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The Values of Public Relations

Written by

Molly Mullins

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The Dangers of Astroturfing

Ethical conduct is incredibly important to upholding trust and credibility between organizations and their audiences in public relations. A major ethical issue that has caught recent attention is astroturfing. Astroturfing is a deceptive tactic where organizations fabricate something to influence the public’s perception whether that be support or lack of support for a person or company. 

Astroturfing goes directly against the principles of transparency and honesty that are encouraged in public relations. By creating fake endorsements and misleading campaigns, organizations harm the public which causes them to lose trust in these organizations. The Public Relations Society of America or PRSA emphasizes how important it is to have honesty staging, “We adhere to the highest standards of accuracy and truth in advancing the interests of those we represent and in communicating with the public”. An organization’s reputation is at risk when using astroturfing and misleading the public. 

https://www.marketingprofs.com/charts/2010/3886/brands-caught-astroturfing-risk-losing-customers

Astroturfing in the Media 

A recent situation that shows the ethical risks of astroturfing is the Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni controversy.  Earlier this year, Blake Lively accused her co-star and director, Justin Baldoni, of sexual harassment and alleged that his PR team orchestrated a calculated, retaliatory smear campaign to damage her reputation and disrupt her businesses. Baldoni’s public relations firm, The Agency Group (TAG PR),  had allegedly coordinated efforts to show Lively in a negative light to combat her allegations.  This use of astroturfing is highlighting the rise in ethical practices especially when used to discredit individuals making serious allegations. The Lively vs. Baldoni case highlights the potential harm astroturfing can inflict on personal reputations and other serious situations. 

The use of astroturfing in this situation shows the severity of breaching the ethical principles that should be used in public relations.  Astroturfing and other unethical practices can cause short term benefits by forming the public’s opinion, but eventually truth comes out and the public becomes angry. This can cause a lack of trust from the public and can cause a public figure to lose all credibility. For example, the use of astroturfing in the Lively vs. Baldoni‘s allegations have completely taken over the success of their movie, “It Ends With Us.” This has caused the movie to fall short in bringing to light the conversation of domestic violence that it was originally filmed to combat. 

This shows how important it is to have ethical values and practices within public relations. Public relations professionals need to show principles of honesty, transparency. Transparency is especially important in upholding the trust of the public. Transparency is the “openness and clarity in communication,providing stakeholders with clear and accurate information” (Ethics and Public relations). As the digital landscape continues to evolve, public relations practitioners must continue to uphold their values to ensure that all strategies and tactics create genuine engagement and uphold the profession’s integrity.

Keywords/Tags: Public Relations, Ethics, Astroturfing, honesty, Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni, PRSA Code of Ethics, Trust, Integrity

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References

Person. (2010). Brands caught astroturfing risk losing customers. Retrieved from https://www.marketingprofs.com/charts/2010/3886/brands-caught-astroturfing-risk-losing-customers

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