The PR Diversity Gap: Why Representation Matters in Communication

By: Sofia Gonzalez Bernier, Account Supervisor

This past weekend, I packed my bags and boarded an Amtrak to New York City for BU COM’s annual PR spring break trip. I saw this as a crucial opportunity to explore potential career paths after graduation, especially in my dream city. Over the course of a few days, our group visited ten different organizations, including agencies like Weber Shandwick, Burson, and Real Chemistry, as well as companies such as Fanatics and KIND.

Walking into those glass-walled offices overlooking the Manhattan skyline was exciting. But as presentation after presentation began, I couldn’t help but notice something else: most of these rooms were overwhelmingly white.

According to Data USA’s 2023 report, 74.8% of public relations specialists are white. The next largest group, Black professionals, make up just 9.16% of the industry. Only 12.7% identify as Hispanic. While I am not unfamiliar with being the only Latina in a room, having studied at Boston University and previously at other predominantly white institutions, the lack of diversity in the PR industry was still surprising to see firsthand. In a moment when diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives are being rolled back across many sectors, I assumed the communications industry would be especially prepared to engage with the full range of communities affected. But my experience said otherwise.

Public relations professionals are responsible for shaping how companies communicate with the public. That means responding to crises, crafting campaigns, and ensuring that messages resonate with the audiences they are meant to reach. When the people creating those messages share similar backgrounds and lived experiences, the risk of missing important cultural context increases dramatically.

Communication does not happen in a vacuum. The way a message lands depends on cultural relevance, language used, and its historical context. Without diverse voices in the room, campaigns can easily overlook or misinterpret the perspectives of their intended audiences. 

In some cases, the consequences are highly visible. A famous example is the 2017 Pepsi ad featuring Kendall Jenner, which was widely criticized for trivializing the Black Lives Matter movement. The ad was pulled within 24 hours after widespread backlash. In less obvious cases, the issue is quieter: campaigns simply fail to connect with audiences they were meant to reach. For an industry built on understanding people, that gap should raise serious concerns.

What made this even more striking during our agency visits was that many firms openly discussed their diversity initiatives. Several agencies highlighted their internal affinity groups among other projects suited to better service their audiences. At Burson, for example, representatives spoke about their Polycultural team, which helps companies think more critically about how messaging reaches different cultural communities. They make sure that if a campaign is successful in the United States, it can be shifted to strike the same chords in countries everywhere. Hearing about initiatives like this was encouraging – it shows me that agencies recognize this issue. 

But recognition and reality are not always the same thing. Looking around the room during most of these presentations, the demographic imbalance was still difficult to ignore. 

The stakes for fixing this problem are higher than they might seem. The U.S. is becoming more diverse year by year, and brands will need communicators who understand how to reach a wide range of audiences. If PR agencies want to remain effective, their teams need to reflect the communities they are speaking to. 

That means going beyond statements about diversity and investing in real structural change, such as recruiting talent from different backgrounds, supporting POC professionals from early on, and ensuring leadership pipelines are accessible. Because at its core, PR is about trust, and trust is built when people feel represented. 

Walking through those New York offices, I couldn’t help imagining what it would be like to start my career there. The work looked exciting, the offices were beautiful, and the people were incredibly welcoming. But the industry still has a long way to go before those spaces truly reflect the audiences they serve.

If PR prides itself on understanding the public, then it has to start by broadening who gets a seat at the table.

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About the Author: Sofia Gonzalez Bernier

Sofia Gonzalez Bernier is a senior at Boston University studying Psychology with a minor in Public Relations. She works as an account supervisor in PRLab, managing the Papakyrikos Therapy & Performance and Nikki Nicole accounts. In the future, she hopes to use her strategic communications skills to create accessible, inclusive messaging across a variety of sectors, reflecting her wide-ranging interests.