Public speaking is a close second in importance. Public relations
professionals are called upon to make introductions, give speeches and
presentations, and conduct educational seminars for company employ-
ees. As the official source of information in the company, the public
relations professional may be asked to speak to a television audience
as part of an on-camera interview or to narrate a series of promotional
messages for radio.
Computer skills also rank near the top of the list of necessary tech-
nical skills. Public relations professionals use computers in the same
ways reporters do: to write and edit, to do online searches and to send
e-mail. Many public relations departments use desktop publishing to
produce company publications and promotional materials, and some
have their own printing shops. Most companies have Web sites, which
the public relations department maintains.
Knowledge of the principles of photography is helpful to those
who take the photographs for their publications or who must place
the photo images on the page. With scanners and digital technology,
photography has become as much a computer skill as a camera skill.
High school journalists are learning the skills that public relations
professionals use as they write stories, interview sources and use
computers to produce publications that represent themselves and
their schools.490 MIXED MEDIA
Your Beat
- Find out how public relations is handled in your
school. If your school district has a public relations
professional, invite him or her to class to talk about
the job. If the school does not have someone whose
job description is public relations, find out who is
responsible for media relations for the school and
invite that person to speak to your class. After listen-
ing to the speaker, brainstorm with your class to
make a list of the public relations communications
tools your school uses. These might include special
activities, news releases, a district newsletter, a
sports information director and the students
themselves.
2. After talking to someone in your school about public
relations, write your definition of public relations as
it pertains to you and to your school. Compare your
definition with the definitions created by your class-
mates. List the personality traits, skills and special
knowledge you think a person in a school public rela-
tions role needs to have.
3. Invite a reporter or editor to talk about what makes
effective public relations people good at getting their
messages in the media. Ask how a public relations
person can help the media get information and cre-
ate stories. Ask what actions obstruct the media in
their efforts to get stories. Finally, ask what public
relations professionals can do to build credibility and
rapport with individuals in the media.