Paul Lazarsfeld's Two-Step Flow Theory

937 Words4 Pages

Referring to the public relations literature and the research conducted on the field, Wright and Hinson (2009) conducted a survey of 574 public relations practitioners and the results mentioned that the public relations practitioners showed a strong interest in social media. However, the research revealed that there was a competition between a few social media websites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. Their findings were also supported by the PR Week magazine, in which a public relations official reported that organisations were more likely to use Facebook when communicating with certain stakeholders, as compared to other social media sites.

Jim Macnamara (2010) through his research mentions that analysis of the perceptions and reported …show more content…

The theory of communication proposes that the interpersonal interaction has a much stronger effect on shaping the public opinions rather than mass media outlets. The theory, in simple words, suggests that the opinion leaders pay very close attention to the mass media and its content and pass on their interpretation of the media messages to others. Here, the public relations practitioners have the ability to stipulate the mass media content as opinion leaders or active media users, who then collect, interpret, and diffuse the meaning of such messages to the less active media users. Explaining the two-step flow theory, it can be considered in two parts; the first seeks to explain how information travels from the sender to the receiver; the second explores the way in which the original message influences the opinions and behaviours of a target audience. By examining the level of impact of such influence, public relations practitioners can implement this information to their advantage. This theory is essential to study in the public relations field while considering the power of social media over communication, as anyone can become an opinion leader. The public relations practitioners have to revise their strategies based on social media, otherwise there are chances of it resulting into a misinterpreted

Open Document