Public Relations in Mongolia: The Missing Part on the Global Public Relations Map

Abstract

This phenomenological research of public relations (PR) in Mongolia reviews 13 in-depth e-mail interviews of Mongolian PR specialists in business, public, and nongovernmental organizations. Our study shows that PR is influenced more by politics than by business. Finance, mining, telecommunications, entertainment, and politics actively use PR whereas transportation, the food industry, tourism, and higher education are only gradually implementing PR. The media landscape, with social media taking the lead, is oversaturated with PR. However, politics and their corporate circles negatively impact the state of the media respectively of PR too. Honesty, respect for traditions, positive public image, and implicit communication are vital cultural features of Mongolian PR. Due to the intense rural-urban migration, the decreasing sense of community, and public message skepticism demand community relations.