Course code- BA(JMC) 204

Course Title- BASICS OF PUBLIC RELATIONS

Unit -1 Concept and Evolution of Public Relations
Lesson – 3 “How PR is different from advertising, publicity and
propaganda”
 Advertising

• Advertising is a tool of marketing that

disseminates information about the brand which
is aimed at a large number of people at the
same time.

• To reach the masses, advertising has to buy

space or time in one or more media of mass
communication such as radio, television,
newspaper, and/or magazines.
• Advertising aims at disseminating a
message through persuasion.
• This is forcing one to buy a product
through both enticement and allurement.
PR does not lure.
• It firstly gives out enough information
about a product before a customer can
decide whether to buy a product or not.
• The costs of advertising are very
expensive than those of PR.
 Publicity

• Publicity involves sending a message to

someone because it is newsworthy or is
made to look like newsworthy.
• While advertising involves cost, publicity
in most instances is without any cost.
• Even a mere word-of-mouth is publicity.
• Same is applicable for grapevine,
although it has negative connotations.
• For instance, when a fashion house, before launching its new
design of apparel organizes a press review, it is aiming for free
publicity.
• It is possible that some journalists will write a positive coverage but
certain others won’t.
• So it can be safely deduced that publicity is uncontrolled.
• In other words, it is up to the media to use the information and at
times to selectively pick one or two points from the press release
or the press conference.
• Publicity can also involve deliberate planting of stories in the
media. If stories are deliberately planted, it amounts to paid news
and which involves a significant cost.
 Propaganda
Propaganda is the means of gaining support for an opinion, creed or belief.
It divides its activities into the following forms:
• Band Wagon
• Virtue words or Glittering generality
• Naming
• Card Stacking
• Deification
• Transfer
• Testimonial
• Plain Folks
• Artificial Dichotomy
• Hot Potato
• Least-of-evils
• Scapegoat
• Cause And Effect Mismatch
• Weak Inference (or False Cause)
• Faulty Analogy
• Slippery Slope
• Deflection ( Ad Hominem Attack)
• Tu Quoque Attack
• Preemptive Framing
• Diversion
 Band Wagon
• Band wagon represents the ambition to have many
supporters of an idea or activities without considering
who they are and how are they likely to be affected with
the idea.
• The bandwagon effect is a psychological phenomenon
in which people do something primarily because other
people are doing it, regardless of their own beliefs,
which they may ignore or override. This tendency of
people to align their beliefs and behaviours with those of
a group is also called a herd mentality.

• Following the Crowd

• Everyone's doing it! Come on, you do it, too!
 Naming

• Giving a person or an idea a bad label by

using an easy to remember pejorative
name. This is used to make us reject and
condemn a person or idea without
examining what the label really means.
• Examples: "Republican", "Tree-Hugger",
"Nazi", "Environmentalist", "Special-
Interest Group".
VIR

VIRTUE WORDS or GLITTERING GENERALITY

• These words are used to dupe us into accepting

and approving of things without examining the
evidence carefully. Examples: "Natural",
"Democratic", "Organic", "Scientific",
"Ecological", "Sustainable".
 Card Stacking

Card stacking is where the owner of the

message exposes weaknesses of the
competitor in a nuisance way so that the
public should lose favour of him.
• DEIFICATION: This is when an idea is made to appear holy, sacred, or very
special and therefore above all law. Any alternative or opposite points of view
are thereby given the appearance of treason or blasphemy. Examples: "God-
given right to...", "Mother Earth", etc.
• TRANSFER: Transfer is when a symbol that carries respect, authority, sanction,
and prestige is used along with and idea or argument to make it look more
acceptable. Examples: American Flag, University Seal, Medical Association
Symbol (or something that looks like it). This method is also called GUILT- or
VIRTUE-BY-ASSOCIATION.

• TESTIMONIAL: When some respected celebrity (or alternatively someone

generally hated) claims that an idea or product is good (or bad). This technique
is used to convince us without examining the facts more carefully.

