Public Institution Spokesperson

The work of a public institution spokesperson is undoubtedly vital for creating the image of an institution and building its credibility. Both the Constitution of the Republic of Poland and the implementing acts resulting from it (primarily the Press Law and the Act on Access to Public Information) guarantee freedom of the press and freedom in the performance of journalistic activities. All this, in turn, is to serve the purpose of exercising social control over the actions of these institutions, which function to provide citizens with access to the necessary benefits, such as protection, support, or quality of life improvement. These institutions are financed from public funds to facilitate their use by every citizen and take actions to gain or strengthen trust and credibility among citizens. With the concept of a public institution defi ned in this way, it certainly also includes public and local government administration and services responsible for the security of the state and its citizens. While fulfilling the obligations imposed by the law in the field of informing the public and transparency, all these entities implement the adopted press and information policy. In most cases, the responsibility for its implementation rests with the press spokespeople, who must meet the challenges facing them. They must be aware that they act based on the law and adapt to the needs and expectations of journalists as much as possible. Based on relations with journalists, they create the image of the represented institutions. However, the freedom of the media and the obligations to provide journalists with information are not absolute. They are often subject to restrictions resulting from laws limiting the provision of information. Therefore, the secrecy of the conducted preparatory proceedings, personal data protection, professional secrecy, business secrets, among others, make it impossible to implement a fully open media policy. Building credibility so crucial for every public institution is the basis of PR activities, and press spokespeople are, after all, part of them. It is impossible to do with lies, half-truths, or fake news, which are so popular nowadays. Thus, there is a rule to avoid lying and carefully check the information provided in contact with the media. The consequences of failing to apply this rule can be detrimental to the spokesperson, the institution represented, or the authority of the state that governs the institution. In their activities, public institutions should be guided by the public good, serving political forces exercising power with equal commitment, limiting their operations to the execution of decisions made by politicians. In the work of apolitical press spokespeople of public institutions, such activities must translate into — very broadly understood — apolitical communication.