PR practitioners need to adopt ethical communications, says Fahmi Fadzil

Public relations (PR) practitioners are advised to adopt better ethical communications in order to build trust, foster relationships with diverse stakeholders and shape a better future for the industry and society, communications minister Fahmi Fadzil reportedly said. 

The minister reportedly said that commitment to ethical standards is more essential now than ever before, especially in an age of misinformation and fake news. 

The minister is also of the opinion that commitment is what sets practitioners apart and that it is trust that empowers influence and drives transformative change, according to Bernama. 

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Speaking at the IPRM ethical and responsible communication conference, Fahmi reportedly added that ethical and responsible communications must become the cornerstone of organisations and practitioners. This is in order to navigate the complexities of the volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous world. 

Fahmi reportedly said that PR practitioners should also be honest about accessible, authentic information and resist the temptation to fill gaps with speculation or invalidate claims. 

To ensure that integrity is preserved, one is to hold to the industry's code of professional conduct and code of ethics steadfastly, Fahmi reportedly added.

The minister reportedly said that PR practitioners should also utilise tech tool such as AI for efficient data analysis.

This would allow them to focus on more strategic aspects of PR, increase efficiency and amplify their value as a communicator, the minister reportedly said. 

Earlier in February this year, the communications ministry launched a new Malaysian Code of Ethics for journalists.

This marks the first time the journalism ethics manual has been reviewed after 35 years since its inception in 1989 by the Malaysian Press Institute (MPI). 

The revised code of ethics, according to Fahmi, will lift the quality of journalism in Malaysia and increase the trust of the people in the media. 

Fahmi also called the new code of ethics an improvement over the previous version to keep up with the modern era of social media.  

Picture courtesy of Fahmi Fadzil/X(Twitter)

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