• PLAIN FOLKS: This is a way that a speaker convinces an audience that an

idea is good because they are the same ideas of the vast majority of people like
yourself. Examples: "This is the will of the People", "Most Americans...".
Another example would be when the speaker tells a story about a family or
people that are "just like you" to reinforce the speaker's point of view.
• ARTIFICIAL DICHOTOMY: This is when someone tries to claim there are only
two sides to an issue and that both sides must have equal presentation in order
to be evaluated. This technique is used to dupe us into believing there is only
one way to look at an issue, when in fact there may be many alternative
viewpoints or "sides". Like most propaganda techniques it simplifies reality and
therefore distorts it, often to the advantage of the speaker.

• HOT POTATO: This is an inflammatory (often untrue) statement or question

used to throw an opponent off guard, or to embarrass them. Examples:
Political hot potatoes and celebrity hot potatoes.

• STALLING or IGNORING THE QUESTION : This technique is used to avoid

answering a pointed question. Examples: "More research is needed...", "A fact-
finding committee is working on this issue..." "I am calling for an investigation
on this failure.."
• LEAST-OF-EVILS is used to justify an otherwise unpleasant or unpopular point
of view. Example: '"War is hell but appeasement leads to worse disasters".

• SCAPEGOAT: This is often used with guilt-by-association to deflect scrutiny

away from the issues. It transfers blame to one person or group of people
without investigating the complexities of the issue. Examples: "George W. Bush
got us into Iraq", "President Reagan caused the national debt".

• CAUSE AND EFFECT MISMATCH: This technique confuses the audience

about what really is the cause and what is it’s intended effect. In fact the causes
of most phenomena are complex, and it is misleading to say just one of the
following.

• WEAK INFERENCE (or False Cause): Weak inference is when a judgment is

made with insufficient evidence, or that the conclusion does not necessarily
follow from the evidence given.
• FAULTY ANALOGY: This is when a comparison is carried too far.

• SLIPPERY SLOPE: Is an example of faulty analogy. Slippery slope makes the

argument that a shift in one direction will continue to lead to extremes. It is not
necessarily so.

• MISUSE OF STATISTICS: Some examples: Average results are reported, but

not the amount of variation around the averages. A percent or fraction is
presented, but not the sample size as in "9 out of 10 dentists recommend...".
Absolute and proportional quantities are mixed as in "3,400 more robberies
occurred in our town last year, whereas other cities hand an increase of less
than one percent". Graphs are used that, by chopping off part of the scale or
using unusual units or no scale, distort the appearance of the result. Results
are reported with misleading precision. For example, representing 13 out of 19
students as 68.42105 percent.
• ad hominem ATTACK (also called Deflection): You
attack the messenger, instead of the argument or evidence
that is presented.

• tu quoque ATTACK: Pronounced too-kwo-kwee. This

technique is when you respond to your opponent by
accusing them of committing a logical fallacy or propaganda
technique instead of addressing the claim of your opponent's
argument and evidence.

• Preemptive Framing: Frame an issue before other people

get a chance to.

• Diversion: When a major issue comes up that is

embarrassing or threatening, so a diversion is created so
attention is directed away from the issue.

•
 Issue Management

• Crisis is a serious incident- which has or will affect human safety, or

is threatening to life and/ or health and/or the environment.
• If the reputation of a brand is threatened, it is a crisis.
• Issue on the other hand can have impact, but it is usually not
critical.
• Issue management is the process of identifying and resolving
issues.
• Problems with staff, suppliers, technical failures, material shortages
– all of these have a negative impact on your business.
Evan Spiegel and his infamous 2017 remark
Zomato’s food delivery crisis of 2019
Lenskart’s 2015 SMS campaign that,
"Shake it off like this earthquake" a few
hours after the Nepal earthquake.
In 2017, Air India was caught in a controversy when a passenger found a
cockroach in her meal at the then national carrier’s lounge for premium
passengers at the Indira Gandhi International Airport.
 Types of Issues
• Disaster - Natural disaster includes earthquakes, floods, droughts.
• Strike - Strikes include mainly lockout and acute industrial unrest.
• An antitrust investigation
• Serious accident, involving fatalities or injuries
• The loss of a significant market or customers
• Interruption to the supply of materials or components
• An unwanted takeover bid
• Withdrawal of financial support by a major investor
• Any serious product defect, requiring withdrawal
• Accident, incident or sudden illness affecting the ability of a key member of the
organization’s management to function.
• The discovery of criminal or fraudulent activity related to senior member of staff or
management putting the integrity of the organization at risk.
• Any criminal activity against the organization
• Tampering with a product.
 CRISIS MANAGEMENT

