Of Media Aides and Public Relations, by Yemi Ogunseye

It is always interesting to note that most of our high office holders hire media aides to perform public relations, information management, perception management, issues management, reputation management, relationship management, public communication et al tasks.

Invariably they engage practising journalists instead of PR professionals.

Hence it is always about media relations than public relations.

So it begs the question, which one is more appropriate to office holders given the obvious fact that there is a huge communication chasm between the government and the public?

Somehow majority of office holders are more concerned about their media ratings than their public opinion ratings.

In reality media relations is not sufficient to engender favourable public opinion.

Most media aides tend to build a comfortable bridge between their principal and the media with the thinking that it will garner favourable outlooks.

Academically, that thinking belongs to one of the earliest theories of mass communication known as the ‘magic bullet or hypodermic syringe theory’. 

The belief is that whatever comes from the media is a ‘bullet that will hit the masses headlong and change their understanding or perception on an issue.

Human dynamics have taught us that is not the case?

In ‘A Mathematical Theory of Communication’ published in 1948, Shannon and Weaver came up with a theory that significantly helped to increase the understanding of the relationship between an organisation, the media and the public. 

The theory factored in encoders, transmitters, noise and decoders.

Meaning that it is not the media most times that encodes the message, that the media is just a veritable transmitter susceptible to ‘noise’ and the destination resides in the decoder that will interpret the message to a receiver.

The same process is repeated for a feedback which is necessary for a complete communication. 

Hence ‘the media is the message’ before it stretched to ‘the man is the message’. 

However, part of the stretching includes a ‘source and destination’ 

In practical terms the source can be the principal, encoder can be the PR man, the transmitter is the media, the decoder can be opinion leaders/moulders and the destination is the intended target.

Consequently more emphasis can be laid on the inward and outward personality of ‘the man’ to drive positive reviews and set objectives.

PR starts with internal publics before extending to the external publics. 

This is on the belief system that all employees are basically ambassadors of the organisation they work with leaving nobody out.

That is why employee relations is an integral part of PR. 

In the same vein it is the part of the job specifics of the PR man to sanitise internal communication system to make it more efficient and workers friendly. 

This favourable and cordial relationship is what is transmitted to other stakeholders beyond the inside working of the organisation. 

The PR man must ensure that all other core competences to aid good relationships must be employed and utilised constructively. 

Some of these core competences are managing the reputation and image of the principal.

The organisation must have good relationship management modules as well as issues management procedures to engineer smart crisis management, damage control and conflict resolution mechanisms.

To all intents and purposes media relations become a tool in the overall scheme of things.

This is not to disparage media management as a factor or as a profession or as competence or as standout inclination.

It is just meant to put things in proper perspective.

A lot of times our high officers suffer from poor perception rather than media representation. 

Unfortunately, a lot of journalists have arrogated the job of opinion moulding and influencing to themselves. But without adequate and sufficient skill-sets they muddle up the narratives and ultimately invite conjectures, misinformation, disinformation and misunderstanding. 

They are basically meant to balance views and come with objective analysis and interpretation for the public. 

There are other aspects of mass communication that are adept at titrating behavioural patterns and communication methods to swing opinions and attitudes towards a particular subject.

The core competences requires a certain amount of differences in methodologies, approaches and conclusions. 

By training and mind-set an average journalist have anti-establishment proclivities while the PR guys have a tolerable predisposition to all shades and hues.

So in applications both are on separate streets and where they cross the PR guy employs his ‘educated instinct’ to manage a soft landing for his principal.

In essence journalistic instincts are more defensive oriented than the PR instincts that are more proactive.

If this intricate, complex and delicate mix is mismanaged or selfishly manipulated then the projection and expectation of overall goodwill suffers.

Then public are left at the mercies of conjectures, fabrications and rumours packaged as authentic. And with heat seekers and gas lighters prowling the social media every second then public paranoia is inevitable.  

Truth be told PR professionals ought to be given chances too to manage public communications.

***Though a lot of the principals have PR Agencies as consultants, there is no way a substantive Media Aide will allow their capabilities, capacities and competences overshadow or undermine his own capacity.

This is an abridged version. Watch out for the full edition in my new book.