Communications A-Z

Recent Grads in PR: Peer tips

2010-02-25T12:24:00.000-08:00

Here are some great tips for young PR professionals! I suggest reading this article!

Twitter as a Business Tool

2009-11-10T15:10:00.000-08:00

Twitter; a useful business tool

Although we have discussed the effectiveness of social media in our 440 Research course, it is clear that many are hesitant to accept applications like Twitter as an effective tool in business.

I have encountered many professionals at work and at the university that see little to no value in social media applications like Facebook and Twitter. I see these people as being resistant to change.

On Chris Brogan's blog on community and social media, he wrote an article on 50 Ideas on Using Twitter for Business.

Brogan breaks down these steps into, first steps, what to tweet, and scenarios to expect. This is an incredibly helpful list for someone who is new to Twitter. I would love to show this list to anyone who doubts the impact Twitter and social media can have.

I plan to use some of this advice into my own tweeting.

Writing for the Web vs. Print

2009-10-25T18:40:00.000-07:00

In my mass communications class we discussed the differences in writing for the Web, verses writing for print.

Our course instructor introduced us to "the expert" on writing for the Web, Jakob Nielsen. Nielsen, being an expert on Web readability, says that users don't read the Web, they scan. Professionals need to change their style for the medium they are using.

For example, a recent article in the Mankato Free Press by Robb Murray, "'Politics of Food', other hot topics at Women and Spirituality Conference," can be reworked to make the article more "Web friendly."

Women and Spirituality Conference

Minnesota State University, Mankato, will host nationally known keynote speaker, physicist and author Vandana Shiva for the Women and Spirituality Conference.

Shiva is an international sustainability leader and founder of Navdanya, a national Indian-based movement to protect resources and promote organic farming.

Join Shiva on Saturday, Oct. 31 starting at 11a.m. in the Centennial Student Union Ballroom for a discussion on "The Gendered Politics of Food."

The conference includes more than 100 workshops and discussions, such as "Nurturing Spirit by Embracing Inner Awareness in a Public School Setting" and "Finding the Balance of Masculine and Feminine Power: Astrological Keys for Healing Mother Earth and Ourselves."

For more information about the conference and to view the workshop schedule, take a look at the brochure posted on the MSU, Mankato Web site.

2009-10-20T19:21:00.000-07:00

After reading more from, "Putting the Public Back in Public Relations" I was intrigued by the guidelines for blogging. I realized how well these same basic guidelines could transfer to other social scenarios.

Basically, all guidelines come back to your basic social etiquette. Be polite, and as always, professional. It makes sense that you would use many of the same basic social courtesies online as you would in the real world. It is definitely helpful that Solis and Breakenridge break down more specific scenarios of blogging for those of us who are new to the practice, and those who need to be reminded or taught.

Not long ago, I was in a work place scenario where an older coworker was discrediting bloggers. He was a long time professional journalist who seemed to blame everything that was wrong with new journalism on blogs.

Being someone who reads professional blogs like Beth's blog, Mashable, and many more, I felt the need to politely point out professional blogs such as these. He proceeded with giving me a history lesson/ journalistic ethics review that summed up his opinion on my "generation" and our lack of interest in "real news."

After sitting through his lecture, I simply stated that he was not correct in saying that no one that writes online can value ethics and journalistic practices. I avoided interacting with him mostly after this, although he would occasionally be assigned to do an assignment online (which he hated) and would yell something like, "these stupid kids and their facebooks" or other such comments in my direction from time to time.

The moral of this winded recount is this, not only do bloggers need to learn etiquette with other bloggers, but professionals need to learn how to communicate with other professionals. In all cases, attempt to be as polite and professional as possible. Or there is always the ever popular, "do on to others as you would have them do on to you."

For those of you who are unfamiliar with social networking, here is a helpful video for you so that you can participate in the conversation if it comes up at work.

Skills to have for PR

2009-10-05T12:09:00.000-07:00

On Dave Fleet's blog he writes what he believes are the 14 key attributes for new public relations professionals today.

The key attributes were divided into traditional skills and new skills. Out of the skills listed, most were the basics. Some skills listed were good writing, communication skills and a good work ethic.

Some of the new skills that are necessary include blogging and social networking. Through my research methods class, I have already learned many of the "new skills" listed on Fleet's blog.

When it comes to new technology, I know I could learn more. As technology is always changing, one can never make the mistake of thinking he or she knows enough. Be self-motivated and get online and learn more. For me, I hope to be more familiar with html and coding by the end of the semester.

Are you talking to me, or with me?

2009-10-04T17:53:00.000-07:00

After reading the first few chapters of Putting the Public Back in Public Relations, I found myself pondering the differences between sending a message and communicating with the public.

As authors Brian Solis and Deirdre Breakendridge explain in the text, public relations needs to be more focused on a two way communication forum instead of a message being sent to an audience.

