As I look for my first graduate role with the PR industry I thought it would be important to refer myself back to the Chartered Institute of Public Relations; after all I am a student member and utilise the resources offered to me as part of my membership. I found this:
“Reputation has a direct and major impact on the corporate well-being of every organisation, be it multinational, a charity, a Government Department or a small business…That is why the professionalism of those people who guard and mould reputation – public relations practitioners is so important.”
It’s clear that regardless of what sector or on what scale you work within the communications industry reputation is key but how does that fit in with ‘Honest and responsible regard for the public interest’ ? It could be taken by those with morals less scrupulous that as long as your reputation is not affected then whatever it takes to get the job done… surely this can’t be right?
Jane Crofts my dissertation tutor at the University of Lincoln introduced The Pillars of PR Ethics. There are five pillars: Veracity, non-malfeasance, beneficence, confidentiality and fairness. How will this guide me in abiding by CIPR’s code of conduct?
Veracity
Telling the truth is bread and butter of keeping regard for the public interest in an honest manner or is it? The challenge comes when you have to decide what is classed at the truth. Just because it is my truth doesn’t make it your truth. Honesty is something that is often regarded as easy as long as you tell the truth nobody will get hurt. You don’t need a degree in public relations to realise that this isn’t the case. Tensions and differing areas and level of interest mean that by telling the whole truth all the time people will get hurt. Veracity is not a desirable trait for a crowd pleaser.
Non-malfeasance
This refers to doing no harm; of course not many people would intentionally inflict harm on a particular public, yet this can be hard to enforce across the board when communicating information that will affect numerous stakeholders and not all in a positive way. However I think it may be important to maintain an approach that remembers that whilst there may not be much control over the content of the message – what you say, there is a great deal to be learnt by how people say things. This is especially true for instances within internal communications where employees may not necessarily have a direct affect on a company’s corporate strategy but they can still be involved in the communication of the strategic development.
Beneficence
‘Doing good’ even with my naïve experience of the industry is something that I imagine all graduates strive for, but whose good is best? Is it a case of the greater good of the people? It seems that with all potential moral dilemmas it is case of striving for the equilibrium between the good of the microenvironment and the macro environment of the wider community.
Jane Crofts my dissertation tutor at the University of Lincoln introduced The Pillars of PR Ethics. There are five pillars: Veracity, non-malfeasance, beneficence, confidentiality and fairness. How will this guide me in abiding by CIPR’s code of conduct?
Veracity
Telling the truth is bread and butter of keeping regard for the public interest in an honest manner or is it? The challenge comes when you have to decide what is classed at the truth. Just because it is my truth doesn’t make it your truth. Honesty is something that is often regarded as easy as long as you tell the truth nobody will get hurt. You don’t need a degree in public relations to realise that this isn’t the case. Tensions and differing areas and level of interest mean that by telling the whole truth all the time people will get hurt. Veracity is not a desirable trait for a crowd pleaser.
Non-malfeasance
This refers to doing no harm; of course not many people would intentionally inflict harm on a particular public, yet this can be hard to enforce across the board when communicating information that will affect numerous stakeholders and not all in a positive way. However I think it may be important to maintain an approach that remembers that whilst there may not be much control over the content of the message – what you say, there is a great deal to be learnt by how people say things. This is especially true for instances within internal communications where employees may not necessarily have a direct affect on a company’s corporate strategy but they can still be involved in the communication of the strategic development.
Beneficence
‘Doing good’ even with my naïve experience of the industry is something that I imagine all graduates strive for, but whose good is best? Is it a case of the greater good of the people? It seems that with all potential moral dilemmas it is case of striving for the equilibrium between the good of the microenvironment and the macro environment of the wider community.
Confidentiality
Maintaining confidentiality is fundamental especially when it comes to client relations. At what point does it become appropriate to break confidentiality? Unlike medicine and education there are no black and whites as to when and how to break confidentiality, it falls to the individual to judge whether the information they possess breaks codes of conduct that bind that particular industry of indeed law.
Fairness
Being fair and socially responsible is something I hope I already am – as a PR practitioner it is important to establish exactly what context socially responsible is to be applied. For which society am I responsible for? Am I only to be concerned with the society in which I operate? It goes much further than simply your horizons; fairness must extend into society as a whole.
Ethics within PR are not simply there to add moral structure to the practice. They are intrinsic to the integrity of an individual’s character. Incorporating all these principles into everyday practice is something that will require application and at some points dedication. I think for me it will rest on what my personal boundaries are. I recognise that it will be a balancing act of telling the truth with doing no harm, doing good whilst respecting privacy and being fair and socially responsible. As long as personal ethics and values remain constant within my conscience I am confident that I will be able to channel these into my offererings to the world of PR… Come back to me I ten years to see how I get on!
Maintaining confidentiality is fundamental especially when it comes to client relations. At what point does it become appropriate to break confidentiality? Unlike medicine and education there are no black and whites as to when and how to break confidentiality, it falls to the individual to judge whether the information they possess breaks codes of conduct that bind that particular industry of indeed law.
Fairness
Being fair and socially responsible is something I hope I already am – as a PR practitioner it is important to establish exactly what context socially responsible is to be applied. For which society am I responsible for? Am I only to be concerned with the society in which I operate? It goes much further than simply your horizons; fairness must extend into society as a whole.
Ethics within PR are not simply there to add moral structure to the practice. They are intrinsic to the integrity of an individual’s character. Incorporating all these principles into everyday practice is something that will require application and at some points dedication. I think for me it will rest on what my personal boundaries are. I recognise that it will be a balancing act of telling the truth with doing no harm, doing good whilst respecting privacy and being fair and socially responsible. As long as personal ethics and values remain constant within my conscience I am confident that I will be able to channel these into my offererings to the world of PR… Come back to me I ten years to see how I get on!
