BSOC3608 at a glance
Course details
Teaching staff
Phil Graham: Coordinator,
Ipswich Campus
Building 12, Room 327
Phone 3381 1083
p.graham@business.uq.edu.au
Liz Ferrier: Senior Lecturer
Ipswich Campus
Course weighting and commitment
Credit points: 10
Committed student hours per week: 10
Assessment
1. Exam 40% Mid-semester 2. Assignment Proposal 20% Week 8 3. Major assignment 40%
Due last week of semester 2,500-3000–word analysis of a major media campaign or current issue.
Technology needs
This subject requires access to TK3 Reader, email, library databases, and internet. The address for the e-book is http://www.philgraham.net/BSOC3608WEB/BSOC3608.tk3
Overview
BSOC3608 is designed to give you an in-depth understanding of the processes, practices, institutions, and issues that will confront you when you deal with the media. The subject draws together traditional and emerging perspectives on media, and specifically addresses the changing media environment. You will gain critical skills, insights, and perspectives into the dynamic media landscape and understand what this means for the construction of corporate identity in the media.
Rationale
Media of communication are all-pervasive forces in society today, so much so that many of their effects are taken for granted. Most of us only see the surface phenomena of media: new product releases, PR messages, the latest scandal, corporate takeovers, advertisements, news programs, and so on. But underneath and beyond this fleeting mass of messages lies a network of institutions, practices, processes, and issues that remain largely hidden from public view. If we are to be effective communication managers, we need to know about these and how they affect society’s perceptions of our organization; how they relate to each other, and the hazards that engaging the media entail.
Most managers of any calibre, in any industry whatsoever, are likely to have to deal with the media at some stage of their career. In any case, the actions of management and businesses are coming under more scrutiny as media institutions take on global proportions. Global media are now located inside the workplace.
BSOC3608 is designed to give management students a grasp of the critical issues, institutions, and processes that make up what we call the media. Students of BSOC3608 will gain a critical approach to managing meaning in the media that will translate across many industries and contexts.
Specific Objectives
The objectives of BSOC3608 are to:
· develop a critical model for analysing and managing meaning through media;
· develop students’ understanding of the media environment and its associated institutions;
· understand the roles, uses, and functions of the advertising industry;
· understand the roles, uses, and functions of the public relations industry.
Content—Part A
Module 1 – Introduction and overview
Module 2: Thinking about media — media as technology, process, and content; media as pervasive practice; media as extension of human consciousness; as communication; strengths and weaknesses of the various perspectives; outline of assessment; media as a cultural practice.
Module 3: Media institutions: roles and functions — the difference between advertising and public relations; advertising and PR as genres of media practice; new media effects on advertising and PR; mixed genres and converging media; similarities and differences between what people in these industries do.
Module 4: Media modes, media spaces, and audience effects — media space and time; modes, media, genre, and audiences; interactions between media contexts, content, and technologies; media diary — close encounters with the media.
Module 5: Advertising: what it says about itself — advertising’s aims and claims; what good advertising should do; functional types of advertising; understanding what advertising can and cannot do; common elements of advertising across genres; methods for analysing campaigns.
Module 6 : Public relations and public crises — PR and the media; interdependence of journalism and PR media practices; the nature of crises; PR, publicity, and propaganda — the difference; the role of public opinion; public opinion and its manipulation; effective and ineffective PR; the marketplace of opinion; news values.
Content—Part B
Module 7: Media Strategies for Direct Communication I
Overview of integrated communication stategy by Adjunct Prof Dick Grantley.
Module 8: Media Strategies for Direct Communication II
Dick Grantley
Module 9: Direct Communication Workshop III
Workshop to develop a print instrument for direct communication
Module 10: Corporate Identity — conceptions of corporate identity; corporate identity and the media; aspects of corporate identity – internal, external, and longitudinal; resources deployed by corporations to construct identity; interplay of identity aspects; the dynamic conception of identity.
Module 11: Media, multimodality, and meaning — theoretical conception of the interplay between modes, media, and social contexts; music, language, and pictures — how they can mean; theories of meaning making; resources to deploy to make socially significant meaning; theory building in communication production and analysis.
Module 12: Towards a model for managing meaning — political economy of media; production values; cultural values; historical values; media as technology; the production of meaning; value relation; the economics of media space and time and their impact on the social world; distribution and lifecycle of media artifacts.
