History and Evolution of Public Relations
According to Grunig & Hunt (1984), in their research and theory, presented public relations development can be classified into four periods; publicity, information, advocacy and relationship. The paper attempts to discuss the history and evolution of public relations, as presented by Gruning and Hunt.
Publicity Era (the 1800s)
The period is also referred to as Press Agentry Model. During this period, public relations were used for sports, marketing and entertainment. The firms conducted little research on public relations. The business focused on making the public aware of their public relation and they can disseminate the information. Amos Kendall, in the 1820s, was the newspaper editor from the presidential press to write articles about public relations. He assisted President Andrew Jackson during his presidential campaigns on the importance of public relations through writing speeches, news release and writing articles. The public relations were instrumental in encouraging people from the Atlantic coast to shift in American West once it was opened; however, the public relations messages were exaggerated. In the second half of the 19th century, social activists used public relations messages were important to abolish the slave trade. The public relations messages were also important to empower women to vote and movement to abolish liquor. In 1896, Bryan-Mckinley, during his presidential campaign, propagated public relations by use of new releases, posters, pamphlets, speeches and public meetings (Pinkleton, 1994). Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
Information Era (the early 1900s)
The period focused on providing honest and accurate information that can be easily be disseminated. The communication was done by the one-way. The public relation was used by the business organization, government organizations and nonprofit organizations. During the period, many agencies were formed tasked with providing the public with timely, honest, accurate and favorable information concerning the firm or client. Ivy Ledbetter was regarded to be the first public relations practitioner. He came up with the idea of “Declaration of Principles,” which he referred to as honest information provided to the public on behalf of his client. During the period the following departments and agencies were founded; First public relation agency (Boston), University of Pennsylvania Publicity Bureau, Marine Corp publicity bureau, Standard Oil hires publicist, Ford employee newsletter, American Red Cross publicity program, AT&T public relations department, National Lutheran Council Press office and Sears & Roebuck public relations.
Advocacy Era (the mid-1900s)
The focus of public relations was to modify attitudes and influence the behavior of the public. The communication was two-way; that is between the public and the respective organization. The public relations was applied movements and competitive business organizations. Towards the end of the 20th century and middle parts, public relations was developed on the advocacy model; in this case, organizations attempted to influence behaviors and attitudes of the public. The information and communication dwelt more on issues pertaining to war, social manipulation and brainwashing. After the war, practitioners and researchers explored the public interests, to find a way to persuade them. Some of the important aspects of public relations that happened during the period include; Public Opinion was written by Walters Lippman, Crystallizing Public Opinion written by Edward Bernays, New York University first class of public relation taught by Bernays and in 1939, Stanford University hired Rex Harlow, a full-time professor of public relations (Colf, 2007).
During the period, the social reforms continued to be used to advocate for public relations. The social activists used social reforms on issues such as regulation of business, worker’s compensation, prostitution, child labour, consumer issues and food safety. The US government used the public relations committee before and after the Second World War. After the Second World War, the office was renamed as the Office of International Information Programs of State Department. It finally led to the opening of Voice of America radio station. Also, during the era, many public relations departments and agencies were founded. The advocacy model is still applicable for competitive businesses, political public relations, promotion, creating public support on safety, health and welfare activities.
Relationship Era (the Late 1900s to date)
The focus of public relations was to obtain mutual understanding and resolve conflicts. The communication was two-way and research was based on perception and values. The public relations applied in social movements, nonprofit organizations, government and regulated businesses. The era compliments the earlier approaches advocacy, public information and publicity. The era emphasizes listening to the public and resolving any existing or potential conflicts. The period seeks to create mutual understanding between the public and the organization. It is apparent, in business activities, a relationship such as courting of consumers and public-private partnership is being practiced.
Conclusion
Public relation has developed since the 1800s and there is further room for development. The management should include public relations seriously to build a good relationship with the public. Many organizations, nonprofit organizations, government and social movements are using public relations to communicate better to the public. The traditional media, such as mass media and print media, had contributed to the growth of public relations. However, currently, the growth of technology has led social media, which is more widely used for public relations purposes.
References
Colf, R. T. (2007). Who’s the Father of Public Relations? Public Relations Strategist, 13(4), 24–27. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=27149615&site=ehost-live
Grunig & Hunt, 1984. Managing Public Relations. Holt/Rinehart/Winston
Pinkleton, B. (1994). The Campaign of the Committee on Public Information: Its Contributions to the History and Evolution of Public Relations. Journal of Public Relations Research, 6(4), 229–240. https://doi.org/10.1207/s1532754xjprr0604_02