#1. In order to carry out a Public Relations (PR) duty, connecting with the media and sending a message out through the media requires a deep understanding of various mediums which reaches the masses.
"Just as PR provides information to the media, the media provides information to PR as well."
Since PR and the media are interdependent and unable to function without the other, the need and urgency to understand how things work is of utter importance. In order to understand how things work, PR practitioners have to be up-to-date, selective and targetted.
Writing, organizational skills, planning and interpersonal skills are also qualities of which PR practitioners must have. Media monitoring is also vital as it adds to further research.
#2. The media has evolved and advanced to become a complex necessity for PR to be accomplished.
The media should be considered and is now "a complex and multi-layered part of society", where different media provide different opportunities.
Newspapers are no longer the only option for practitioners to choose. With the advancement and production of the Internet, many alternative doors have been opened.
The reading made me realise that PR somehow intertwines with other subjects which acquire the same skills. For example, PR and Journalism share the same skill of writing in news style. Having these general skills will aid in exploring into different industries and eventually excelling in a profession you never thought you would excel in.
I have also thought deeper about how analytical PR practitioners have to be in order to do their jobs well. They have to monitor the media, meaning reading, watching and listening to the media and analyzing what is of news value and what is not.
At the end of the day, PR practitioners do have skills that most people fail to identify as they have shallow perceptions about PR and the job scope of practitioners.
hihi nat, the word "accomplised" is supposed to be be spelled as "accomplished". :)
ReplyDeleteinteresting viewpoints. i totally agree with your point 2 as it is true. What with the ever evolving Internet and the more important TV improving itself, we are becoming diverse and have many different ways to obtain information. Therefore a single story can be interpreted in several different ways. PR actually encompasses many skills, such as communicative skills, IT skills, management skills, and so on. And i like how you say that PR is an analytical study of the opposite side.
Overall i find that my thoughts are similar with yours in this aspect.
cheers,
joel