The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the Public Relations (PR) industry has experienced significant growth, with a recent survey from Muck Rack, the PR management platform, indicating a nearly 40% surge in PR professionals leveraging AI since March 2023. This rapid adoption has positively impacted the quality and efficiency of work in the PR field.

AI enhances work quality and efficiency

The survey found that 74% of PR professionals who use AI reported an increase in the quality of their work. In comparison, an impressive 89% noted that they could complete projects more rapidly thanks to AI integration into their workflows. The tasks for which AI is predominantly used in PR include social copy creation (64%), research (58%), writing press releases (58%), and crafting pitches (54%).

While AI is transforming the PR industry, the survey revealed notable discrepancies in how brands and agencies disclose their AI usage. Surprisingly, 21% of agency PR professionals admitted never disclosing their AI utilization to clients, starkly contrasting to just 6% of brand professionals who supported this non-disclosure approach.

Muck Rack has published its AI Standards guide for PR and journalism professionals to address questions surrounding ethics and disclosure.

Concerns and caution persist

Despite the widespread adoption of AI, concerns among PR professionals have remained largely unchanged. While 95% of PR professionals claim to edit their AI-generated outputs, over half still consider unscrutinized AI output a potential risk. Moreover, 67% express concerns that new PR professionals entering the field might overly rely on AI tools and fail to learn the basics of the profession.

Gregory Galant, co-founder and CEO of Muck Rack, commented on the findings, stating that “2023 was the year of experimentation with this new technology, and most communications and PR professionals have embraced it. Adoption of generative AI was still relatively low earlier in the year, but a third said they planned to explore it.

They held to that commitment, nearly two-thirds saying they use it in their workflows. Plus, the number of people who were either not sure they wanted to use AI or had no plans to use it decreased substantially, showing that generative AI will likely have a permanent place in the communicator’s toolbox.”

Mixed opinions on AI adoption

While the survey indicated that the number of PR professionals not planning to explore AI tools decreased from 15% to 5%, a small cohort opposes the technology. Their concerns range from the unpredictability of AI-generated content to doubts about its ability to aid in their job performance. Additionally, some respondents cited ethical and security concerns in the “other” category of reasons for their skepticism.

The State of AI in PR January 2024 report by Muck Rack serves as an update and expansion of their previous survey conducted in March 2023. The primary objective is to provide valuable insights into the PR industry, particularly in the rapidly expanding field of generative artificial intelligence, to enhance the workflow of public relations professionals. PR professionals and organizations interested in learning more about Muck Rack’s AI features can download the full report or request a demo through their Muck Rack representative.

The self-administered survey collected responses from 1,001 PR professionals between November 2 and December 14, 2023, providing a comprehensive snapshot of AI adoption in the PR industry.

About Muck Rack

Muck Rack is a platform that empowers organizations to build trust, tell their stories, and showcase the unique value of earned media. It is the only public relations management platform that combines intuitive technology with the most accurate and comprehensive data journalists provide.

Muck Rack offers various services, including a media database, monitoring, and reporting, to facilitate seamless team collaboration, pitching, and measurement. Tailored specifically for communications and public relations professionals, Muck Rack is used by over 4,000 companies worldwide to analyze and report on the impact of their media relations efforts.

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