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WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF PUBLIC RELATIONS

It is argued that public relations practitioners have five moral obligations.

• To ourselves — to preserve our own integrity

• To our client — to honor our contracts and to use our professional expertise on our clients' behalf

• To our organization or employer — to adhere to organizational goals and poli­cies

• To our profession and our professional colleagues — to uphold the standards of the profession and, by extension, the reputation of our fellow practitioners

• To society — to consider social needs and claims

Unfortunately, personal conflict is often involved in trying to serve the needs of these groups. An employer or a client, for example, may think it in the organization's interest to hide information that may be detrimental to its reputation or sales. As a public relations writer and practitioner, do you go along with the organization's wishes, or do you adhere to your own personal values and the standards of the public relations profession?

□ Words and word-combinations

1. ethics — этика

2. ethical values — этические ценности

3. ethical considerations — этические соображения

4. ambiguous — двусмысленный, сомнительный

5. to be subject to — подвергаться

6. to convey information — передавать информацию

7. public relations practitioner — практикующий профессионал в области паблик рилейшнз

8. on smb's behalf — от имени к.-л.

9. to adhere to — придерживаться ч.-л.

10. fellow — сотрудник

11. to consider social needs and claims — учитывать социальные нужды и тре­бования

12. detrimental — вредный, приносящий убыток

The answer depends in large part on how you view your role. Some writers consid­er themselves technicians whose responsibility is to prepare materials as the organiza­tion or client wants them, even if the result is dishonest or misleading. They are the literary equivalent of "hired guns", available for any and every cause. Professionalism to them means writing good, persuasive copy even if they don't believe in what they are writing.

Other writers feel that they serve as lawyers in the court of public opinion. All parties, they believe, are entitled to tell their side of the story and be represented by public relations counsel. In this mode, the writer's obligation is to present the best possible defense of the client. Thus a public relations firm should have no qualms about representing a foreign government accused of human right violations, a racist hate group, or a cigarette company.