Winter 2015 Vol. 47, Issue II www.prssa.org/FORUM
The Ins and Outs of Political Public Relations
BY COLLIN CALLAHAN BIOLA UNIVERSITY
This summer I had the opportunity to work at a small public
relations firm on a congressional
campaign. The experience gave
me a unique look into political
communications. I sat down with
Lou Desmond, president of Desmond & Louis Public Relations, to
find out what goes into a political
campaign. In some ways, I found
it to be reminiscent of the public
relations that I’ve known.
“It’s similar because everyone
wants to win,” Desmond said. “I
don’t care whether you’re trying
to fill seats at a national restaurant
chain, selling a product or getting
votes in an election.
“Everyone wants to win. For
candidates, winning and losing is
a life and death struggle. There’s
only one campaign. You win or
you lose.”
CHALLENGES ARISE
But in other ways, political
communications is very different.
A candidate’s past becomes leverage for a rival campaign, and the
smallest improprieties become
stumbling blocks that can cost a
candidate their seat. In fact, many
political consultants will hire private investigators to look into the
background of their own candidate
so they can determine where their
vulnerabilities are.
“One of the big differences
is that libel laws do not apply to
a great extent in political campaigns,” Desmond said. “You’re
often dealing with accusations and
portrayals that are off the rails.
The temptation to respond in kind
is so strong; there are no rules.
But the public senses when you
go over the line. The more negative you go, the more you drive up
your own candidate’s negatives.”
My experience on the campaign was also interesting because
I was responsible for much of the
legwork. I spoke with the candidate a half dozen times per day,
and I was available for him nights
and weekends to respond to situations that came up.
“Most clients don’t call you
5–6 times per day,” Desmond said.
“They don’t call at 3 a.m. They are
somewhat arms’ length distance
from the PR program, but candidates need constant attention.”
CONNECTING THE DOTS
The best takeaway for me,
though, was seeing how a campaign comes together.
“You start with research,” Desmond explained. “Any good campaign starts with research into issues that move voters. You use that
as your base line in X