Purpose

The objective of this study is to gather qualitative and quantitative data on the experiences and perceptions of multicultural public relations practitioners regarding diversity within the industry and workplace in order to identify critical issues affecting multicultural PR practitioners and to develop actionable steps the public relations profession should take to further diversity within the profession. This independent study is being conducted by scholars from City College of New York and Howard University, using published academic and industry reports and studies.

Method

E-mail invitations were sent to U.S. public relations practitioners who were non-Caucasian Americans to complete an anonymous web-based survey. Between October and January, 132 practitioners, representing men and women, completed the study. Respondents were 75% Black, African or Caribbean; 22.7% Hispanic and 1.1% Asian. Ages ranged from 21 to 69 and salaries ranged from under $20,000 to more than $100,000. Approximately 30% represented public relations agencies; 18% represented corporations, 19% represented independent consultants; 10% represented educational institutions; and 23% represented non profits, associations or the government. About 39% were middle management level. The research findings will be presented at both academic and scholarly conferences and published as journal and trade articles. Additionally, pre and post discussion groups were held with multicultural pubic relations practitioners to gain greater insight into practitioner experiences. A $1 donation is being given to PR scholarship funds for each survey completed.

Findings

Perceptions on diversity with PR

Respondents echoed previous studies in viewing the industry as only somewhat successful in retaining a diverse workforce (56.6 %) or not successful (24.2%). About 60% of the respondents felt that multicultural practitioners were put on slow moving tracks within their jobs and 56% said that multicultural practitioners were often or frequently relegated to menial tasks.

Experiences within the PR industry

Nearly 45.8% of the respondents felt satisfied with their jobs all things considered, and nearly two thirds said they had been mentored by one or more practitioners who helped make a difference in their success. However, because of their race/ethnicity in their public relations experience, 48% felt they'd been treated unfairly by current or past employers, 48% said they have been overlooked for promotion, 63% said they had to be more qualified than Caucasian Americans, 55% felt they were not afforded the same opportunities in the PR field as Caucasian Americans, 53.7% said some employers do not want diverse practitioners working for them, and 54% said they have experienced subtle discrimination by their employers and/or fellow employees.

Recommended Corporate/Agency Actions

Preliminarily, respondents said that the three most important actions for corporations and agencies to take to promote diversity in the profession are (1) providing diversity and management training for staff and managers, (2) improving the treatment of their current diverse professionals, and (3) recruiting at universities with high enrollments of minorities and at conferences or job fairs that target minority professionals.

Recommended PR Associations Actions

Respondents also said that the three most important actions for public relations associations are (1) creating a campaign geared toward recruiting multicultural practitioners getting the message out earlier to youth, (2) offering professional development opportunities about diversity, and (3) assisting employers with recruiting competitive diverse candidates.

For More Information Contact:

Dr. Rochelle L. Ford, APR, rocford@howard.edu

Lynn Appelbaum, APR, lynn_appelbaum@hotmail.com