Teaching and learning strategies
Given the scope of BSOC3608, it is important that you are immediately focused on the work. The first five weeks is especially intense as you confront material that will be very new to you. The content of the teaching is very much led by what you derive from the readings. The course is aimed at giving you the opportunity to build an understanding of media practices based on your everyday interactions with the media. Teaching will be flexible and combine tutorials, group activities, and self-directed learning using the readings provided for you, the internet, and informal discussions in class. Modules 1–5 will expose you to the broader issues that the subject covers. Modules 6–10 will allow you to focus more on an issue of your own choosing.
Assessment
There are three main items of assessment. All items must be completed for a pass grade:
1. Research paper (40%) — 2,500-3000 word individual written assignment on a media issue or campaign to be agreed upon with your facilitator. You will choose a media campaign or issue that is relevant to BSOC3608 and analyse and present the issue. The due date will be the last week of semester. Make sure you read and understand the criteria sheet and discuss your project with your lecturers.
.
2. Mid-Semester Exam (40%) — Short answer exam on the first five modules presented in this course. The exam will be held in the mid-semester exam period and is subject to UQ Business School policies on exams.
3. Assignment Proposal (20%). Due week 8 of Semester. This .Make sure you read and understand the criteria sheet and discuss the proposal with your lecturers.
Assessment issues
Assessment criteria sheets are provided for the major items of assessment and these should be quite clear. If you have questions, ask your facilitator.
All assessment should be presented in a clear and coherent manner befitting communication professionals. Handwritten work is not acceptable for assignments. Late assignments will attract a penalty. If you are sick or have other extenuating circumstances, speak to your facilitator.
Plagiarism is unacceptable and will receive a mark of zero. You may also be liable for penalties under the University of Queensland's plagiarism policy.
Written assessment
Your main assignment might find its substance in a particular case study, a current media issue, or a particular aspect of the course that interests you. To attract an excellent mark, it will be analytical, rigorous, coherent, creative, and well-researched. Whatever the thrust of your assignment, it must meet the following basic criteria:
·Clearly identify and define a problem;
·Clearly identify the purpose of each section and how it relates to the overall paper;
· Use language, tone, and style appropriate to an academic research paper;
·Be free from technical errors;
·Be logically organised;
·Contain illustrations or graphics only where absolutely necessary;
·Be written in an accurate, confident, clear, and concise way;
·Lead the reader through the problem/issue/case (please use headings).
Note Well: This is NOT a report and should not look or read like a report.
Criteria sheets can be found here
Advertising, public relations, and corporate identity
Overview
BSOC3608 is divided into 3 parts. The aim of this first part is to introduce you to macro perspectives on the media and the institutions you will be dealing with. Before you begin to understand business use of media, you will need to understand what media do; the institutions involved in these processes; which people do what in these institutions; and, consequently, some of the key processes and circumstances that go together to make media industries the way they are.
In the first module of Part A we will consider media in general. The purpose of this module is to investigate media from a number of perspectives: as technologies, as contents, and as processes.
In the second module, we will consider, in the broadest sense, the functions of the advertising and public relations industries. Here, we will begin to look at genre as a defining feature of advertising and public relations practices.
In the third module, we will begin to think about the nature, content, form, and effects of different media, in particular television, radio, outdoor (billboards and posters), newspapers, magazines, and the internet. We investigate the strengths and weaknesses of these media, and consider media practices in terms of time and space; in terms of modalities, or the kinds of elements you can use within a particular medium; and in terms of audiences, and how they interact with media and modalities in particular times and spaces. An important concept in this module is the concept of media space. We use the conception of public and private space and investigate the way media functions within these.
In the fourth module, we will examine what advertising aims and claims to do; think about ways of measuring its effects; and see how these compare with an advertising campaign you have seen recently. Perceptions of advertising and its effects are often closely connected to assumptions about media effects in general. In this module we will see how the dynamics of mediation might affect all of these things.
In the fifth module, we focus on the relationship between public relations (PR) and the media. Media practices are only a small part of what PR practitioners do. While recognising that PR media practices constitute only a small part of what PR practitioners do, it’s a very important part, both to the corporation on whose behalf they do it; to the media institutions through which it is done; and for the communities affected by such practices. By this time, you should be well involved with your group and individual research projects.