•Crisis
management is the process by which an organization
deals with a disruptive and unexpected event that threatens to
harm the organization or its stakeholders according to
American scholars Jonathan Bundy, Michael D. Pfarrer, Cole
E. Short and W. Timothy Coombs.

•American scholar Steven J. Venette defines crisis as a

process of transformation where the old system can no longer
be maintained.
Steven Fink’s four stage crisis management model
 CRISIS MANAGEMENT

1)Take steps to prevent a crisis before it occurs.

2)Establish standby measures should an
emergency happen.
3)Design a strategy to regain the company’s
image.
4)Designate an authorized company
spokesperson.
 CRISIS MANAGEMENT
5) Refrain from speculation on a subject.
6) Take the initiative in informing the press if they
are not already aware of the situation.
7) The statement being issued to the press should
be available in a printed format and also for
electronic transmission.
 CRISIS MANAGEMENT
9) The statement should update frequently as
more information becomes available.
10) Demonstrate your concern and give
reassurance.
11) Let people know where and when information
will be available.
12) Direct people to the company’s website or a
helpline for more information.
 CRISIS MANAGEMENT
A two year crisis for the ‘Two Minute Noodles’:
Maggi!
 CRISIS MANAGEMENT

• Before the pan-India ban on Maggi, the company (Nestle) owned

almost 80% of the consumer market of instant noodles.

• The regulated lead levels during that time was 2.50ppm (parts per
million) and a laboratory in Gorakhpur found the lead MSG
(monosodium glutamate) levels in Maggi to be 17.2ppm.

• Not only did they breach the regulations, but also explicitly
mentioned “NO added MSG” on the packets, leading to a
mislabeling offence.
 CRISIS MANAGEMENT

• They claimed that they had tested 3,500 samples of Maggi and the
results of lead were in the set regulations.
• They were fighting to be ‘right’ in the battle, rather than looking at
how to make it right!
• It was argued that the lead content was in the raw materials of the
noodles.
• This argument nonetheless failed to talk to the audience, it only
made Nestle look more guilty.
• A lot of leading PR professionals called out the initial response from
Nestle for its lack of ’empathy’ and timeliness to the consumer.
 CRISIS MANAGEMENT

#WeMissYouToo was one such campaign that personalized this

response from the brand. Videos, comments, posters, everything
went into the making of this sense of connection that the product
didn’t lose despite going off the shelf:

Just another way to say #WeMissYouToo. Thank you for all the love
and support. Share and spread the MAGGI
love.https://t.co/LIygQ07oC3
— Maggi India (@MaggiIndia) September 2, 2015
 CRISIS MANAGEMENT

The re-launch of Maggi happened strategically on the auspicious day

of Dhanteras, very close to Diwali. The relaunch campaign saw
television ads stating “Maggi safe thi, safe hai.”

