Public Relations Journal (Sep 2015)

State Government Media Relations: Revisiting the “Adversarial” PIO-Journalist Relationship

  • Christopher Jon McCollough

Journal volume & issue
Vol. 9, no. 3

Abstract

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The journalist-practitioner relationship has been seen as “antagonistic” for several decades in both journalism and public relations scholarship. This study aimed to determine if the characteristics laid out in relationship management theory and journalist-practitioner literature applies to the contemporary media relationship between state government public relations officers (PIOs) and journalists. The study finds that traditional factors (institutional pressures, centralization of government, and the ethical conduct) are still central to shaping journalist-practitioner relationships. The study also finds that contemporary factors (economic pressure on journalistic practice and PIOs’ strategic use of technology) are fundamentally shaping relationships.