Week4 Readings

I think the 2 key points to remember from this week's readings is to always keep in mind the ever-changing media environment PR practitioners are living in today and the techniques and tactics PR practitioners should accustomed themselves to in order to remain flexible with other media-related persons including journalists.

Firstly, it is essential to note that although the environment may be changing, PR practitioners should always keep in mind of the code of ethics in the work that they do. Like what was mentioned in the readings, “effective media relations still requires efficient, informed and ethical professional behaviour.”

The readings made me think about how PR practice should adapt to the rise of citizen journalism. Citizen journalism has managed to break down the dominant monopoly medium into several smaller news centres. From such alternative medium, audiences have easy, cheaper and faster access to information.

However, being a PR practitioner where relating to the public/audience is of outmost importance, one should always advice caution to the audience on the exact credibility of such information. Blogging takes the form of citizen journalism where now it has enabled itself in “blurring the roles of consumer and producer of news.” For example, in Singapore, the Straits Times Online Mobile Print (STOMP) is one example of citizen journalism where any Singaporean can post any news on this portal. Since information is hardly regulated, such information can therefore be unreliable. This is where PR practitioners should intervene and formulate tactics to remind Singaporeans, in particular the informants to exercise ethics. Doing such these credibility checks now and then, it poses a reminder to both PR practitioners and audiences alike of such simple netiquette – in avoiding assumptions of internet content.

Secondly, the readings made me think on the challenge the PR practitioner faces to remain relevant in both mainstream and alternative media. One way which I thought was relevant was to adopt Media Monitoring where there is a need to remain up to date of events, issues and any changes that is happening globally. It is of no doubt this is a need to cultivate so as to remain on par with everyone else.

Conley and Lamble (2006) list of 8 news values were also a highlight for PR practitioners to take note of. Journalists use such news values to write their news stories. To remain in the same frequency as them, PR practitioners would also need to accustom their style. At the end of day, all of these should be done in favour of the public by adapting to their taste and preferences. After all, our audiences are what we need to survive in this industry.