THE DYNAMICS OF MASS COMMUNCATION Joseph R Dominick

THE DYNAMICS OF MASS COMMUNCATION Joseph R. Dominick University of Georgia--Athens Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Specific Media Professions Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Chapter 13 Chapter Outline Public Relations Mc. Graw-Hill v. Case Study – Wal-Mart v. Defining Public Relations v. A Short History of Public Relations v. Organization of the PR Industry v. Departments and Staff v. The Public Relations Program v. Economics v. PR Online v. Public Relations Careers © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Case Study – Wal Mart • • Wal-Mart employs 1. 2 million 3600 stores Global sales in 2004 of $256 billion Target of negative criticism and publicity Sued 6000 times in 2002 Opposition and protests from community groups Employees paid poverty-level wages with no health benefits • Stock steadily declining • Executive dismissed Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Defining Public Relations Public relations is the art and social science of analyzing trends, predicting their consequences, counseling organization leaders, and implementing planned programs of action which serve both the organization’s and the public’s interests. --- World Assembly of Public Relations Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Defining Public Relations • PR compared with Advertising – Both persuade – Both use mass media – Advertising is a marketing function – Public relations is a management function – Advertising does not use interpersonal communication – Public relations uses every communication form – Advertising is sponsored (paid for) – Public relations messages are usually free Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Defining Public Relations • Common practices that are not public relations: – Press agentry – staging media events to attract public attention – Publicity – attempting to place favorable stories in the media Extensive publicity and bad public relations? ? ? It’s possible! Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Defining Public Relations • What PR people actually do: – Work with public opinion – Explain their organization to various publics – Listen to the publics – Work with top management to achieve goals Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

A Short History of Public Relations • American Revolution – Boston Tea Party – Liberty Tree – Samuel Adams, Thomas Paine, Abigail Adams, Benjamin Franklin • Industrial Revolution – Initially public completely disregarded – Muckraking exposés – Prototypical press agents Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

A Short History of Public Relations • Ivy Lee – Press representative for anthracite coal mine operators and Pennsylvania RR (late 1900 s) – Declaration of Principles – The “humanizing” of business • Woodrow Wilson’s Creel Committee – PR tactics in WW I – “Save food”; “Buy war bonds” Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

A Short History of Public Relations • Edward Bernays, Crystallizing Public Opinion, first book on public relations (1923) • Carl Byoir opens PR agency (1930) • Franklin Roosevelt’s radio “fireside talks – Depression – New Deal reform program • WW II – creation of Office of War Information Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

A Short History of Public Relations • Growth of PR late 20 th Century – Some companies acknowledge social responsibilities – Consumerism forces organizations to pay attention – Organizational complexity necessitates PR department – Public is more complex • Population growth • Workplace specialization • Job mobility Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

A Short History of Public Relations • PR late 20 th Century – “Era of Public Relations” – 19, 000 (1950) 300, 000 (2003) – Public Relations Society of America (1947) – Code of Standards (1954) – Public Relations Student Society of America (1967) – US military operations in Iraq and embedded reporters – Enron, Arthur Anderson – One of fastest growing professions in USA Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Organization of the Public Relations Industry • Internal PR Department – More in-depth knowledge about the company – Assigned or reassigned on short notice – Less costly • External PR Agencies – Fresh, objective viewpoints – More services – Purchasable prestige – May cause morale problems in company Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Organization of the Public Relations Industry Areas of Public Relations Practice Business Government Education Hospitals Nonprofit organizations Professional associations Mc. Graw-Hill Entertainment and sports International PR Investor relations Politics Crisis management © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Departments and Staff • Internal PR Departments – No two are identical – PR director always reports directly to top management – Three main divisions 1) Corporate communications (internal publics) 2) Community relations (external publics) 3) Press relations (news media) Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Departments and Staff • External PR Departments – More complex – Five typical main divisions 1) Creative services – press releases 2) Research – surveys, focus groups 3) Publicity and marketing – merchandising, promotions 4) Accounts – relations with clients 5) Administration – business aspects of the department Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

The Public Relations Program The Four Steps of a Typical PR Program Step One How much will the company save? • Planning How many workers will be transferred? – Strategic What about the empty buildings? • Long term, general goals Will the people believe the company? • Formed by top management How will it affect the company’s • Tasks that achieve the strategic goals other operations? – Tactical • More specific, often short term – Management by Objective • “Inform >50% of Cartown about reasons for move” Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Step Two • Information Gathering – Organizational records, books, journals – Letters, email, interviews – Formal research techniques – Program-specific questions: Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Step Three • Communication – Organization is the source of the communication – PR requires thorough knowledge of mass media – Personal communication channels also necessary – Example: news conferences, ads, news releases, public meetings (external publics) – Example: bulletin boards, newsletters, speeches, letters, memos (internal publics) Example: An automobile manufacturing plant is closing soon in Cartown, Midwest USA Challenge: Communicate this to the people of Cartown Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Step Four • Evaluation – “How well did it work? ” – Works with MBO techniques – measurable goals make measurement of success possible – Measure accomplishment of tasks as well as achievement of desired effect – Simple measurements: # brochures delivered – Complex measurements: shift of perception – Example: Change in customer loyalty due to move Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Economics $ Weak economy revenues decline 2001+ $ Top 50 USA PR firms: $2 B in 2003 $ Industry domination: giants owned by ad agencies (Hill & Knowlton, Burson-Marsteller) of WPP (Porter-Novelli, Fleishman-Hillard) of Omnicom $ Independents Edelman PR Worldwide Ruder Finn $ Fees: fixed, retainer, hourly Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

PR Online • • E-mail used for press releases Internet used to distribute info to the media PR Newswire Corporate website first line of communication with: consumers, shareholders, reporters • Crisis management uses corporate website – Example: www. saudinf. com • Online corporate pressroom Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.

Public Relations Careers P • Internships at various firms, or in the media • Writing and communication skills very important • Business, law, public opinion research, social sciences are useful • Editing, writing, speech-making, media production Mc. Graw-Hill © 2007 The Mc. Graw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights reserved.