Public Relations: Academia Versus Industry

I literally just finished a 17 page exam over public relations including its definition, theories, models, major contributors to the field, etc. Of course the main issue I focused on throughout was how a lack of a universal definition of PR makes it impossible for others not in the industry to understand what PR really is. Even those in the industry don’t understand! We are not advertisers, we are not marketers, and we are not journalists. Public relations has evolved greatly over the last few years and with the ever changing internal and external environments surrounding organizations, PR will continue to advance.

I read a blog post today in the Huffington Post by MichaelRamah and there was one thing he said that really incorporated what public relations practitioners do in today’s markets. “Successfully building multi-directional paths of communication between organizations and their stakeholders is now pivotal to brands' strength and survival. And the only industry that's really in a position to do that well -- to assess client needs and deliver solutions with more insight and less prejudice than anyone else -- is public relations.”

He goes on to discuss how PR practitioners don’t just utilize one theory, method, or media channel sources as they once did; instead they use specific tools to handle communication challenges, all which vary based on the situation presented. I just found it interesting that not even 2 hours after completing an exam on this very topic in the PR academic world, someone in the professional PR world wrote about the same thing. Perhaps the criticism that the PR industry is not in alignment with PR academia is shifting toward a more universal understanding of the practice? Or perhaps the faculty at the Texas Tech College of Media and Communication are just that in tune with what is happening in the industry compared to past practices and just did an awesome job of educating me? Who knows, either way the methods in which PR practitioners are handling communication challenges is changing. I can’t wait to see how the industry will continue to shift in the future.