Expert Opinion as a Public Relations Trend During a Crisis State

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to investigate expert opinion as a trend in public relations during the state of crisis caused by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, its role in informing the country’s population about the causes and consequences of events during the war, and its influence on the formation of public opinion.

Research methodology. To find out the main purpose of using expert opinion within the framework of PR communication during the war, which is presented in the information space of Ukraine as a representation of the implementation of the information model of public relations, we used the following methods: analysis, generalization and descriptive.

Results. In the article, the main attention is paid to the consideration of the role of expert opinion in informing the population and forming public opinion regarding the causes, essence and consequences of the events taking place during the military operations in Ukraine. A period of full-scale invasion.

Attention is focused on the fact that expert opinion is an effective and efficient tool for communication with target audiences or reference groups, especially during crisis situations, when the public expects explanations from people who understand the problem and showing ways out of the crisis situation.

The concept of a crisis and a state of crisis, which is a war, is revealed, because during a state of crisis, the population of a country that falls under the aggression of another state is in a state of stress, because there is uncertainty of the situation, its own danger and the danger of the immediate environment, and, accordingly, it needs information that would reveal the essence of events and their consequences and allow to form an adequate model of behavior in crisis conditions.

The reasons that determine the relevance of expert opinion for the field of public relations are indicated, namely: expert opinion implements the main functions of public relations, namely communicative, informational, prognostic and mediating; relies on the main principles of public relations – ethics, truthfulness in providing information, validity of conclusions and forecasts, accessibility and impartiality of presentation of analytical material by experts; is one of the forms of implementation of the information model of public relations when it comes to informing the population and teaching one’s own forecasts and analysis of the situation.

Novelty. The scientific novelty of the study consists in the determination of expert opinion as a trend of modern PR communication of the wartime period, which is presented in the information space of Ukraine in the period from February 24, 2022 to the present time and the representation of its purpose, role and significance during the crisis.

Practical significance. The practical significance of the research results lies in the possibility of their use during the preparation of educational programs in public relations, training of specialists in the field and public relations, and in the development of educational and scientific courses on the specified problem.

Key words: expert opinion, public opinion, PR, PR communication, PR communication models, trend of social communication activity, crisis, war.