What are the main differences in public relations campaigns created in the 1940s and campaigns created today?
The public relations campaigns during the 20 th century were majorly characterized by propaganda as a stratagem of government and the military in the postwar period to coax the public think and behave according to the government desires. The strategy was designed to reinforce a strong relationship between the government administrators and the public by relating the infinite and concrete images to the desires of the general public. Therefore, during the 1940s, propaganda was an effective tool used in the public relations campaigns to mobilize the citizens and divert their attentions towards the needs of the government (Rüdiger, 2014).
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However, the public relations campaigns in the 21 st century involve greater levels of ethical standards, tactical thinking and effective media communication coverage. Such mutually beneficial relationships mark the key difference between the 20 th century public relations campaigns and the 21 st century campaigns. Albeit, the two campaigns still facilitate the establishment of quality relationships regarding the compatibility of interests between individual citizens and various institutions with regards to the institution’s reputation. Therefore, today’s campaigns greatly rely on the interpersonal relations among family members and friends based on individual sensitivities used to build global business relations. Hence, this procedure enhances a continuous stream of compelling content pervading the print space depending on mutual benefits that flourish as long-lasting relationships. Finally, identifying what the public likes the most and things that interests them with regards to relevance is very important. This can be achieved through the use of various social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat among others.
How has social media, news agencies such as CNN, and the internet in general impacted the campaigns of today ?
The change in media consumption in the 21 st century has impacted positively on the public relations campaigns as compared to the pre-satellite news of the old error. Therefore, the social media and related online platforms facilitate PR campaigns today due to the ability to easily identify the interests of the people without necessarily confirming the factual evidences in public opinions (Alejandro, 2010). As a result, the relationships between PR professionals and the common citizens without excessive involvement of journalists. Hence, such social media agencies and the internet have greatly enhanced the capability of approaching specific target audiences and engage themselves in constructive dialogues; thus, promoting the campaigns.
Conversely, the internet and related social media platform have negative impacts on the PR campaigns. This is because a number of individuals think that we are back to the error of propaganda with concerns on the reliability of the sources of information. Therefore, this fact thwarts the efforts of PR campaigns since the news today are presented with little or no fact-checking by most journalists (Alejandro, 2010). This idea will lead to the use and acceptance of the public opinion in the future in regard to crowd-checking. However, most of the PR professionals have confirmed that public relations in general cannot operate in the absence of social media since their daily activities require the use of social media tools.
What other factors influence the effectiveness of P.R. campaigns today?
Media monitoring is a critical factor in determining how effective a PR campaign is. It involves monitoring the levels of coverage of a particular product, the main messages included in the campaign and the audience reached at a particular time (O'Sullivan, 2018). Again, conducting market surveys is important in ensuring effectiveness of PR campaigns (O'Sullivan, 2018). The surveys will enhance accuracy in awareness and instill the correct perceptions of the brand to the masses.
References
Alejandro, J. (2010). Journalism in the Age of Social Media. Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 19/7/2018 from http://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/sites/default/files/research/files/Journalism%2520in%2520the%2520Age%2520of%2520Social%2520Media.pdf
O'Sullivan, K. (2018). 6 Tools to Measure the Effectiveness of PR Activity. Glean.Info. web. Retrieved 19/7/2018 from https://glean.info/6-tools-measure-effectiveness-pr-activity/
Rüdiger, F. (2014). The public relations and the debate about propaganda in the period between wars. Intercom, Rev. Bras. Ciênc. Comun. vol.37 no.1 São Paulo. Retrieved 19/7/2018 from http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=S1809-58442014000100003&script=sci_arttext&tlng=en
