Communications is the art of distributing ideas to selected audiences.  The field of public relations is based on this notion, and uses it to sell products or advance positions.  Tools used include media releases, brochures, flyers, op-ed pieces, ghostwritten articles, speeches, presentations, and messages.

Those who communicate well have a huge advantage over those who do not.  Strong communicators are able to deliver their messages to the desired audience and to the extent they choose.  Often, the strategy is to disclose limited pieces of information in the hope that embarrassing or sensitive information can be kept under wraps.  Another popular strategy is to be an information leader on a subject.  The first person or group to weigh in on a subject can usually define the discussion to their advantage.  Almost always, competing points of view face the chore of overcoming the initial communications flurry.

In communications, perception is more important than reality.  Reasonable, educated human beings believed at various times that the world was flat, no human could run a mile in under four minutes, that the sun revolved around the earth, and that women lacked the intelligence to vote or hold elected office.  Convincing an audience that something is true is more important than whether or not something is actually true.  It wasn't long ago that Americans received messages every day through the media asserting that smoking enhanced one's health and vitality.  It took more than two decades for popular opinion to turn against smoking, even after the US Surgeon General announced the connection to lung cancer in 1964.  Such is the power of the media that ads promoting cigarettes were banned from television in the early 1970s.

As a communicator, it is important to be first, important to be consistent and important to be clear.  Truth, however defined, is relatively optional.  A skilled communicator can make the difference in how your product or message is perceived, received, and reviewed.