12
Media Relations and Challenges in a Digital Media Era

Samsup Jo

The following job opening announcement posted on www.salary.com describes the basic qualifications and the role of a media relations manager for a typical organization which could be found around the world.

Develops and implements policies and procedures for the relations between the media and the organization. Works to expand understanding of the organization's business, performance, and strategy. Prepares summaries of media activity for senior management. May serve as the company's spokesperson. Requires a bachelor's degree. Typically reports to a head of a unit/department. Typically manages through subordinate managers and professionals in larger groups of moderate complexity. Provides input to strategic decisions that affect the functional area of responsibility. May give input into developing the budget. Capable of resolving escalated issues arising from operations and requiring coordination with other departments. Typically requires 3+ years of managerial experience.

As this job description shows, media relations has many facets; however, the core functions of media relations seem to be engaging in media management and resolving communication issues, especially those which might influence the bottom line.

Defining the Concepts: What Is Media Relations?

Media relations is a central part of public relations practice across countries and throughout public relations history. It also encompasses many forms and facets of interaction with traditional and nontraditional media. According to Zoch and Molleda (2006), media relations is defined as “an active process in which the public relations practitioner has, at the least, a modicum of control over the message she wishes to reach the public, its timing, the source of that information, and the effect on the media agenda of the issue presented” (p. 280). Furthering these thoughts, O’Brien (2014) adds that media relations “can be described as a company’s interactions with editors, reporters and journalists. The media can be newspapers, radio, television and the internet. The goal is to communicate a client’s newsworthy message, story or information using the appropriate media outlets.” Therefore, media relations includes an array of activities such as pitching news stories, monitoring both online and offline media, responding to journalists’ inquiries, gaining a favorable press, and reducing negative news coverage on behalf of an organization.

Traditionally, newspapers, magazines, trade publications, radio stations, and television channels were the main media with which public relations practitioners interacted to publicize their organization’s stories. However, now the range of media needs to be extended beyond these traditional media to new media such as social media and new types of information producers such as independent power bloggers, YouTubers, and online influencers. The growth of the internet and omnipresence of social media combined with the smartphone platform has led to abundant digital platforms such as podcasts, video on demand (VOD) services, livestreams on Facebook, and livestreams on YouTube that were not seen previously. Therefore, bloggers, independent influencers, and other citizen journalists who post opinions and information in the online sphere are now also producing the news for the public to consume. Thus, the public has become increasingly accustomed to consuming news through digital platforms rather than relying only on traditional media, especially since traditional newsrooms are shrinking while the online sphere is booming. This situation has caused both significant challenges and opportunities for media relations professionals as they navigate working with both traditional journalists and online influencers in trying to relay their organizations’ stories.

How and Why Is Media Relations of Concern to Public Relations?

In order to be effective, media relations professionals not only need to understand the news production process and the importance of deadlines, but they must also understand what information is newsworthy as well as what information is not. By providing relevant and newsworthy information to journalists and others, the media relations practitioner can establish herself as a trustworthy and reliable source.

Media relations can be practiced in either a proactive or a reactive manner (Smith, 2013). Public relations professionals continuously provide information such as press releases, media advisories, fact sheets, speeches, photos, and statistics to media outlets and on social media. These types of media relations activities would be considered proactive media relations because the organization is preemptively sharing information to generate interest and perhaps third‐party endorsement for its news (Smith, 2013). In contrast, reactive media relations describes when an organization responds to inquiries and information requests from the media, as well as to social media posts (Smith, 2013). These responses could be simply providing basic facts or statistics. They could be working to schedule interview requests. They might also be attempts to explain organizational positions on hot topics or issues. Finally, they could be responses to crisis situations. Unlike proactive media relations, media inquiries can be unpredictable and unexpected; however, the practitioner must respond promptly no matter the situation.

