What is the difference between news, public relations, and advertising?

News, public relations, and advertising are all ways of influencing public opinion. The primary difference between these three forms of communication is the purpose of the message and the relationship between the sender and the receiver. News focuses on providing information to the public. Journalists research, verify, and report on current events in an unbiased and impartial way. The goal of news is to provide unbiased information to the public. Public Relations (PR) is focused on cultivating goodwill between a business, organization, or public figure and the public. PR professionals create stories on behalf of clients, as well as engage with the media and respond to inquiries in order to shape public opinion. Advertising is focused on marketing a product, person, or service. It does this by creating messages that highlight the positive aspects or benefits of the thing being sold. The goal of advertising is to influence the audience to purchase the product or service being marketed. In South Carolina, media law regulates each of these forms of communication to ensure that the public is being served in an ethical and responsible manner. This includes laws that ensure political campaigns and advertisements are honest and factual, as well as laws that protect journalists from libel or slander.

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What is the difference between news, public relations, and advertising?

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