Toxic Sludge is Good for You is an accumulation of real life PR situations that depict the worst of the worst in the American public relations industry. The authors tell one side of the story by naming names and revealing how they worked their magic to manipulate and deceive the public. The book exposes bogus news, made up ‘grassroots” organizations, public relation spies, and other methods to demonstrate how information that comes from corporations, politicians, and other governments can be skewed and controlled before it reaches the masses. Toxic Sludge is designed to shock readers by stressing the negative side of each circumstance; even though the information presented is a left wing point of view I do believe the work is a justifiable criticism of the PR industry because the tactics used were harmful to American democracy and in some cases the health and wellbeing of the public at large. According to an analysis by Dr. Donn Tilson, accredited member of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), not all PR practitioners utilize such tactics, however, many do and that type of PR poses a threat to democratic values, he goes on to state, “it is ultimately a manifestation of the deeper contradictions in corporate America...the road back to a truly democratic society lies in educating ourselves about the power of propaganda in our lives” (Tilson, 1997). As the general public continues to educate itself about the practices (good and bad) in the field of PR it is even more important that our firm maintain professional procedures that are in-line with the PRSA code of ethics. The authors do eventually (pg. 205) acknowledge that some may see the book as trying to enrage the public just to sell books. In fact, Ron Levy, P... ... middle of paper ... ...tive that our top executives lead by example. (Bowan, 2007) BIBLIOGRAPHY Bowan, S (2007). Ethics and Public Relations. Retrieved on February 14, 2012 from : http://www.instituteforpr.org/topics/ethics-and-public-relations/ Firestoned. (2001). Advertising Age, 72(23), 16. Schwarze, S. (2003). Corporate-State Irresponsibility, Critical Publicity, and Asbestos Exposure in Libby, Montana., Management Communication Quarterly, 16(4), 625. Schwarze, S. (2003). Corporate – State Irresponsibility, Critical Publicity, and Asbestos Exposure in Libby, Montana. Management Communication Quarterly, 16(4), 625. Swift, P. (1995). Public Interest Reporting. Public Relations Quarterly, 40(3), 4-5. Tilson, D. (1997). Toxic Sludge is Good for You! Lies, Damn Lies and the Public Relations Industry (Book). World Communication, 26(1), 62.
Martin, John. “The Blast in Centralia No. 5: A mine disaster No One Stopped.” Public Administration: Concepts and Cases. Stillman, Richard Joseph. Boston, MA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2010. 31-44.
Not knowing what to do, businesses tried to buy out journalists to silence them and to pay for advertisements in the newspapers (Seitel, 2006, pg. 29). This strategy did not work for long however because “the best way to influence public opinion was through honesty and candor” (Seitel, 2006, pg. 29). Out of this idea came the first great public relations counselor, George V.S. Michaelis
Public relations are the practice of distributing the information between an organisation or individual and the public. The aim of PR practitioners by the client is often is to persuade stakeholders, partners, employees, investors and most importantly, the public. The practitioner’s communication stance is reaching the individuals or organisation ultimate goal. However many can examine and scrutinize public relations ethics to assert a PR problem within the industry. All PR organisations and individuals have a code of ethics of which the professionals are expected to follow. Regardless of these guidelines, ethics in individual practices seem to prove continuous and consistent violation worldwide. The James Hardie Industry, a company that is known for knowingly using products that caused thousands of people throughout Australia to grow to become sick and even resulting in death, from its products that produced massive profits is a prime example of the PR problem. However ethical communication and critically reflective practices are procedures that benefit both the public and the organisation when use correctly, opposite to the James Hardie case.
Bonila, Denise M., and Levy, Beth, Eds. The Power of the Press. H. W. Wilson, 1999.
In the book, Propaganda, author Edward L Bernays, who is nephew of Sigmund Freud, transcends the public relation industry. This short, 13-part instructional manual delves deep into the intricacies and usage of propaganda. Bernays claims that the public is in a constant state of manipulation. He argues that in order for a society to be highly functioning and stable, public opinion must be manipulated and swayed. While I find his claims disturbing, it was refreshing to read something so blunt. Bernays’ use of psychological techniques to work the mechanics of public opinion truly classifies him as the “father of public relations.”
