Thanks for taking a moment to participate in the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA)’s “Public Relations Defined” initiative.

While PRSA is leading the charge in developing a modern definition of public relations, the eventual outcome will not be exclusively “ours.”

One of the reasons our profession struggles with the question, “What is PR?” is that existing definitions tend to reflect the nuances of the professional or academic niche from which they originate, while giving short-shrift to the commonalities that bind us all. You can read some of the other challenges of achieving consensus on a “de-facto” definition here, and get a sense for the many different definitions that currently exist here.

Our goal is that the modern definition developed through this process will be owned by you and by countless other public relations professionals. And by our partners in allied associations, who participated in our “Definition Summit” in September. And by academics and text book authors. And by the media.

If you’d like to own part of the modern definition of public relations (and we hope you do), here’s how you can get involved.

Modernizing the Definition of Public Relations

You will find a submission form on this website, the idea for which originated at our summit meeting. Some of the “standard” definitions of marketing and advertising the group collectively liked had the following basic elements: they [DO WHAT] with/for [WHOM] to [DO WHAT] for [WHAT PURPOSE]. The group thought it best to adopt a similar approach for a modern definition of public relations.

Submit Your Definition of Public Relations Here

Continue reading " Submissions Open for ‘Public Relations Defined’ Initiative "

Thank you for your interest in the “Public Relations Defined” initiative, a collaborative, industry-wide advocacy campaign to modernize the definition of public relations. As of Friday, Dec. 2, 2011, the submission field is closed. More than 1,000 submissions were received during a two-week open submission period between Nov. 21-Dec. 2, 2011.

Data collected from those submissions will be used by a special PRSA Definition of Public Relations Task Force to develop three draft definitions. These will be put up for a public vote on this website in the days ahead.

Be sure to check back soon and look for further announcements on the PRSA website.

Continue reading " Definition of PR Submission Form "

As part of its mission to advance the public relations profession and professional, the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) has introduced a new initiative to modernize the definition of public relations and increase its value. As the digital age has caused significant shifts in how organizations communicate internally and externally, a question frequently asked by the public, media and practitioners is, “What is public relations?”

PRSA has set out to answer this question.

PRSA’s “Public Relations Defined” initiative will utilize a collaborative, industry-wide effort to develop a modern definition for the new era of public relations.

At PRSA’s new blog, “Public Relations Defined,” public relations professionals are invited to share their insights and perspective on what defines the modern practice of public relations.

As part of a special “Definition of Public Relations Summit” held in September in New York, PRSA partnered with the following organizations to provide input and support:

• Public Relations Student Society of America
• Chartered Institute of Public Relations
• Arthur W. Page Society
• International Association of Business Communicators
• Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management
• Institute for Public Relations
• International Association for the Measurement and Evaluation of Communication (AMEC)
• Canadian Public Relations Society
• Word of Mouth Marketing Association
• Hispanic Public Relations Association
• National Black Public Relations Society

Continue reading " About the ‘Public Relations Defined’ Initiative "

The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) hosted two Definition of Public Relations Summits as part of its leadership of the “Public Relations Defined” campaign. The first Summit was held in September 2011 at PRSA’s headquarters in New York City. The second Summit, held virtually, took place in February 2012.

An overview of the first Definition of Public Relations Summit can be found here. That Summit brought together leaders of 10 organizations from throughout the public relations industry to discuss the state of the profession. Those leaders determined that exploring a modern definition of public relations was in the best interest of the profession.

Continue reading " The Definition of Public Relations Summit "