The Evolution of Presidential Press Conferences as a Public Relations Practice

The presidential press conference is one of the most powerful public relations tools the White House administration has at its disposal because it allows the president to communicate to the public through interaction with the media. However, the practice has existed in one form or another for over 100 years, which allowed a relationship to form between the president and the press that has continued to develop throughout history. This study looks at the first presidential press conference given by eight U.S. presidents spanning the 20th and 21st centuries in a qualitative content analysis of four Democrat and four Republican leaders, as well as examines how presidential press conferences function as a medium. In general, it was found that each president tailored the press conference to match their political agenda and began to craft the message of their administration. From a stylistic stand point, the specific manner in which each president approached the press conference was based on personal preference. As public relations strategies and communication technologies progress, it is important to try and anticipate what role presidential press conferences will play in the relationship between the president and the media and what an effective presidential press conference might look like in the future