the power of interacting forces that go to make up public opinion

the influence of any force which attempts to modify public opinion depends upon the success with which it is able to enlist established points of view. a middle ground exists between the hypothesis that the public is stubborn and the hypothesis that it is malleable. to a large degree the press, the schools, the churches, motion pictures, advertising, the lecture platform and radio all conform to the demands of the public. but to an equally large degree the public responds to the influence of these very same mediums of communication.

some analysts believe that the public has no opinions except those which various institutions provide ready made for it. from mr. mencken and others it would almost seem to follow that newspapers and other mediums have no standards except those which the public provides, and that therefore they are substantially without influence upon the public mind. the truth of the matter,

88

as i have pointed out, lies somewhere between these two extreme positions.

in other words, the public relations counsel who thinks clearly on the problem of public opinion and public relations will credit the two factors of public opinion respectively with their influence and effectiveness in mutual interaction.

ray stannard baker says12 that “while there was a gesture of unconcern, of don’t care what they say, on the part of the leaders (of the versailles conference), no aspect of the conference in reality worried them more than the news, opinions, guesses that went out by scores of thousands of words every night, and the reactions which came back so promptly from them. the problem of publicity consumed an astonishing amount of time, anxiety and discussion among the leaders of the conference. it influenced the entire procedure, it was partly instrumental in driving the four heads of states finally into small secret conferences. the full achievement of publicity on one occasion—wilson’s italian note—nearly broke up the conference and overturned a government. the bare threat of it, upon other occasions, changed the course of the discussion. nothing concerned the conference more than what democracy was going to do with diplomacy.”

89

for like causes we find great industries—motion pictures being one and organized baseball another—appointing as directors of their activities men prominent in public life, doing this to assure the public of the honest and social-minded conduct of their members. the franklin roosevelts are in this class, the will hayses and the landises.

a striking example of this interaction is illustrated in what occurred at the hague conference a few years ago. the effect of the hague conference’s conduct upon the public was such that officials were forced to open the conference doors to the representatives of newspapers. on june 16th, 1922, a note came from the hague by the associated press that foreign minister van karnebeek of holland capitulated to the world’s desire to be informed of what was going on by admitting correspondents. early announcement that “the press cannot be admitted” was, according to the report, followed by anxious emissaries begging the journalists to have patience. editorials printed in holland pointed out that the best way to insure public coöperation was to take the public into its confidence. minister van karnebeek, who had been at washington, was thoroughly awake to the invaluable service the press of the world rendered there. one editorial here pointed out that public statements

90

“were used by the diplomats themselves as a happy means of testing popular opinion upon the various projects offered in council. how many ‘trial balloons’ were sent up in this fashion, nobody can recall. nevertheless each delegation maintained clipping bureaus, which were brought up to date every morning and which gave the delegates accurate information as to the state of mind at home. thus it came about that world opinion was ready and anxious to receive the finished work of the conference and that it was prompt to bring individual recalcitrant groups into line.”

let me quote from the new york evening post of july, 1922, as to the important interaction of these forces: “the importance of the press in guiding public opinion and the coöperation between the members of the press and the men who express public opinion in action, which has grown up since the peace conference at paris, were stressed by lionel curtis, who arrived on the adriatic yesterday to attend the institute of politics, which opens on july 27 at williamstown. ‘perhaps for the first time in history,’ he said, ‘the men whose business it is to make public opinion were collected for some months under the same roof with the officials whose task in life is the actual conduct of foreign affairs. in the long run, foreign policy is determined by public

91

opinion. it was impossible in paris not to be impressed by the immense advantage of bringing into close contact the writers who, through the press, are making public opinion and the men who have to express their opinion in actual policy.’”

harvard university, likewise, appreciating the power of public opinion over its own activities, has recently appointed a counsel on public relations to make its aims clear to the public.

the institutions which make public opinion conform to the demands of the public. the public responds to an equally large degree to these institutions. such fights as that made by collier’s weekly for pure food control show this.

the safety first movement, by its use of every form of appeal, from poster to circular, from lecture to law enforcement, from motion pictures to “safety weeks,” is bringing about a gradual change in the attitude of a safety-deserving public towards the taking of unnecessary risks.

the rockefeller foundation, confronted with the serious problem of the hookworm in the south and in other localities, has brought about a change in the habits of large sections of rural populations by analysis, investigation, applied medical principles, and public education.

