WEEK SEVEN

WEEK SEVEN

The key message from this weeks reading was that dealing with the media is a critical part of the public relations profession. Mutual understanding and positive relationships must be achieved with the media due to the nature of the relationship and reliance of the two industries. I found the quote interesting that“Pr has become on of the most important external influences on journalism as it is now practiced” (Marshall and Kingsbury 1996, 127). To me this highlighted the importance public relations to journalism and vice versa.

The readings made me think more about public relations in practice as they gave example of different media styles. I agreed with the point made that it is good to consider media outlets that represent minority groups as this is an extremely effective way of targeting your specific audience. The needs of the medium which you are using must also be considered. The news values (impact, conflict, timeliness, proximity, prominence, currency, human interest, the unusual) made me think more about public relation in theory as they drew to my attention the thinking behind writing for the media.

Another key messages from this week’s readings were the importance of good group work when preparing for a group presentation. The benefits of sharing the workload were highlighted. Key presentation points highlighted in the readings were: What can be done to overcome nerves, preparing material, Usefulness of visual aids, the delivery.

This can be applied debate group work through making sure we share the workload evenly between the two of us. We can use the checklists to ensure we do not forget anything that needs to be included in the presentation. I believe you must develope effective presentation skills, as even the best content speeches and presentations will not make an impact if they are not delivered effectively.

NOTE: for this weeks blog i critqued Michaela Vigara

References:

Chapter 10 of Public relations: theory and practice / edited by Jane Johnston and Clara Zawawi. Crows Nest, N.S.W. Allen & Unwin, 2004. 2nd ed

Drew, S. (2001) Oral Presentations (pp 98-114) in The Student Skills Guide. (2^nd ed.) London:Gower.

Van Emden, J. and Becker, L. (2004). Speaking as Part of a Group (pp 77-93) in Presentation Skills for Students. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

WEEK Six

WEEK SIX

Chapter Four refreshed last weeks readings on planning scheduling and implementing PR plans so I will focus on Chapter 5 for this weeks blog. The key messages from this weeks reading were the importance of ethics and ethical practice. Ethic was defined as, “the personal values which underpin the behaviour and moral choices made by an individuals in response to a specific situation (Johnston and Zawawi,2004, 106)


This was a helpful set reading for my debate in week 7. I found the comment interesting that there is increased concern in the PR industry‘s ethical principles, standard of practice and the perception that it is an industry which reshapes reality. It reinforced ideas explored in previous weeks on negative public perceptions of the industry. I agreed with this point on concerns about the industries ethical practise as after reading numerous ethics journals for my annotated bibliography the inadequacies of tactical ethics and the need for strategic ethics was highlighted.

Another key point was that ethics should not be considered in a vacuum, but in a broader context. I believe this means PR professionals when planning a campaign must considered more than loyalties to client or organisation values, but rather consider every public and stakeholder which may be impacted upon by a decision. Professionals must build bridges and alliances with publics helping to form effective relationships. Some key times in which ethical dilemmas with stakeholders result are when professionals value organizations interests over opposing interests or when stakeholders adopt a win win mentality.

Two key ethics terminology to remember are:
Deontology ethics: is duty based and relies on moral obligation
Teleology: is outcome based ethic where the end justifies the means. Cause and consequence determines the rightness of an action

The reading made me think more about PR in practice as the Potter Box ethics technique gave a practical example a way to approach ethics. The four stages were:
- Defining situation
- Identifying values
- Selecting principles
- Choosing loyalties to stakeholders



NOTE: THIS WEEK I COMMENTED ON JOHN HALEN'S BLOG

Chapters 4 and 5 of Public relations: theory and practice / edited by Jane Johnston and Clara Zawawi. Crows Nest, N.S.W. Allen & Unwin, 2004. 2nd ed

Week five readings

WEEK FIVE READINGS

The key messages in this weeks reading were strategy, planning and scheduling in public relations campaigns. Strategy was explained as,
“The organisational strategy integrates organizations major goals, policies and action sequences into a cohesive whole” (Johnston & Zawawi, 2004,176)
From the readings a checklist can be established to include in a public relations program plan. These are:
- executive summary
- vision and mission statements
- background and situational analysis
- strategy
- publics
- main messages
- tactics and communications methods
- implementation and scheduling
- monitoring and evaluation
- budget
-
In public relations campaigns professionals must ensure effective communication with all stakeholders as every decision has an outcome. I think an important point to note about the setting of objectives is to ensure they implement two or more of the following measures: time, cost, qualitative, quality. The budget section of the program plan I feel will be the most challenging as estimating cost is difficult and prices are always changing. The reading suggests as professionals gain more experiences they will become more knowledgeable on how much things cost

Grunigs model of communications excellence reinforced what equates to good communication in a practical situation. I feel it can be applied successfully whilst working on a public relations program.

The readings made me think more about public relations in practice in relation to the relationship between Public relations practioners and the CEO of the organization that they work for.
“ you will only be as good a PR practitioner as you CEO lets you be”( Johnston & Zawawi, 2004, 171) I found this quote interesting as it reinforced to me the need to articulate the PR strategy to the CEO so the organization is aware of the aims of the public relations department. It made me aware that no matter how hard you work, unless you form positive relationships and use effective communication it is extremely hard to succeed at your job.


NOTE: for this weeks critque i read Eryn Sullivans blog

Chapter 7 of Public relations: theory and practice / edited by Jane Johnston and Clara Zawawi. Crows Nest, N.S.W. Allen & Unwin, 2004. 2nd ed
Chapter 4 - A Typical Public Relations Program. In C. Tymson, P. Lazar, P and R. Lazar, (Eds.)The new Australian and New Zealand public relations manual (5th ed.) (pp. 74-117) Manly: Tymson Communications . 2006

WEEK FOUR READING

WEEK FOUR READING

I believe the key point from this weeks readings were the importance of internal and community relations in public relations practice and how both these relationships have the power to make or break an organization.

The readings made me think more about PR in practice as it suggested the values that need to be embraced my organizations are truth, honesty and communication and internal and community relations should be the priority or any organization. In reality I believe for many organizations this does not occur, many organization purely concerned with economic profit rather than adopting a triple bottom line.The Insider Info reading gave me an insight into the daily roles and activities of a public relations practitioner. It opened my eyes to the diversity of roles public relations can offer. The reading was effective as it gave interviews and experiences of people actually in the industry.

Employees and their ability to multi skill means they are a very valuable asset of a company so maintaining morale and good will among staff is an investment for an organization as it helps increase job satisfaction and productivity. On the other hand it should be noted if employees are not kept happy the power and negative affect they can have on an organization is enormous. For example the readings mention the negative effect of rumours on staff morale. Therefore employers must keep staff in the loop and informed through communication tools such as newsletters, intranet, notice boards and memos.

Maintaining goodwill among the community must also be an objective of the organization. I believe the key area through which organizations should do this is ethical practices. As public relations professionals we should consider the impact of the organizations practices on the community, always keeping the triple bottom line in mind. That is economic, social and environmental impacts of the organization. The reading suggests personalizing the corporate image also helps to maintain good community relations as does utilizing tools such as negotiation. This can be done through the multi gains approach which uses the values of respect, humility, trust and commitment to reach an agreement.

Readings:

Insider Info chapter (pp 37-93) in Public Relations by James, M. (2006). Sydney: CareerFaqs

Chapter 11 pages 287-297 of Public relations: theory and practice / edited by Jane Johnston and Clara Zawawi. Crows Nest, N.S.W. Allen & Unwin, 2004. 2nd ed

NOTE: for this weeks critque i commented on Nicole Marriplis 's blog