By the end of Part A, we will have begun to grasp the complex relationships between business, media, audiences, and perceptions of the corporation. This is an important step because it helps us define the scope and nature of the sorts of problems we can and can’t solve by using media. On the other side, we should also be gaining an awareness of the problems we invariably create by using media.
Remember: If you have any questions about the material or concepts you encounter in BSOC3608, let your facilitator know. Keep a list of questions and discuss these in your groups.
Module 1 Thinking about media
(2004) 3rd Edition
Author: Phil Graham
With educational design by
Trish Andrews
Copyrighted materials reproduced herein on behalf of The University of Queensland, are used either under the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968 as amended, or as a result of application to the copyright owner. The material may not be reproduced in any manner except for the purposes of individual learning.
© The University of Queensland, 2004
ISBN 1 86499 216 6
Produced by the UQ Business School School
The University of Queensland
Overview
Today, media of communication are all-pervasive. They can impact upon all aspects of our waking life. But we rarely think about the degree to which the media affect our lives. And even when we do try to think about our media and how they affect us, we run into some very difficult problems. In this module, we’ll evaluate various ways to look at how media, the way people use these, and at how they affect societies, individuals, and each other. We’ll look at some of the assumptions we can make when deciding about how to think about media. We’ll look at media as technology, as content, and as process.
Learning Objectives
The objectives for Module 1 are to:
· understand the pervasive nature of media and the implications of this for management communication;
· understand the various ways in which media can be viewed: as technology, as content, as process;
· understand the strengths and weaknesses of these various perspectives;
· to identify some ethical problems that we may encounter when dealing with media in general.
Readings for Module 1
McLuhan, M. (1964). The medium is the Message. In Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man. (pp. 7–21). London: Routledge.
Silverstone, R. (1999). The texture of experience. In Why Study the Media? (pp. 1–17). London: Sage.
Postman, N. (1985). Now … This. In Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business. (pp. 101–115). London: Random House.
Media as technology, meaning, and process
We often take media for granted. And why wouldn’t we? They’re everywhere. Television, radio, the internet, cable television, books, newspapers, magazines, billboards, telephones, faxes, direct mail — the list is seemingly endless.
But as managers who will one day probably have to choose between media to achieve specific ends, it’s important to understand the potential of various media — what they can and can’t do; what they have and haven’t done; what they are usually used for; and the difference between what people claim can be achieved by using them, and what their real world effects are.
Even if you don’t have the luxury of deciding which media you might wish to use for a given purpose — in the case of a public relations crisis for instance — it’s important to understand the media, their uses, and their possible effects.
So — do we focus on the content of a medium? Or are we better off focusing on the medium as technology of a certain kind with its own unique effects in society? Or will we be better served to look at a medium as a set of processes? Are there other ways of looking at the media altogether?
There are no short and easy answers to these questions. Media are complex and abstract technological spaces filled with content that has unpredictable effects on people. They are also a set of interlocking institutions, filled with individuals from all backgrounds, all of whom have unique experiences and roles. Media are also cultural artifacts, loaded with culturally specific meanings that have effects that we can never predict with complete certainty.
So, as managers we need to be cautious about the media, and about using the media. What seems like a good idea can backfire and cost millions. A throwaway comment in the wrong media space at the wrong time can be disastrous for your organisation, and consequently for you. Misunderstanding or ignorance of the processes and institutions in the media can cause embarrassment, inflated costs, or outright failure in achieving your objectives.
To avoid such unpleasant experiences, the first thing we need is to understand the different ways in which we might assess the various media and their impacts. In this module, we’ll take three perspectives on media: as technology; as content (or message); and as process.
Read all the instructions below before you begin reading, thinking, and writing. Preparation
First read this
Reading 1.1
McLuhan, M. (1964). The medium is the Message. In Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man. (pp. 7–21). London: Routledge.
Learning tip
If you do not understand any part of the readings in BSOC3608, make a list of your difficulties and write questions that will help you better understand them. We will discuss them in class.
The medium or the message?
McLuhan is critical of approaches to media that focus only on “content”. Why would he even mention this? Isn’t content the only aspect of media that interests people who are trying to get their message across? Isn’t the message and its effectiveness the only thing that counts in business?
We need to think about these questions.
