An entertainment lawyer can definitely help entertainers of all kinds earn more money, keep their intellectual property safe, defend themselves in defamation cases, and more. One role that entertainment attorneys often play is helping to maintain an entertainer’s public image by working with public relations firms. Learn more about how an attorney can help you with PR.
What is PR?
Public relations (PR) is the process of managing and facilitating the way information about an individual or company gets released to the public to enhance how the community may perceive this entity.
Many people in the entertainment industry work with a PR firm, from actors, musicians, comedians, directors, and everything in between. Most politicians also work with a PR firm that helps to enhance their public image in order to encourage more people to vote for them in the next election.
How is PR Different from Publicity?
PR differs from publicity because PR is much more intentional and is deliberately controlled by agencies. Publicity is more about general visibility and can happen more spontaneously than PR. Anyone, including bystanders with a camera phone, can increase a person’s publicity, but a PR firm is typically the only body that can perform public relations.
What Do PR Firms Do for Entertainers?
PR firms often handle an entertainer’s communications by composing press releases and speeches, arranging interviews, and more. PR firms also often attempt damage control when an entertainer is part of a scandal that gets leaked to the press, and their goal is often to protect the privacy and image of an entertainer when rumors fly.
In our modern era, PR firms now also work to manage an entertainer’s social media presence and website content. Although many entertainers choose to run their personal social media accounts on their own, some PR firms may offer advice and help them promote their work.
Finally, PR firms can help entertainers market their shows, projects, or works to the public and raise awareness to increase sales.
How Does an Entertainment Attorney Help?
Although an entertainment attorney won’t be penning any op-eds or writing speeches for an entertainer, an attorney can work with a PR firm to ensure that the public image being conveyed is fair and honest. Attorneys can step in if a PR firm may be about to inadvertently violate some kind of entertainment law, and they can advocate on their client’s behalf if a PR firm begins unfairly representing them.
In a world where celebrity reporters and commentators don’t always to the due diligence with factual reporting, an entertainment attorney may also be able to help you if you are intentionally and maliciously misrepresented in a way that harms your reputation by filing a defamation case.
The Bottom Line
PR firms can be a powerful and helpful way to increase your reputation within the entertainment industry. Quality PR firms can help you increase your income and show the public all that you have to offer personally and professionally. Even still, it’s best to have an attorney on your side that can step in if a PR firm begins to fail you.
