Politics. It has always been a word that has filled me with much distaste, and with the inevitable fear of boredom. I see men and women in suits, in a struggle for power and prestige. I did not believe it to be a hugely relevant aspect of PR. Is government relations in PR really that important?
I know that there have been chapters in our PR books dedicated to this topic, maybe I thought it was just a topic that needs a mention. I have completed my work experience at Oxfam, and one of the most important things I have learnt is, that I need to learn more about politics.
The campaign I was working on at Oxfam was aptly named Lobby the Polly. Our aim was to raise awareness about the needs of a safe and fair deal at Copenhagen in regards to Climate Change. We were asking members of the community in Perth, to make the effort to speak to their local members of parliament on the the topic.
While planning this campaign we met with various members in the Perth advocacy scene. This included the leader of World Vision and Amnesty International, and former senators with a vested interest in Climate Change. What I learnt from these leaders was that it is not simply about taking the direct route to talking to your local politicians. You need to do your research.
I learnt that:
- You must influence the people with large influence over this MP. These may be people such as members of the cabinet, or influential members of their electorate.
-Have a secondary ask, in case your first ask falls on deaf ears. It is unlikely that the person you are speaking too will readily agree to what you are asking.Therefore ask them to try and do a smaller step to helping you, instead of make a speech, just raise the issue. Compromise.
- Follow the politicians career. This may be looking in papers, or reading back over their first speeches to parliament. What are the politicians areas of interest? Is here something that may conflict with what you are asking? What angle can you use to approach a politician with an ask?
In conclusion, form a relationship with as many politicians as you can. You will never know when you may require their help. Never underestimate the power of politics in a cause.
4 comments:
I completely agree with the need to understand and follow politics.
I have nearly completed my placement at a health insurance fund and had no idea how much government legislation affects this industry.
At present the Labour government is in the midst of a health reform which could negatively impact every private health insurance organisation in Australia.
The scariest thing is that my placement organisation has no idea what's coming, they are literally in the dark. They are aware that a health reform is in the midst but are unsure what this will mean.
Like Oxfam, my organisation has no politcal contact but it too could benefit from a like minded liason in the politcal world such as the health department.
Unfortunatly there has been no attempt to form relationships and I will admit that it's hard to form those relationships without appearing to outwardly support one particular political party.
So they are currently in no mans land.
Any suggestions?
-liz
I too think that government has a big hand in making things move for our organisation.It is better to have as many political contact as possible and to be in the good favor of the political party in favor.However,too much involvement in politics too is not good as then our organisation can become the scapegoat for political issues.Politics is a strong weapon that must be used with precaution.It is like a two-sided knife.In my internship too i had some connections with politics but it was mainly with the ministry of tourism as our hotel is opening a new hotel and a bit of lobbying is needed so as to get the necessary permissions and adequate publicity and maybe the presence of an eminent political figure on the opening will be a good publicity.Maybe it will be good for future graduates if more emphasis is put on government relations in the university modules.Government is an important stakeholder in the workplace irrespective of whether you are in the public or private sector.What do you think?
Public relations in politics takes on a very broad meaning. There are so many divisions in a government office and a political party office that involve PR techniques. These can include media relations, issues management, stakeholder relations, and constituent relations. In addition, government media activity is implemented through the dissemination of political information and then through public information.
Since you are working with the issue of climate change, the Greens Party has formed a Federal climate change committee that has a significant influence on the Labor Government. I did my placement with the Greens Party and this was a huge issue of theirs to gain support of the WA public, as WA is a very liberal state.
Jacqueline
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