Public relations (PR) is the set of techniques and strategies related to managing how information about an individual or company is disseminated to the public, and especially the media. Its primary goals are to disseminate important company news or events, maintain a brand image, and put a positive spin on negative events to minimize their fallout. PR may occur in the form of a company press release, news conference, interviews with journalists, social media posting, or other venues.

Every individual or entity operating in the public eye faces the spread of information about them or their practices to the public. While public relations is an industry unto itself, any attempt to portray oneself in a certain way to others can be considered a form of public relations.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Public relations (PR) refers to managing how others see and feel about a person, brand, or company. 

• PR for corporations, notably publicly traded companies, focuses on maintaining a positive corporate image while handling media requests and shareholder inquiries. 

• PR is especially important to defray public or investor outcry following negative news announcements.

• PR is different from advertising or marketing as it’s often meant to look organic and may not necessarily try to promote a product or service.

• Public relations can be used to mitigate negative events, though history has shown PR may cause problems to become worse.