Blog 6 - Jessica Quinn Faith-based book

I was excited to see this blog topic. This is exactly what I’ve been dealing with on my current writing project, Faith-Based Public Relations. The entire focus of the book is faith-based, but for me, that base is Christian. I’ve had to work to figure out how to reach the masses honestly without turning them off by the title. Is it Faith-Based or is it Christian? It is an element of both.

I have found that when the majority of America hears “faith-based” they assume Christian, but those who don’t are adamantly opposed to the two being interchangeable. This has presented the biggest problem because what I do is not “Christian Public Relations” which denotes that I only work with Christians in Christian media. Can you begin to see the dilemma? That said, I do only choose to work with Christian clients, but my specialty is getting them into the mainstream media and helping them not lose their Christian message in the process. I don’t just deal with Christian media, quite the contrary and I don’t want that to be assume. That is why I titled it Faith-Based Public Relations instead of Christian Public Relations—it gives a broader scope.

For those in the media that I work with, the Faith-Based title will make sense. For those in Christian colleges in the Journalism and Communications departments, they will be so relieved to finally have a trade-friendly textbook their students can use that doesn’t tell them they have to check their faith at the door in order to be in this business. At least that is the goal, and what I’m hearing so far. My niece wishes this were out before she had her PR class at Virginia Wesleyan. I also hope that those who need to do their own PR and can’t afford to hire an agency will be able to use this book as a tool to do just that. It will teach public relations, but throughout the book are personal stories, anecdotes, that bring the lessons home and they are all connected to my work in various industries with Christian clients. I want people to learn the craft of marrying public relations and their faith. There is a huge industry out there doing just that, but with so many mainstream companies buying out the Christian companies (record labels, publishing houses, etc.), the staff often doesn’t get the nuance of what they are now promoting. You promote the artist/author the same way, with the same basic skill and relationships, but for a Christian client, you do it keeping their faith in the story. That is what I want to teach to the PR masses. Sometimes keeping the faith in the story makes it a stronger story, sets it apart, and makes for a better experience for the media outlet.

Photo: Recent client, Stephen Mansfield (author), on FOX News Channel's Hannity on the Great American Panel.