A Case Study: Portrayal of PR Profession in Television and Films

This essay examines the portrayal of the public relations profession in television and films, arguing that inaccurate depictions often create a negative image of the field. The paper uses the movie Jerry Maguire as a case study to contrast realistic and unrealistic portrayals of PR professionals. It explores how popular culture misrepresents the profession, leading to misconceptions about ethics, work-life balance, and the skills required. The essay defines PR, referencing definitions from CIPR and PRSA, and discusses the impact of media on public perception using the Labeling Theory. By analyzing films like Sex and the City and Jerry Maguire, the paper highlights how accurate portrayals can enhance the profession's credibility, while inaccurate ones can damage it. The essay emphasizes the importance of honesty, integrity, and ethical conduct in PR, as outlined by the PRSA, and concludes that more accurate portrayals could encourage young professionals to enter the field.

Running head: PORTRAYAL OF PR PROFESSION IN TELEVISION AND FILMS
PORTRAYAL OF PR PROFESSION IN TELEVISION AND FILMS
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PORTRAYAL OF PR PROFESSION IN TELEVISION AND FILMS
Mass media has a huge impact on shaping up the perspective and opinion of common
people. Since its inception, television and films have been relentlessly influencing the general
concepts present in the society. According to Fred W. Friendly, “Television is greatest teaching
tool since the printing press” (as cited by Berger, 2017). Thus, a vast array of novel experiences
are encountered by individuals through films and televisions. These experiences, eventually,
influence people to form opinions, shape perspectives, as well as consider new options in life.
The aim of this essay is to present a case study on how the portrayal of certain elements
in the television impacts the public psyche. The central focus, however, will be on the portrayal
of the profession of Public Relations. The paper contends that the lack of factual correspondence
with the reality of Public Relations creates a negative image of the profession to the common
people. On the other hand, accurate portrayal of the same may encourage up and coming
professionals to explore the field and eventually join in. The paper takes note of the popular
Hollywood movie Jerry Maguire, which depicts actor Tom Cruise as a PR professional.
It has been observed that popular culture, as is shown in the films and televised contents,
often create misrepresentations regarding less familiar issues such as expert professional
activities and their socio-economic impact. As a result, people may construct an adverse
worldview regarding the profession as well as the professionals associated in the field.
Public Relations is a highly misunderstood occupation as compared to the other
traditional and familiar fields of profession. The Public Relations Society of America (2009)
points out that this is largely due to the changing definition and evolution of the field. To prevent
the misconception regarding the profession, it is important to portray an accurate and realistic

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image of the profession. The implication of such practices may incur more appreciation, even
encourage the youth to join in the profession.
To understand the impact of an inaccurate portrayal, first the notion of Public Relations
practitioner has to be understood in its true spirit. For the said purpose, the standardized
definitions of term may help to further the discussion. The Chartered Institute of Public Relations
define Public Relations or PR as “Public Relations is the discipline which looks after reputation,
with the aim of earning understanding and support and influencing opinion and behaviour. It is
the planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain goodwill and mutual understanding
between an organisation and its publics” (cipr.co.uk). According to the Public Relations Society
of America, (2009) “Public relations helps an organization and its publics adapt mutually to each
other”. Apart from the institutional definition of PR, several scholars have tried to narrow down
the scope of Public Relations. One such scholarly acclaimed definition of PR is provided by
Grunig and Hunt (1984), which states that public relations is a management function that
consists of communication between an organization and that organization’s publics.
However poignant these definitions may be, the dramatized portrayal of the profession
reaches a wider range of audience that may impact their decisions and notions regarding the
concept of PR. According to the Labeling theory or Social Reaction Theory of Becker (as cited
by Pastore, 2017), labels are placed upon notions and individuals by the society, which the
individual in turn accepts only because the society has placed them. The same concept can be
employed in the understanding of the media’s role in influencing people and construct their
perspective of a certain issue, such as the role of a PR professional. As the media represents the
image of a PR practitioner, the persona becomes associated with the people’s worldview,

