Hyped: Public relations and the fight for truth

By Amanda McPherson

Advertising gets all the attention in our culture, right? Just cue the Mad Men theme song, and I think you’ll understand. 

In ads, it’s quite clear what the aim is, and who is paying for it. An ad is a recognized form of propaganda. A message that isn’t fact checked, or balanced or reported. 

But Public Relations works behind the scenes…there’s no disclosure that a PR person pitched the story or sourced it with their choices or provided the video images. A stunt planned and paid for by a dark money group might generate thousands of likes or shares and appear authentic. There are no laws of disclosure.

I started my marketing career at the largest, and likely most controversial, PR firm in the world, Burson-Marsteller. Burson led campaigns that shaped and influenced millions of minds, yet most people haven’t heard of it.

This invisible nature is crucial for PR, and a fact that can make it more dangerous, especially in our fractured media landscape. This is why Jennifer Cloer and I wanted to start a podcast where we examine and unmask PR tactics that are kept out of the public’s understanding, like front groups or dark PR. Understanding these tactics, we believe, can help people be better media consumers. 

Amanda McPherson, co-producer and co-host of Hyped

We all see the positive role of PR in disseminating information to the public. Just look at the Covid crisis and how the communication of information—or lack thereof—affected the spread and response to the disease. The current vaccine effort is now a messaging battle, with the government commissioning a multi-billion dollar PR campaign to convince people to vaccinate. 

In episode one of Hyped, I talk with media critic and journalist Eric Alterman who says, “I don't think public relations has ever been more powerful in the information ecosystem than it is today.”

We agree, and this is why we feel the work we are doing on Hyped is so important to bring light to these issues. Now more than ever, we need ethical and proactive communication professionals who brief and listen to the public, and we need a public who demands ethical communication practices from the companies, causes and government agencies it works with. 

“Now more than ever, we need ethical and proactive communication professionals who brief and listen to the public, and we need a public who demands ethical communication practices from the companies, causes and government agencies it works with. ”

Eric says—and we can all see—the media is contracting, especially newspapers. And those journalists are becoming PR people. There are now 6 pr people for every journalist. That lack of balance means there are a lot more people pushing spin than checking the facts against that spin. 

And in that case the truth can get lost. While it can seem overwhelming, there are things we can all do to better this information economy—like supporting and paying for news, like advocating for legislation and the Fairness Doctrine. Please join us on our journey within and through the world of Public Relations in Hyped.

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