International Public Relations

 

Nowadays in the era of globalization and integration, the sphere of public relations is becoming global as well. The limits of communication widen, especially due to the Net. As we have already discussed the Net has grown into a most important PR tool. Big companies create their internet sites, which can be visited by people of different cultural background. So now PR is starting to pay much attention to the cultural factor.

Sometimes PR uses some global techniques, universal messages. In this case much attention is paid to the similarities between cultures. But it doesn’t work for every message and for every combination of cultures. The result is that PR practitioners have to work out different strategies to deliver the same idea. So different web sites for different nations are created. The examples are from the Net, because those are more demonstrative. But one should take into account the cultural factor while organizing a PR campaign abroad and pay attention to every detail.

 

Culture

Let’s first look what the notion culture implies. Culture represents a number of values, ideas, objects, and other symbols, that help people to communicate, interpret and understand people and environment around. Mind that not only different nations are culturally different, but also genders, ages, religions, etc.

Cultural differences are strong enough to let one identify, systemize and use them. They are widely described in literature.

Culture includes two main facets: psychological and environmental. Psychological consists of values, ideas, behavior, while environmental is built of political, economic, technological, social elements. If the later is understandable, the psychological factor requires explanation. Let’s look closer at what values, ideas and behavior mean.

Values are realities considered significant, such as social status, family, money, education, health, independence, etc. Those notions are of vital importance, but the priorities are placed differently in various cultures. For example, Americans are wide-know for their obsession for independence, democracy and fight against discrimination. In Asia people’s inequality is normal and even valued (castes in India, highly valued hierarchy in China).

Ideas show people’s attitudes and predetermine behavior. Ideas come to mentality as well. If you ask a Japanese person what is love you’ll get a very different answer from what you could imagine.

Behavior is the model according to which people act. And it again varies. This is the most overt factor, widely described.

 

Culture is represented by three main components. Values, that we have already covered; material environment, that includes economic and technical development, science, natural resources, etc; and institutional environment, which presupposes legislation, type of government, business, religion, etc.

All these factors are crucial for PR. For example, the PR sites might differ for Europe and Africa, and not just in usage of different symbols, but also in technical design. In Africa the quality of internet connection is less developed than in Europe, so the sites have less graphics, are cheaper, quicker and thus more useful.

But there are also global sites. Those are not for everybody, but for the majority. For instance, PRSA internet resources are for global target audience, that have internet access and can work in the web, and have at least some knowledge in the sphere. Both global and individual sites require careful elaboration.

 

According to the classification of a prominent PR practitioner R. Lewis, there are three main types of cultures:

task-oriented – people who plan their activity very carefully (Germans, Scandinavian, British, Australian people, as well as Canadians, New Zealanders, etc.)

people-oriented – highly communicative (Latinos, Arabs, Africans, Spaniards, Italians, etc.)

respect-oriented – people recognizing and submissive to authority (Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Thai, Vietnamese peope)

 

Russians live between Europe and Asia, so they combine all the characteristics. 

 

Legal Requirements

 

To be effective and persuasive, public relation writing must be conducted within a legal and ethical framework. First, you must understand legal concepts so as to know what you may do and what you must avoid. Careless work can lead to costly litigation for you and your employer. Second, you cannot produce and distribute publicity mate­rials that are credible and believable if you don't have a strong ethical and professional orientation. The public demands accountability and won't tolerate mere "puffery".

 

Examples of Legal Problem

As a public relations writer, you represent the management of your organization. What you release is interpreted as the voice of management. Nevertheless, you can be held personally liable for any statements that cause defamation or violate the guidelines of state regulatory agencies. Actions are ordinarily brought against the top officials of an organization, but remember that you can be named as a co-defendant.

To protect yourself, you should be sure that the facts you are given are accurate. It is no excuse to say, "The boss told me that was so". In a trial, you must be able to prove that you made a reasonable effort to verify information.

Among the actions for which you might be liable are the following:

• Disseminating information that a court or regulatory agency finds misleading, untrue, or damaging

• Participating in an illegal action

• Counseling or guiding policy to accomplish an illegal action

• Setting up an organization whose real identity is concealed.

 

Libel and Slander

Any false statement about a person that is printed or broadcast and tends to bring on this person public hatred, contempt, or ridicule or to inflict injury on his or her business or occupation may be libel. If the statement is broadcast, it may constitute either libel or slander. If it is made to a third person but neither printed nor broadcast, it may be slander.

Any plaintiff in a libel suit must prove four points:

· that the statement was published to others by print or broadcast;

· that the plaintiff was identified or is identifiable;

· that there was actual injury in the form of money losses, impairment of reputation, humiliation, or mental anguish and suffering, and

4) that the publisher of the statement was malicious or negligent.

With public figures — people in government or politics or who are much in the news — the test is whether the publisher of the statement knew that it was false or had a reckless disregard for its truth. The question of who is a public figure cannot be answered arbitrarily, and the courts are inconsistent on this. It often depends on the context.

With private figures — people who are not officials or prominent in the news — the test is whether the publisher of the statement was negligent in checking the truth of it. In quoting someone, for instance, be sure you state exactly what was said.

These few highlights only hint at the ramifications of libel law. For your protection and for the protection of your organization, you need to dig deeper into this subject.

Remember that you needn't use a name to commit libel. A recognizable descrip­tion serves the same purpose. If the subject remains unnamed but the public knows who is being talked about, there may be grounds for a libel case.

 

Invasion of Privacy

In recent years, there has been a great increase in sensitivity to invasion of privacy. Laws have been passed and lawsuits have been filed in an effort to protect the privacy of individuals. In general, laws and lawsuits strive to prevent anyone from knowing anything about an individual that individual does not want to be known.

Protection of employee privacy can create problems. People are interested in peo­ple, and most people are willing to have favorable things said about themselves. The problem is to include the good things and avoid the others.

Much information to flesh out a story can be obtained by asking questions of each person involved, elicit facts that are interesting and favorable. After the story is written, show it to the person mentioned. If he or she objects to anything, take it out. Once the material has been approved, get the subject to sign it.

There may be times when a reporter will ask you for information about an employee. In general, most companies have adopted a policy of merely confirming that a person is employed and in what position. You can also tell a reporter the date on which the employee first joined the firm.

Under no circumstances should you take it upon yourself to tell a reporter an employee's home address, marital status, or number of children, nor should you reveal any aspect of a job performance record. If the reporter wants to know such things, the best approach is to say that you will ask the employee to call. In this way, the employee knows that an inquiry has been made and can determine what information is to be divulged. It also lets you and the company off the hook in terms of protecting the employee's privacy.

Another way for a company to protect itself against employees' invasion-of-priva­cy suits is to have a standard biographical form that each one fills out. At the top of this form should be a clear-cut statement that the information provided may be used in company publicity and employee newsletters.