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irrespective of its accuracy or correspondence to truth. Further elucidation of the matter by
taking examples of certain popular movies is expected to establish the thesis of the paper.
There are an array of films and television shows that have portrayed characters working in the
field of public relations. Although, most of the characters are dramatized and infused with
elements of fiction, some of them hold up the true spirit of a PR practitioner. Films like Thank
You for Smoking, The Hollowmen, Absolute Power, Wag the Dog, Sex and the City etc. portrays
different characters working as publicists, media managers, image consultants and so on.
However, not all of these characters do justice to the image of a PR professional. For example,
the Character of Samantha Jones in the film as well as the television series Sex and the City plays
the role of an urban, glamorous and sophisticated Public Relations manager for a high profile
firm in New York City. Debatably, the character of Samantha Jones was one of the key figures to
popularize the concept of public relation professionals among the mass, although it was a highly
inaccurate and superficial portrayal of the said profession. It is even argued by many PR experts
that Samantha Jones has ruined the concept of a PR practitioner for the common people’s
perspective. Many young aspirants of the field want to join the profession with the desire of
living such a glamorous and high profile life. This is not all the true picture of the profession. PR
professionals do not spend their lives planning and attending parties, rather the work of a PR
manager involve a lot of hard work, research, news tracking and monitoring, as well as client
management. It needs dedication, passion and expertise to fulfill all the demands of a client,
which is never really shown in the show. Besides, not all the professionals of the said field earn
so handsomely to afford such a luxurious lifestyle.
This is just one side of the issue regarding the inaccurate portrayal of the profession of
PR in the films and television shows. A more serious and concerning factor that it faces due to

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this unrealistic portrayals is the negative image it obtains pertaining to the ethical and moral
actions of the characters. This is often believed by the common people that PR managers indulge
in unethical means to meet the requirements of the job. The occupation of public relations
involve the art of persuasion and influencing people, though it is depicted in many cases as forms
of manipulation. Thus, it creates an adverse impact on people who consider this job profile as a
negative one. One of the major reasons behind this misconception is lack of proper research and
authentic information concerning the field.
However, there are several films that utilizes the technical aspects and real methods of
public relations within the scope of their storytelling. One such example is the movie Jerry
Maguire. In this movie, renowned actor Tom Cruise plays the character of Jerry Maguire, a
sports agent who lost his job due to an ethical conflict in his workplace. The movie is one of the
notable endeavours to depict the essence and ideal nature of the job, contrasting it to the
commonly held adverse perspectives of the job profile at the same time.
The movie deals majorly with the moral epiphany Jerry experiences and the subsequent
events that make his position in both the personal and occupational field vulnerable. In the movie
Jerry opens up about the corruption in the sports management business and tries to take a stand
against it. Consequently, Jerry gets fired by the management and loses his thriving career as a
sports manager. He then opens his own sports management firm and reconnects with his clients,
though his former company tries to lure the clients by adopting several unethical means and even
sabotages him. However, Jerry sticks with his only client Rod Tidwell, for whom he ultimately
manages to secure a $11.2 million contract. (IMDb)

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The movie, thus, portrays not only an accurate picture of a PR professional, rather it
depicts an ideal PR—how a PR practitioner should be. On the authentic background of the fast-
paced and fiercely competitive sector of PR management, Jerry Maguire shows the dedication,
passion and transparency that is required for a true PR.
It is maintained by the experts of the field that honesty, integrity and passion are the
necessary prerequisite of being a successful PR professional. Although people believe that
propaganda and persuasion are some negative and unethical practices, scholars suggest that they
are rather instrumental in the field of PR as the tools of propagation and promotion of images.
Besides, PRs need to adhere to certain ethical code of conduct. The Public Relations Society of
America (2019) prescribes honesty, fairness, loyalty, transparency in information flow,
independence and advocacy of clients as the guidelines for the role of a publicity professional.
The movie follows all these guidelines to an accurate extent. Moreover, the movie earns the
credit of authenticity is given to it because of as it has reportedly consulted real-life PR experts
in the portrayal of Jerry Maguire.
Thus, by comparing two mainstream films, it can be understood that inaccurate portrayal
of the role and underpinning philosophy of the PR profession creates the negative perspective
concerning the profession, while incorporating more factual correspondence could help enhance
its credibility among people.

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Reference
About Public Relations. (2009). Retrieved 17 September 2019, from
https://www.prsa.org/about/all-about-pr
Berger, A. A. (2017). Television in society. Routledge.
Ethics. (2019). Retrieved 17 September 2019, from https://www.prsa.org/about/ethics
Grunig, J. E., & Hunt, T. (1984). Managing public relations. New York: Holt, Rinehart &
Winston.
Jerry Maguire (1996) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116695/?ref_=nv_sr_1?ref_=nv_sr_1
Pastore, G. (2017). Labeling Theory. The Wiley‐Blackwell Encyclopedia of Social Theory, 1-2.
What is PR? | Chartered Institute of Public Relations. (2019). Retrieved 16 September 2019,
from https://www.cipr.co.uk/content/policy/careers-advice/what-pr

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