Directions and history General pr Directions As you have probably understood pr is a very broad field of activity, it includes not only advertisement, as you might think, but many other spheres.

The first direction is the most accepted and wide-known one – the economic PR or Business PR. It presumes all the range of economic levers. Its main feature is its focus on buying or selling something. This is what we may see every day: the flood of advertisements, that call for buying Coca-Cola drinks or some super-dry breathing diapers, etc.

The second direction the governmental or political PR, which presupposes what we call propaganda. Imagine for instance a demonstration, which is usually devoted to a certain cause or event, which is organized by certain people with certain aims, where you can hear appropriate mottoes & speeches, see appropriate posters, etc. The best example here will be an election campaign, involving all the people in a certain region as the target group.

The third direction is Professional Associations PR. A Professional Org. – is a group of people or organizations that belong to one sphere and have the same aim, such as American Medical Association, American Trade Chamber, International Gasoline Union, etc. Their activity presupposes organizing of conferences, expositions, lobbying of their interests, fundraising, etc.

Then go Non-Profit Organizations - I’m sure you all know what it is: Red Cross, Salvation Army and so on. These are created to solve eternal problems like diseases, illiteracy, poverty and so on. PR is quite the same here, it is all directed to attract people’s attention and raise funds to help. Kind of charity.

Then, Education. You are supposed at least deal with students and their parents, then your own stuff, mainly teachers, then local administration, which imposes some particular rules – you can’t teach children whatever you want – it must be somehow coordinated.

Sports and Entertaining! Good promotion, media coverage, at last defending your client from negative publicity. Attracting spectators, sponsors, financing, etc.

Apart from that PR exists on several levels, depending on the importance of the task.

The low level is determined by the advertisement function. It means commercial (marketing) and corporate PR.

The middle level is the so-called indirect PR. On this level there is no visible relation between the interests of those who order a PR action and the methods of influencing the target public. For example, no one can guess that the appeals of a certain medical firm X to stop buying textiles, containing synthetic fibers, because they are dangerous for the population’s health, are in reality based on the financial interest of cotton manufacturers.

The high level is the so-called global PR, serving the needs of larger economic & political groups, and affecting macro-economic & geo-political processes. International, ethnical, religious and other conflicts as well as political crises and even local wars can be among the global PR instruments.