Ivy Lee, a Pioneer in Public Relations

When compared to the other aspects of business, Public Relations is one of the youngest and most important aspects of business to be studied today. Merchants and entrepreneurs have been around since the birth of Christ, on the other hand, Public Relations really didn’t get its start until about a hundred years ago when Ivy Lee opened a “counseling office” in 1904. Just two years after opening this office, Ivy Lee invented one of the most important tools for a Public Relations professional, the press release. At the time, Lee had been working for the Pennsylvania Railroad who had just experienced a serious workplace accident. Rather than waiting for reporters to publish their own version of the story, Lee decided it was best to take ownership of the accident and sent out a press release before reporters had the chance to speculate. This turned out to be a very smart move for the Pennsylvania Railroad and allowed them to maintain an honest, trustworthy relationship with the public.

Ivy Lee’s work with the Pennsylvania Railroad was just the beginning of his career in Public Relations. His most notable accomplishments came from his work with John D. Rockefeller and his oil empire, Standard Oil. The Rockefeller’s were facing severe public descent after Rockefeller’s son, John D. Rockefeller, Jr., ordered the Colorado National Guard and Colorado Fuel and Iron Company Guard to forcibly put down a coal miner strike in the mining camp of Ludlow, Colorado. Unfortunately, this led to the massacre of an estimated 21 miners and their family members. Following this incident, the public viewed the Rockefellers as an extremely wealthy family with absolutely no regard for the common working man. Not only was the public extremely resentful towards the Rockefellers, but the press was having a field day ridiculing the Rockefeller family.

This is when the Rockefellers turned to Ivy Lee and his expertise in crisis management in incidents such as the Ludlow Massacre. Lee decided that the best way to save the reputation of the Rockefeller name was to present the family in a more humanized version that the public could associate with. This called for John D. Rockefeller, Jr., the one held mostly responsible for the massacre, to go out and personally visit the Colorado coal miners and their families. In these visits, Junior would pass dimes out to the children, inspect the living conditions of the camps, attend social events and listen to the grievances of the miners and their families. Lee’s advice on handling this terrible event single-handedly saved the Rockefeller reputation and marked the beginning of a new era for the Rockefeller name.

With the help of Ivy Lee, the Rockefeller name became synonymous with philanthropy. It was Lee’s strong guidance and influence that lead the Rockefellers to construct the Rockefeller Center and Metropolitan Opera. Without the help of Lee, the Rockefellers may have never begun their philanthropic efforts and the family name would not carry the same meaning it does today. Ivy Lee’s work with the Rockefeller family was very influential and can be regarded as the building blocks for the Public Relations industry we know today

References:
http://www.seo-pr.com/public-relations-history
https://www.nku.edu/~turney/prclass/readings/3eras2x.html