Welcome to the brave new world of public relations. Issue a news release, get on TV and in the newspaper, and all done — right?

Uh, wrong. If that was ever a good strategy, it’s more wrong now than ever.

Why? We all know how the media has gone from a few outlets controlled by gatekeepers, to an infinite number of bully pulpits. With various social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, SnapChat and more), news sources on the web (traditional media outlets, web-only sources like Huffington Post and more), podcasts and easy availability of video and its widespread use — how should you get your message out?

With all the changes in communication, public relations really is about those two words — “public” and “relations” — more than ever. It’s about relating to the public. Not talking at the public or the media. It’s about talking — and — listening. About conversing. Going to where your audience is — and they’re doing more than watching the evening news or reading the morning paper, if even that, these days.

That’s the bad news — the challenge of a new environment.

The good news? More ways to get your message out. More accessible ways. And less expensive ways.

This new world of PR is constantly changing. But it’s exciting. And it can be very effective.