the moulder of public opinion must enlist the

92

established point of view. this is true of the press as well as of other forces. mr. mencken mixes cynicism and truth when he declares that the chief difficulty confronting a newspaper which tries to carry out independent and thoughtful policies “does not lie in the direction of the board of directors, but in the direction of the public which buys the paper.”13

the new york tribune, as an example of editorial bravery, points out in an advertisement published may 23, 1922, that though “news knows no order in the making” and though “a newspaper must carry the news, both pleasant and unpleasant,” nevertheless, it is the duty of any newspaper to realize that there is a possibility of selective action, and that “in times of stress and bleak despair a newspaper has a hard and fast duty to perform in keeping up the morale of the community.”

indeed, the instances are frequent and accessible to the recollection of any reader in which newspapers have consciously maintained a point of view toward which the public is either hostile or cold.

occasionally, of course, even the established point of view is alterable. the two baltimore suns do brave their public and have been braving

93

their public for some time, not entirely without success. as severe a critic as oswald garrison villard points out that though modern baltimore is a difficult city to serve, yet the two suns have courageously and consistently stood for the policies of their editors and have refused to yield to pressure from any source. to the public relations counsel this is a striking illustration of the give and take between the public and the institutions which attempt to mould public opinion. the two interact upon each other, so that it is sometimes difficult to tell which is one and which is the other.

the world and the evening world of new york, pride themselves upon the following campaigns which are listed in the world almanac of 1922. they illustrate this interaction.

* * * * *

“conference on limitation of armament grew from ‘world’s’ plea

“bearing in mind in 1921 the injunction of its founder, joseph pulitzer, to fight always for progress and reform, and having led the campaign for disarmament in advance of any other demand therefor, the world covered the washington conference on limitation of armament in a comprehensive way....

94

* * * * *

“measures advocated by ‘world’ made law

“during the 1921 session of the new york legislature many measures advocated by the world were enacted. one of this paper’s chief achievements was the passage of a resolution broadening the power of the lockwood housing committee, enabling it to inquire into high finance as related to the building trades situation.

“the world was instrumental in obtaining the anti-theater ticket speculator law. it also brought about a change in bills to abolish the daylight-saving law so that municipalities might enact their own daylight-saving ordinances. it was successful in its campaign against the search-and-seizure and other drastic features of the state prohibition enforcement law.

* * * * *

“the ‘world’ told facts about ku klux klan

“the world on september 6 commenced the publication of a series of articles telling the truth about the ku klux klan. twenty-six newspapers, in widely separated sections of the united states, joined the world in the publication; some had been invited to participate, others requested the world to let them use the articles. all these newspapers realized that the only motive back of the world’s publication was public service.

95

it was their desire to share in this service, and the world is proud that they asked only assurance of its traditional accuracy and fairness before they saw their way clear to coöperation.

“the world is proud that the completed record shows no evidence either that it was terrified by threats or was goaded by abuse into departures from its object of presenting the facts honestly and without exaggeration.

* * * * *

“changes in motor vehicle laws

“as a result of a crusade to lessen automobile fatalities in new york city and state, the world won a victory when changes in the motor vehicle laws were made. the paper printed exclusive stories giving the motor and license numbers of cars stolen daily in this city, and started a campaign against outlaw taxicabs and financially irresponsible drivers and owners.

* * * * *

“‘evening world’s’ achievements

“the evening world continued its campaign against the coal monopoly and the high coal prices charged in new york city—a state of affairs that has been constantly and vigorously exposed in evening world columns. after consultation with leading senators at washington, several

96

bills were introduced in congress to alleviate the conditions.”

i am letting the world speak for itself merely as an example of what many splendid newspapers have accomplished as leaders in public movements. the new york evening post is another example, it having long led popular demand for vocational guidance and control.

the public relations counsel cannot base his work merely upon the acceptance of the principle that the public and its authorities interact. he must go deeper than that and discover why it is that a public opinion exists independently of church, school, press, lecture platform and motion picture screen—how far this public opinion affects these institutions and how far these institutions affect public opinion. he must discover what the stimuli are to which public opinion responds most readily.

study of the mirrors of the public mind—the press, the motion pictures, the lecture platform and the others—reveal to him what their standards are and those of the groups they reach. this is not enough, however. to his understanding of what he actually can measure he must add a thorough knowledge of the principles which govern individual and group action. a fundamental study of group and individual psychology is required before the public relations counsel can

97

determine how readily individuals or groups will accept modifications of viewpoints or policies, which they have already imposed upon their respective mediums.

no idea or opinion is an isolated factor. it is surrounded and influenced by precedent, authority, habit and all the other human motivations.

for a lucid conception of the functions, power and social utility of the public relations counsel it is vitally important to have a clear grasp of the fundamentals with which he must work.