Nicolae Anca Elena – CRP anul III

Communication
Communication is not outlined by words, grammar or syntax. Humans communicate before
and after they can use language by using sounds and gestures, for example, babies yell at different
frequencies depending on whether they are hungry or frustrated or people who point, smile and nod at
strangers.

All you need to communicate is someone else. ‘It takes two to speak’, said Thoreau, ‘one to
speak and another to hear. ‘

Communication seems so simple until we begin to examine it. Windahl and Signitzer (1992)
point out that there are two main traditions in defining communication: the one-way transmission
model and the two-way exchange concept. They quote Theodorsen and Theodorsen who define
communication as ‘the transmission of information, ideas, attitudes, or emotion from one person or
group to another primarily through symbols’. The Shannon-Weaver model of communication
illustrates this approach. In contrast, Rogers and Kincaid define communication as ‘a process in which
the participants create and share information with one another in order to reach a mutual
understanding’

According to Berger there are four levels of communication. The first level is intrapersonal
which is referring to personal thoughts, the second level is interpersonal and it is referring to
conversations, the third level is small group communication, for example a lecture and the fourth level
is mass communication.

Communication has its own core concepts. Burgoon suggest that intent is a key concept where
both source and receiver know that communication is occurring. Meaning is also crucial because
without a shared understating of the meaning of words and symbols, communication is at best limited
and at worst impossible. Another issue is noise, which is the interference between elements in a
communication, and can mean technical interference, semantic interference and psychological
interference. Feedback is also an important concept because it is what makes the difference between
one-way communication and two-way communication. Finally, there is the concept of mediation, the
means by which the communication is transmitted, whether in person, by language or gesture, or via
another medium, print or broadcast.

Semiotics is a vast field of study originating in the study of language using theories of signs
and symbols that have been adopted and adapted by other communication. All communication is
constructed of signs, made of words and gestures. While gestures for food or sleep might be universal,
Nicolae Anca Elena – CRP anul III

the words are not. Semiotics breaks signs into the thing itself, the sign for it and the meaning you
associate with that sign. It investigates the gaps between what is intended by the source, and what is
understood by the receiver. Meanings can be described as denotative - what the word means in the
dictionary sense, connotative – the images or associations created in the mind of the receiver,
ambiguous – where the same word means different things in a given language and polysemic – where
readers/viewers can derive different meanings from the same set of information built on the different
connotations people bring to a message, but reflects the wider social context pf a message, not just the
subjective response. Semiotics is good for public relations practitioners because it makes us think about
how people use the information to construct their own versions of our message. Public relations
practitioners need to be aware of the varying reactions people can have to the same word or image.
Failure to do so can lead to misunderstanding or even offence.

Another approach to communications is Blumler and Katz’ uses and gratifications approach.
This suggests that people are active seekers of information who choose to read or watch particularly
magazines or programmes because they expect that medium to supply them with a particular need.
McQuail identify these needs as falling into four main categories: diversion – escape from routine or
personal problems, personal relationships such as companionship, personal identify and surveillance
which means finding out about the world.

The meaning of the message is explained by semiotics and the motivations of the receiver
through the uses and gratifications approach. The German scholar Maletzke provides an overview of
the whole communication process, combining all these elements. He suggests that the medium is
surrounded by a series of pressures or constraints. From the communicator’s perspective there are
choices to be made, for example, how to shape the message and prepare it for the journalist. The
medium itself has constraints because the prepared material for broadcast is different from the material
prepared for press. The fact that the communication is public also brings restrains. These can all affect
the selection and structuring of content and might also cover awareness of such elements as the legal
aspects of the medium and relevant news values.

These theories and concepts suggest ways of looking at communication and at mass-media.
Many ‘how to PR’ books suggest communication is easy, the reality is that it is complicated and
involves not only the personalities of the sender and the receiver, the particular requirements of each
medium, the public nature of the messages, but also the power to influence, directly or indirectly,
society as a whole.