Critical Reflections

Edward Bernays and the Foundation of Public Relations

Season 3 of Drilled, The Mad Men of Big Oil, highlights Edward Bernays as one of the most influential architects of modern-day Public Relations. He was able to shift the field to use more psychology-based strategies, earning him the nickname of the “father of public relations”. Bernays drew from his uncle, Sigmund Freud’s, theories on psychology and argued that public opinion could be shifted by unconscious motivations, which he called “engineering consent” (Bernays, 1947). As discussed in class lectures when discussing early PR models, this signified a move towards research-based strategic communication used to influence mass audiences.

Bernays’ influence remains prominent in today’s corporate PR and advertising practices. The Drilled podcast shows how oil companies use the advice of experts to implement strategic framing and emotionally resonant messaging to influence public perception of climate science. These tactics strongly reflect the foundation principles discussed in Effective Public Relations, which highlight audience research and analysis as key to success in the professional practice (Cutlip et al., 2006). Bernays helped to institutionalize these strategies by positioning public relations as essential management for shaping corporate reputation.

However, Bernays’ legacy remains ethically challenged. Critics argue that his techniques crossed the line between strategies of persuasion and manipulation. Larry Tye explains Bernays’ belief that the stability of society depended on the power of elites in guiding public opinion (1998). This philosophy raises ethical concerns about power dynamics and supremacy beliefs. The New York Times similarly highlighted that Bernays’ methods laid the groundwork for not just corporate branding, but also techniques for propaganda used in political campaigns (Martin, 1995). These critiques mirror those raised in Drilled, where PR strategies were used to change the public’s perspective and downplay environmental harm.

Today’s PR professionals still rely on audience research and strategic messaging, which stemmed from Bernays’ findings. Although now, there are more ethical frameworks put into place, such as the PRSA code of ethics, which we discussed in class. While Bernays increased the power of the field, PR professionals must keep that power in check by exercising ethical PR practices.

References

Bernays, E. L. (1947). The engineering of consent. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 250(1), 113–120. https://doi.org/10.1177/000271624725000116

Cutlip, S. M., Center, A. H., & Broom, G. M. (2006). Effective public relations (9th ed.). Pearson.

Martin, D. (1995, March 10). Edward Bernays, father of public relations and leader in opinion making, dies at 103. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/1995/03/10/obituaries/edward-bernays-father-of-public-relations-and-leader-in-opinion-making-dies-at-103.html

Tye, L. (1998). The father of spin: Edward L. Bernays and the birth of public relations. Crown Publishers.