Even if history has completely forgotten him, it was Ivy Ledbetter Lee (more commonly known as Ivy Lee) whoinvented public relations during an unfortunate fatal train accident that led to the birth of the first press release.
A reminder of the definition of press relations
Press relations define the concept of communication between a media relations specialist and one or more types of media (print and web media, television, radio) and influencers, enabling a relationship of trust to be developed between a company, a brand, or even an individual and the media, the main vehicles for conveying their information to different audiences.
Press relations fall under the umbrella of public relations, which also includes event communication, sponsorship or patronage, lobbying, participation in congresses or trade fairs and exhibitions... The list goes on!
The term public relations appeared for the first time in 1897 in the Yearbook of Railway Literature... A close tie, at least at the outset, seems to link the world of the railways to that of public and press relations...
Who was Ivy Lee?
All the specialists agree that Ivy Ledbetter Lee, the son of a conservative Methodist minister, was the precursor of public (and press...) relations in the United States and, above all, the first author of a press release.
Born in 1877 in the state of Georgia (he died in 1934 in New York, aged 57), Ivy Lee was working in 1906 as a consultant for a railway company, the Pennsylvania Road. On 28 October 1906 (exactly 118 years ago today), a dreadful derailment claimed the lives of 57 passengers as the train headed towards Atlantic City.
Naturally, murderous rumours immediately spread about the Pennsylvania Road. As a consultant to the rail company, Ivy Lee urged them not to bury their heads in the sand and let the rumours grow by the hour, but to tell the whole truth about the accident.
The company followed his advice and Ivy Lee wrote the first press release in history, which was picked up word for word by the New York Times the very next day. In this press release, the rail company acknowledged its full responsibility. The icing on the cake of this new communication: journalists were invited to the accident site. Through her actions, Ivy Lee not only wrote the first press release, but also organised the first press trip and the first real, structured press conference.
The result: the entire American press praised the honesty and responsiveness of the railway company, which thus regained the confidence of the public and its passengers. This type of concise, explanatory communication soon conquered all the American media.
Tell the truth, because sooner or later the public will find out the truth anyway. And if the public doesn't like what you're doing, change your policies and adapt them to their needs. Ivy Lee
Together with Sir Edwards Bernays (1891 in Vienna - 1995 in Cambridge, USA), an Austrian expatriate in the United States and double relative of Sigmund Freud (his mother: the psychoanalyst's sister and his father, the psychoanalyst's brother-in-law), he founded the first public relations firm (or communications agency) in New York in 1906. Even if history has completely forgotten them, the two men are considered to be the precursors of public relations and, more precisely, of what would later be known as spin-doctors or political marketing and communications consultants.
Ivy Lee did not stop at his Pennsylvania Road success . At the beginning of the 20th century, he helped business leaders to defend themselves against the harsh criticism levelled at them by certain journalists who did not hesitate to criticise the methods of these major industrialists. The latter first used advertising, then called on these new press agents, whose effectiveness had now been proven, to put across their responses to their detractors in a different way. It should be noted that the first press relations firms (different from those we know today) were set up at this time.
In 1912, Ivy Lee gave her first course in public relations at New York University.
Ivy Lee soon became close to John D. Rockfeller. In 1914, the industrialist had used strikebreakers (Ludlow Massacre) to silence, often violently, many social movements. By acting in this way, John D. Rockfeller incurred the wrath of the American press and, in order to regain the public's favour, Ivy Lee set about drastically changing the industrialist's image by transforming him into a benefactor:
- Creating foundations and charities
- Providing financial support to universities
- Promoting technical research
- Clearly explaining its costs (salaries, taxes, etc.)
- Listening to the public and its expectations
As a result, John D. Rockfeller went from being a despicable oil tycoon to the country's benefactor, helping thousands of families.
In 1916, he set up his own communications agency , and his clients included some of the biggest names in the rail, oil, tobacco and food industries, with whom he worked on all aspects of public relations, including lobbying.
Before his untimely death in 1934, he advised the German firm IG Farben and, shortly before his death, met Joseph Goebbels, the head of Nazi propaganda, and Adolf Hitler, meetings for which he was severely criticised by the US Senate.
Even if Ivy Lee's name is forgotten, her recommendations in terms of press relations are still practised by professionals:
- Transparency, by responding sincerely to the concerns/curiosity of public opinion.
- Truth, by providing the media with accurate and verifiable information.
- Speaking out as quickly as possible during a crisis so as not to allow misunderstanding to fester.
Here is the text of Ivy Lee 's statement to the press in 1914, considered to be the first responsible statement. A text that hasn't lost any of its vigour 110 years after it was written, and in which he was already talking about false information...
"This is not an underground news agency. Our work will be completely transparent. Our aim is to provide information.
This is not an advertising agency; if you think none of our productions belong on your desk, don't use them. Our facts are accurate. Details of any story will be provided promptly, and we will happily help any editor to check any statement of fact directly. On request, any journalist will be given full details of those on whose behalf we are reporting.
In short, our project is, sincerely and openly, on behalf of private interests and public institutions, to provide the press and public of the United States with prompt and accurate information about matters of public value and interest.
Companies and public institutions divulge a great deal of information, among which the real information is no longer visible. Nevertheless, it is just as important for the public to have this information as it is for the institutions themselves to give it legitimacy.
I only pass on material that I am prepared to help any journalist to verify for themselves. I am always at your service to help you obtain more complete information on any subject covered in an article.
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