How do you define ‘public relations’?

Ever tell people what you do for a living and then they rumple their brow and slowly mutter, “O-K?” PR pro Lauren Fernandez has experienced this reaction. “How do YOU as a professional define public relations?” She asked on her blog. “I hear different terms and definitions. Why is that? Is our profession that multi-dimensional? Do people lump other job responsibilities under PR because it’s easier?” Her peers (and yours) are weighing in on their definit…