Remembering naughty Freud and spin doctor Bernays

Last week was the birth anniversary of Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), the father of psychoanalysis. And Google rightly devoted a doodle to him.

Freud had a lot of controversial accomplishments, some of which are highly debated even today. But what people sometimes fail to acknowledge, is the indirect impact Freud has had on almost everything we as a people witness in today's times.

Now now! Doesn't that make him an extremely interesting man to study! And you may ask how he has influenced us so much. So let me take you back in history a bit and explain the phenomenon in the crispiest way possible.

Sigmund Freud's nephew Edward Bernays combined the ideas of 'crowd psychology' along with the psychoanalytical ideas of his uncle, to invent 'propaganda'. In contemporary times, we know 'propaganda' as 'Public Relations' (PR).

 Sigmund Freud (left) and Edward Bernays

As a publicist, I often say, we are living in a world where perception is reality. Think about it. Don't we all blindly believe in what we read and are told. Who has the time to research and investigate facts!

Earlier journalists used to do that as the torch-bearers of society. But in times of paid media, combined with research via the phone and Google (and less of field work), contemporary journalists are fast losing those traits. So let me take the liberty to repeat my favourite line: We are living in a world where perception is reality. A world driven by PR.

And who started the fire? Naughty Freud and spin doctor Bernays. ;-) #FoodForThought

About the Author:

Dale Bhagwagar is a PR specialist with branding, image consultancy, strategizing, media manipulation, crisis management and mentorship for media students. He has handled the publicity for more than 150 Bollywood actors and 30 movies, apart from being a spokesperson and publicist to 20 Bigg Boss contestants.

Raaj Kumar was something else only! ;-)

Jab main naya naya Mumbai mein aaya tha... being a journalist then, ek baar ek party mein I approached Raaj Kumar for a quote on something... he had one piercing look at me and said, "Jaani, tum abhi bachche ho. Jaao."

When I tried to rephrase my question, he again said, "Kaha na, tum bachche ho, side mein ho jaao." I felt intimidated and decided to move on. I could even make Amitabh Bachchan relent to persuasion, but not Raaj Kumar. ;-)

Kam se kam, I could pester and convince Big B into THIS.

Later in my career as a PR, I got to meet Mr Kumar's son Puru Raaj Kumar a couple of times. Must say, both father and son have been unique in their own ways. Charming and impressionable.

Celebrity PR clients need even better hand-holding and guiding

The PR spectrum is continually changing and expanding, but some entertainment publicists are not changing with the times. They seem to be ignoring the dictum: Evolve or perish.

Traditional PR tactics are phasing out, and making way for professional handling of crisis management on web and mobile space, even if it requires guerilla tactics.

Bollywood celebrity clients need even better hand-holding and guiding in this changing world of public relations.

Contemporary PRs need to understand this, adapt and adjust... and real quickly. It's a new mindset taking over the industry; demanding a paradigm shift from publicity professionals.

It’s never too late to be great

I remember each and every word of the opening sequence in the movie ‘Troy’ (it inspired me a lot). It goes – “Men are haunted by the vastness of eternity and so we ask ourselves, will our actions echo across the centuries? Will strangers hear our names long after we're gone and wonder who we were? How bravely we fought, how fiercely we loved…” So true! Just like the great Napoléon Bonaparte once stated, “Immortality is the recollection one leaves.” Last but not the least, a quote by Daniel J. Boorstin – “Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some hire public relations officers.”

Turn down the downturn

I’m often asked if good PR can really help in times of downturn. My answer is… when trading is difficult, advertising and marketing budgets are the first to be slashed. PR is the cheaper option to advertising. Moreover, getting attention is getting money. As they say, ‘Jo dikhta hai, woh bikta hai’. The clever ones could enhance visibility to tide over the recession.

Secure return on investment

So what kind of PR could actors and makers do that would add to their image and brand? The number one objective for your publicist is to plan and position you as a stronger brand than before. Whether you are big or on the verge of making it to the top – whether you are looking at a personal PR exercise or film branding – the right kind of planned media coverage is going to help. This, in turn, will be helpful in securing return on investment, which is invaluable.

PR is cost-effective

Many argue that advertising achieves similar results to a PR exercise. Yes, somewhat. But don’t forget that consumers have always relied and believed more in the written word, like articles and snippets, than on advertising. Also, advertising campaigns cost a lot more than PR campaigns.

