1.3: The History and Development of Modern PR

Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): Using a smartphone to capture history. (Unsplash free-to-use license; Annie Williams)

(The following Chapter section was remixed from 3.1: The Historical Development of Modern Public Relations, which is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Anonymous.)

Origins

Although there were ancient public relations—as far in the past as ancient Greece—modern-day public relations in the United States began with a group of revolutionaries mounting a public relations campaign to turn public opinion in favor of independence from England and King George. The revolutionaries effectively used words and actions to mount a successful activist campaign leading to the Revolutionary War. Thomas Paine’s Common Sense, published in 1776, gave rise to the sentiment that England’s governance under King George III was unjust. The subsequent Declaration of Independence and outward acts of protest were largely influenced by the rhetorical arguments found in Paine’s pamphlet, which has been called the most influential tract of the American Revolution.

Slogans, such as Don’t Tread on Me, and use of printed materials, such as Colonial newspapers, were key message tactics used to sway opinion in favor of a revolution and a war for independence. Following independence, The Federalist Papers were used to ratify the United States Constitution. These 85 essays were, according to the assessment of Grunig and Hunt, exemplary forms of effective public relations.²

These founding fathers of the United States used public relations to build the public consensus necessary for a budding nation to form a new kind of government and establish the human rights necessary for the nation to survive.

Modern public relations in the United States can also be traced back to less illustrious beginnings than the creation of a new democratic republic.³ P.T. Barnum, of circus fame, made his mark by originating and employing many publicity tactics to generate attention for his shows and attractions. Barnum was famous for coining the phrase, “There’s no such thing as bad publicity.”

He was even known to pen letters to the editor under an assumed name, outing some of his attractions as hoaxes just to generate publicity and keep a story alive. Unfortunately, Barnum’s ethics left much to be desired.

One-Way Communication Models: Publicity and Dissemination of Information

Barnum thought that honesty was not the domain of a press agent and infamously stated, “The public be fooled.”⁵ Droves of press agents followed in Barnum’s tracks in efforts to get free space in the news for their clients. The clients they represented ranged from Hollywood figures to private interests, such as railroads and politicians. This approach to public relations was termed press agentry by Grunig and Hunt because of its reliance on generating publicity with little regard for truth. For modern-day examples, we have to look only to the entertainment publicity surrounding a new film release, or the product publicity around a new energy drink or a new technological gadget. Publicity and press agentry are synonymous terms meaning simply to generate attention through the use of media.

The next historical phase resulted in a new model of public relations that Grunig and Hunt termed public information. In this approach to public relations, a former journalist works as a writer representing clients, issuing news releases to media outlets in the same style as journalistic writing. The idea of the public relations specialist acting as a counselor to management, as opposed to a simple practitioner of press agentry tactics, was born.

The pioneering public information counselor was a man named Ivy Ledbetter Lee, who revolutionized public relations practice at the time with the idea of telling the truth. Lee studied at Harvard Law School but went on to find a job as a journalist. After working as a successful journalist for a number of years, Lee realized that he had a real flair for explaining complicated topics to people and had the idea of being a new kind of press agent. Rather than tricking the public, Lee saw his role as one of educating the public about truthful facts and supplying all possible information to the media. Ivy Lee opened the third public relations agency in the United States in 1904 and represented clients such as the Pennsylvania Railroad, the Rockefeller family, and the Anthracite Coal Roads and Mine Company.⁶

Lee became the first public relations practitioner to issue a code of ethics in 1906. This was informed by his work changing not just the way the Pennsylvania Railroad communicated with its publics but also changing the way it did business.⁷ Lee espoused the ethic of letting the public be informed, which replaced railroad tycoon Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt’s infamous statement regarding letting the public be damned.⁸ Ivy Lee ushered in a more respectable form of public relations that is objective and factual. His public information approach is still in use today, especially in government reporting, quarterly earnings statements, and similar reports intended to inform.

Both the press agentry and public information models of public relations are based on merging writing skills, technical skills, and interpersonal skills. Professional public relations practitioners are skilled at working with words, images, online and mobile media platforms as well as other media professionals including journalists and other PR and marketing professionals. The core concepts of both the press agentry and public information models are based on a one-way dissemination of information communication models. They are not fully evolved management-based models because strategic management is based on conducting research.

Research sets the strategic management approach to PR apart because it requires listening to your publics. In other words, gathering knowledge from data constitutes two-way communication. Press agentry and public information models have long relied on making assumptions about the preferences of various publics and communicating in an almost strictly one-way or one-to-many communication model.

Two-Way Communication Models: Strategic Management of Public Relations

The next two models of public relations are based on research. Using research to gather public opinion data led scholars to label these models two-way rather than one-way because they more resemble a conversation than a simple dissemination of information. Grunig and Hunt termed the two management models asymmetrical and symmetrical.

The asymmetrical model was pioneered between 1920 and 1950 by Edward Bernays, nephew of psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud and is based on the principles of behavioral psychology. Public relations research seeks to determine what publics know and understand or believe about the client organization, issues of importance, and so on. Then, in the asymmetrical model, once these beliefs are learned through polling and other means, they are incorporated into the public relations messages distributed by the organization. It is called asymmetrical because it is imbalanced in favor of the communicator; the communicator undergoes no real change, but simply uses the ideas they know will resonate in communicating with publics with the purpose of persuading them on some issue or topic.