One of the most critical aspects of media relations is working with the media in times of crisis. Although the necessary response to a crisis depends upon the severity of the issue and the amount of responsibility the organization has for the situation, responding promptly is key. The media relations department of the organization in crisis should establish itself as the source of information because multiple voices can cause confusion and undermine the organization’s message and response. These media relations specialists should also anticipate the needs and questions of the media covering the crisis.

Reflecting upon the media environment paradigm, some classify the media into three categories: paid media, owned media, and earned media. Paid media refer to advertising and influencers paid by clients to use and publicize products and/or services. Owned media are the online and offline communication tools for which content is controlled. Some examples are websites, blogs, and social media. Earned media is online or offline endorsement given by a third party. Examples include power bloggers, news editorials, and online opinion leaders. Not surprisingly, with growth, digital media have shifted to own and produce content for mass‐mediated communication (Zerfass, Verčič, & Wiesenberg, 2016). More people trust the content of earned media due to its third‐party endorsement, thereby lessening the impact of paid and owned media. Media relations professionals need to use owned and earned media in a balanced way. Using the Edelman Trust Barometer, scholars have found that the public is more likely to trust traditional media over social media across the United States, China, Japan, Germany, and France (Cacciatore, Meng, Boyd, & Reber, 2016).

How, When, and Why Is Theory Applied to Media Relations?

Building Relationships

At the most basic level, every media relations practitioner should have a list of journalists who are important to their organization and industry. This media list should include writers’ and editors’ names, e‐mails, and cellular phones. The list could be organized alphabetically by journalist name or by media type and its relevance and importance to the organization at hand. Maintaining media lists can be time‐consuming due to high turnover and frequent assignment changes in the news industry. However, the time spent cultivating media lists is time well spent.

There have been a number of studies examining the relationships that exists between public relations professionals and journalists (Turk, 1991; Griffin & Dunwoody, 1995). Unfortunately, it seems a high level of antagonism exists between journalists and public relations practitioners (DeLorme & Fedler, 2003; Sallot & Johnson, 2006). For example, some journalists believe public relations professionals are self‐serving because they only provide favorable information about the organizations they represent to the media. Similarly, some public relations practitioners believe journalists are only interested in stories which cast the organizations for which they advocate in a negative light. However, it should be noted that journalists and media relations practitioners need each other; their relationships are symbiotic. Therefore, media relations practitioners should build and maintain relationships with journalists not only by understanding newsworthiness and deadlines, but also by getting to know journalists as people, anticipating their needs, understanding news consumers, and providing timely and relevant information.

Digital Communication

The evolution of digital technology has changed the landscape of media relations in recent years. First of all, communication between media relations professionals and reporters is driven more and more by online formats such as e‐mail, personal chatting applications, and social media. Thus traditional mass‐media communication yielded many more roles than digital media (Savič, 2016; Zerfass et al., 2016), and computer‐mediated communication has become a more frequent mode of interaction than face‐to‐face communication. Therefore, media relations practitioners need to know how to use various tools such as owned media and social media. Furthermore, they also need to understand how journalists obtain news sources. For example, since journalists may visit websites, blogs, and social media managed by organizations to get information without contacting the public relations department, practitioners should update online content and check online information accuracy frequently. Savič (2016) states that “companies are transforming into products of owned media and media content” due to this mediatization trend (p. 607).

The increased use of digital technology, such as social media, has changed media relations in other ways, too. For example, the gatekeeping function of the media has been lessened due to organizations’ ability to communicate directly with publics through Facebook, Twitter, and other online platforms. Social media have given media relations a very powerful function because practitioners no longer have to wait for the media to evaluate and place messages. Practitioners can place messages themselves using digital channels. However, while working around the gatekeeping process of traditional media has made placing information and messages easier, it has also taken away third‐party endorsement, which may undermine the credibility of online content. Thus, media relations professionals need to be aware of the positive and negative aspects of direct communication channels. In fact, the public is still likely to trust the media news format rather than the content placed by owned channels since the public tends to distrust controlled content (Carah & Louw, 2015).

