The Impact of the Department of Public Relations and Media on Crisis Management: Case Study of the Greater Salt Municipality, Jordan

Abstract

Public relations are the main organizational member of any organization whose functions are linked to communicate with the media and the public. It is the first organizational unit that faces and responds to crises. Consequently, it adopts a communication and media plan to mitigate the impact of crises when occurring and control the communication channels to ensure the flow of information to the internal and external audiences to address any adverse effects incurred by crises. The crisis is unpredictable (Fall, 2004) and can potentially lead to disaster with mega-scale organizational damage if not appropriately managed (Sawalha, et al., 2013). Crisis ranges from economic, psychopathic, and natural calamities (Abu-Tayeh, & Mustafa, 2018). Putting an efficient crisis management function in place leads to protecting the organization and preventing the adverse impact on these organizations' core business (Ibid). Media and public relations departments in a given