Studies show media use of PR published October 01 Nearly 50 percent of 1163 articles in the Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and The Courier Mail, whose origins could be identified, came from PR sources, according to a study undertaken as part of a recent PhD thesis from the Queensland University of Technology (2001). This follows a previous MA thesis at Deakin University in 1993 which showed that nearly a third of identified articles in major national, state or capital city media were wholly or partly based on news releases. Figures for some trade, specialist and suburban media shows that up to 70 percent of the content was PR-sourced. The PR material comes not only from news releases, but also from the supply of surveys, papers and submissions sent to media. It covers government departments, politicians and commercial organisations. The research does not suggest that print media are dropping editorial standards and simply printing what is given to them by PR people. It merely acknowledges that PR material is the source behind a great deal of media coverage.

PR Influences Australian Public Relations Newsletter. Article: Research: Study of PR & media release use by media. Information Content: Media & Media Relations