AI Is Not Going to Replace Your Public Relations Agency

Marketing & Communication, Marketing y Comunicación

March 12, 2026

There is a narrative that gets repeated at every conference, every webinar and every LinkedIn article about public relations and corporate communications: “Artificial intelligence is going to change everything.” And that is true. But not in the way many people think.

AI is already transforming public relations. From the way we monitor the media to how we analyse the impact of a campaign, including the generation of draft content and audience segmentation. That is not in dispute. What does deserve a serious conversation is something else: what AI can do for your brand and, above all, what it cannot do.

At Finzel PR, we work with both realities every day. And from that position, with international clients operating in Spain and Portugal, we have a perspective that rarely makes the headlines.

What AI already does (and what we do with it)

Let us be honest: any PR agency in 2026 that is not using artificial intelligence tools is working with one hand tied behind its back. At Finzel PR, we integrate solutions such as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Notion and monitoring platforms with embedded AI into our daily workflow. Not as an experiment. As part of the process.

What for? For the tasks where AI delivers speed without sacrificing quality:

Real-time media coverage analysis. What used to require hours of manual reading can now be processed in minutes with smart alerts and automatic classification by sentiment, relevance and reach.
Generation of first drafts. A press release, a briefing, an executive summary. AI gives us a solid starting point that the team then shapes with strategic judgement.
Contextual research. Before launching a campaign in a new market, AI allows us to cross-reference trend data, competitors and public conversation with a level of depth that would be unfeasible manually.
Audience and media segmentation. Identifying which journalists cover which topics, from what angle and at what moment: AI accelerates that mapping enormously.

All of this is real. We use all of it. And all of it is only the starting point.

What AI cannot do (and will not be able to do in the short term)

This is where the debate becomes interesting. Because the question communication directors and CEOs of international companies are asking us more and more often is a direct one: “If AI can write press releases and analyse data, why do I need an agency?”

The answer is just as direct: because a perfectly written press release that reaches the wrong journalist, at the wrong time, with the wrong angle, is worth absolutely nothing.

There are dimensions of public relations work that no language model can replicate:

1. Relationships with journalists are personal, not algorithmic

A journalist at El País, Expansión or Cinco Días does not publish a story because an algorithm sent it to them. They publish because they trust the source, because the story fits their editorial line and because someone understood their context. These relationships are built over years: through calls, coffees, well-managed exclusives and, above all, accumulated credibility. AI does not have a contacts book. It has no reputation in newsrooms. It cannot gauge whether a journalist is receptive this week or whether the timing of a story is competing with more urgent news.

2. Local context is not something you train; it is something you live

This point is especially critical for our clients: international companies arriving in Spain or Portugal with a global message that needs to be adapted to the local media ecosystem. AI can translate. It can even adapt tone. But it does not know that in Spain the business media have different political sensitivities, that the news cycle in Portugal moves at a different pace from Madrid, or that certain angles that work in Anglo-Saxon markets generate indifference — or rejection — in the Iberian press. That knowledge is not in any dataset. It lies in the experience of a team that operates in this market every day.

3. Strategy is judgement, not processing

AI can process data. It can identify patterns. But it cannot decide whether your company should comment on an industry controversy, when the right moment is to bring a message to market, or how to position your CEO ahead of a crisis that has not yet broken but is already being sensed in newsrooms. Communication strategy requires judgement, intuition shaped by experience and the ability to read what is not written: the political climate, the mood of a sector, the temperature of a particular newsroom. That cannot be automated.

4. Crisis management is instinct, not a template

When a reputational crisis hits, time is measured in minutes and decisions are irreversible. What do we say? Who do we call first? Do we step forward or do we wait? AI can give you a draft statement. But it cannot read the room, negotiate with an editor in real time or decide whether strategic silence is better than a rapid response. In a crisis, you do not need a language model. You need someone who has been there before.

The real competitive advantage: AI + human judgement

The real competitive leap does not lie in using AI or rejecting it. It lies in knowing exactly where it speeds up your work and where you need to slow down in order to apply judgement.

“Agencies that survive will not be the ones that master the most AI tools, but the ones that know how to combine technological speed with strategic depth.”

In practice, this means that a modern public relations agency must operate at two speeds: the machine’s speed for analysis, processing and monitoring; and the professional’s speed for relationships, strategy and critical decision-making.

Companies that outsource their communications to a chatbot — or that believe AI can replace a well-executed public relations strategy — are going to find out the hard way: when they need to manage a crisis, position a brand in a new market or secure coverage in the outlet that really matters, and there is nobody on the other end of the phone.

What a CEO should ask before betting everything on AI in communications

If you run an international company and are assessing how to manage your communications in Spain or Portugal, before deciding whether “AI is enough”, ask yourself these questions:

Do you have established relationships with the key journalists in your sector in this market?

Do you understand the differences between the Spanish and Portuguese media ecosystems?

Do you know which angles work in the Iberian press and which ones are likely to be rejected?

If your company appears in a negative story in a national outlet tomorrow, do you have someone who can pick up the phone and speak directly to the newsroom?

Can your AI tool distinguish between a communications opportunity and a media trap?

If the answer to any of these questions is “no”, AI is not your solution. It is simply another tool that needs the right hands to be useful.

The conclusion nobody wants to hear

Artificial intelligence is going to make good PR agencies even better. It is also going to make mediocre agencies — those that were already limited to sending generic press releases to massive databases — entirely dispensable.

Technology automates the mechanical. What it does not automate is strategic thinking, knowledge of the landscape and the relationships that open doors. That remains — and will remain — the work of professionals with experience, judgement and real access to newsrooms.

At Finzel PR, we use AI for what it is: an extraordinary tool. But our clients do not work with us because of our tools. They work with us because of what we do with them.

Do you need a communications strategy in Spain or Portugal that combines technology with real judgement?

Let’s talk

Contact Finzel PR and discover how we can help you position your brand where it matters most.