For example, if I am a politician running for reelection and my research identifies tax cuts as an important topic with publics, then I include the importance of tax cuts in my next campaign speech. Research is a key component of this model, as it seeks to persuade publics to adopt the attitudes and beliefs that are favorable to the organization based on the collection of data about their existing beliefs.

The symmetrical model was also pioneered by Edward Bernays and several prominent public relations practitioners and educators between about 1960 to 1980. It also seeks to use research on public opinion just as the asymmetrical model does. However, it does not use research with the intent to persuade, but to build mutual understanding between publics and organizations. Organizations are open to changing their internal policies and practices in this model based on what they learn from their publics. It is a collaborative approach to building understanding, and, although not perfectly balanced, it is a moving equilibrium in which both sides in the communication process have an opportunity to have input and change an issue. To revise this example, after research identifying tax cuts as an issue, a symmetrical politician would actually incorporate tax cuts into her belief system and offer ideas supporting those beliefs on the campaign trail.

In modern public relations, we often see a mixing of public relations models, tactics, and communication tools within one campaign. It is best to think of the models as theoretical constructs that in implementation become combined through the mixed motives of public relations. In most cases, public relations professionals not only want to aid their employer or client but also to assist the publics outside the organization to access and understand the inner workings of the firm. This mixed-motive approach is based on the real-world contingencies that impact public relations decisions, and the desire to facilitate communication on both sides of an issue, both for organizations and for publics.

Summary of the Models of Public Relations

In summary, the historical development of the field showed four distinct models of public relations, as identified by Grunig and Hunt. With this brief background in the history of public relations, you likely know enough about the models now to begin employing each in your public relations management. All are still in use in public relations practice today, and these terms are used in the academic literature and in public relations management. The one-way models are not based on social scientific research but on a simple dissemination of information. The two-way models are based on research, which is what makes them the two-way management models. In chronological order, the models are:

• Press agentry. One-way (information) dissemination focusing on publicity for persuasion/attention.
• Public information. One-way (information) dissemination of information.
• Two-way asymmetrical. Two-way (research), which is imbalanced in favor of persuading publics to support the organizations’ interests.
• Two-way symmetrical. Two-way (research), which is more balanced in terms of creating mutual understanding; moving equilibrium.

Due to the mixed-motives inherent in the public relations process, public relations professionals will most likely use a combination of these models in public relations management. These models suggest an overall philosophy of public relations, while situations require different approaches. Therefore, it is also useful to have public relations strategies that reflect a contingency of varying approaches and that integrate multiple types of media into a communication plan.

Discussion

The historical evolution of public relations has seen the development of various models, each reflecting different strategic communication approaches. From the revolutionary tactics used by early American activists to the more structured models introduced by pioneers like Ivy Lee and Edward Bernays, public relations has shifted from simple publicity to a more nuanced practice involving strategic management and mutual understanding.

Consider the following questions for discussion:

1. Historical Influence on Modern PR Practices: Reflect on the impact of early public relations practices, such as those employed by Thomas Paine during the American Revolution and P.T. Barnum’s press agentry tactics. How have these early approaches influenced contemporary public relations strategies? Are there elements of these historical practices that are still evident in today’s PR campaigns? Provide examples to support your points.

2. One-Way vs. Two-Way Communication Models: The text describes four models of public relations: press agentry, public information, two-way asymmetrical, and two-way symmetrical. Compare and contrast these models in terms of their effectiveness and ethical considerations. How do the one-way models of press agentry and public information differ from the two-way models in terms of their goals and methods? Discuss the advantages and limitations of each model in achieving effective communication with publics.

3. Ethical Considerations in PR Models: Ivy Lee’s shift towards a more truthful public information model marked a significant ethical improvement over the deceptive practices of press agentry. How do ethical considerations play a role in choosing and implementing different PR models? In what ways can modern PR practitioners balance the need for effective communication with maintaining ethical standards?

4. Application of Models in Contemporary PR: The text notes that modern public relations often involves a mix of different models to address various communication needs. How can public relations professionals strategically combine elements from the different models to craft comprehensive PR campaigns? Discuss how the mixed-motive approach might be applied in a current PR scenario, such as a corporate crisis or a new product launch.

2. Grunig and Hunt, Managing Public Relations
3. Scott M. Cutlip, Public Relations History: From the 17th to the 20th Century: The Antecedents, 1st ed. (New York: Routledge, 1995). https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203811849
4. Grunig and Hunt, Managing Public Relations, 28
5. Grunig and Hunt, Managing Public Relations, 29
6. Grunig and Hunt, Managing Public Relations, 32
7. Ray Eldon Hiebert. "Ivy Lee: Father of Modern Public Relations." The Princeton University Library Chronicle 27, no. 2 (1966): 113-120.
8. Hiebert. "Ivy Lee: Father of Modern Public Relations."