Chap. 2 – Evolution of the
Profession
Global Public Relations
Why Study the Historical
Roots of Public Relations?
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To excel in a sociological profession (e.g.
public relations), you must master its
cultural roots.
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What are the dynamics in a culture (past and
present) that make your field vital to successful
involvement in that culture?
What forces shaped your culture regarding how
people think and behave relative to your
profession?
That enables us to…
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Understand forces that shaped profession
Anticipate future developments
Predict nature of practice in other cultural
settings
Made in the USA
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Public relations as a profession was
initially a U.S. American phenomenon.
By the end of the 20th century, the same
forces were mandating a need for PR
throughout the developed and developing
world.
Leaders through the centuries have always
sought to influence their publics.
Four trends
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Growth of large institutions
Expansion of democracy
Sophistication of publics
Communication technology
improvements
Colonial America
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Boston Tea Party as pseudoevent
Boston Massacre as embellished
publicity
Ben Franklin’s use of his newspaper
to promote civic projects
Sam Adams: “Put the enemy in the
wrong and keep him there.”
Federalist Papers
PR Development in the
Industrial Age
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Development of these stages was
sequential, but all three still exist.
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Manipulation
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Cooperation
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Mutual influence and understanding
Today public relations is moving…
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away from using “any available means” to
achieve desired public opinion
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toward informing the public and providing
information and counsel to management
Four evolutionary models of
PR
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Press agentry: P.T. Barnum; 1-way
Public information: Ivy Lee; 1-way
Two-way asymmetric: feedback to
gauge effectiveness
Two-way symmetric: mutual benefit
1800s
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Appointment of Amos Kendall, 1829
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Influential adviser
Opinion polls; news “leaks”
P.T. Barnum
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Pseudoevents
Effective
Classic press agentry
Seedbed Years -- Robber
Barons
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Big business dominates late 1800s
Vanderbilt, Morgan, Rockefeller
“The public be damned”
Muckrakers emerge
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Upton Sinclair’s “The Jungle”
Ida Tarbell’s “History of the Standard Oil
Company”
Robber barons in need of PR
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Vitriolic press coverage and public reaction
leads to changes
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Anti-trust legislation
Labor movements
Socialist, communist movements
Many accusations untrue; didn’t matter
Didn’t know how to reach public
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Tried to buy off critics; then image polishing
Cooperation through
Distribution of Information
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By the early 1900s, businesses were forced to
submit to three new dynamics:
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numerous governmental regulations
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increasingly hostile criticism from the press
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rise of the American labor union movements
Public relations moved from the stage of
press agentry to an era of public cooperation
through distribution of accurate information.
Enter Ivy Lee
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Wall Street reporter; supported honesty,
accuracy
Need to earn public confidence, good will
Declaration of Principles
Hired by Rockfeller, 1914
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“Humanized” the Rockefellers
Stressed social responsibility
World War I
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Wilson establishes Creel Committee
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First use of information as weapon of
war
Included Ed Bernays
Mobilized public opinion in support of
war, war bonds
Boosted war effort
Boosted PR as profession
Depression
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Fostered need for major corporations
to regain public trust
Roosevelt aggressively promoted
“New Deal” programs
Military promoted need to build
weakened armed forces
Universities used PR to boost
enrollment
Military Adopted Public Relations
in World War II (1939-1945)
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The deteriorating military and political
situation in Europe caused the military to
increase its practice of public relations in the
1930s.
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Each branch of the service built its own public
relations apparatus to promote its particular form
of warfare.
The Army's PR efforts employed 3,000 military and
civilian personnel.
OWI Developed a Broad PR
Campaign
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The goal of the Office of War Information
was to implement massive mobilization
strategies:
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selling war bonds
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rationing food, clothing, and gasoline
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planting victory gardens
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recruiting military personnel
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promoting factory productivity and efficiency
Read these posters through
the eyes of a soldier’s wife…
Post-war PR boom
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More practitioners created by war
Labor strikes proliferate
Baby boom -- school growth
Institutional growth and
internationalization
Media growth
Development in Education and
Ethics for Public Relations
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Boston University established the first
school of public relations (1947).
In 1954, the Public Relations Society of
America (PRSA) developed the first code
of ethics for the profession.
Social upheaval -- the 60s
to now
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Distrust of big business, government
Polarization of society
Watergate
Need to emphasize relationship building
Public demands
Corporate responsibility
Sophisticated publics
In Summary…
Since its inception, Public Relations has
undergone several changes. These changes
were usually brought about by changes in
the environment in which people lived.
Practitioners must be aware of the history
of PR and anticipate changes in the
present and future of Public Relations.