Course Description:
This course is divided into three main parts. The first is a quick overview of what Public Relations (PR) is, its historical development, the trends affecting PR today and how PR companies and departments work. The second discusses the key elements of PR work: research, planning, communication, evaluation and persuasion. This second part includes writing and speaking techniques that are essential for effective PR; considerable emphasis is given to press/media releases and relations with the media. Since students in this class will be participating in the Elevator Pitch Competition and the Triggering Change Pitch, our Public Speaking work will involve specific training to this end. The third concentrates on corporate reputation and crisis management.
Throughout, this course will discuss the increasing importance of ESG (Environment, Social and Governance) issues as they define the changing role of corporations, governments and institutions in society today. Specifically, this semester students will be learning about using PR for public campaigns. The class will be tasked with two hands-on projects: how to gain support the Ultra Low Emissions Zone (ULEZ) in London and for a hypothetical campaign to promote recycled drinking water in London.
Special attention will be devoted to the technique of storytelling and persuasion, and students will be expected to be able to create and evaluate a good story, one of the key strategies and techniques used in PR today to promote ideas, people and organizations.
Our work on research will emphasize the importance of developing an "Anthro lens" that helps develop seek an out-of-the-box understanding of situations.
Class readings and discussion will revolve around actual people, issues and companies which are shaping the world of PR in the US and abroad. This means that students are expected to read newspapers, magazines and journals and to be generally up to date on what's happening in PR. Free subscriptions to several media outlets are provided.
Class discussion is an important part of the course and contributions from students who typically have very diverse backgrounds is enriching for all involved. Class participation is therefore a must.
Course Objectives:
1. To understand the role of PR in public and private companies, governments, nonprofit organizations and agencies, in the U.S. and abroad, and to appreciate how the discussion on ESG is affecting these roles. Special emphasis is placed on public policy campaigns specifically on ESG issues.
2. To appreciate the value of PR in solving problems and shaping policy.
3. To understand the link between credibility and reputation, and how the concept of reputation is evolving.
4. To appreciate the ethical considerations involved in PR.
5. To recognize the composite nature of today’s publics and the challenges they pose for PR practitioners.
6. To appreciate the communication channels used in PR, how they are evolving, and how differently they must be addressed. Management of the media will be an important part of the learning outcomes.
7. To learn the basics of effective communication, both written and oral. Students will be expected to know how to write a press release and adapt it to different media in different countries. Students will participate in John Cabot's Elevator Pitch Competition, which aims at providing a venue for short, persuasive presentations, and will be expected to have mastered the fundamentals of effective Public Speaking.
8. To understand the principles of crisis management and how crises can be turned into opportunities. The role of apologies will be discussed at length.
9. To understand the importance of research in PR and to develop an "Anthro lens" in analysing complex situations.
10. To learn how to distinguish the key characteristics which help evaluate a PR plan.
11. To understand the bases of persuasion.
12. To know how to create an effective PR plan