Smart PR is the cost-effective way to get your message across to the relevant audience. And everyone needs to manage their reputation in front of their target audience. Realising all this, a lot of advertising and marketing agencies have now launched PR divisions. Yes, PR, advertising and marketing combined, do make a better impact, but for obvious monetary reasons, PR is taking the lead now.

And Bollywood is already taking the PR route to get their message across. We know of so many prominent actors who are strategizing to ‘consolidate’ their position in the industry, while their competitors are thinking of ‘survival’ during recession.

Consolidate your brand

The question is, does it make sense to wait for things to get better, or the market to improve? If you ask me, I’d say, it never makes sense to wait for anything. It’s better to get going, pump up your PR and actively market yourself. For those who do, the field will be relatively open at such a crucial time. I would say, this is ‘the’ time for some neat brand consolidation. So don’t wait for recession to end. Start stamping your brand.

‘Amitabh Bachchan ran away with Rekha!…’

Media has always been about great and shocking headlines. ‘Amitabh Bachchan ran away with Rekha!’ will always make a better headline than ‘Laloo Prasad ran away with a train!’

Let me tell you a PR secret of mine. When chalking out news angles, story ideas and planning gossip pegs for my clients, I always think in headlines. Then, the text just follows and fits into place. It’s simple logic. If the headline catches your reader’s attention (like this one caught yours), more than half your battle is won. The rest of it depends on how gripping the content and adjoining picture is.

Photographs speak for themselves. A good picture will get better placements, while an ordinary one could get the best of story ideas dropped. If your publicist gets this combo right, national mileage can be cakewalk for you or your movie. A good PR will always brainstorm and then guide you with smart headlines.

PRs are often labelled ‘spin doctors’ because of their ability to turn, twist, tweak and spin write-ups in a way which suits and benefits their clients. I do this all the time. Though, since I have a journalistic background (I was a scribe for eight years before I turned PR 12 years ago), my conscience makes sure I draw a line of correctness and ethics even while I deal with gossip, spice and sensationalism; elements that today’s market-driven media seeks in abundance.

I have handled PR for Priyanka Chopra in her initial days, when she was surrounded by controversies. Later, I took care of Shilpa Shetty’s publicity and endeavoured to brand her as ‘the diva in news 24/7’ during the most spectacular five years of her career. This was through the thick and thin of the Celebrity Big Brother controversy, followed by the Richard Gere pecks controversy and many many many more. I used media help to build and propel newbie Sherlyn Chopra into the bold, shocking and outrageous brand that she is now known to be. Some time ago, I was hired by The Man magazine to put out all the gossip about the now-famous Neetu Chandra male-fantasy photo-shoot. The news-hammering probably got Neetu more national media mileage than the pre-release hype of her films. Please note that I am not bragging here, but trying to make a point that I achieved all this, simply by making some striking and hard-hitting headlines for the press releases and articles about my clients.

Some time ago a popular website termed me the “King of Spin”. Around the same time, the Live India television channel alleged that I create Controversy Queens out of my actress clients. To tell you the truth, I am no king – I’m just a PR who has mastered the art of playing with headlines. And if that makes me a Controversy Queen-maker, I don’t really mind the tag. Cause I am just doing my job.

If you have your publicist think in headlines too, you can be bang-on with our gossip-hungry media. You too can achieve national headlines and Breaking News for yourself and your products.

Making dreams come true!

This week, there was an unusual mail I received. A reader asked me a strange question – ‘Why PR? Why is there a need for a thing like this and why do we need to know about it?’ Today’s piece explains just that. Why do you need to read up on PR, imaging, branding or crisis management? That might just be the question popping in your minds too.

We are living in a world where perception is reality. For better or for worse, not many are bothered about what the reality is. Most people believe in all the news and gossip they read in the papers or see on television. They CHOOSE to believe all of the written word. Though reality might be different. But most readers, viewers, surfers and listeners (and you are well aware that this figure runs into lakhs and crores) are not interested in reality as much as they are in glamour and spice.

Who is it that forms these perceptions and helps make opinions. Obviously, the papers, the TV channels, the various websites, social media and the FM stations. And who is it that influences the journalists, TV hosts and anchors, RJ’s and web writers the best? It is the publicists. It’s the daily job of a publicist to reach out, convince the media to cover his clients in a certain way and influence the perceptions of the fourth estate. He does this, so that the write-ups and reports reflect his client’s sentiments, requirements and needs.

For a good publicist, communication is a daily commitment, not a monthly ritual. He dedicates his life and times to communication and his clients. He helps make dreams come true. That’s why, I often say, from what a PR gets, he might make a living. But from what a PR gives, he might make a life.