As a Namibian journalist over the last 20 years, I’ve witnessed and experienced firsthand the often strained, yet undeniably crucial, relationship between journalists and public relations officers.
It’s a dynamic fraught with misconceptions, evolving challenges, and a shared, albeit sometimes obscured, responsibility to the public interest.
Journalism is widely considered a public good, as it is playing a vital role in informing citizens and holding power to account, which is essential for a healthy democracy. It provides the information the citizens need to participate meaningfully in society and functions as a watchdog, investigating and exposing wrongdoing. Despite its importance, journalism faces challenges like declining revenues and the rise of misinformation, making it crucial to recognise its value and support its sustainability.
However, the elephant in the newsroom is the state of journalism globally and, by extension, in Namibia. It’s no secret that the media have evolved from a precarious position to an existential crisis in the last few years.
The public’s trust has eroded, circulation numbers have plummeted, and the traditional advertising model, once the lifeblood of our industry, has all but collapsed.
Where once a Friday edition might print 70 000 copies in 2014, we’re now printing around 20 000.
This drastic decline in income has led to a serious reduction in pages and a flight out of newsrooms, leaving us with a noticeable lack of capacity and experience.
Adding to these woes is the absence of a robust self-regulation mechanism. The Editors Forum, for all intents and purposes, is not operating. Recently, the media ombudsman had a farewell, and none of the current EFN leaders bothered to show up to their own event.
Instead of tackling the existential threats facing their institutions, some media house leaders seem preoccupied with self-congratulatory exercises and vanity projects.
Yet, amidst this gloom, our work remains undeniably vital. We’ve seen our stories spark political change, lead to the amendment of laws and policies for the public good, and finally result in the arrest of high-profile individuals. Our persistent reporting on issues like the Namcor shenanigans, which languished for years before political will finally prompted action, underscores the enduring importance of a free press for good governance and the public interest.
This, I believe, is where our paths converge with those of our PRO colleagues: we both, ultimately, should be working in the interest of the public.
BRAND BUILDING
However, this is where a fundamental misconception often arises among my PRO friends. They frequently view their role as primarily framing how their entity (often the powerful figurehead of an organisation) is perceived by the audience. While brand management is undoubtedly a component of PR, this narrow focus often backfires, producing the very opposite of their intended image. PR, at its core, can and should support truth and the public interest. I am still searching for a valid explanation as to why the main PRO of the Office of the Prime Minister has failed for almost a month to ask the PM a few questions on my behalf. I was told I don’t understand the procedure. I don’t want or need to understand something that clearly doesn’t work.
Or is “business unusual” just a tired catchphrase?
Hiding information while your job title has the word public in it is nasty business.
It seems to be the default setting of especially government PROs who seem to be more occupied with following procedure than to get the info out.
We’ve all reluctantly accepted that PROs just don’t have the professional wherewithal to respond meaningfully in an instant to the media’s responses. Now it’s all formal emails with a list of questions. An increasingly litigious elite and a juniorisation of even communications professionals just do not allow instant reaction.
We’re not even talking about preempting narratives or controlling the framing of issues. There’s no understanding in government communications of the power of the president talking to the public directly… and often.
THE STORY
To understand how journalists and editors decide what to publish and where to carry the story, several considerations come into play.
It starts, unfortunately, with ownership. The slant of a publication, often dictated by its owners, significantly influences content and even hiring decisions.
Then there’s the agenda – both overt and covert – that shapes what is deemed newsworthy. We also apply universal news values: proximity, the unusual, prominent persons, and impact.
The placement of a story within the newspaper is also crucial; the “if it bleeds, it leads” mentality is largely reserved for tabloids, which are not a significant part of the Namibian media landscape.
But the bloodthirstiness is visible online, where competition to break the story is fierce.
Conversely, when a PRO considers sharing information, their internal factors are likely centred on organisational strategy, potential impact on reputation, and legal implications. However, these considerations too often lead to a default position of withholding rather than informing.
Working with PROs presents a unique set of challenges for journalists. A significant hurdle is when PROs are positioned outside executive management.
This lack of access to decision-making processes means they are often not sufficiently in the loop and, consequently, not as well-informed as they should be. This leads to what I can only describe as an “unseriousness” in some interactions. The increasingly common practice of deleted, cancelled, or removed emails, statements, or events is deeply concerning.
While often attributed to sloppy mistakes, it’s becoming a worrying hallmark of the current administration.
It’s perplexing to see PROs seemingly socialising 24/7 on social media, yet struggling to provide basic company statistics and figures. We are often left begging, swearing, and having to escalate requests just to get fundamental information, which should be on the institution’s publicly accessible platforms anyway.
GIVE AND TAKE
The relationship between the media and PROs has changed dramatically in recent years. The biggest shift, however, is the direct-to-consumer communication model adopted by many organisations. Companies are now investing in their own streaming facilities and publicising their achievements directly on social media. This diminishes their need to “nudge” us into promoting their narratives.
The era of the media acting as a mere puppet or parrot is over; we need to find a niche and redefine our utility in this evolving landscape.
Mutual trust is the bedrock of any productive relationship, and it is critically absent in many media-PRO interactions. For PROs to establish trust, the first step is simple: follow the news. It’s astonishing how many PROs call me about stories they want published in New Era when they clearly haven’t even read that publication in almost a year.
Building genuine relationships is also key. I have excellent, cordial relationships with the very best PROs – those who make an effort, who pop into the office unannounced, who are willing to “kick open doors” or possess the capacity to get answers even when it’s difficult. It’s a reciprocal effort.
Furthermore, organisations need to appoint better people to PRO roles. If a PRO is primarily a talker, they should have a doer as a deputy.
And finally, PROs need to work on their aloofness. Accessibility and responsiveness are vital for fostering trust.
In this digitally evolving landscape, PROs can best serve the media by ensuring their websites are up to date and accessible. If online presence is current and easy to navigate, journalists won’t need to hound them for basic information, only for specific comments or deeper insights. It’s truly a “knife in Afrikaans” when government and SOE websites are security hazards and require the intervention of Jesus, Chuck Norris, and all the IT help they can get.
Beyond basic information, PROs should find ways to help tell their story better. This means providing unique graphics, compelling pictures, engaging videos, or relevant audio snippets tailored for specific audiences and platforms. In a world saturated with information, a well-packaged story stands out.
Despite the struggles faced by our media, the importance of a free, robust, and pluralistic press in Namibia cannot be overstated. When journalists and PROs recognise their shared responsibility to the public interest and work collaboratively with mutual respect and transparency, we can collectively contribute to a more informed citizenry and a stronger democracy. The path to achieving this requires a conscious effort from both sides to overcome misconceptions, embrace modern communication strategies, and prioritise the truth above all else.
