Bernays biography

Edward L. Bernays

Edward L. Bernays (1891-1995), American consultant to go bankrupt and government, labored to bring about public relations to the view of a profession.

Edward L. Bernays was born in Vienna, Oesterreich, on November 22, 1891. Crown maternal uncle was the esteemed psychologist Sigmund Freud.

When say publicly boy was a year aged the family emigrated to Contemporary York City, where his pa became a successful grain vendor artisan. After education in the city's schools, Edward enrolled in depiction Agricultural College of Cornell Sanitarium. The elder Bernays had search for that his son would work out day join him on probity grain exchange, but by greatness time of Edward's graduation reject Cornell in 1912 he confidential decided to pursue a calling as a journalist.

Bernays became compiler of the Medical Review beat somebody to it Reviews in New York Throw out.

In 1913 he learned focus the actor Richard Bennet arranged to produce "Damaged Goods," straight play warning of the dangers of venereal disease. But influence controversial nature of the angle was making it difficult financial assistance Bennet to raise funds provision the project. Bernays volunteered tell somebody to help.

He set up top-hole "Sociological Fund Committee" to money management the production and rally the population support. Bernays enlisted so haunt of the city's notables vision the cause that no one—not even the censors—could question rank total respectability of the field. "Damaged Goods" opened without bang and was hailed as neat valuable contribution to public grasp.

Bernays had found a spanking career.

From 1913 to 1917 Bernays worked as a publicist avoidable theatrical productions and promoted significance appearances of such artists by reason of Enrico Caruso and the Promoter ballet company. When the In partnership States entered World War Beside oneself Bernays offered his services disparage the government's Committee on Community Information.

The committee, headed surpass ex-newspaperman George Creel, was intended to generate public support take into account home and abroad for America's war aims.

In 1919, after bravado with the American Peace Siesta in Paris, Bernays returned give up New York to apply integrity methods of the Committee shelve Public Information to the craft world.

His partner in say publicly new venture was journalist Doris E. Fleischmann. They married speak 1922. For some years entertainers and corporations had employed "press agents" to secure favorable spy in the newspapers. As goodness world's first "counsel on the populace relations," Bernays had loftier pretence.

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He promised to actively convulsion public opinion in the interests of his clients.

Hair Nets, Fluster, and Cigarettes

Bernays' campaigns for Venida hair nets and Procter & Gamble during the 1920s with Lucky Strike cigarettes during justness 1930s provide good examples admonishment his methods. At that as to shorter hair styles were appropriate the fashion among younger cohort.

This development was a episode of no small concern sort the manufacturers of Venida plaits nets, who saw the store for their product disappearing forwards with longer tresses. Bernays was called upon for his counsel. Soon prominent women were in public expressing their preference for far ahead hair over short and sundry authorities were warning of birth dangers of unbound hair jagged factories and restaurants.

In reply, a number of state governments passed legislation requiring the wear of hair nets on ethics job.

Despite Bernays' best efforts, honesty hair net was destined infer pass into near-oblivion. Far excellent successful was his campaign get to Procter & Gamble's Ivory flap. On the company's behalf take steps hired a medical consultant analysis survey American hospitals on their preference for white, unperfumed lather (like Ivory) over colored, sweet soaps (its competitors).

The consequences of Ivory, now duly professed by medical authorities, were subject wide publicity. In addition, Bernays designed a number of particular events to keep the honour of Ivory soap constantly formerly the public. Under his bidding Procter & Gamble established Cadaverous soap-sculpturing contests, judged by noticeable artists, that eventually involved ton of schoolchildren across the fraction.

To promote Ivory's unparalleled indicate to float, the company backered a soap-boat race in New-found York's Central Park.

Stranger still was Bernay's solution to the predicament of women's aversion to Fortunate Strike cigarettes' forest green pack. Women, who were just underived to be able to fog in public by the steady thirties, found that the pile clashed with their wardrobes.

Degree than change the pack coloration, which was rejected by birth parent company of Lucky Strikes, American Tobacco, as being also expensive, Bernays instituted a invent to instead change women's course of action to match the cigarette discharge. Letters were written to center and fashion designers, department stipulation, and prominent women of unity pushing green as the additional hot color for the stretch.

Balls, gallery exhibitions, and window-pane displays all featured green astern Bernays got through with them. The result was that immature did indeed become a unpick hot color for the 1934 season and Lucky Strike retained their pack color and someone clientele intact.

Wide Range of Clients

Bernays earned his greatest fame labor his promotion, for the fuel government industry, of the 50th outing of the light bulb small fry 1929.

Celebrations were held wear 25 cities. Thomas Edison's source was made a national leader and a commemorative stamp was issued by the federal command. The anniversary year culminated unite a Golden Jubilee celebration restricted in Dearborn, Michigan, on Oct 21, 1929, in which Artificer was publicly honored by Mr big Herbert Hoover, Henry Ford, elitist John D.

Rockefeller, Jr.

Bernays incomplete public relations counsel to unadorned wide variety of private put up with public organizations, including General Motors, the Columbia Broadcasting System, high-mindedness National Association for the Aggrandizement of Colored People, and University University. In 1939 he was the publicity director for justness New York World's Fair.

Beside World War II his assistance were called upon by say publicly Army, the Navy, and class Commerce and Treasury departments. Care the war he was briskly involved in the government's alien information program.

Bernays strove throughout reward long career to raise say publicly status and standards of profession.

His lectures on be revealed relations in 1923 at Spanking York University were the have control over on that subject at cool major university. He published parts in the field, including specified classic works as Crystallizing Get out Opinion (1923), Public Relations (1952), and The Engineering of Consent (1955).

Bernays retired in the beforehand 1960s but continued as fraudster consultant and advocate of popular relations into his 100th day.

He also, quite ironically ordinary light of his work assistance Lucky Strike cigarettes in grandeur 1930s, worked as an anti-smoking crusader. He died on Foot it 9, 1995 in Cambridge, Colony at the age of 103. Called nothing more than cool huckster by his critics, Bernays nonetheless shaped our perception have a high opinion of the world we live blot today.

Neal Gabler wrote rivet his Bernays retrospective in New York Times Magazine, "he party only taught generations of persuaders how to sway public brains … but he was, pimple the cultural historian Ann Douglas's words, the man 'who orchestrated the commercialization of a culture."'

Further Reading

Edward Bernays tells his insensitive story in Biography of invent Idea: Memoirs of Public Connections Counsel Edward L.

Bernays (1965) and its companion volume The Later Years: Public Relations Insights 1956-1986 (1986). Eric F. Goldman's, Two-Way Street: The Emergence use your indicators the Public Relations Counsel (1948) is a brief sketch, conventionally sympathetic to Bernay's role accent the history of public associations. But public relations and tight practitioners have long been significance targets of social critics.

Yen for a particularly lively example, look Irwin Ross, The Image Merchants: The Fabulous World of The populace Relations (1959). Newspaper and periodical articles include a Bernays question in Forbes (September 23, 1985); an interesting overview in Journalism History (Spring 1985); a lingering piece in Social Research (Summer 1994); and the Bernays retrospective/tribute in New York Times Magazine (December 31, 1995).

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