Is Public Relations Just Publicity?

For an industry so influential, it’s surprising to realise that there is no set definition for PR. Therefore, it can be debated that PR is simply another word for publicity. This is argued by the life-style of Hollywood. A general PR practitioner, who has ‘celebrity’ clients, can be seen as a publicist generating media attention for their client. However, other practitioners claim that PR is a strategic way of promoting and selling. It is undeniable that publicity is a part of PR, but how much of an influence does it have on the industry?

With industries such as Hollywood, celebrity PR is rife, with publicists in competition to gain attention for their clients. According to Borkowski (2008: pp 5) publicists have a clear definition:“The publicist’s skill is to proactively find, tell and sell the stories that make their clients news, and it’s a skill that’s more relevant now than ever.”Borkowski states that publicists “find, tell and sell” linking the traits of a publicist to that of a PR practitioner; therefore it is arguable to suggest that publicity if a big part of PR. For a client to be continuously in the limelight is good PR, showing that publicists are effective. However, publicity is arguably a success, good or bad. In that sense, how much can this be linked this to PR:“There’s no such thing as bad publicity” (Barnum: 1850: pp 12)
Bad press can be good for celebrities, as they are still being talked about. However, can bad press help all people? Press such as sex scandals can ruin careers, therefore how much of Barnum’s opinion can be seen as true? If there is no such thing as bad publicity, is there no such thing as bad PR? 

Although publicity is highlighted as the key area of PR in some areas, other practitioners argue against the idea. According to Levinson, Frishman and Lublin (2008: pp xv): “Public Relations (PR) is the overall planning, approach, and strategy for dealing with the media in general. While PR encompasses publicity, it goes beyond merely publicizing what you are selling.”
The idea that publicity is one tactic used in PR is presented in Grunig’s (1984) 4 models of PR, which is designed to distance publicity from professional PR. Therefore it can be seen that the strategies used by PR practitioners are more than that of a publicist. The CIPR (2005) also state that PR is a planned and sustained effort that builds an understanding between organisations and the public. This debatably contrasts with the view of Barnum, if a strong relationship with a client is a fundamental need for good PR, then surely putting out bad publicity is seen as damaging. 

Publicity can be seen as the main driving force in some areas. The celebrity world thrives upon continuous attention, which could damage the credibility of a client. Although not acceptable to some, it is an effective way of promoting and selling. Nevertheless, there is debatably more to PR then just publicising:“They say publicity is seven times more effective than advertising. But it is just one tactic of an overall Public Relations plan.” (Currie: 2007)
It seems that practitioners outside of celebrity PR have different views to those within it. Therefore, PR in some areas is simply publicity, but outside of this, becomes much more as it’s harder to maintain a loyal public. The amount of definitions given to PR shows that there are many different ways in which it can be successful. For PR to just be publicity is not a bad thing if it is succeeding, but in terms of what PR is really about, it’s more likely that publicity is just a part of something much bigger.