/ 1968
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CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE CLARIFICATION OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN JOURNALIST AND PR: ACCROSS THE BARRICADE

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Journalistic involvement in the media in general, unfortunately, decreases on a daily basis. If journalism is sinking into depression, seems to be the main question. The inertia of the press has opened big doors to the “novice” PR experts who are always ready to forward large quantities of information. The objective is to reflect on what has unfortunately become a new (fictional) journalistic genre i.e. the form of press release. In the post-war Bosnia and Herzegovina it was possible for a new bulletin to last for 70 minutes, 55 of which were received press releases. These press releases have been sent by parties, representatives of women’s associations, unions of veterans and various OCSs. These usually offer one-sided information, accusations against others, while the right to hear the other side, in this case, does not exist. The question is how to separate their communications (press releases sent from certain public institutions or organizations) from releases which mostly offer accusations against another political party or reactions to an event or events that have nothing to do with our activities. How to wake the journalists from their lethargy, which they seem to enjoy to a certain extent? Many things have changed in recent decades as we have arrived at a point where 60% of all published information is nothing more than a mere PR product. The next question would be – Where did journalism disappear? Or better said – where have the responsibility of journalists and their commitment gone? The education system is important. In our region, only the first steps are taken towards an institutionalized education of the PR experts, and as for the education of journalists, a good analysis is definitely required. Journalism does not have to be endangered. It can go forward, but with a little more effort and professional responsibility. And with a more evident desire to cooperate with “those across the barricade”.

/ 1968
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ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL INFLUENCES ON JOURNALISTS AS A CAUSE OF MEDIA MANIPULATION

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The paper treats the issue of economic and political influences on journalists and the media institutions. Autors’ thesis is that public relations managers of political officials are the true rulers in the communication process. The media employers and journalists are most exposed to the economic and political pressure and influence by all those who use the media for their own interests. The paper has searched the articless of the Code of Ethics of Journalists in Serbia regarding veracity of reporting and independence of pressure, which are often violated in everyday journalistic practice. As there are many mechanisms of manipulation used by Public Relations agencies representing commercial clients or building images of political parties and their officials, authors have concluded that their influence is often stronger than the journalistic ethics and the rules of professional conduct in the media, which currently makes them true rulers of the communication process and leave the public and the society vulnerable to manipulation.

/ 1968
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POLITICAL PR ON THE SOCIAL NETWORK FACEBOOK DURING EASTER HOLIDAYS

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Political marketing during election campaigns seems to be an everyday reality for an average citizen in Serbia. The Internet used to be considered as a bastion of freedom, different from traditional, controlled media. However, social networks have changed this – it’s getting harder to isolate from politics. Voluntarily or not, we see political messages online just as we see them on TV, billboards or in the press. Not only in commercials, politicians also speak from their Facebook pages to their fans – because politicians have become celebrities, the stars. Exposure to political messages is relevant in forming public opinion, but the manipulation gets more hidden, especially during traditional and religious holidays like the Easter. It’s easier to access people during leisure times and politicians tend to present themselves as “one of us”. We researched the type of activities of political parties on Facebook and we proved that, even though the style of campaigns may vary among parties, their political PR follows the same rules as in the traditional media.

/ 1968
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POLITICAL PR, MEDIA AND SPIN DOCTORING

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Along with political organizations and the citizens, the media are also participants in the political communication. The phenomena of the influence of the media and the influence on the media are obvious. Political stakeholders need to use the media in order to make sure that their messages are transmitted to the targeted public. So, in time, politicians become more and more of actors striving to present themselves to the public in their best possible light. The executors of the propaganda activities are not only propaganda experts who shape the propaganda messages but also the technical staff who ensure that the propaganda messages are transmitted to recipients through information technologies – they are spin doctors as well. “To spin” (to turn, to roll, to rotate), and so a “spin doctor” – an image consultant, a political consultant, but also a person who is skilled and trained to manage information and manipulate the mass media; spin control – dressing of the information, public announcements, event directors and information dispensers. The term “spin doctoring” refers to a set of activities: defense of journalists, approval or disapproval of interviews, instructing those who give interviews on what to say or not to say, as well as commenting of the stories and journalists’ writings and underlying specific sentences and interpretations. Spin doctors claim that they only accelerate the process of expanding specific news and information. Spin doctors have a lot in common with a special media councilor – a person in charge of media releases and public relations. Spin-doctoring is the art of “plotting” the strategies of public relations to give the news a desired direction of interpretation.

