The Effectiveness of Public Relations Activities in Fostering a Culture of Dialogue and Achieving National Reconciliation: A Field Study of Libya's Official and National Television Channels

Abstract

The present study aimed to measure the effectiveness of public relations activities in reinforcing the culture of dialogue and achieving national reconciliation in official media institutions. To achieve this objective, a descriptive-analytical approach was employed, applied to a random sample of 100 employees from both "Libya Al-Rasmiya" and "Libya Al-Wataniya" channels in Tripoli. Data were collected using an electronic questionnaire and were statistically analyzed through the calculation of frequencies, percentages, arithmetic means, and standard deviations, in addition to Pearson's correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis. The findings revealed a high overall level of effectiveness, with a mean of 3.59 out of 5, albeit with notable variation across its dimensions. "Trust-building" ranked first with a mean of 3.92, whereas "transparency and honesty" came last with a mean of 3.16, indicating a moderate general trend, making it the only dimension that fell outside the high range—a result that reflects a crisis of trust in transparent practices. Moreover, the results showed high levels for both the culture of dialogue and national reconciliation, with means of 3.58 and 3.73, respectively, with the latter surpassing the former. The overall mean of obstacles was 3.84, indicating a high level, with financial and strategic constraints ranking highest, while "political instability" came last yet remained notably high. The main hypothesis test confirmed a strong, positive, and statistically significant relationship between effectiveness and reconciliation (r = 0.712) at the 0.01 significance level. Furthermore, the four dimensions collectively explained 64% of the variance in reconciliation, with "trust-building" being the most influential predictor (Beta = 0.36). The sub-hypotheses did not demonstrate significant differences attributable to the institution, educational qualification, or years of experience, suggesting that the challenges are structural and shared across the board. Finally, the study recommended allocating independent budgets, launching a unified national strategy for media and reconciliation, enhancing internal transparency, investing in trust-building programs, modernizing communication tools, rehabilitating qualified personnel, limiting senior management interference, and intensifying interactive programs to resolve internal conflicts.