SUMMARY
Research for public affairs concentrates on problem assessment through issues management and on
identifying and understanding target audiences. Audiences are usually in the legislative or executive
branch of government, at various levels. Information about these officials consists of voting records,
accomplishments, and public stands on issues.
Impact and output objectives are both useful in public affairs. Impact objectives consist of
providing the target audience with information or influencing its attitudes or behavior, in this case,
voting behavior. Output objectives catalog the practitioner’s communication efforts without reference
to the desired impact.
The most essential activities in public affairs programming are fact-finding, coalition
building, direct lobbying, grassroots (indirect) lobbying, the use of PACs, political education,
communications on political issues, and political support activities. Of special significance in lobbying
is the principle of selective exposure. Lawmakers to be lobbied should be categorized as “positives,”
“somewhat positives,” “undecideds,” “somewhat negatives,” or “negatives.” The positives through the
undecideds should be targeted for lobbying; the somewhat negatives should be targeted with caution,
and the negatives, not at all.
Evaluation is not the same for public affairs as for other forms of public relations. Media
exposure or placement does not ensure contact with legislators, and legislators and officials are often
unresponsive to PR surveys. Nonquantitative measurements of impact objectives are thus more useful.
Output objectives, of course, are measured by the same means as usual—observation and
quantification. The ultimate means of evaluation in public affairs, however, is the voting behavior of
the target audience.