in delay in

decision-making and action.

Integration:

Achieving common goals of the enterprise is the objective of group activities.

Public relation practices in media management as a tool of management should

strengthen the enterprise. Public relation practices in media management is only a

means rather than end. The transmitter and receiver have to use the public relation

practices in media management tool as a means to an end not an end itself so it

promotes integrated efforts of the organisation. On the principle of integrity Koontz

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and Donnell observe: "The purpose of managerial public relation practices in media

management is to support understanding by individuals as they achieve and maintain

the cooperation needed to meet enterprise goals. All public relation practices in media

managements should be framed and transmitted in such a way as to support the

integrity of the formal organisation."

Use of Informal Organisation:

Informal public relation practices in media management is called grapevine. It

is a type of public relation practices in media management. It occurs on account of

informal relationship between the persons. This relationship grows up spontaneously

from personal interest, group interest, social and other non-formal relations. Informal

channel is the most effective one and transmits information with surprising speed.

Informal organisation should be utilised properly to communicate a message. It

supplements formal public relation practices in media management channel. Koontz

and Donnell observe: "The most effective public relation practices in media

management results when managers utilise the informal organisation to supplement

the public relation practices in media management channels of the formal

organisation."

Two-way Public relation practices in media management:

An effective public relation practices in media management demands two-way

public relation practices in media management, i.e., vertical — upward and

downward. It should not always be downward movement from the superior to the

subordinates. In such a case public relation practices in media management cannot

produce its desired goals. The reaction and responses of the receiver are equally

needed to achieve the purpose of public relation practices in media management. A

manager should thus not only speak, inform, instruct and order, but should also be

prepared to listen, understand, answer, amend and interpret. Thus, it involves two-way

traffic or process and the process is complete. G. Terry states that the sender must get

through to the receiver, if the public relation practices in media management is to be

complete and satisfactory. Thus, it is not the transmission of ideas, facts from one

person to another, but must be two-way to be effective public relation practices in

media management.

To Know Receiver:

In the public relation practices in media management process, after

transmission of the message, the receiver is the kingpin who has to act on the

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message. The receiver must understand the subject. This is the main purpose of public

relation practices in media management. The sender must use such language which

may easily be understood by the receiver. The message should be simple, clear and

short lines. Killian suggested "communicate with an awareness of the total and

physical and human setting in which the information will be received. Picture the

place of work; determine the receptivity and understanding levels of the receivers; be

aware of social climate and customs; question the information's timeliness. Ask what,

when and in what manner you would like to be communicated with if you were in a

similar environment and position."

Time:

The principal aim of public relation practices in media management is to make

the message reach at an appropriate time. It is not just the transmission of ideas,

opinions, etc., by the superior to the subordinate for the sake of public relation

practices in media management. They should be conveyed at right and proper time.

Sending before time or after would not serve the purpose of public relation practices

in media management. A delayed message is stale or historical and has no

importance.

Simplicity:

The simplicity in public relation practices in media management produces the

best and the quickest understanding and response from public. So the communicator

must try to achieve this principle for effectiveness. Aviod using superfluous words,

unnecessary prepositions, jargon using familiar words is preferable. The language

used should be simple and only common words be used which does not mean using

colloquial English. There is no set rule for using familiar words. The transmitter must

know the receiver's vocabulary, knowledge and understanding capacity. Simplicity is

always preferable to meet all situations, because the object of any public relation

practices in media management is to make others understand and act.

Public relation practices in media management Network:

Yet another principle of effective public relation practices in media

management is public relation practices in media management network. It is the

channel or route through which exchange of transmission of ideas, facts, etc. flow to

and from the officially designated positions in the organisational structure. Formal

public relation practices in media management has a set network which determines

fixed route for information movement. The network covers downward, upward,

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horizontal line of public relation practices in media management. In a downward line

the message moves from top to bottom and vice versa in the case of upward line.

Horizontal line is for personnel in one department and personnel of equal, lower or

superior position in another department. Both vertical and horizontal lines should be

used for effective public relation practices in media management, but distance should

be less as possible.

Use of Media:

There are two media for transmitting a message. They are oral and written

media. Both have their own merits and demerits. Oral public relation practices in

media management is more effective for certain messages and similarly written public

relation practices in media management in other circumstances. The principle of

strategic use of media is to be adopted. The need, objective and the receiver are the

factors should be kept in mind in selecting a medium.

Feedback:

Though, the last but the most important key or principle to effective public

relation practices in media management is to obtain feedback from the public.

Knowing acceptance or rejection as to the message transmitted is probably the most

important method of improving public relation practices in media management. The

principle of feedback promotes two-way public relation practices in media

management. Feedback is a process to ascertain whether or not the receiver properly

understood the message. It helps to know the reaction of the receiver of the message.

