In mid-June, I had a thoughtful conversation with a publication that supports executives in various industries. We discussed public relations, content marketing, earned media and the role AI is now playing in how organizations build trust.
The conversation landed right in the center of what many communicators, marketers and leaders are wrestling with right now. We are living in a moment where content is everywhere. It is moving faster than we can read it, verify it or, some days, even breathe through it. AI can draft an article in seconds. Brands can publish across multiple channels before lunch. Executives are being told they need to be visible, relevant and discoverable. Marketing teams are chasing attention. PR teams are chasing credibility. And audiences are standing in the middle of all that noise asking one simple question:
Who can I trust?
That question is why public relations still matters. Actually, let me say that more clearly. That question is why public relations matters more than ever.
Because PR is not just about getting media hits. It’s not just about writing press releases. Nor is it about calling a reporter when something exciting or, terrible, happens.
At its best, PR is relationship management. It’s the bridge between an organization and the people with whom it needs to earn, keep and sometimes rebuild trust. It’s the discipline that helps brands stop sounding like buildings and start sounding like people.
In this AI-driven, content-saturated world, that human connection isn’t optional. It’s oxygen.
- PR Is More Than Press Releases
One of the biggest misconceptions I still hear is that PR equals press releases.
Do press releases still matter? Yes. When press releases are written well, contain real news and offer journalists the information they need, reporters find them valuable. But a press release is just one instrument in the orchestra. PR is much bigger than that.
Public relations includes research, messaging, media relations, internal communication, crisis response, executive visibility, stakeholder engagement, reputation management and trust-building. It requires us to understand not only what an organization wants to say, but what its audiences need to hear. That’s a very different assignment than writing a simple press release.
A strong PR strategy asks:
- Who do we need to reach?
- What do they care about?
- What do they need from us?
- What do they already believe?
- What do we need them to understand, feel or do?
- What is the most credible way to reach them?
You can’t reduce that work to “just write a press release.” A press release may announce something. But PR helps people understand why it matters.
- Earned Media Provides Something Owned Media Cannot
Owned media is important. Your blog, website, newsletter, social media channels and thought leadership platforms all matter. They give you a place to tell your story in your own words.
But earned media does something different. Earned media gives you third-party credibility and credibility is the currency of this moment.
It’s one thing for a brand to say, “We are experts.” It’s another thing for a respected publication, journalist, podcast host, industry leader or credible third party to say, “This person knows what they are talking about.”
There’s nothing wrong with speaking on your accomplishments, but when someone else validates your expertise, it lands differently. It feels less like self-promotion and more like proof.
That’s the power of earned media. It helps audiences see that someone beyond your organization has examined, recognized, or elevated your expertise.
In the age of AI-powered search, that authority matters even more. Search engines and AI tools are increasingly looking for credible signals. They’re not just looking at what you say about yourself. They are looking for evidence that others trust you too.
That means earned media is not old-school. It’s future-facing.
- AI Can Support the Work, But It Cannot Replace the Strategy
Let’s talk about AI. I use AI. Many of us do. It’s a useful tool for generating ideas, structuring thoughts, examining data and improving productivity. AI is not a replacement for strategic communication judgement. That’s where I draw the line.
Can AI draft a press release? Technically, yes.
Can it consistently write a strong, accurate, newsworthy, journalist-ready press release that understands audience, timing, tone, news value, local relevance and organizational nuance? Not without a skilled human communicator guiding, editing and fact-checking the work.
AI doesn’t know your audience’s history with your organization or which reporter hates fluffy quotes. It’s blind to the community concern sitting beneath the surface. It can’t tell that a message is technically accurate, but sounds tone deaf.
Communicators know those things because we listen. We observe and ask better questions. We understand words are more than just words, they’re signals. They can calm a room, ignite a fire or rebuild a bridge.
AI can assist with the bricks, but communicators still have to design the house.
- PR and Marketing Should Not Operate in Silos
One of the greatest missed opportunities for organizations is the separation between PR and marketing. Too often, the marketing team develops the campaign, completes the research, builds the messaging, maps the audience and then calls PR at the very end with one request:
“Can you send out a press release?”
