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The differences between public relations and media relations specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a public relations and a media relations specialist. Additionally, a media relations specialist has an average salary of $50,856, which is higher than the $48,383 average annual salary of a public relations.
The top three skills for a public relations include press releases, web content and facebook. The most important skills for a media relations specialist are patients, compassion, and press releases.
| Public Relations | Media Relations Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $48,383 | $50,856 |
| Hourly rate | $23.26 | $24.45 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 22,721 | 44,665 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Public relations is a strategic way of developing and maintaining a client's or company's public image through media coverage, appearances, and press releases by designing and developing events to raise funds or to spread awareness to the public regarding products, brands, or individuals. It involves research and evaluation of programs including financial, marketing, employee, or government relations using topics of public interest and news items. Due to our present technological innovations, public relations now use webinars, blogs, and downloadable resources under one convenient website.
A media relations specialist's role is to help a company maintain good public relations through various forms of media, ensuring to convey their brand's purpose and message. Their responsibilities typically revolve around developing strategies and opportunities, producing newsletters and press releases, remaining updated with the latest trends, and even managing the company's social media platforms. A media relations specialist may also delegate tasks to writers and graphic designers, arrange schedules, and ensure that all goals are met within the expected deadline and budget.
Public relations and media relations specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Public Relations | Media Relations Specialist | |
| Average salary | $48,383 | $50,856 |
| Salary range | Between $32,000 And $72,000 | Between $36,000 And $69,000 |
| Highest paying City | Richmond, VA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | Virginia | Washington |
| Best paying company | Edelman Financial Engines | Edelman Financial Engines |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Finance |
There are a few differences between a public relations and a media relations specialist in terms of educational background:
| Public Relations | Media Relations Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Most common major | Communication | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between public relations' and media relations specialists' demographics:
| Public Relations | Media Relations Specialist | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 36.1% Female, 63.9% | Male, 30.6% Female, 69.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 11.9% Asian, 5.3% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.1% Asian, 5.3% White, 66.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 12% | 12% |