PUBLIC RELATIONS IS NOT JUST PUBLICITY,

NOTED MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT TELLS

“PR PATHFINDER” LECTURE ATTENDEES

FOR RELEASE: TUESDAY. OCT. 3, 2000.

NEW ROCHELLE NY, Oct. 3. - “Public Relations is not just publicity,” a well-known management consultant told attendees of Iona College’s new “PR Pathfinder” Lecture Series on Wednesday evening, September 27^th at Iona College.

Chester Burger, an award-winning management consultant to the public relations field and the news media, keynoted the new “PR Pathfinder” Lecture Series, which is being organized by Iona’s Chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA).

He emphasized the following points for aspiring communicators and reporters: 1) Be selective – don’t send irrelevant material to the media; 2) Know what editors are looking for and give them what they want; 3) Establish credibility, which includes giving both positive and negative facts to the media and the public; 4) Build ties with academia and the community at large, and 5) Always Remember – The Public Comes First. He also stressed that executives being interviewed by the media can and should stress the positive aspects of their organizations’ messages when conversing with reporters and editors.

Mr. Burger was a founder of CBS television news and the first television news reporter in the USA. He has received awards from the United Negro College Fund, the United States Information Agency, and the United States Marine Corps, and currently serves as an Advisor to the Secretary of the Air Force Office of Public Affairs.

He is a recipient of the “Gold Anvil” Award, the highest award of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA). PRSA’s Counselors Academy designated him “The Counselors’ Counselor” and named him its first Life Member.

He is the author of six books on management subjects, including The Chief Executive. His lifetime work in photography was acquired for the permanent collections of the New York Historical Society and the New York Public Library. His lifetime papers are in the Center for American History at the University of Texas at Austin.

PRSSA is the student arm of the Public Relations Society of America. With over 6,500 students in 225 chapters nationwide, PRSSA offers students opportunities to learn about the public relations profession by engaging in on-campus and local public relations projects.

The “PR Pathfinder” Lecture Series is open to the public. Additional PR Pathfinder Lectures are confirmed for November 15^th, December 13^th and January 24^th at Iona College’s Murphy Center, Room 319.

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