That is a missed opportunity wrapped in a deadline. A unified communication approach, encompassing paid, earned, shared, owned, and internal channels, requires cooperation between marketing and PR. Each channel has a role to play. Each one should support the same larger goal.
I like to think of it as a choir. The paid media may carry one note. The owned content carries another. Social media adds rhythm. Internal communication brings depth. Earned media adds credibility.
Different voices. Same song. But when those voices are not aligned, the audience hears noise instead of music. That is why integration matters.
- Don’t Forget the Internal Audience
I will say this until I am blue in the face: employees are one of the most important audiences an organization has. And yet, internal communication is often treated like an afterthought.
Organizations will spend months planning an external announcement, only for employees to learn about it online, in the news or from someone outside the organization. That is a trust problem.
Your employees should not feel like strangers in their own house. When employees understand what is happening, why it matters and how they fit into the larger picture, they become informed ambassadors. When they are left in the dark, confusion fills the space where clarity should have been.
Internal communication is more than an email to staff. It’s culture-building. It’s trust-building. It’s alignment. Before you go out, look in.
- Trust Takes Time, Leaders Need to Understand That
In a world obsessed with instant results, PR can be misunderstood because its impact is not always immediate. A direct marketing campaign may show quick clicks. A paid ad may generate fast impressions. But trust? Credibility? Reputation? Authority? Those are built over time.
That doesn’t mean PR cannot be measured. It absolutely can, but we need to set the right expectations from the beginning.
Leaders should understand:
- What success looks like.
- What milestones will be measured.
- How visibility is growing.
- How trust is being strengthened.
- How earned media supports business goals.
- How communication efforts are moving audiences from awareness to interest to action.
Sometimes the work is a sprint. Sometimes it’s a long walk with a heavy backpack. Either way, communication leaders must show progress along the path.
Put points on the board. Share the small wins. Explain what is shifting. Help leaders see how the work is building momentum.
- The Brands That Win Will Be the Ones People Trust
Here is where I believe we are headed. More content will not automatically mean more influence. The brands shouting the loudest will not necessarily be the brands that win.
The winners will be the organizations that are clear about what they stand for, consistent in how they show up and credible enough for people to believe them. That means brands need to invest in human expertise.
Your leaders and employees matter. Your customers matter. Your subject matter experts matter. Those voices are credibility engines, especially in a time when audiences are increasingly skeptical of what they see online.
We also have to strengthen our fact-checking muscles. AI can create content quickly, but speed without accuracy is dangerous. Inaccurate content can erode trust in a matter of minutes. And once trust cracks, it takes much longer to repair.
So yes, use the tools. Embrace innovation. Learn what AI can do. But never outsource your judgment.
The Bottom Line
PR and content marketing are not enemies. They’re not separate planets. They’re partners. Both are about connection. Both are about helping people understand who you are, what you stand for and why they should care. Earned media brings something especially powerful to the table: credibility.
And in this new era, credibility is not a nice-to-have. It’s the foundation.
Technology will keep changing. Platforms will keep shifting. Search will keep evolving. AI will become more sophisticated. But people will still want truth. They will still want clarity. They will still want stories that help them know who to trust.
That is our work. Not just to create more content, but to create more meaning. Not just to chase visibility, but to build credibility. Not just to help organizations be seen, but to help them be understood.
That is the heart of public relations. And it deserves a seat at the table, not as a side dish, but as part of the main course.
Monique Farmer, APR, runs a PR/Communication Consultancy, Avant Solutions, and is the creator of Anvil Ready, an online communication strategy builder that helps communication professionals create communication plans. She has taught at the University of Texas at Austin, the University of Nebraska at Lincoln and the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Farmer spent 12 years working in the federal government before her time in corporate communications at ConAgra Foods (now ConAgra Brands), then leading communication strategy for Nebraska’s largest school district. In March 2024, she published her first book, Chart Your Path: A 9-step Method to Getting Unstuck.