PRSA Code of Ethics: The Bigger Picture

Hannah May

HMay2011@aol.com

Ethics -- a word that can be translated, interpreted, and acted out differently by all organizations and companies, small or large. It is the civil duty of each business to create their own personal code of ethics that members must carry out on a day-to-day basis. Following a code of ethics in the workforce is one of the first steps to ensure that a business runs successfully and smoothly. The Public Relations Society of America has created their code of ethics that they commit to in order to obtain maximum trust from the public. 

After reading and analyzing the PRSA Code of Ethics, it becomes clear the key beliefs of PRSA.

Gaining trust is the key to success.

As a person in public relations, your main contender is, as the position states, the public. If you do not have the public's trust your service announcements or press releases stand for nothing. What you have worked so hard to construct will go in one ear and out the other. As a PR professional you never want to put yourself in a position that could jeopardize building trust between clients, the employer and the public. The work created must be consistent in strengthening the public’s trust in you and your company. 

Personal actions reflect the whole society.

PRSA believes that as a member of this society, you must commit to ethical practices in order to uphold the reputation of the society as a whole and on a personal level as well.  It is stated in the preamble that, “each of us sets an example for each other.” I believe this statement to be unquestionably true. One simple wrong action from a member of the society could be poorly reflected back onto other members of the society. PRSA believes that they must all uphold a powerful standard of performance, professionalism and ethical conduct to avoid possibly negative accusations and assumptions of other members.

PRSA takes their Code of Ethics seriously, no laughter here. 

Failure to uphold the standards of performance, professionalism and ethical conduct that PRSA administers, results in execution from the society. Your membership will be revoked, and you can no longer associate yourself with PRSA. Simple as that.

Not only should PRSA uphold a high standard of values and ethics, the whole public relations profession should.

One of the most powerful things the public can take away from the PRSA Code of Ethics falls under the PRSA Member Statement of Professional Values. Not only is PRSA stating that their society will personal follow the values listed, but they believe that their Member Code of Ethics sets a standard and guide for the whole public relations profession. They state that their Member Code of Ethics “sets the industry standard for the professional practice of public relations,” and that they believe their “professional values are vital to the integrity of the profession as a whole.” By making that statement PRSA is setting a very high bar for the rest of the public relations world -- a bar that I hope all can meet.

Communication must always be organic, and private when need be.

The information that the public receives needs to always be truthful, that is a given. The content of the public announcement may never be tampered with or persuaded by higher officials. When coming to a crossroads of what information to relay, PRSA states numerous times to, “be honest and accurate in all communications.” The truth may hurt, but sometimes that sting is necessary. On the contrary, it is important for public relations professionals to understand when it is most important to not relay information to the public. PR professionals need to be aware when the client, organization or individual has a right to privacy that triumphs the ability to reveal all information to the public.

PRSA goes above and beyond when creating their Member Code of Ethics. Instead of focusing on their own society, worrying about themselves and not minding what any other public relations firms are doing, the society public declares the importance that the profession as a whole maintain the standards that they are providing. I know personally that down the road in my public relations future, I will be taking a look back at PRSA’s Code of Ethics and making sure I am able to uphold the bar they have set for me as a professional in the field of public relations. 

Cracking the Code

Meredith McNelis

mm132010@ohio.edu

Journalism is not what it used to be. Online forums, blogging and the digital world as a whole have reshaped this profession. Heck, it feels like you don’t even have to be a ‘professional’ to be one of today’s "journalists." Because of the growing ambiguity of this career, the code of ethics it adheres to must alter as well.

The other obvious issue that arises is how can there be one universal definition of what is ethical? Every person has a different idea of what is morally acceptable and fitting to one’s character.

What is Ethics?

When boiled down to its pure definition, ethics simply means “character”, derived from the Greek word ethos. It is what a person, or organization, believes is morally acceptable; what is in good character of someone.

Theory of Knowledge

Ethical Public Relations

I took a personal interest to the Public Relations Society of America Code of Ethics since I am a Strategic Communications major and am a member of PRSSA. When being a part of an organization that’s job is to represent other companies branding and standards, it is imperative that you think in terms of that client. One of their main points is building trust. The fact that they not only want to gain trust within their clients, but their own employers and the public as well, is something that I think is vital to a successful PR firm.

Not Set in Stone

Is it really possible for everyone who is a part of an organization to have the same opinions and moral compass? People are raised differently, have different beliefs, have distinctive characteristics; it’s hard to fit everyone in a box. If you are applying for a job or are a part of an organization, you may not always fall into the same ethical standpoint as their code. I think that a person should not have to adhere to a company’s ethics if it does not match their own, but the person should seek out a job that holds the same ethical code as them.

There is a section in PRSA’s Code of Ethics that is ever changing. They have a portion called Provisions of Conduct that “are actual examples of misconduct” and “more will be added as experience with the code occurs.” They understand that the world of journalism and public relations is constantly shifting. Most codes do not include such sections. For example, Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics was adopted in 1996 and has not been revised sense. I am pretty sure journalism is not the same as it was 17 years ago, so shouldn’t their rules evolve as well?

The Whole Truth and Nothing but the Truth

I do believe however that every code, and everyone, should remain truthful. As journalists, or public relations professionals, it is our job to report the truth. The public puts their trust in credible reporting and do not want to weed through what is real or not. If a person does not think that reporting false information is unethical, journalism is probably not the profession for them.

Ethics is hard to condense into one simple term. It is different from person to person and changes daily. Technology and the advancement of journalism and public relations play important roles as well in shaping ethics.