Does PR have a diversity and inclusion problem?

We examine data and anecdotal evidence from the last few years to determine whether Public Relations in the UK still has a diversity and inclusion problem.

Transcript

Does PR have a diversity and inclusion problem?

It’s National Inclusion Week this week (25 - 29 September). Let’s celebrate this!

Inclusion, together with diversity and equity, is important to me. I come from a poor, working-class background. I didn’t go to university as my father insisted that I work. I became a deputy British ambassador at age 34, without being too work-serious, and I enjoyed the cultural experience that diplomacy brought! I later worked to try to create equity for one particular ethnic group - Roma, Gypsies and Travellers, and finally focused on a PR and communications career. 

Since 2005, when I moved into PR and comms, I have been aware of reports that public relations has a poor record on diversity and inclusion and a social mobility problem.

A CIPR PR Population report published earlier this year used ONS census data from 2021 to highlight that 87% of practitioners identified as of White ethnicity. As a benchmark, the 2021 census showed 81% of the UK population as White ethnicity.

The CIPR’s recent State of the Profession 2024 survey shows a figure more like the UK population, with 80% of practitioners identifying as White ethnicity and 20% as other ethnicities. 

In my PR/comms world, I feel that positive change. Over the last five years, I have tutored nearly 150 public relations apprentices for Cambridge Marketing College. I get to know them a bit as we have regular contact (online face-to-face once a month and weekly email contact). Many have a different ethnic background than White. Most are socially mobile. They are people like me, except 40 years younger! 

So why is my snapshot different from the Census/PR Population report? Is it because the communicators I teach are mostly young (18 - 30), and the diversity and inclusion picture will positively change over time, as we may be seeing from the State of the Profession data? Few of my PR communicators will join the CIPR or PRCA, which they view as not for people like them. I don’t see much effort to recruit young communicators to the professional bodies. 

I suggest that a more positive picture of diversity and inclusion is emerging in PR practice in the UK, especially among young communicators.

The PRCA published an article with practitioner reflections to celebrate National Inclusion Week. Some testimonies that shone through for me:

• “Inclusion is about closing gaps and bridging divides to lift people up or bring them into the fold without requiring they conform to the norms of a dominant majority”
• “Inclusion is about allowing people from all walks of life to be their authentic selves without judgement”
• “I hope that as an industry, we can continue to see the importance of celebrating diversity and inclusion, leading by example to help show brands, governments and society at large how important it is to have belonging and to feel heard no matter who you are”.

I celebrate all of that.