Marshall McLuhan’s (1964) most well-known legacy to media studies is this often-quoted statement: ‘the medium is the message’ (chapter 1). McLuhan’s thesis has been described as one of “technological determinism”. A technological determinist assumes that the technical aspects of a medium itself determine the effects the medium will have on society, regardless of its content. Whether or not McLuhan was as extreme as this in his intention is doubtful in some respects. Nevertheless, “technological determinism” is a very real theoretical problem for media studies: clearly, the medium has effects on how a message impacts upon an audience. Just as clearly, the content of a medium has very specific effects.
Then do the following
Write about one page on McLuhan’s view of media including your opinions. Include the following aspects, saying why you think what you do about McLuhan’s ideas:
· What does he mean when he is talking about the electric light bulb as a medium without content?
· What does he mean when he says that the content of a medium is always another medium?
· What are the implications of this for considering which media to choose when for specific purposes?
· Is McLuhan right? Is a focus on content the approach of a “technological idiot”? Why? Why not?
· Are McLuhan’s critics correct in describing him as a technological determinist?
Learning tip
Warning! Dictionary definitions of certain terms may not be appropriate to media studies. Like any other specialty, media studies has its own jargon. If you are unsure of what a word means, ask.
Read this next
Postman, N. (1985). Now … This. In Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business. (pp. 101–115). London: Random House.
Then do the following
Write a one-paragraph comparison of Postman’s and McLuhan’s positions. Postman focuses on content; McLuhan on media. That much is clear. What you need to do is compare the analytical approaches: what can a focus on the medium tell us? What can a focus on the message, or content, tell us? Which of these approaches is most useful for managers who wish to use media to communicate?
Then read
Silverstone, R. (1999). The texture of experience. In Why Study the Media? (pp. 1–12). London: Sage Publications.
Silverstone, R. (1999). Mediation. In Why Study the Media?
(pp. 13–18). London: Sage Publications.
Consider this as you read: This is a central chapter in thinking about the problems we are considering in this course. You need to read this chapter a bit more closely than the others. Silverstone is describing media as sets of processes and institutions. Why? What has the texture of experience got to do with being a manager and using the media?
Think about these questions as you read.
Then do the following
In about two paragraphs, summarise any advantages you can see in viewing the media as processes. Do you think this is a useful view for managers to take? Why? Why not?
Learning tip
Remember: As you read the chapters and write your summary, include questions that you want to ask to improve your understanding of the material. Do this throughout the course.
Discussion items for Module 1
Bring the following to class
1. Your summaries and questions (if you have questions).
2. Your understandings about the media. What has changed about how you think of the media?
Class discussion
Different approaches to media
In groups of three or four, discuss the three broad approaches to media that you have covered in the readings: media as technology, as content, and as process. You will have 15–20 minutes to do this, and then we’ll discuss it amongst the whole class. Issues will include:
· How does all this relate to the practice of advertising, PR, and corporate identity?
· How do you think these approaches will help you decide on how to choose and use media?
· Can you think of a better way to view media?
· Engaging the media: Uses and abuses.
As you may have noticed, all four authors we have introduced you to this module have focused on the social effects of media. In fact, a couple of them make quite overt value judgments about the use of media and its social effects. Here are a few questions to get you thinking about the ethical dimensions of media:
· Do you think that advertising, public relations, or other processes of corporate identity-building activities can have positive or negative effects on societies? Discuss this in your groups and think of an example that illustrates your point of view.
· If you were a censor, what would you censor? The medium? The message? Anything at all? Why? Why not?
· Think of something that you heard/saw/read in the media in the last week. Discuss this with your group. Tell each other why you remember it, where you were when you saw/heard it, and what you did just before and after you heard or saw it.
Bring the following to class and give it to your lecturer after class:
· Your summaries of McLuhan, Postman, and Silverstone. This should be about two pages altogether.
· A brief outline of what issue or campaign you intend to research and analyse during this course.
Media practices and genre
(2004) 3rd Edition
Author: Phil Graham
With educational design by
Trish Andrews
Copyrighted materials reproduced herein on behalf of The University of Queensland, are used either under the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968 as amended, or as a result of application to the copyright owner. The material may not be reproduced in any manner except for the purposes of individual learning.