/ 1968
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MACEDONIAN SPINNING OF BORIS

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The issue of PR impact on the editorial policy of the media is the same as the question “What is older: the egg or the chicken?”, especially in the subject region and in terms of transformation from “snatch privatisations”, through transition and “buddy capitalism” towards embracing neoliberal economic spirit and (quasi)democracy. All of this is reviewed from the aspect of what has been happening in the Republic of Macedonia lately. On the one hand, we have the violent attempt of Macedonian Government to force through their media spokespersons passing of the Media Act as eligible, Euro-desirable and highly imperative, while on the other hand the Macedonian Association of Journalists use their last diffused efforts to try to promote and implement the idea of self-regulation of the media. In such circumstances, when PR not only obviously, but also forcefully influence the editorial policies of the media, the victim is not only the public itself but also, on the short run, the PR practitioners themselves. This raises the question of whether the PR business has its own professional ethics and should PR practitioners uphold it, or serve as a spinning tool like in the example of “spinning Boris”?

/ 1968
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FOCUS CHANGE IN THE PUBLIC RELATIONS AND THE MEDIA

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Traditionally, it was considered that those who work in public relations should have previous experience as journalists. Through this experience they were supposed to build their writing skills and learn about functioning of the media. In the past most people working in public relations had vast previous experience in the media. Today, working in the public relations sector involves a much wider range of activities than just those related to the mass media. PR today also involves writing for the controlled media.

/ 1968
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PR AND THE MEDIA – AGENTS OR COMPANY TAILORS

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Problems in conceptualization and definition of public relations and development of the PR profession from the 1930s have continued to this date, through the practical and theoretical efforts to prevent identifying of this profession-discipline with the news agencies and propaganda or with some other professions and disciplines like journalism, sociology, research, economics, marketing, politicology. Different approaches to defining the PR profession and the PR activities are inevitable as there is no single definition that would encompass all aspects of activities, tasks, trends, objectives and areas contained in this profession. A particularly interesting approach to PR is observed in the industry of journalism and in the state, not only at the global level and in developed societies but also in the transition countries. What is the role of PR and the media as powerful agents of media manipulations, the role of lobbyists and other tailors of the PR and the media, the role of a society, changing trends of PR companies and lobbyists who act from behind the scene (like those of the Bilderberg group), having in mind that PR experts believe that the best PR leaves no obvious trace?

/ 1968
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NATIONAL ART AND CULTURE PORTAL AS A PR TOOL

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The aim of this paper is to present an example of best practice of a Russian arts and culture portal as a PR tool – the Megaproject „KULTU.RU!“. This portal is an example of a socially significant endeavor to include the Internet into the development of arts and culture. Another goal of this paper is to present an idea for a Serbian national project for development of art and culture using IT and the Internet to form the mechanisms for stimulation and support to arts and culture, for promoting Serbian art and culture of the XX and XXI century, for building of the Serbian reputation globally and for forming of a positive image of the country, stimulating creation of new art projects, assisting in building theatre and cinema audiences by the Internet classes, forums, conferences etc. The paper considers in detail the perspectives of such a project in terms of all forms of arts and culture, starting from the theatre, cinema, literature, art etc. It also points to the possible self-sufficiency and profitability of such a project as a very significant element of its functioning.

/ 1968
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ONLINE PUBLIC RELATIONS

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In this paper a research was conducted on the topic of public relations in the digital era, especially the online one. Characteristics and peculiarities of public relations, the potential of the world wide web for E-PR and challenges and advantages of the digital communication are the main topics of the thesis. A short review of well chosen theoretical works that define and deliberate online public relations from a critical point of view is also presented here. The paper analyzes the potential of the web in dialogues, public debates and interactions, as well as the potential of blogs and social networks concerning public relations in the digital XXI century. The conclusion contains a critical reflection of the position, role and the potential of the online PR.

/ 1968
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MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE: STRATEGIC CHALLENGES OF CONCEPTUALIZING PUBLIC AND CULTURAL DIPLOMACY OF SERBIA

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The first section of this paper discusses a public diplomacy concept within the international relations paradigm shift that takes place in a radically changed global environment. Public diplomacy is analyzed primarily through cultural aspects in relation to other concepts such as propaganda and “nation branding”. The second part is dedicated to identification of the key problems that the Republic of Serbia is facing regarding conceptualization and implementation of public and cultural diplomacy. It analyzes the institutional framework and effects of international Serbian policies up to now. It points to the need for long-term synchronous involvement of different actors in the field of public and cultural diplomacy of the Republic of Serbia, in order to promote not only its political positioning and reputation in the world, but for the sake of strengthening its economic and other development resources. Recognition of public and cultural diplomacy as an effective long-term means of building the reputation and position of the Republic of Serbia in international relations is extremely important. It means to articulate the need to design a new cultural concept, which would be built into a system of values that traces the path of Serbian development. The basic question, therefore, in terms of conceptualization of public and cultural diplomacy, remains the question of the narrative. This is the new and the old question of all questions: “Who are we, where are we going and where do we want to go?”