Press secretary

Last updated

A press secretary or press officer is a senior advisor who provides advice on how to deal with the news media and, using news management techniques, helps their employer to maintain a positive public image and avoid negative media coverage.

Contents

Duties and functions

They often, but not always, act as the organization's senior spokesperson. Many governments also have deputy press secretaries. A deputy press secretary is typically a mid-level political staffer who assists the press secretary and communications director with aspects of public outreach. They often write the press releases and media advisories for review by the press secretary and communications director. There are usually assistant press secretaries and press officers that support the press secretary. Press secretaries also give declarations to the media when a particular event happens or an issue arises inside an organization. They are expected, therefore, to have in-depth knowledge about the institution or organization they represent, and to be able to explain and answer questions about the organization's policies, views upon a particular issue and its official standpoint on problematic questions.

History

The role of the press officer originated in Europe in the 19th century, created by governments. [1]

In the United States, Stephen T. Early, who worked for President Franklin D. Roosevelt, is credited as being America's first modern presidential press secretary. [2]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States National Security Council</span> U.S. federal executive national security and intelligence forum

The United States National Security Council (NSC) is the national security council used by the president of the United States for consideration of national security, military, and foreign policy matters. Based in the White House, it is part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, and composed of senior national security advisors and Cabinet officials.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White House Press Secretary</span> Senior White House official

The White House press secretary is a senior White House official whose primary responsibility is to act as spokesperson for the executive branch of the United States federal government, especially with regard to the president, senior aides and executives, as well as government policies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spokesperson</span> Speaking representative of an organization

A spokesperson, spokesman or spokeswoman, is someone engaged or elected to speak on behalf of others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Center for Strategic and International Studies</span> American think tank in Washington, D.C.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) is an American think tank based in Washington, D.C. From its founding in 1962 until 1987, it was an affiliate of Georgetown University, initially named the Center for Strategic and International Studies of Georgetown University. The center conducts policy studies and strategic analyses of political, economic and security issues throughout the world, with a focus on issues concerning international relations, trade, technology, finance, energy and geostrategy.

In Canada, a deputy minister is the senior civil servant in a government organization, who acts as deputy head. Deputy ministers take political direction from a minister of the Crown, who is typically an elected member of Parliament and responsible for the department.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White House Communications Director</span> U.S. presidential staff member in charge of the White Houses media campaign

The White House communications director or White House director of communications, also known officially as Assistant to the President for Communications, is part of the senior staff of the president of the United States. The officeholder is responsible for developing and promoting the agenda of the president and leading its media campaign.

Director of communications is a position in both the private and public sectors. A director of communications is responsible for managing and directing an organization's internal and external communications. Directors of communications supervise public relations staff, create communication strategies, and may serve as the key spokesperson and media contact for the organization.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Office of the Prime Minister (Canada)</span> Central agency of the Canadian government

The Office of the Prime Minister comprises the political staff which support the prime minister of Canada. Located in the Office of the Prime Minister and Privy Council Building in Ottawa, Ontario. The PMO provides policy advice, information gathering, communications, planning, and strategizing. It should not be confused with the Privy Council Office (PCO) – a department of the Government of Canada and part of the Public Service, which is expressly non-partisan. The PMO is concerned with making policy, whereas the PCO is concerned with executing the policy decisions.

Undersecretary is a title for a person who works for and has a lower rank than a secretary. It is used in the executive branch of government, with different meanings in different political systems, and is also used in other organizational settings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Presidential Communications Group</span> Offices within the Office of the President of the Philippines

The Presidential Communications Office, or simply the PCO, is the lead communications arm of the Office of the President of the Philippines and is tasked with communicating the Administration's messages and the executive branch of government. The office is headed by the Presidential Communications Secretary. The PCO, together with the Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office, was previously under the Presidential Communications Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jay Carney</span> Former White House Press Secretary

Jay Carney is an American public relations officer, political advisor, and journalist who served as the United States' White House Press Secretary from 2011 to 2014, and Amazon's Senior Vice President of Global Corporate Affairs from 2015 to 2022. Since 2022, he has been Global Head of Policy and Communications at Airbnb.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philippe Reines</span> American political consultant (born 1969)

Philippe I. Reines is an American political consultant. He joined the Department of State as a senior advisor to Hillary Clinton when she became United States Secretary of State in January 2009, and was promoted to deputy assistant secretary of state for strategic communications in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs</span>

The Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, or ATSD (PA), is the principal staff advisor and assistant to the Secretary of Defense and Deputy Secretary of Defense for public information, internal information, community relations, information training, and audiovisual matters in support of Department of Defense activities, leading a worldwide public affairs community of some 3,800 military and civilian personnel. The Assistant to the Secretary follows the Secretary's Principles of Information in providing Defense Department information to the public, the United States Congress and the media.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jen Psaki</span> American political advisor (born 1978)

Jennifer Rene Psaki is an American television political analyst and former government official. A political advisor who served under both the Obama and Biden administrations, she served the Biden administration as the 34th White House press secretary until May 2022. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served in the Obama administration as the White House deputy press secretary (2009); the White House deputy communications director (2009–2011); the spokesperson for the United States Department of State (2013–2015); and the White House communications director (2015–2017). Psaki was a political contributor for CNN from 2017 to 2020. As of March 2023, she hosts the talk-show Inside with Jen Psaki on MSNBC.

Maria Teresa Cardona is an American political strategist and commentator who currently works at the Dewey Square Group and is the founder of Latinovations. Cardona is also a Democratic strategist and CNN/CNN en Español political commentator. Starting in 2020 Maria spearheads ¡MARIA! with Maria Cardona talk show. She dissects advocacy and public policy affecting Latinos in the U.S. through the El Rey Network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marie Harf</span> Political commentator for Fox News

Marie Elizabeth Harf is an American political commentator for the Fox News Channel and former deputy campaign manager for policy and communications for the Representative Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) presidential campaign. She served as the Senior Advisor for Strategic Communications to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, leading the Iran nuclear negotiations communications strategy. Prior to that, Harf was Acting Spokesperson and Deputy Spokesperson for the United States Department of State.

The Indian Information Service (IIS) is the central civil service under Group A and Group B of the Central Civil Services of the executive branch of the Government of India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karine Jean-Pierre</span> American political advisor and White House Press Secretary (born 1974)

Karine Jean-Pierre is an American political advisor who has been serving as the White House press secretary since May 13, 2022, and a senior advisor to President Joe Biden since October 7, 2024. She is the first black person and the first openly LGBTQ person to serve in the position of White House press secretary. Previously, she served as the deputy press secretary to her predecessor Jen Psaki from 2021 to 2022 and as the chief of staff for U.S. Vice Presidential candidate Kamala Harris during the 2020 presidential campaign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Goldstein (diplomat)</span> American diplomat & government official (born 1952)

Irwin Steven Goldstein is a former American diplomat, government official, and businessman who served as Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs at the United States Department of State during Secretary Rex Tillerson's tenure in the first Trump Administration. He was also Assistant to the Secretary and Director of Public Affairs at the United States Department of the Interior under Manuel Lujan Jr. during the Presidency of George H. W. Bush.

References

  1. Rüdiger, Francisco (2014). "The Public Relations and the debate about propaganda in the period between wars". Intercom: Revista Brasileira de Ciências da Comunicação. 37 (1). Saõ Paolo: 45–70.
  2. Mann, Robert (2009). "The Making of FDR: The Story of Stephen T. Early, America's First Modern Press Secretary, by Linda Lotridge Levin: Amherst, NY: Prometheus, 2008. 538 Pp". Political Communication. 26 (3): 358–360. doi:10.1080/10584600903037802.