Today, the term public relations often has a pejorative meaning. It is often perceived negatively, due to the unethical behaviour of PR professionals, but this is not the only reason why society can look at public relations activities with an unfavourable eye.

Any activity whose main function is to persuade people to act creates a situation in which manipulative actions, which are immoral from an ethical point of view, can function. Even the gifts given here and there may turn out to be an impure and unethical procedure in a given situation. Manipulation is understood here as a situation where something becomes a tool for someone who hides his or her communication goal from the recipient, because it is not in the recipient's interest. Attention should also be drawn to the thin line between persuasion and manipulation. The main difference between these two concepts is that the recipient is open (in case of persuasion) or conceals his communication goal from the recipient (in case of manipulation). In manipulation, the recipient is not a partner for the sender, but a tool for achieving previously set goals. The distinction seems simple, but in reality it can cause many problems, as it is sometimes extremely difficult to determine which of the intentions are open and which are hidden. The wave of criticism of public relations does not really concern the very way PR professionals communicate with the public, but the frequent attempts to sell the image of a person or company at any price.

The sentence of Nicolo Machiavelli, saying that "the goal sanctifies the means" could very well characterise the sphere of ethically unclean activities from which public relations is not shying away. A very important component of negative promotional activities is the presence of a manipulative element in them. It is this element in particular that determines the nature of these activities, because sometimes the difference between black and white PR can only be found on the line of stated or concealed broadcasting intentions. Telling untruth and concealing intentions violate the main principles of conversation. Turning to the principle of cooperation, Gricea ignores even the maxim of quality, which states that a broadcaster should tell the truth. Concealed intentions lead to disinformation, which is the main weapon of manipulation. Does a person whose primary task should be to look after the image of another person or company take equal care of their reputation among people? Every PR officer should take his or her reputation very seriously. So when choosing which side we stand on - black PR or ethical action - we should consider whether it is worth risking our image, which may not be possible to bleach again later.

Zapraszam do mojego sklepu: https://sites.google.com/view/ksikiomanipulacji-sztukamanipu