Another new aspect of media relations is managing relationships with online influencers in the digital media environment. Online influencers are independent individuals who post personal reviews and opinions on blogs and through other social media. Typically, influencers have thousands of followers and fans who share their opinions and reviews. Since online influencers often have expertise in a specific area such as politics, entertainment, brands, services, or controversial issues, the public is likely to trust and value their opinions and agree with the influencers’ preferences and political standpoints. Many view influencers as experts and base their purchases and stances on issues on what influencers have said or done.

For example, a public relations practitioner who works for a cosmetics brand may spend a significant amount of time building favorable relationships with online influencers who broadcast cosmetics product reviews on YouTube channels and gain audiences. For example, hundreds of thousands of YouTube subscribers watch these videos rather than relying upon traditional media such as magazines or network TV to get news about the latest cosmetics on the market. These power bloggers wield a lot of influence. Although power bloggers are not journalists in principle, the impact of their opinions does matter to the public. Thus, media relations has increasingly shifted to the online sphere and has focused on building relationships with online influencers.

Finally, media relations specialists will have to monitor trending buzzwords on search engines such as Google, Yahoo, and Bing to determine if any of those trending terms relate to the organizations they represent. In order to manage online media relations, media relations specialists need to understand the algorithm of buzzword placement in the online sphere and handle inquiries from the media, especially in times of crisis.

Examples of Theories Used with Media Relations

The most common media relations theories come from mass communications and examine how sources work with media. Following are some summaries of theories typically used with media relations, and also see Table 12.1.

Table 12.1 Media relations theories

Theory Key features and attention point
Agenda building on media Public relations practitioners continuously provide information to media, with efforts to influence the media agenda. The media agenda affects what people know about issues, brands, services, policies, and people related to the specific organizations.
Third‐party endorsement The public is more likely to believe news content endorsed by a third party, such as in the media, which is unbiased, objective, and maintains editorial independence. The public is less likely to believe first‐party content and will perceive this content as self‐serving and biased. Third‐party endorsement is a distinguishing characteristic in comparing publicity to advertising messages. However, in the social media environment, where earned, owned, and paid media are presented on the same platform, third‐party endorsement can be hard to discern.
Information subsidies Sources, such as organizations, attempt to provide information subsidies to the media, whereas the media seek news information. Information subsidies can save media costs when producing news content. Therefore, sources and media have a symbiotic relationship.

Information Subsidy and Agenda Setting

As has been stated, media relations manages the flow of information between sources and media. Gandy (1982) coined the term “information subsidy” to refer to any information that organizations hope will receive favorable placement in the media. Organizations benefit from third‐party endorsement, which is when the media legitimize the sources’ information. Conversely, the media benefit by acquiring newsworthy information subsidies from sources, which saves them the time and effort associated with news gathering. Thus, the relationship between sources and media is symbiotic.

The agenda‐setting theory (McCombs & Shaw, 1972) explains the role of the media and how the media decide on and frame news content based on journalists’ judgment. Basically, while the media do not tell the public what to think, the media tell the public what to think about, meaning that the issues and topics covered by the media are the ones people tend to talk about and know. Since the public receives news from the media and generally gives credence to the media, the news content covered (as well as the content not covered) affects the public’s recognition and awareness of topics and issues. Therefore, no matter what a media relations practitioner’s industry is, he should be aware of and recognize the power of the media.

In addition, framing theory (Goffman, 1974) is related to agenda‐setting theory. Framing refers to the presentation and nuances that affect the public’s perception. For example, if a CEO makes a decision that is viewed as a socially responsible response to a societal issue such as gun control, that CEO might be framed in a positive way. Similarly, if a CEO were to respond to an issue such as gender equality in an insensitive way, he might be framed in a negative fashion. Public relations practitioners need to pay attention to how news content is presented because that presentation can affect how publics come to know topics and issues.

