In mass media, perception is reality. When you're educating individuals or groups of any size, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of damage control. Good PR practices and information management can help build relationships and trust, anticipate and avoid costly problems, and streamline overall progress.

PR needn't be difficult, but it does require proactive thought and planning vs. defensive response and reactive "catch-up."

PR may involve paid or unpaid media, or both. Although PR is often abused as "spin" and propaganda, honestly practiced PR is important and goes a long way toward earning trust and ensuring that you and your message are heard, understood and respected by important internal and external audiences.

This section offers tips, tactics and tools of PR.

Public Relations (PR) involves communicating well and managing the flow of information between you and your organization, and key individuals or groups.

PR needn't be complicated, and it may cost little or nothing, yet can do a lot for your cause. PR can influence -- for better or worse -- how people perceive and understand you, your organization and your message.

PR done properly needn't be complicated or costly. It is merely a reflection of good business practices, respectful relationships, clear communications and effective education and outreach. It requires staying in touch and being proactively mindful of prevailing or changing -- accurate or inaccurate -- attitudes, beliefs and opinions.

It's Not What People Know But What They Think They Know

It's often said that perception is reality. In other words, it's not what people know but what they think they know that may be influenced by personal experiences outside the norm, or based on assumptions that may be inaccurate, distorted, deceptive or out of context. 

People may have been falsely informed, for example, by the "under construction" myth of fetal development, or about "choice" and "back-alley abortions," vs. coercion and other abuses, harm and maternal deaths, when the truth is quite different.

Understanding people's current understanding or perceptions of you and of your issue or message is especially important in mass media, where audiences and levels of understanding and personal experiences vary widely.

A message that is over-generalized or highly specific but without qualification or context can be misunderstood. How a message is presented can make people either more open -- or more hard-hearted -- toward you, your organization, your message and your cause. If people sense that their beliefs, attitudes and views are understood and respected they will be more open to the new information you are providing.

PR also includes a healthy dose of preventive medicine. Because an ounce of planning and proactive prevention is worth a pound of reactive, defensive and expensive damage control.

Reasonable people will be receptive to new information that challenges their beliefs, attitudes or perceptions about an issue if it is clearly, professionally and respectfully presented. The public's ignorance of important evidence -- often concealed or distorted whether deliberately or negligently -- can interfere with clear communications.

In the case of the abortion issue -- in addition to prevailing ignorance or misunderstandings about abortion itself -- many people still think that abortion is about "choice" or "safe healthcare," even though evidence shows something quite different: Most abortions are unwanted or coerced -- a human rights abuse at best, not "choice." This framework changes the very foundation of the abortion debate. In addition to its assault on the rights of unborn children and women, legal abortion has exploited, traumatized and killed many women, too.

Without proactively educating the public about this big-picture context and other things they don't know, inaccuracies will be repeated often until they are presumed to be true. Conversely, the truth, when clearly presented -- especially that which defies conventional wisdom -- is quite powerful.

Ethically Practiced PR Is About Clarity and Brevity, Not Distortion and Spin

In today's hyper-connected, media-driven world, public relations is more important than ever. Although PR is sometimes used by unethical practitioners to hide, distort or "spin" that truth, when honestly practiced it is a constructive way to:

• tell your story accurately and fairly,

• be mindful of varying attitudes, beliefs and perceptions,

• counter any pre-existing misunderstandings or potential misunderstandings and lies, half-truths, or distorted information already out there,

• prevent potential future misunderstandings or unintended consequences by presenting your message within the appropriate big-picture context,

• maintain good relationships with both internal and external audiences,

• convey a clear and consistent message.

PR involves educating others and may be as simple as making phone calls and sending follow-up educational materials, sending a well-written press release or letter to the editor, planning and publicizing speeches or special events, or as long-term as developing and establishing relationships with media representatives and opinion leaders.

An Ounce of Prevention Is Worth a Pound of Damage Control

Just as in advertising, a high level of repetition and staying "on message" will be required to get the message across while addressing existing and potential misunderstandings and avoiding future misunderstandings, too.

Advertising, if done, and PR should work hand in hand delivering and reinforcing a consistent message and brand identity.

As mentioned earlier, honing your message and publicizing it in various media and with various tactics and tools can go a long way toward promoting your message while preventing crossed wires. This is especially true when:

• It's new information

• It goes against conventional wisdom about what people "think" they know, or what they've been told that is untrue or out of context

• It involves sensitive topics that may hit close to home for many in your audience

In today's hyper-connected media world, it's more important than ever to "get it right" the first time rather than waste time going back and trying to do damage control or create a missed opportunity to be proactive vs. reactive and defensive. Crafting and delivering a clear, cohesive, positive and proactive message that respects its audience means the truth, metaphorically speaking, will already "have its shoes on" before it goes half-way -- or all the way -- around the world.

Generate Free Media and Publicity or Supplement with Paid Media, Too

PR typically involves raising awareness and communicating your message via unpaid media, although it may be supplemented by paid media (advertising) as well. Free media coverage can be achieved in various ways, such as sending press releases, giving speeches, planning and publicizing events and activities, meeting with other group leaders, etc. When these things are done with focus, clarity and in a manner that respects your audience, this helps to generate more and better coverage and more "buzz" in the news media and elsewhere.