Mark Pritchett

The emerging "wireless world" of communication technologies will not result in the feared dehumanisation of people, says newspaperman Mark Pritchett, who insists instead that direct human contact and interaction will remain a central feature of life as we know it.

Addressing a luncheon of the Public Relations Society of Jamaica at the Hylton Kingston Hotel, Pritchett, managing director of the Jamaica Observer, cited the situation in the United Kingdom where it was predicted that the onset of on-
line shopping would spell doom for retail shops.

On the contrary, he noted, the retail trade was alive and well because of the intrinsic need for human contact.

"Shopping is a social occasion, people like to touch and feel the merchandise before making a decision," he told the PR practitioners, at what was dubbed the 'Olympics' communicators luncheon.

Couching his argument against the background of the coverage of the Olympic games, Pritchett also discounted the notion that electronic data would "see the end of newspapers."

"People read with almost as much imagination as they write," he observed, adding that Jamaican adults tended to consume media products in a preferred mix of print and electronic products.

Pritchett said too that different media forms, by working together, could add value to the coverage of an event, citing the example of the Observer's Olympic coverage by its photo-journalist Brian Cummings which was also carried on TVJ in its 'Postcard from Athens' feature. That partnership, he said, added value to media exposure of the events.

The Observer provided extensive coverage of the events in Athens through its Sporting World pullout, featuring full-colour photographs and inside looks at the athletes and the events.

However, Pritchett also noted the absence of research into how media products are consumed locally, describing the country as being "devoid of a proper research currency" that could bring to bear better cross-content analysis as a guide to marketers, public relations practitioners and advertisers.

He also cited the value of public relations and warned against any underestimation of its role by companies in communicating with its various publics or audiences.

"Public relations should not be seen as a poor cousin to the others (marketing and advertising)," he warned, noting that its value and importance increased with the growing diversity of the media landscape.

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