Third‐Party Endorsement Theory

A central premise of media relations can be explained by the third‐party endorsement theory. Third party refers to an entity which is independent, objective, and not affiliated with the organization releasing information. Therefore, the third party is frequently the media. News organizations are considered credible because they are free from any influence by clients or sources. Since news coverage is filtered by objective journalistic judgment, news typically has third‐party credibility. Therefore, any news content endorsed by the media affects the public’s perception of issues, organizations, and people, meaning that if the objective media say something, it is credible because it is free from influence. In recent years, however, the digital media environment has lessened the value of third‐party endorsement. Marketing content is often portrayed as objective news when presented on a digital platform. This disguised marketing material which only seems to have third‐party endorsement blurs the line between advertising and news. For example, bloggers who do not disclose that they are paid, purchase replies that are secretly paid, and fake postings can appear in the online sphere and imitate the wording and presentation of third‐party endorsements in the news. The issue then becomes ensuring the credibility of content found in the digital media environment.

Major Topics/Questions Needing to Be Addressed by Public Relations Theorists Working with Media Relations

Media Relations in Cross‐Cultural Setting

The world is shrinking because communication across borders and time zones is so much easier than in the past. However, with these changes come challenges. For example, cultural differences sometimes affect aspects of media relations depending on the culture in which media relations is practiced. Eastern culture values collectivism while the West values individualism. Collectivism is defined as the degree to which individuals are integrated into groups; and in contrast, individualism is “the degree to which people in a country prefer to act as individuals rather than as members of groups” (Hofstede, 1994, p. 6).

Guanxi is defined as the interrelationship between individuals characterized by an intimate bond. For example, Guanxi in Taiwan and personal networks in South Korea based on school ties may affect the practice of media relations in Asian countries (Huang, 2000; Jo & Kim, 2004). To lose negative publicity about an organization in the news media, public relations practitioners often ask a journalist to remove the bad news as a favor by employing personal networks such as school ties. Thus, how media relations is practiced depends upon media systems, political systems, level of economic development, and culture (Sriramesh & Verčič, 2003). Media relations may be altered depending on the cultural context of each country. External factors such as the personal influence model may also influence the agenda setting of news content.

In Eastern cultures, the agenda‐setting role of media is often encroached upon by external factors such as advertising subsidies, or personal networks such as school or hometown ties. Intimate interpersonal relationships between the sources and media journalists may affect news content. For example, public relations professionals are likely to rely on informal relationships to gain positive publicity and reduce negative publicity. Furthermore, the dramatic decline in newspaper subscriptions has forced many news media to secure profits by selling editorial space to clients. In some countries, this situation has led to a degradation of the integrity of journalism because the traditional relationship between sources and media has been replaced by economic motives (Jo, 2011; Jo & Bae, 2013). Therefore, future research needs to examine the changing nature of the source–media relationship in the global context to determine if current theory is adequate.

Ethical Issues of Media Relations

Negative perceptions of public relations can be traced back to historically unethical relationships between sources and media (Callison, 2004). The rapid growth of digital technology combined with the downsizing of media has created a number of ethical issues and challenges for the future of media relations. First, although bypassing the gatekeeping of traditional media allows organizations to communicate directly with their publics, it also challenges the credibility of owned and controlled news content (DiStaso & Brown, 2015). The value of third‐party endorsement is lost when the gatekeeping function is bypassed.

Second, the plethora of fake news content and false posts, replies, and comments intended to sway public opinion on digital platforms also challenges traditional third‐party endorsement by the media. At times, organizations hire bloggers without revealing that the bloggers have been paid for their product. Therefore, what seems like a nonbiased third‐ party endorsement is actually a paid‐for endorsement. Similarly, paid advertising often imitates third‐party endorsed content. These so‐called news editorials and reviews where payment is not disclosed create ethical issues for both journalism and public relations, and these need to be examined further.

