This year, the public sector will hire another 200 communication consultants. Still, the Parliament has become the most important client at many PR-agencies, according to Finansavisen.
The increase in the Government’s use of external communication services could be because the public sector has realized the positive aspects of hiring external help, says Morten Woldsdal to Finansavisen, Chair of the organization Norwegian Information Consultants (NIR).
“It’s a pretty new trend for the public sector buys services from our industry to such a large extent,” says Woldsdal. He believes it is an efficient way to spend the taxpayers’ money. “We feel that our work sill leave the public with an even bigger return than the money spent on communication services,” he adds.
Currently, communication consultants and specialists working in the public sector, and that are member of the Norwegian Communications Association, cost Parliament close to NOK 1 billion. In addition to that, between NOK 100-200 million are spent on external communication services, according to Woldsdal.
Today, there are so many different channels, and people publish new content 24/7. The entire media landscape has changed, explains Thomas Skjennald, manager of the Norwegian Communication Association. “Journalists demand answers from the public sector in new ways, and they will also have an increased presence in social media, he says.
Other experts are less enthusiastic, and link the increase in use of communication services to a significant change of politics. Professor at the University of Oslo, Sigurd Allern, is concerned: “Communication consultants have become a tool for political leadership,” he says. The symbols used in politics play a bigger role.” Being visible and present in the media has become just as important as getting work done, Allern explains.
State Secretary Tone Toften in the Department of Renewal and Administration explains the increase in communication consultants as a direct result of a larger number of media requests. “More information is produced and published on the Government’s own websites, and this information needs to be both thorough and correct,” she adds.
(NRK/Finansavisen)
Julie Ryland
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