Book Review: Aren’t We All PR People? — Redefining Public Relations Beyond Publicity
By Maryam G. Uba and Nasir M. Sabo
One of the oldest misconceptions about Public Relations is that its practitioners are simply professional spin doctors—experts at making falsehoods appear believable. It is a stereotype that has endured for decades, reducing a sophisticated profession to little more than image laundering.
In Aren’t We All PR People? A Guide for Communicators, Ahmad Balarabe Sa’id confronts this misconception head-on. From its opening pages, the book argues that Public Relations is neither propaganda nor deception. Rather, it is the disciplined practice of understanding people, building relationships, managing perceptions ethically and sustaining public trust.
This central argument gives the book both its relevance and its intellectual strength.
The opening chapter advances an intriguing proposition: in one way or another, everyone practises Public Relations. Every interaction, conversation and social media post shapes how others perceive us. Families, organisations, communities and even nations constantly communicate identities and values.
Yet, Sa’id makes an important distinction. While everyone communicates, not everyone practises professional Public Relations. The professional communicator carries an added responsibility—to communicate truthfully, strategically and ethically. Reputation, the author reminds readers, cannot be sustained through deception. In an era where misinformation spreads within seconds, a lie may attract immediate attention but ultimately destroys credibility.
The chapter also dismantles another common misunderstanding by distinguishing Public Relations from marketing. Marketing focuses primarily on selling products and services, whereas Public Relations is fundamentally about building and sustaining relationships. Employees, host communities, regulators, investors, customers and the media all influence an organisation’s success, even when no immediate commercial transaction is involved.
It is a distinction that elevates PR from publicity to the far more demanding responsibility of relationship management.
The second chapter expands this conversation by examining what Public Relations looks like within Nigeria’s unique social and institutional environment. One of Sa’id’s most memorable illustrations compares possessing information to possessing a map. Knowing names, concepts and procedures is useful, but understanding how they connect within a particular environment is what truly matters.
This contextual approach becomes one of the book’s greatest strengths.
Corporate communication, public affairs, crisis management and stakeholder engagement are not presented as abstract theories. Instead, they are situated within familiar Nigerian realities. A hypothetical decision by a bank to close branches in Northern Nigeria becomes an illustration of how communication professionals must appreciate the economic, political and cultural consequences of organisational decisions.
The message is unmistakable: effective communication requires far more than writing press releases.
This emphasis on context continues in the discussion of community relations. Sa’id challenges the traditional corporate approach of commissioning projects, organising colourful ceremonies and assuming goodwill automatically follows. Communities, he argues, are not passive recipients of corporate generosity. They possess histories, expectations, grievances and aspirations that must be understood before genuine relationships can flourish.
Good Public Relations begins long before a crisis emerges.
The third chapter provides historical depth by tracing communication traditions beyond modern Western theories. Rather than portraying PR as an imported profession, Sa’id highlights indigenous African communication systems such as town criers, palace messengers and talking drums as early examples of organised public communication.
This historical perspective enriches the discussion by demonstrating that Nigeria possessed sophisticated communication structures long before contemporary PR terminology emerged.
The author further illustrates this point through the experience of the Niger Delta, where decades of corporate investment failed to produce lasting goodwill because communication was often reduced to projects rather than meaningful dialogue. The lesson is profound: sustainable relationships are built through participation, trust and continuous engagement—not through ceremonial gestures or generous donations alone.
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Equally valuable is the chapter’s examination of Nigeria’s rapidly evolving communication environment. Social media, mobile technology and artificial intelligence have transformed how organisations interact with their audiences. Information now travels faster than ever before, making crises more immediate and more difficult to contain.
Artificial Intelligence, Sa’id observes, presents both opportunities and risks. While it offers powerful tools for research, monitoring and content development, it also enables misinformation, deepfakes and manipulated narratives. Consequently, technological competence must always be guided by ethical judgment and cultural sensitivity.
Chapter Four turns to professional regulation by asking an important question: who should be recognised as a Public Relations practitioner?
Drawing parallels with professions such as medicine and law, Sa’id argues that Public Relations requires education, ethical standards and institutional regulation. His discussion of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) provides readers—particularly newcomers—with valuable insight into why professional certification exists and why it matters.
Importantly, the author does not romanticise regulation. He openly acknowledges weaknesses in enforcement and the gap between professional ideals and everyday practice. Nevertheless, he maintains that these imperfections should encourage reform rather than justify disregard for professional standards.
This naturally leads into Chapter Five, arguably one of the book’s most practical sections.
Having explored institutions and regulations, Sa’id shifts attention to character.
He identifies curiosity, integrity, empathy, sound judgment, cultural awareness, adaptability, resilience, discretion and moral courage as qualities that distinguish outstanding practitioners from ordinary communicators.
These are not presented as abstract virtues but as practical necessities. Curiosity enables practitioners to understand unfamiliar communities. Listening strengthens relationships. Cultural awareness prevents costly communication errors. Integrity preserves credibility, while courage becomes indispensable when organisations demand ethically questionable actions.
Perhaps the chapter’s most timely observation is that artificial intelligence may enhance communication, but it can never replace human judgment.
Across these five chapters, Aren’t We All PR People? steadily develops a broader argument about professional responsibility. The book encourages readers to understand context before applying communication theories, appreciate professional ethics, and recognise that technical competence is incomplete without integrity.
Its greatest achievement lies in consistently bringing Public Relations back to its most important element—people.
Communities are people. Stakeholders are people. Employees are people. Audiences are people. Ultimately, reputation exists not in corporate slogans but in the perceptions, experiences and conversations of those people.
That insight provides the most convincing answer to the book’s title.
Yes, in everyday life, we are all Public Relations people because we constantly communicate and shape perceptions. But professional Public Relations demands something far greater. It requires deliberate communication grounded in knowledge, ethical responsibility, cultural understanding, strategic thinking and genuine concern for people.
For aspiring practitioners, the book serves as an accessible introduction to the profession. For experienced communicators, it offers an opportunity for reflection. And for anyone interested in leadership, governance or organisational communication, it provides valuable insights into the power of trust in an increasingly connected world.
At a time when technology has accelerated communication but also amplified misinformation, Aren’t We All PR People? arrives as a timely reminder that credibility remains the profession’s most valuable currency.
Ahmed Balarabe Sa’id has produced more than a handbook on Public Relations. He has written a thoughtful guide to responsible communication—one that deserves a place on the reading list of students, practitioners and anyone seeking to understand how trust is built, protected and sustained in contemporary society.
Maryam Garba Uba and Nasir Muhammad Sabo are participants in the PRNigeria Young Communication Fellowship, Kano Centre