Finally, the economic constraints bearing upon the media can lead some news organizations to turn to new revenue streams. In the short term, news organizations can benefit from paid news placements such as advertising. Similarly, media can secure financial profit by selling their editorial content. However, in the long term, media could lose credibility, resulting in a loss of trust in journalism. These situations all have repercussions for media relations. More research needs to focus on the gray areas of online media relations and the adoption of digital communication technology in a new media landscape.

Suggested Case to Explore to Demonstrate Theory at Work with Media Relations

The case of media relations and Cheong culture in South Korea is interesting to examine in the international context. If any global organization wants to operate in South Korea, its media relations representatives must have personal relationships with the media in order to create Cheong. Cheong has its roots in the Confucianism of eastern Asia. Its main cultural characteristic resides the private domain of the human relationship. In this culture, the ties and personal connections built among people through schools, hometowns, friendship, and work relationships are often called upon. The issue with Cheong, however, is that it can influence media relations, which then affects what the public does and does not know.

The selection of news content is an intrinsic right of the media, and should not be influenced by external media relations practitioners. However, in South Korea, Cheong still affects media relations (Berkowitz & Lee, 2004; Jung, 2007). For example, large organizations will often hire male former journalists as public relations managers in order to use their connections with the media to their advantage. For example, in the case of negative publicity, the media relations practitioner will ask his media connections to remove any negative news about his organization so it does not become publicly known and does not spread. This process of removing negative news is an example of how the personal connections rooted in the Cheong culture can affect public relations. Thus, building and maintaining favorable relationships with journalists is regarded as a highly important skill for public relations professionals. This unique aspect of media relations in South Korea illustrates how the practice of media relations differs depending on country and cultural context (Taylor, 2001).

Discussion Questions

  1. 1 How does media relations practice change with the digital communication age? How do the interactions between sources and media evolve compared to those in the past driven by traditional media?
  2. 2 According to earlier studies, the relationship between public relations practitioners and journalists has not been positive. How does the relationship evolve given recent digital technology?
  3. 3 How does media relations differ depending on countries? How do cross‐culture issues affect dimensions of media relations?
  4. 4 In Japan and South Korea, the existence of a press club (some organizations limit news reporting access to only a few in the media) provides pros and cons to media relations specialists. Discuss the pros and cons of a press club system.
  5. 5 How do you define media relations ethics?
  6. 6 Many public relations practitioners argue that the line between advertising and public relations has become blurred in a converging media environment. How do you perceive this issue? Do you favor this trend?

Suggested Readings

  1. Bowen, S. A. (2016). Clarifying ethics in public relations from A to V, authenticity to virtue: BledCom special issue of PR review sleeping (with the) media: Media relations. Public Relations Review, 42, 564–572.
  2. Charest, F., Bouffard, J., & Zajmovic, E. (2016). Public relations and social media: Deliberate or creative strategic planning. Public Relations Review, 42, 530–538.
  3. Cheng, Y., Huang, Y., & Chan, C. (2017). Public relations, media coverage, and public opinion in contemporary China: Testing agenda building theory in a social mediated crisis. Telematics and Informatics, 34, 765–773.
  4. Han, G. S. (2002). Understanding Korean social psychology. Seoul: Hakjisa.
  5. Macnamara, J. (2014). Journalism–PR relations revisited: The good news, the bad news, and insights into tomorrow’s news. Public Relations Review, 40, 739–750.
  6. Macnamara, J. (2016). The continuing convergence of journalism and PR: New insights for ethical practice from a three‐country study of senior practitioners. Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, 93(1), 118–141.
  7. Toledano, M., & Avidar, R. (2016). Public relations, ethics, and social media: A cross‐national study of PR practitioners. Public Relations Review, 42, 161–169.
  8. Waters, R. (2013). Tracing the impact of media relations and television coverage on US charitable relief fundraising: An application of agenda setting theory across three natural disasters. Journal of Public Relations Research, 25, 329–346.