In which superior has to listen, answer, interpret and amend the message. Interface

and interaction are possible in feedback from public. It avoids errors in transmission

of message and invoking effective participation of the subordinates. Thus, feedback

from public enables the communicator to take initiative in order to know reactions

regarding the effectiveness of public relation practices in media management.

The Essentials of Public Relation Management

The American Management Association has given excellent essentials of good

public relation practices in media management. They are popularly called the ten

commandments of good public relation practices in media management. 40

It is necessary to clarify ideas before communicating. By systematically thinking

through the message and considering who will be receiving and/or affected by it, the

manager overcomes one of the basic pitfalls of public relation practices in media

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management-failure to properly plan the communique. The more systematically a

message is analysed, the more clearly it can be communicated.

It is necessary to examine the true purposes of public relation practices in

media management: The manager has to determine what he or she really wants to

accomplish with the message. Once this objective is identified, the communique can

be properly designed.

It is necessary to take the entire environment, physical and human, into

Consideration: Questions such as what is said, to whom, and when, will all affect the

success of the public relation practices in media management. The physical setting,

the social climate, and past public relation practices in media management practices

should be examined in adapting the message to the environment,

It is necessary to obtain advice from others in planning communiques:

Consulting with others can be a useful method of obtaining additional insights

regarding how to handle the public relation practices in media management. In

addition, those who help formulate it usually give it active support.

It is necessary to be aware of the overtones as well as the basic Content of the

Message: The listener will be affected not only by what is said but also how it is said.

Voice tone, facial expression, and choice of language all influence the listener's

reaction to the communique.

It is necessary to convey useful information. People remember things that are

beneficial to them. If the manager wants subordinates to retain the message, he or she

should phrase it so that it takes into consideration their interests and ends as well as

the company's.

It is also necessary to follow up on public relation practices in media

management: The manager must solicit feedback in ascertaining whether the

subordinate understands the communique, is willing to comply with it, and then takes

the appropriate action.

It is necessary to communicate with future, as well as the Present, in Mind:

Most public relation practices in media managements are designed to meet the

demands of the current situation. However, they should be in accord with the long-

range goals as well. For example, communiques designed to improve performance or

morale are valuable in handling present problems. Yet they also serve a useful future

purpose by promoting long-run organisational efficiency.

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It is also necessary to be a good listener. By concentrating on the speakers

explicity and implicity meanings, the manager can obtain a much better understanding

of what is being said.

The essentials of effective public relation practices in media management are

more useful in personnel management.

Seven C's of Communication and Public Relation Practices

The relationship between public relation practices in media management and

communication process should be understood. This can be better done with a

highlight on the seven Cs of communication.

Credibility:

Public relation practices in media management starts with a climate of belief.

This climate is built by performance on the part of the practitioner. The performance

reflects an earnest desire to serve the receiver. The receiver must have confidence in

the sender. He must have a high regard for the source's competence on the subject.

Context:

A public relation practices in media management programme must square with

the realities of its environment. Mechanical media are only supplementary to the word

and need that takes place in daily living. The context must provide for participation

and playback. The context must confirm, not contradict the message.

Content:

The message must have meaning for the receiver, and it must be compatible

with his value system. It must have relevance for him. In general, people select those

items of information which promise them the greatest regards. The content determines

the audience.

Clarity:

The message must be put in simple terms. Words must mean the same thing to

the receiver as they do the sender. Complex issues must be compressed into themes,

slogans or stereotype that have simplicity and clarity.

Continuity and Consistency:

Public relation practices in media management is an unending process. It

requires repetition to achieve penetration. Repetition with variation contributes to

both factual and attitude learning. The story must be consistent.

104

Channels:

Established channels of public relation practices in media management should

be used—channels that the receiver uses and respects. Creating new ones is difficult.

Different channels have different effects and serve effectively in different stages of

the diffusion process.

Capability:

Public relation practices in media management must take into account the

capability of the audience. Public relation practices in media managements are most

effective when they require the least effort on the part of the recipient. This includes

factors of availability, habit, reading ability and receiver's knowledge.

Thus there is a direct relationship between communication and public relation

practices in print and electronic media.

Thus, in this chapter the researcher has discussed at length the theoretical

aspects of the subject matter under study. The researcher has presented an overview of

the print and electronic media. The print media is reviewed with reference to

historical development in the field of newspaper and the periodicals. Similarly the

major electronic media right from the radio, TV, on-line newspapers and magazines

and internet sources has been described.

Thus, in this chapter the researcher has discussed various theoretical aspects of

the subject matter under study such as: History of Print Media, Print Media in India,

Electronic Media in India, Public Relation Practices in Print & Electronic Media at

length.

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106

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