Written by Rene Nieva / PR Matters Source: Business Mirror IN last week’s column, I mentioned that major PR international organizations, such as the Public Relations Society of America and the International Public Relations Association, have their own codes of ethics. We also mentioned the 12 general precepts of the Public Relations Society of the Philippines (PRSP) code, which we are detailing below. In this article, I will try to analyze each, especially those just starting out their PR careers. 1 Conduct our professional way of life with the interests of the public as our basic and primary guide. It is the responsibility of the PR professional to make sure his employer or client has done or is doing everything possible to make their products, services and operations as safe and risk-free as possible, and in the case of accidents, to help and compensate the victims one way or the other. Once he is sure this is the case, he must see to it that this is made immediately and widely known to the public to prevent or minimize any further damage and to allay fears or concerns on their part. But what if the PR professional finds out that his employer or client has really been amiss in ensuring the safety of its operations and its products and services, and refuses to do anything about it? Worse still, the PR counsel is ordered to lie to the public on what the real situation is. In that case, the ethical and honorable thing for a PR professional to do is resign from the company or give up the account. I know this is easier said than done for the PR professional, especially since it would involve a major financial loss on his part. So, for him, the choice boils down to this—opt for money and security, or choose to keep his honor and integrity? 2 Conduct our activities in full accordance with the accepted standards of trust, objectivity, accuracy and good taste.
The trust of employers or clients, or of the various public that the PR practitioner must deal with, can only be earned over a period of time. Once that trust is gained, it is something that the PR professional must value and maintain. For if he loses that trust in even just a single misstep, he may never regain it again. He should also be objective, making the company’s statements and positions as balanced and objective as possible in order to be credible. Otherwise, whatever he says or does will be dismissed as one-sided and self-serving. The PR professional must always strive for accuracy. Otherwise, his and his company’s credibility suffers, and people will regard all communication emanating from him and the company from thereon as unreliable and subject to further verification. As for good taste, it is the responsibility of the PR professional to see to it that all the actuations and statements of the company, whether coming from him as spokesman or from the CEO himself, are marked by class, dignity and grace. There should be no crass or uncouth behavior that could bring them and the company down. A top official using foul language, giving an off-color remark in a speech, or being too loud and boisterous in a public event, can have negative repercussions on the company’s overall image. 3 Uphold the rule of law and the dictates of public order, public policy, morals and good customs. In understanding this, we must remember that the PRSP code was produced during martial law. Hence, it was probably meant more to remind—warn?—PR men and the companies they work for that they should behave as good corporate and individual citizens of the country. They should comply with all the laws, requirements and regulations of the government; refrain from creating any trouble or disturbance to the public order and from transgressing or speaking out against any public policies that have been promulgated. In general, this precept cautioned PRSP members not to do anything immoral or anything that is not in accordance with the good customs supposed to be prevailing in the “New Era.” 4 Help promote the concept of social justice. It is unfortunate that in the Philippines, there is still a lot if inequality in terms of social and economic levels and we still have a long way to go before true and lasting social justice can be achieved. This concern to bridge the large gap between the very few rich and middle class, on the one hand, and the much greater number of poor Filipinos, on the other, prompted Jose Carpio, then vice president for PR of San Miguel Corp., to spearhead the formation in the 1970s of the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP), where participating Philippine companies set aside and contributed a certain percentage of their revenues to PBSP for use in various developmental projects, especially in the countryside where poverty was most prevalent. Apart from their involvement in PBSP, many companies have also undertaken their own respective CSR projects in areas such as livelihood, health care, education, environment conservation, support for the arts and culture, and so forth. In doing so, they not only promoted social justice, but also enhanced their public image and strengthened their relations with key stakeholders. PR professionals like Joe Carpio, Oscar Villadolid and Max Edralin, among others, have contributed significantly to bringing about social-justice consciousness among Filipino companies. 5 Foster harmonious relationship and establish fair dealings at all times with employers, our fellow practitioners and the general and special publics. How does one go about this? By providing our employers or clients with the best PR service that we are capable of, and not short-changing them with shabby or mediocre work. This also means providing them with frank and objective counsel, not telling them just what they want to hear. With regard to our fellow practitioners, we must compete with them fairly and ethically and in accordance with ground rules that have been set. We must not spy on them to get valuable information that would give us undue advantage over them. Nor should we badmouth them with their employees or clients or do anything to injure their practice or reputation or doing similar unethical means of pirating their clients. But dealing fairly with our fellow PR practitioners does not just mean competing with them fairly. It also means working with them closely to further improve the practice of Public Relations and to gain for our profession better understanding and greater credibility and respect from the public. On fair dealings with the general and special public, it involves basically always being truthful, sincere and transparent with them and not deceiving them in any way. We must also respect their intellectual property rights and not pas of their ideas and creations as own. It also involves, as stated in the Ipra Code of Athens, “paying due regard to, and upholding human dignity and recognizing the right of people to judge things for themselves, state their case and express their views.” 