PR Around the World

In order to fully understand public relations, it is important to have some knowledge not only of PR in the U.S, but of PR practices in other countries as well. PR is different all over the world because each country has its own publications, its own culture and its own languages and a good understanding of these three topics is essential to becoming a good PR pro. In order to broaden my horizons, I did some brief research on PR in three different regions. Here are my findings:

PR in the Middle East is substantially different than in the United States. Its monarchies and governments are very restrictive and control most of the media market. For example, The UAE has "free zones" allowing economic deregulations and editorial freedom, but outside of the free zones the government censors anything that threatens its image or the country’s religious beliefs. In Dubai, where the mass communication industry is primarily located, there are fewer than 20 PR firms and ethical standards have yet to be established and practiced.

Europe, our friend across the seas, widely practices PR, but never refers to it as public relations. Instead, Europeans use the term "communication management" or "corporate communication." Because Europe consists of so many countries, European PR practitioners can not treat their region as a single market, this means they have to pay even more attention to each specific market and make sure they are not stepping on any cultural toes.

Public relations in Latin America has been greatly influenced by the U.S. Following the 1990’s Interamerican PR Confederation (CONFIARP), other Latin American national PR associations have seen a wane in their influence and prestige and now no longer have the power to legitimize and control PR in their countries. In most PR organizations, journalists exercise the role of PR practitioners, something that is different than here in the U.S. where the two are considered separate professions.

I have the great opportunity of traveling to Buenos Aires, Argentina, at the end of next month. I will be studying communications, media and PR there and will be visiting with the B.A. Edelman office to see how it conducts PR in the Latin American world. I’m very excited to get some first-hand experience with international PR. Hopefully I will return as a more culturally aware PR practitioner after my stay.

-Amy Graham