Page 102 - DLIS102_LIBRARY_AND_ITS_USERS

Unit 14: Public Relation and Marketing

Notes

Sometimes the interests of differing audiences and stakeholders common to a
public relations effort necessitate the creation of several distinct but
complementary messages. This is not always easy to do, and sometimes,
especially in politics, a spokesperson or client says something to one audience
that creates dissonance with another audience or group of stakeholders.

Lobby Groups

Lobby groups are established to influence government policy, corporate policy, or public opinion.
An example of this is the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), which influences
American foreign policy. Such groups claim to represent a particular interest and in fact are dedicated
to doing so. When a lobby group hides its true purpose and support base, it is known as a front
group. Moreover, governments may also lobby public relations firms in order to sway public opinion.
A well illustrated example of this is the way civil war in Yugoslavia was portrayed. Governments
of the newly seceded republics of Croatia and Bosnia, as well as Serbia invested heavily with UK
and American public relations firms, so that they would give them a positive image in the USA.

Spin

In public relations, spin is sometimes a pejorative term signifying a heavily biased portrayal in
specific favor of an event or situation. While traditional public relations may also rely on creative
presentation of the facts, spin often, though not always, implies disingenuous, deceptive and/or
highly manipulative tactics. Politicians are often accused of spin by commentators and political
opponents when they produce a counterargument or position.
The techniques of spin include selectively presenting facts and quotes that support ideal positions
(cherry picking), the so-called “non-denial denial”, phrasing that in a way presumes unproven
truths, euphemisms for drawing attention away from items considered distasteful, and ambiguity
in public statements. Another spin technique involves careful choice of timing in the release of
certain news so it can take advantage of prominent events in the news. A famous reference to this
practice occurred when British Government press officer Jo Moore used the phrase “It’s now a very
good day to get out anything we want to bury”, (widely paraphrased or misquoted as “It’s a good
day to bury bad news”), in an e-mail sent on the day of the September 11, 2001 attacks. The furor
caused when this e-mail was reported in the press eventually caused her to resign.
Skilled practitioners of spin are sometimes called “spin doctors”, despite the negative connotation
associated with the term. Perhaps the best-known person in the UK often described as a “spin
doctor” is Alastair Campbell, who was involved with Tony Blair’s public relations between 1994
and 2003, and also played a controversial role as press relations officer to the British and Irish Lions
rugby union side during their 2005 tour of New Zealand.
State-run media in many countries also engage in spin by selectively allowing news stories that are
favorable to the government while censoring anything that could be considered critical. They may
also use propaganda to indoctrinate or actively influence citizens’ opinions. Privately run media
may also use the same techniques of “issue” versus “non-issue” to spin its particular political
viewpoints.

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