Photo credit: Roger H. Goun

Journalism is dying. Virtually all news publications have fewer journalists and fewer news pages. Is journalism being replaced by public relations?

The number of reporters decreased from 52,550 to 43,630, a 17 percent drop, from 2003 to 2013, according to Pew Research. At the same time, the number of PR professionals grew from 166,210 to 202,530, a 22 percent increase.

For every reporter there are now 4.6 public relations professionals, compared to 3.2 in 2004 and 1.2 in 1980, according to Robert McChesney and John Nichols, authors of the book “The Death and Life of American Journalism.”

Many former reporters are turning to PR to find jobs with better pay. Journalists now earn 65 percent of the median income of PR professionals, according to Pew. More students in journalism and communications schools are opting for careers in PR than journalism.

Some PR agencies and PR corporate departments now have financial resources that can dwarf the budgets of many traditional media outlets. ProPublica reported that revenues at PR agencies increased from $3.5 billion to $8.75 billion between 1997 and 2007. Employees at the agencies increased 38,735 to 50,499 during that time.

The Impact of Digital Technology

In addition to more people and resources in PR, the rise of digital technology, is a major factor helping PR replace traditional journalism. Corporations can now reach the public directly by essentially acting as their own media outlet or through social media. Companies can distribute their own content through owned media such as websites, blogs, YouTube channels, and promote it through social media.

Many media observers lament the erosion of journalism and view the rise of corporate media productions with alarm. Sometimes the PR productions mimic journalism. Chevron hired a former CNN journalist to create a report on its controversial actions in Ecuador to counter a forthcoming 60 minutes story.

Chevron’s report seemed like a TV news production, but it never identified itself as a corporate production and everyone it interviewed was on Chevron’s payroll.

A Drop in Reporting Quality

Smaller editorial staffs mean publications are less likely to double-check PR-generated press releases and videos. They’re also less likely to undertake in-depth investigations or follow up on press releases with more research. Studies by Pew and others indicate the quality of reporting has general decreased.

A 2014 study of health-related coverage by JAMA Internal Medicine found that half of the studied stories relied on a single source or failed to disclose conflicts of interest from sources.

“The reviewers graded most stories unsatisfactory on 5 of 10 review criteria: costs, benefits, harms, quality of the evidence, and comparison of the new approach with alternatives,” the journal states. “Drugs, medical devices, and other interventions were usually portrayed positively; potential harms were minimized, and costs were ignored.”

“I don’t know anyone who can look at that calculus and see a very good outcome, McChesney, co-author of the previously mentioned book on journalism and a communications professor at the University of Illinois, told ProPublica. “What we are seeing now is the demise of journalism at the same time we have an increasing level of public relations and propaganda. We are entering a zone that has never been seen before in this country.”

Yet the proliferation of PR-generated digital content provides public benefit. As Pew notes, companies can disseminate helpful information immediately and directly to the public without the independent press as intermediaries.

Bottom Line: PR is increasingly acting as its own media outlet by publishing content on corporate websites and social media channels. Although many experts disapprove of the development, PR pros are now superseding journalists as content creators. The new position creates new responsibilities for PR practitioners.

What’s your take? What is the impact of PR replacing journalism? Please reply below.

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William Comcowich

William J. Comcowich founded and served as CEO of CyberAlert LLC, the predecessor of Glean.info. He is currently serving as Interim CEO and member of the Board of Directors. Glean.info provides customized media monitoring, media measurement and analytics solutions across all types of traditional and social media.