References

  1. Berkowitz, D., & Lee, J. (2004). Media relations in Korea: Cheong between journalist and public relations practitioner. Public Relations Review, 30(4): 4531–437.
  2. Cacciatore, M., Meng, J., Boyd, B., & Reber, B (2016). Political ideology, media‐source preferences, and messaging strategies: A global perspective on trust building. Public Relations Review, 42(4), 616–626.
  3. Callison, C. (2004). The good, the bad, and the ugly: Perceptions of public relations practitioners. Journal of Public Relations Research, 16(4), 371–389.
  4. Carah, N., & Louw, E. (2015). Media and society: Production, content and participation. Thousand and Oaks, CA: Sage.
  5. DeLorme, D. E., & Fedler, F. (2003). Journalists’ hostility toward public relations: An historical analysis. Public Relations Review, 29, 99–124.
  6. DiStaso, M., & Brown, B. (2015). From owned to earned media: An analysis of corporate efforts about being on Fortune lists. Communication Research Reports, 32(3), 191–198.
  7. Gandy, O. H. (1982). Beyond agenda setting: Information subsidies and public policy. Norwood, NJ: Ablex.
  8. Goffman, E. (1974). Frame analysis: an essay on the organization of experience. New York: Harper and Row.
  9. Griffin, R., & Dunwoody, S. (1995). Impacts of information subsidies and community structure on local press coverage of environmental contamination. Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, 72(2), 271–284.
  10. Hofstede, G. H. (1994). Management scientists are human. Management Science, 40(1), 4–13.
  11. Huang, Y. H. (2000). The personal influence model and Gao Guanxi in Taiwan Chinese public relations. Public Relations Review, 26, 219–236.
  12. Jo, S. (2011). Advertising as payment: Information transactions in the South Korean newspaper market. Public Relations Review, 37(4), 399–404.
  13. Jo, S., & Bae, J. (2013). The study of relationship between sources and newspapers. Korean Journal of Public Relations Research, 17(2), 40–76.
  14. Jo, S., & Kim, Y. (2004). Media or personal relations? Exploring media relations dimensions in South Korea. Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, 81(2), 292–306.
  15. Jung, S. (2007). Koreans’ cultural grammar. Seoul: Thinking Tree.
  16. McCombs, M., & Shaw, D. (1972). The agenda‐setting function of mass media. Public Opinion Quarterly; 36(2): 176–187.
  17. O’Brien, A. (2014, September 19). Public relations vs. media relations. Everything‐PR. Retrieved from http://everything‐pr.com/public‐relations‐media‐relations/52598/
  18. Sallot, L. M., & Johnson, E. A. (2006). Investigating relationships between journalists and public relations practitioners: Working together to set, frame and build the public agenda, 1991–2004. Public Relations Review, 32, 151–159.
  19. Savič, I. (2016). Mediatization of companies as a factor of their communication power and the new role of public relations. Public Relations Review, 42(4), 607–615.
  20. Smith, R. (2013). Strategic planning for public relations (4th ed.). New York: Routledge.
  21. Sriramesh, K., & Verčič, D. (2003). The global public relations handbook. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
  22. Taylor, M. (2001). International public relations: Opportunities and challenges for the 21st century. In R. L. Heath (Ed.), Handbook of public relations (pp. 627–637). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
  23. Turk, J. V. (1991). Public relations’ influence on the news. In D. L. Protess and M. McCombs (Eds), Agenda setting: Readings on media, public opinion, and policymaking (pp. 211–222). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
  24. Zerfass, A., Verčič, D., & Wiesenberg, M. (2016). The dawn of a new golden age for media relations? How PR professionals interact with the mass media and use new collaboration practices. Public Relations Review, 42(4), 499–508.
  25. Zoch, L. M., & Molleda, J. (2006). Building a theoretical model of media relations using framing, information subsidies, and agenda‐building. In C. Botan & V. Hazleton (Eds.), Public relations theory II (pp. 279–309). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
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