admin“No industry has been affected more permanently and positively by the Internet than Public Relations”. This is one assessment made by Internet PR guru — Don Middleberg (2001) — on the emergence of the Internet and new media. Mr Middleberg further said that “ . . . the internet is an environment of dialogue, not monologue.However, a better description for online communication could be multilogue as, at times, there are more than two participants communicating in a particular area of the net, and on one or more subjects at a time”.
Welcome to the world of multilogue! Indeed it is multilogue and this is what increased media technology and social media platforms have brought into this world.
While multilogue is one of the telling effects of the massive influx of media, Middleberg’s assertion that PR is one exclusive industry that has permanent and positive scars of this increased media complexity is all but true whichever way we look at it.
This increased media complexity together with traditional media has transformed PR in many ways.
PR is already a creative profession from the traditional media perspective, and the new media has elevated that creativity to another level.
PR practitioners in the corporate world can now activate the creative nature of organisations with social media platforms from LinkedIn, Facebook, My Space, YouTube, Twitter, blogs to Instagram.
Organisations now have the creative flexibility of these social platforms which is different from the linear creativity of traditional media.
We now have companies like Mimosa, Zimplats and others showing activities on different media platforms choreographed in exclusive creative appeal all at once.
The new media has also injected the “luxury” of multiple media channels to reach mass and niche audiences, thus enabling the media consumers to make a choice.
This is something which could not happen in the traditional “magic bullet” media. And this luxury has somehow encouraged the traditional media to curve into some digital media communication through mobile Short Messaging Services (SMS) messages.
The private and public media in Zimbabwe have warmed to the online communication where debates and conferencing is taking place on their online platforms.
We have all seen The Herald flagging online messages of a subject matter that would have appeared on its broadsheet pages.
Social media has just but transformed the flow of communication by speeding it up. There is more interaction now — from monologue to dialogue and now multilogue.
And this transformation has aided the PR practice. The corporate world now communicates with its publics and stakeholders in a more speedy way. This acceleration in the communication juggernaut opens more doors for effective interaction with publics.
The more interaction the organisation has the more and increased competition it brings in the industry.
This is mostly exemplified in the cellular mobile communication industry where Econet, NetOne and Telecel have increased competition due to the diversity of interaction they create with their publics.
Increased competition also brings about “guerrilla PR” where PR practitioners in these organisations are in undercover “competitive” creativity to sell their corporate identity, image and reputation through the communication of their products to their publics.
One of the qualities of PR is research and the new media frenzy has brought more immediate feedback outlets which aid PR and corporate governance activities of an organisation in research. This feedback comes with it accountability, trust, loyalty, reputation and altruism.
This is just a snippet into the glaring positives of the increased media complexity on the PR industry.
However, a snippet into the supposed negatives of the new media platforms and technologies show that PR is also transformed magnificently from this end.
The social media has resulted in citizenship journalism where users have increased user control, personalisation, responsiveness, connectedness, real time interaction and, of course, the trust factor.
This social media freedom has resulted in organisations and artists using unorthodox ways of marketing. Musicians in Zimbabwe have used the “death” factor to market themselves and their music. Recently, the social media was awash with fake “death” of dancehall singer — Tocky Vibes.
Now PR is not about spin or propaganda and such social media buzz only help PR practitioners in organisations to measure, weigh and evaluate the messages they disseminate to their organisations’ audiences.
PR has to ensure that the organisational messages to its publics have trust, reputational and responsibility factors to protect the image of the entity.
There are also notions that the increased media complexity has more entertainment value or playfulness which remove the seriousness of opinion and views of the corporate world, especially by its publics. While entertainment is critical for the jovial publics on the social media platforms, PR has a job to censor that playfulness to ensure the richness of the corporate identity, image and reputation.
Discordant feedback and discourses vis-a-vis useful information for organisations have also raised questions of seriousness and trust given to the social media platforms.
Again, PR has a role to assert the style, system, code, colour and fabric of the organisation. And this can only be done by PR practitioners giving a close scrutiny to the “footprints” of the organisation in its life cycle.
Another supposed negative issue on the increased media complexity has been the regulation deficiencies of the social media platforms.
The Arab community could not control social media platforms that led to the Arab Springs that toppled leaders in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya.
The Obama Whirlwind in his first election was as a result of an uncontrolled social media environment.
This regulation deficiency therefore calls for PR practitioners to ensure that their organisations practice corporate citizenship in their communication. Organisations have to protect and own their host countries like patriotic citizens.
Yes, the multilogue world is here and it is here to stay. The combined power of traditional and new media has a permanent and positive impact and transformation of PR no matter how mild or extreme its consequences might have on the corporate world.
PR is destined for a greater appeal and profile because of the increased media presence and it is up to organisations to harness and value the practice to ensure maximum utilisation of the new media.
This article has been prepared by the Zimbabwe Institute of Public Relations. For feedback please email [email protected].
Online Reporter