This brought me back to my intro to Mass Comm. class. I remember my instructor explaining that in mass communications it is difficult to always know your audiences reactions to your messages because the audience is often too big to collect an accurate response. Although this may be true, ignoring it is in my opinion the wrong attitude.

It is the responsibility of a public relations practitioner to go out and collect the most accurate public opinion possible. If we don't make an effort to know what the public thinks, how they feel and what they want, how can we do our job? How can we improve communication with the public if we are talking at them and not with them?

If you've ever had a class with a Professor who loves to lecture and never takes the time to realize that the class has no idea what he or she is talking about until everyone fails the first exam, you could probably relate to a public who feels likes no one is listening to their questions and concerns.

In case your mother never told you, communicating is a two part process: 1. Listening 2. Explaining. If you're just delivering a message, you've only done half the work.

Journalists vs. Bloggers

2009-09-13T09:20:00.000-07:00

One of my new favorite blogs to visit, The Bad Pitch Blog, is unique, entertaining and helpful. As a student studying public relations, it is incredibly helpful to encounter examples of professionals in media relations screwing up. This gives us the unique opportunity to learn from their mistakes.

A recent post I enjoyed from this site was titled, "The REAL Difference Between Journalists & Bloggers." The author explains that the biggest difference between the two professions is passion. The argument the post makes is that a journalist that receives a steady income is driven by both the passion to be a watchdog for the public (hopefully), and by his or her paycheck.

The blogger on the other hand, is almost always someone who is posting in his or her spare time. This means that at the end of the work day, after running errands and putting the kids to bed, he or she still wanders over to the computer and comes up with something to post into the bloggesphere.

Why do they do it? As the author explains, it is passion for the subject. No matter what you're blogging about, if you don't really care it shows.

Overall, I agree that someone who blogs without a paycheck is obviously passionate about their chosen subject. I would however interject that I have personally encountered many journalism students and professionals alike that are very passionate about their responsibility and profession. Many of these people are incredibly intelligent and could be making the big bucks in a different career, but choose journalism because they are passionate about it.

Like the author explained, passion is the difference between a job and a career.

Epic 2015

2009-09-02T17:44:00.000-07:00

In the YouTube video Epic 2015, they start by bringing the viewer through the evolution of the internet from invention, to the predicted state of the media in 2015.

According to the video (and my PR Research Instructor), Google has pretty much won the race for internet domination. With Google's extremely advanced system of search engines and Goggle News, Google has dominated the Web for years and will more than likely continue to do so in the future.

What does Google's success mean for the media? According to the video, they predict that Google will eventually bring an end to The New York Times.

Take a breath media enthusiasts and die hard journalists, this is only a prediction. For now...

So let's say The New York Times does collapse and become an idea of the past. What does this mean for professional communicators? Professional communicators have to continue to hold high standards for credibility, hard work and ethics. Professionals need to set an example for the rest of the online community.

And Audiences? People need to remember that even though we sometimes prefer to read entertaining stories, what we NEED to read and what we WANT to read is often very different.

Although these predictions may seem rather daunting, this blog will choose to remain optimistic about the future of the media and whatever it may bring.

Communicating professionally with Web 2.0

2009-08-30T17:31:00.000-07:00

Assistant Professor of Cultural Anthropology at Kansas State University, Michael Wesch, uploaded his first version of Web 2.0: The Machine is Us/ing Us, on YouTube in February 2007.

Wesch explains the concept of Web 2.0. This is the idea that with new easy to use programs like Facebook, YouTube, and Blogspot, people who are not computer savvy can connect and share information now more easily than ever before.

Wesch, being a professor of Anthropology, asks tough questions about what this whole new environment of shared information will mean in terms of redefining core societal topics such as: identity, privacy, authorship, copyright, commerce, governance, ethics and even love.

Although Wesch seems ready and willing to tackle all areas of life affected by Web 2.0, this blog will focus its attention on communication topics.

Under the 1st amendment we all have the freedom to communicate and express ourselves online. With just about everyone entering new information online, the reader has to develop a quick eye for accessing what can be considered reliable information.

Just as the reader needs to be intelligent with the information they consume online, the author needs to be even more careful about his or her own work. One can do this by knowing the copyright laws, keeping all presented work professional and being up-to-date and involved with social media on the Web.

Professionals do not need to advocate or promote the importance of credibility to their readers. Audiences are smart. When they find flaws and inconsistencies in what they read, they discredit it and move on to one of the another millions of options available for their viewing.

Be credible, be smart, be professional and your audience will follow you.

First Blog Post

2009-08-26T13:06:00.000-07:00

For Mass Comm. 440 I am starting a blog today. My instructor, Ellen Mrja, says everyone entering the field of social media should have a professional blog.