© The University of Queensland, 2001
ISBN 1 86499 217 4
Produced by the Graduate School of Management
The University of QueenslandOverview
This is the second module of BSOC3608. Here, we will consider, in the broadest sense, differences between advertising and public relations. We will also begin to think in terms of genre to differentiate between specific forms of media practices.
Objectives
The objectives for Module 2 are to:
· be able to define the difference between public relations and advertising;
· be able to identify the functions and institutions that constitute these industries;
· recognise similarities and differences between what people in these industries do;
· to begin to think in terms of genre as a defining aspect.
Readings for Module 2
McQuail, D. (1994). Genres and methods of analysis. In Mass Communication Theory: An Introduction (3rd ed.). (pp. 263–280). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Myers, G. (1999). What do ads do? In Ad Worlds: Brands, Media, Audiences. (pp. 3–14.). London: Arnold.
Sheaves, B. (2004, 17 July). Like a virgin: why Rosie sold herself . The Daily Telegraph.
FileMaker Pro® web strategy
Make sure you check out the Filemaker Pro "Press Room".
Ignore the pdf files but have a look at everything from "Product Images" onwards.
What’s the difference?!
The central problem we face in this module is defining the differences and similarities between public relations and advertising as industries, professions, and practices. From some perspectives, the differences between the two are vast; from others, they can appear almost identical. By the end of this module, you should be able to define the media roles that public relations and advertising fill in a way that will help you to choose the most appropriate media approach as a manager.
First look at the Filemaker Pro Site
Then do the following activities
1. Think about what kind of site this is. Is it a news site? Is it advertising? Is it public relations? Why do you think so? Write down your answers to these questions and explain your reasons for thinking the way you do. At this point, you have not been exposed to any “textbook” definitions of public relations or advertising in BSOC3608. This exercise should help you clarify your own perceptions about these industries, and about what they are supposed to do.
Learning tip
We will consider some “textbook” definitions in class to see why it can be difficult to define advertising and public relations as clearly as we might like.
2. In a single newspaper or magazine, identify one advertisement and one public relations piece that you think is either good or bad. Write down:
· How you classified them as advertising and public relations pieces;
· Why you think they are good or bad.
You should write about a half to three-quarters of a page on this. Bring the pieces from the newspapers and your written assessment of them to class for discussion.
Learning tip
Remember! There are no right or wrong answers at this stage. What you are trying to do here is to examine your own perceptions about what advertising and public relations are, and what they are supposed to do.
Now do this
Go to the FileMaker Pro® web files. Follow the links and see if you can distinguish between the pages that are performing an advertising function and the pages that are performing a public relations function. Is there something else going on here, some other process or approach, perhaps? Have a close look at the “Product Images” page and think about what’s going on there. Who is this page for?
When you have spent a bit of time looking around, and thinking about these questions, write a paragraph or two to explain what’s going on at the FileMaker Pro site that could be confusing if we were trying to describe the difference between advertising and public relations. Write another paragraph describing what you think the Claris media strategy might be. Think about the following:
· The audience: who is FileMaker Pro® speaking to?
Learning tip
Think about where and when the audience will come into contact with the material.
· The media strategy: what might be advantageous about the way Claris has chosen its media mix? (e.g. have you seen an advertisement for FileMaker Pro® on television? Radio? Can you suggest reasons why or why not this is the case?)
Some media technologies are better suited to some tasks. Is that because of how they affect information, or the people who use them, or both?
· The effectiveness of their strategy: do you think they are likely to be successful with the approach they are using?
Success must be measured against something. How might they gauge the success of this campaign? What are, or might be, their objectives?
Why are we doing this?!
You might be getting frustrated around about now, and understandably so. If you are wondering about why you have to decide what advertising and public relations are, you are not alone. Some managers have to face this problem every day. Others feel more certain about distinguishing between the two, and have no such difficulties at all. But that is not necessarily a good thing because, as you can see, the lines are not necessarily clear cut.
If you feel that you need concrete definitions to guide you, then by all means go to the library and find some that suit you, or that you find helpful in sorting out the various functions that the FileMaker Pro® web pages are performing. A warning, though: advertising and public relations are activities that people do. As such, they do not exist as concrete “things” with hard and fast rules written in stone somewhere. Worse, they are communication practices, and so are even less predictable and definable. They are also activities designed to get noticed in a cluttered and quickly changing media environment, one that is forcing professionals to rethink the way they do almost everything.