Welcome Back MAGGi with the ultimate dil ki

deal. #SnapdealWelcomesMAGGI
Register Now
: https://t.co/dZVnDqs82U pic.twitter.com/3BcOyP72dS
— Maggi India (@MaggiIndia) November 10, 2015
CRISIS MANAGEMENT
 CRISIS MANAGEMENT
• Soon after, directly aiming at the consumer’s emotional
belongingness to the product, Nestle ran a campaign
asking what does Maggi bring back with it?
• It was a rather smart move making the product
synonymous to memories, habits and events of one’s
life.
• #WelcomeBackMaggi was soon trending, both online
and offline.
 CRISIS MANAGEMENT
Nestle Now Shifts From Crisis Management To Image
Building:

• MAGGI KITCHEN JOURNEYS ‘Kuch Achha Pak Raha Hai' Celebrates The Story Of
12 Inspiring Women. Watch out What Nestle CMD – Suresh Narayanan Has to
Say. @gauravmehra77 @raktimdas pic.twitter.com/ufTEkcQpfE
• — Zee Business (@ZeeBusiness) July 13, 2018

• To reassert the product’s dominance over others from the same category, Maggi’s
PR team decided to again hit back with another campaign titled #NothingLikeMaggi,
asking customers to share their ‘Nothing Like Maggi moments’.

• By 2016, the Nestle sales were doing better with a 57% market share. But, it was
only in 2018, that it was reported that Maggi had finally claimed 75% market share,
thus almost achieving the lost share ratio.
• Lobbying- Lobbying is a discipline within public relations where the
general intention of the activity is to inform and influence public
policy and the law.
• 'Lobbyists' are practitioners who execute planned and sustained
efforts to deliver specific objectives within this broad profile of
activity.
• In the US, lobbying has been interpreted by court rulings as free
speech protected by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
while in India it remains illegal.
• Lobbies and lobbyists are paid substantially by their clients to
sway the decisions of lawmakers to pass legislation for the
industries they serve. Lobbies are often seen negatively because
of the influence they exert and the amount of power they hold.
• Lobbying services means activities which are carried out in the
course of a business for the purpose of:
• influencing government, or
• advising others how to influence government.
• Deepak Talwar is a well-known corporate
lobbyist who is considered to be the
pioneer of corporate lobbying in India
having started in 1980s.
• Over the years Talwar built an impressive
portfolio Coca Cola, Nike, Nokia, General
Motors.
• Talwar has been convicted of multiple
offences under the PMLA Act and was
considered quite instrumental in ensuring
Coke’s positive image building after the
pesticide fiasco of 2012 and Kingfisher’s
clout in the Indian aviation sector due to his
proximity to Praful Patel, the then Civil
Aviation Minister.
• Talwar ran an NGO called Advantage India
which was nothing more than a tax evasion
and money laundering front.
• Talwar is accused of siphoning a total of
445 crores in deals pertaining to Airbus, Air
India and Kingfisher Airlines.
• Niira Radia was a well known corporate
lobbyist and founder of Vaishanvi Corporate
Communications, following her conviction and
subsequent acquittal in the 2G case which
shook the then Dr Manmohan Singh
government and led to the resignation of the
then telecom minister A. Raja.
• Radia’s taped conversations with Ranjan
Bhattacharya (Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s son-in-
law), Kanimozhi, A. Raja, Arun Jaitley, Barkha
Dutt, Prabhu Chawla, Shankar Aiyar, Veer
Sanghavi, Navika Kumar, Rohini Singh, Ratan
Tata, Suhel Seth and Mukesh Ambani
highlighted her influence in getting key
ministerial portfolios in the Vajpayee and
Manmohan Singh governments.
• Radia’s phone lines were taped for 300 days
by the IT department in 2008-09 as part of their
investigations into possible money laundering,
restricted financial practices, and tax evasion.
• In November 2010, OPEN magazine carried a
story which reported transcripts of some of the
telephone conversations of Niira Radia with
senior journalists, politicians, and corporate
houses, many of whom have denied the
allegations.
• The Central Bureau of Investigation
announced they were in possession of 5,851
recordings of phone conversations by Radia
related to 2G spectrum sale and appointment
of Raja as India’s telecom minister.
• Corporate Social Responsibility- A company must
promote its corporate social responsibility
(CSR) activities by ensuring that customers,
suppliers and the local community know what
you are doing.
• CSR lends itself to good news stories and is a
source of positive public relations (PR).
• Top 50 Companies in CSR Activities Funding in
India - CSRBOX