6 Protect the interest of our clients or employers by being faithful to our commitments to them, against which shall not represent conflicting or competing interests, unless full consent is given by all interested parties with full disclosure of facts. I believe this provision is a simple and actually a given. It means that if you work for someone or for an organization, you must give it your total loyalty and devotion. This is why you must not work for a company or get it as a client if you do not agree with its policies and practices. But once you are employed by that company or it becomes your client, you must work for its interest, even subordinating your own personal interests. Unless, of course, as I pointed out earlier, the interests of the company are contrary to public interests, in which ethics demands that you give priority to the latter. This also means that a PR professional, before working for or dealing with any organization, must disclose any existing or potential conflict of interest. He must then leave it to the client or organization to decide if despite this, they still want to take you on or work with you and trust you enough to avoid situations that would bring the conflict into play. I hope this has been an eye opener for PR professionals, and will tackle the next six precepts in my next column. Continuation: Source: Business Mirror IN PR, as in everything else in life, ethics matter. PR practitioners must have the integrity and commitment to conduct their work in accordance with accepted ethical standards. Ethics issues are, in fact, so deep that we have devoted three columns just to talk about them. In the first column, we discussed how major international organizations like the Public Relations Association of America and the International Public Relations Association have their own code of ethics, which members use as guidelines. Closer to home is that of the Public Relations Association of the Philippines (PRSP). In the second column, we talked about the first six general precepts of the PRSP code, which centered on public interest, trust, upholding the rule of law, helping promote the concept of social justice, fostering harmonious relationships, and protecting the interests of our clients and employers. In this column, I will discuss the last six precepts in the PRSP Code. These are: 7 Refuse all other obligations, which hamper the effective and efficient performance of our duties to our clients and publics. This is all about priorities. When one is working for a company or client, he must give it his undivided loyalty and devotion. He must not accept any other job, have a sideline, or even join a club or NGO that would prevent him from doing his job for his employer or serving the needs of his clients, as well as he could—and should. 8 Adhere closely to the established guidelines and ethics for the use of the mass media or any other channels of communication. The Ipra Code of Venice is more specific and straightforward in this respect. It states that Ipra members “shall not intentionally disseminate false or misleading information to the media.” The importance of providing truthful and accurate information about the company or client he works to the media—and to the public—is probably the most ethical principle in all public relations. There are, however, other instances cited specifically by the PRSA and Ipra code of ethics. These include coming up with front organizations that promote the interest of one’s employers or clients; writing letters to the editors under assumed names or the names of willing accomplices to support their employers’ or clients’ positions on certain issues; or employing people to “volunteer” to speak on their companies’ or clients’ behalf at seminars or public hearings. The Code of Venice also enjoins Ipra members not to “engage in practice which tends to corrupt the integrity of the channels.” But as I wrote in an earlier column, ethical standards in various countries slightly differ, depending on the culture of the country. 9 Safeguard the confidence of our present and former clients or employers by keeping trade secrets of or other information of similar nature, unless a competent government authority, by reason of national security or public policy, orders their disclosure. This is all about trade secrets and both the PRSA and Ipra codes have similar provisions. But to further ensure that their confidences and privacy rights are safeguarded, most American employees require their employees and agencies including their PR counsels to sign on-disclosure agreements in their respective work or engagement contracts. The PRSP Code, however, goes a step further in making an exception in cases where “disclosure is ordered by a competent government authority by reason of national security or public policy.” Again, this goes back to the fact that PRSP’s Code of Ethics was drafted after the declaration of martial law. 10 Refuse any form of valuable consideration for a service, involving the profession, from any one other than our clients or employers, even if it does not involve conflicting interests, unless all interested parties give full consent. This is a further elaboration of being ethical—fair, truthful and transparent—in relation to our employers and clients. Receiving “valuable consideration”—a fee, gift, whatever—for any PR service rendered from others without informing or getting the prior agreement of one’s employer or clients, is a form of deception. Even if there were no conflict of interest involved, it would cast a shadow of doubt on the integrity and trustworthiness of the PR counsel. 11 Avoid at all times pursuing any activity prejudicial to the interest of the society or inconsistent with the dictates of this code. I think this is a given that members of professional societies like the PRSP should not be involved in any activity that puts the society and the profession in a bad light, especially if these activities are unethical or illegal. 12 Uphold the accepted principle of Ethics that the end does not justify the means. This ethical principle is very basic not only in PR but in all professions. No unethical action can be condoned. There are so many other tools and techniques that are ethical and effective that a PR professional, if he is really good, can use to achieve the desired corporate objectives of his employer or client. Enforcing codes is difficult IT is interesting to note that all PR codes—of PRSA, Ipra and PRSP—were and are meant more for the guidance and adherence of their members, with not provision for enforcement. In the case of PRSA, PR practitioners are made to pledge adherence to the code before they are accepted in the organization. And while it has given up its call for “whistle blowing,” it retained the right to “bar from membership or expel from the society any individual who has been or is sanctioned by a government agency or convicted in a court of law of an action that fails to comply with its code.” I have no knowledge whether PRSA has ever exercised its right. Still and all, the Code of Ethics serves as a reminder to PR practitioners, whether in the Philippines or abroad, that if they want to be looked up to as PR professionals, they must try to live up to accepted ethical standards in the day-to-day practice of their profession. Being ethical is admittedly difficult, and may even be seen as a weakness by the less conscionable among less ethical PR practitioners and companies. But in the end, I still believe that truth will prevail and honesty is still the best policy. That, plus excellence and creativity, make a great PR professional. And this is not just naïve or wishful thinking. Many leading companies still want—and even insist that—the PR professionals they hire must be honest and ethical. The successful careers of many God-fearing and law-abiding PR professionals who have tried their best to follow the straight and narrow path—no matter how difficult—can attest to this.
2 Comments
Edgar Timbungco
12/11/2014 10:45:04 am
Dear Sir Rene,
Reply
8/9/2022 07:34:39 pm
İçerik çok güzel. side transfer : https://www.alanyagroup.com/haberler/side-transfer-7-24/
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
Archives
August 2016
Categories |