The Spokesperson: Between Propaganda and Public Relations By Yushau A. Shuaib It is not about politics, product launch and cheap publicity. It is about image, reputation and editorial judgement. It is a choice between propaganda and public relations. Since information influences our attitudes to life, the kinds of message we receive from organizations and individuals to a large extent is of great concern to our livelihood.
Information comes in different
forms. While information that is not subjected to manipulation can be
positive and negative like electoral victory and earthquake or economic
prosperity and financial scandal, other news are processed and
manipulated by concerned interests to draw public attention. The result
of some of the processed information may also be encouraging or
off-putting. In an effort to maintain objectivity and balance stories,
the press allows contenders and competitors in public and private
sectors to express themselves freely. This genuine generosity to utilize
the media platform is abused by charlatans who have little idea or lack
experience on the ethics of public affairs and the operation of the
press. The media is awash with individual egocentricity, personality
clashes and commercialized reportage. Yet as good as some of the
subjects may be, the truth is not easily decodable from the surface.
The desire to gain sympathy and
acceptability of the target audience, for the sole purpose of winning
patronage and support, make the roles of spokespersons, as
intermediary, inevitable in any given society and corporate
organization. While most spokespersons are expected to have undergone
some training on ethics of mass communication or in the alternative
acquire some experiences in public affairs and media practice, what we
get from some of their activities are balderdash.
Cheap publicities that have lately
and largely invoked public discourse are handiworks of propagandists who
defend the indefensible acts through fabrication, intimidation and
excessive exaggeration to manipulate public opinion. Propaganda which
many are not willing to associate with even though rampant as the
outputs of some spokespersons, is used to sell bad products, hoodwink
the consumer and pollute the air in most uncharitable and wicked mien.
It may not be necessary that one must acquire basic elementary knowledge
of mass communication, decency in choice of language and action for the
purpose of winning public support could have been better deployed to, at
least, give credibility and respect to the spokespersons and their
principals.
On the other hand, public
relations is the most acceptable process of establishing and sustaining
mutual and beneficial relationship with the general public by abiding to
the strict code of professional practice. A PR practitioner gauges the
public mood, conducts research and responds appropriately to issues in
the most dignified and matured manner. A respected spokesperson,
exemplified by trained public relations practitioners, gives sincere
advice, undertakes genuine reconciliation and handles assignments
professionally. He/she takes risk in defending his principal,
organization and their programme/products with pride, conscious of the
fact that there is tomorrow for men and women of honour.
The influence of propaganda in
creating newsworthiness on its principals and opponents has pushed to
the background development journalism that could have addressed our
economic and industrial needs. There is little the editors and other
news gatekeepers can do to ensure that what they receive is accurate,
factual and authoritative information because of the official
designations of the sources, though they can easily identify
propagandists from public relations persons. It may also be of
importance to note that naked propaganda, sometimes as comic relief and
melodrama, sells the media because bad news is truly the news for
readership appeal and commercial purposes.
It was in realization of
importance of monitoring and regulating the practice and activities of
masscommunicators that professional bodies are established to update
members and new entrants on the rudiments, best practices and latest
thinking in the field. The Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR)
and Nigerian Press Council (NPC) were also established for that purpose.
But unfortunately the NIPR, due to its internal wrangling which was
recently resolved, has failed to assert its power to regulate, monitor
and sanction quacks who give the profession a bad name. We must be
impressed by the activities of other professional bodies that have
effective internal mechanism to control influx of ill-qualified and
inexperience persons into their folds like the Nigeria Bar Association
(NBA), Institute of Chartered Accountant of Nigeria (ICAN), Nigeria
Medical Association (NMA), Association of Advertising Practitioners
Council of Nigeria APCON and Nigerian Guild of Editors. A credible
professional body can reprimand chief executive officers of private
enterprises and even heads of governmental organisations who flout the
code of conducts of their respective offices. It happens in civilized
world to serve as a deterrent.
The failure of relevant bodies to
checkmate officers responsible for information dissemination is one of
the great dilemmas the nation faces today. Instead of engaging on issues
of development and beneficial to the society, what is churned out by
expected spokespersons of public and private institutions are abusive
language, libelous statements, threatening directives, intimidating
harassment and childish expositions. It has gone to a situation that
those that were highly respected but who find themselves as
spokespersons, especially from the media and civil society, have like
chameleons changed overnight in defending the indefensible as they
refuse to advise their principals on the implications of their
utterances and actions that are detrimental to public good. Most of them
seem to be scared stiff to advise their bosses as they append their
signatures on handouts in the name of press statements without bothering
to digest the contents. Probably due to the survivalist instinct of
chop-i-chop they shamelessly condone unethical, illegal and in some
cases unconstitutional demeanors just to be relevant not minding the
dent on their professional integrity and social responsibility.
Surprisingly such officers after leaving the office disown their bosses
of being dictatorial.
While propagandists can engage in
anything just to remain relevant, it is painful the constraints facing
some genuine PR persons in discharging their duties. The PR
professionals deserve our sympathy as they are mostly ignored or
sacrificed for official exigency. The relevant professional bodies too
like Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), Association of
Corporate Affairs Managers in Banks (ACAMB), Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE)
and Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) should ensure that their
registered members are protected as they operate within the tenets and
code of their bodies.
Yushau A. Shuaib
Author of books on Financial
PR and Media Relations
Lives at Wuye Estate Abuja
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