Deontology is an ethical framework which places emphasis on moral rules and the concept of duty (Duignan, 2011, p 69). Although one individual’s concept of duty and moral law can differ to another, under this framework there are a few universally agreed upon ethical acts including honesty, promise keeping, reparation, and justice. As previously stated, within the campaign there were some issues of deception (Duignan, 2011, p 69). Attached to the public relations profession there is a negative connotation that practitioners are ‘spin doctors’. The term ‘spin doctor’ is a slang for a deceptive public relations practitioner (Sumpter & Tankard, 1994, p19). It is based around a common belief public relations will use dishonesty and deception in order to achieve a favourable angle on a situation, person, story or campaign (Sumpter & Tankard, 1994, p19). Since the 1950’s when the term was first coined, consumers and publics have become very aware of the practice and become very critical of practitioners who use deception to achieve a goal (Sumpter & Tankard, 1994, p20). As the campaign didn’t disclose that the corporates weren’t actually homeless, and as members of the public were secretly filmed, this campaign used deception to achieve a favourable result. This then reflects badly upon the profession and adds to the negative ‘spin doctor’ perception. By not
The mainstream model of liberal journalism believes that it’s practices result in stories that are an accurate reflection of reality, journalist believe they simply hold a mirror up to society (Louw, 2010). In constructing a story, spin team must have an insight on how the society believe nowadays, and it’s not only to just follow that believe, but give society an option to consider another belief. Therefore the spin team need to understand their audience first, what is the best tool they can use as a strategy, how to talk with those audience, generate comprehensive media knowledge and the ability to spin current perspective. The public relations / spin industry is geared to planting stories in the media by using journalists to disseminate stories serving the spin doctors agenda (Louw, 2010). Nowadays, in developing a campaign, the role of spin team is very powerful. It’s not about how well the messages received to the public or remembered but becoming a share worthy and meaningful messages that shows empathy as well as emotionally attached with everyone. The Dove “real beauty” campaign shows a successful role of spin team, the...
Tennessee coal ash spill occurred in December 22, 2008. A dike failed at Tennessee Valley Authority spilling billion gallons of coal ash. The ash had been stored and contained arsenic, selenium, lead and radioactive materials. These materials are very toxic. This spill is an example of environmental crime because it was caused by the Tennessee Valley Authority. An environmental crime is considered to be a white collar crime also known as corporation crime (Beder, 2002, pg 213). News media highly covered this crime in different ways. Media can change the framework in order to help us understand the situation better. Framing is principles of selection, emphasis and presentation (Schudson, 2003, pg 35). These two article shows how Tennessee Spill can be framed in different ways and with framing analysis it can tell you which frames is being used by the news media.
The discipline of public relations is a modern profession which has been in existence for only close to a century; however, it has already taken an important role in the fields of business, government, entertainment and non-profit organizations including educational institutions and healthcare organizations. Public relations professionals are required to have excellent organizational, interpersonal and communication skills and have the ability to persuade the public. It is imperative for PR professionals to effectively communicate with its public in order to establish and maintain a positive relationship. Furthermore, public relations professionals must have the ability to work under pressure and effectively manage crisis which may have detrimental effect on the company and the public it serves. State purpose of paper and an overview of what will be covered in the introduction
Journal of Public Policy and Marketing 18 (1999): 270. Communication & Mass Media Complete. EBSCO. DePaul Library. 7 Mar. 2008.
Edward L. Bernays deserves recognition far greater than that which he receives. "The father of spin" documents the career of Edward Bernays, the man himself and the monumental findings that precede him. Bernays not only fathered public relations as we know it he also shaped molded and embodied ideal practices of public relations and spin in everything that he did.
...d not suffer from bad consequences on the long run. On the other hand, the Exxon-Valdez oil-spill case is an example of deceptive PR. Indeed, not much was done for the Alaskan community and the corporation ended up being perceived in a very negative way by the general public. These two crisis communication cases show that people and mechanisms of power have things in common with Machiavelli’s times, but society has become less tolerant of evil strategies. Rulers or corporations still have the means to deceive, but people are no longer subject to an authority considered divine. Therefore, the ones who govern are exposed to feedback and can hardly avoid the consequences of their acts.
We are currently in an era where the profession of public relations is widely viewed as being “spin doctors” and hype can often eclipse reality. Most individuals see public relations as people who manipulate the public mind, rather than tell the truth. We are often accused of distorting reality, propaganda and withholding information. With these circumstances, you could have thought that “ethical public relations” was an oxymoron. Although not everyone is in tune with today’s public relation’s world, it is critical to assert a practitioners' beliefs of ethics in the practice of public relations. Being an ethical public relations practitioner is fundamental, especially when it is your duty to build trust and enhance stakeholders’ reputations.
Media corporations are now exactly like that ocean of fish. But instead of an ocean full of many competing fish, there are now only five powerful ones. With these five “big fish” of media corporations, the communication of truth may be thrown off balance.
Public relations and propaganda has it place in every governmental society as long as it is used a tool to communicate the intentions of government and to provide the information for an informed decisions by its citizens. As society becomes more dependent on technology for information and becomes more educated on propaganda the old “black propaganda” (Shafritz, 2011) is going out the door. The thing to remember is propaganda has been around since the beginning of time, even the bible should be considered propaganda, but it’s up to each society to determine the worth of propaganda with public relations and government leaders.