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W.L. Mackenzie King: Rockefeller’s
Other Public Relations Counselor
a
Abstract: This study profiles William Lyon Mackenzie King’s role as a counselor to John D.
Rockefeller Jr. in the aftermath of the bitter 1913-1914 Colorado coal strike. Mackenzie King—not
his more recognized counterpart, publicist Ivy Lee—provided many of the modern public relations
ideas that Rockefeller eventually adopted to alleviate tensions and improve labor relations. These
included the development of the Colorado Industrial Representation Plan, a prototype company
union structure that was designed to facilitate employee communications. Mackenzie King, who
later served 22 years as prime minister of Canada, also advised Rockefeller on a wide range of
public relations activities, including testimony before government hearings, meetings with union
leaders, community philanthropy in Colorado, and Rockefeller’s historic visit to Colorado in
September-October 1915.
The bitter Colorado coal strike of 1913-1914 was a milestone event in public relations history that
is best known for publicist Ivy Lee’s success in neutralizing negative public opinion toward the coal
operators. His client was John D. Rockefeller, Jr., whose family was the largest investor in the biggest
coal company in the state, Colorado Fuel & Iron. [1]
Although Lee gained widespread notoriety for himself and for the emerging practice of publicity,
Lee actually was only one of two counselors hired to help the Rockefellers address the serious labor
problems confronting them. [2] Less known in public relations annals is the work of William Lyon
Mackenzie King, a labor Canadian labor relations specialist who would gain world prominence only seven
years later when he became the prime minister of Canada.
At the same time that Lee launched a major effort to tell the miner operators’ side of the strike
story, the Rockefeller Foundation tapped King’s expertise in the handling labor disputes in Canada.
However, King was more than just an industrial relations expert. He was a personable and experienced
politician, who quickly endeared himself to the JDR Jr. King came to exert influence as an advisor that far
exceeded his initial charge.
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