Little wonder that we have trouble saying which is which and what is what in such a situation.
Reflection
Think back to Module 1. Are we trying to sort out issues of media content, technologies, or processes here? Or are the difficulties of an entirely different nature?
Learning tip
Hint: Start to think about advertising and public relations in terms of genre. Genre means a “generic” form or "type" of thing, like a “Western” film, or a particular literary form, like a romance novel.
Now read
McQuail, D. (1994). Genres and methods of analysis. In Mass Communication Theory: An Introduction (3rd ed.). (pp. 263–280). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Note
McQuail’s definition of genre on page 263 is useful for our purposes here. On page 264, McQuail refers to (Stuart) Hall, saying that, ‘[i]n his analysis, genre depends on the use of a particular “code” or meaning system, which can draw on some consensus about meaning among users of the code …’. Rather than think of genre in terms of codes or sign systems, try to think of genre as being a “rhetorical mode” (J. R. Martin, 2000). Rhetoric, in a traditional sense, means the practice of persuasion. A broad way of thinking about a rhetorical mode is to ask how a message is structured to maximise its persuasive force.
Judging maximum persuasive force depends on where, when, how, why, and for whom — and by whom — a particular genre is used. For example, a physicist presenting new and contentious findings would not put these findings forward using the genre of a Shakespearean sonnet. Rather, the findings will be presented in strict accordance with the traditions of the particular branch of physics to which the scientist belongs.
Now do this
Using the definitions that you have written, try to list what you see as the defining features of advertising and public relations in terms of genre. Use the second and fifth dot points on page 267 of McQuail’s chapter to do this. If you find it necessary, or useful to use the others, do so.
You should write about a half to three-quarters of a page on this. You can do it in dot-point format if you want.
Now read
Myers, G. (1999). What do ads do? In Ad Worlds: Brands, Media, Audiences. (pp. 3–14). London: Arnold.
You will notice that Myers brings to our attention a few uncomfortable realities: that advertising is ‘unpredictable’ in its effects; that ‘the rules of success are uncodified’ in the field of advertising (even after almost two centuries of practice!); and, perhaps not surprisingly, advertisements are part of modern culture and they affect ‘every institution in our society’.
To make matters even more confusing, advertising not only affects institutions by being broadcast and distributed en masse, it also affects all sorts of institutions because most of them have to act as advertisers at some time or other, even advertising or PR agencies themselves. Take a quick look at these sites:
http://www.yr.com/
http://www.ogilvy.com/press
PepsiSmash
The first appears to be an advertisement for an advertising agency that uses advertisements for other companies to advertise itself. The second is a press release about a "viral" advertisement leaked to the internet that you may have seen. The third is a cola company’s web page filled with pop music artist paraphernalia, presumably to promote cola. What’s going on here?!
Now do this
Think about an institution (other than your family), business or non-business, that you know of which does not engage in advertising. Write the name of the institution down, then write about how you came to know that the institution exists.
Then do this
In all the advertisements and press releases you have been looking at in this module, identify the elements used in the advertisement or press release. Divide these into:
· Media type;
· Message type (advertising or PR or something else);
· The elements of the text (print, audio, video, still image, typeface, logo, etc.);
· The types of roles, functions, and skills that you think may have been needed to produce the pieces;
· A summary of the genre.
Use an array of columns to organise your thoughts.
This will take some time, but it will be worth it. Try to be as detailed as possible in describing the articles.
Learning tip
Hint: If you have decided on a campaign for your research project, you should include something from that here. It will help you begin getting things into perspective.
Then do this
Think about the relationship between genre and audience that the authors of these pieces are trying to establish: What expectations do the authors have of the audience? What expectations do you think are actually being met? What relationships are being developed by the owners of the websites, both between the companies and their customers, and between institutions? (You need to think about the institutions who will use the pieces, as well as the institutions involved in making them.) How does genre help or hinder us in thinking about these aspects?
Write a brief summary of your thoughts on these questions, about a half-page.
Classroom prep for Module 2
Bring the following to class
1. Your description of the Filemaker Pro site.
2. Your newspaper or magazine clippings of an advertisement and a PR piece, along with your assessments of these.
3. Your list of defining generic features for advertising and public relations.
4. Your table of descriptions and a half-page summary of the pieces we looked at in this module.
5. Any questions you have.
The following questions will guide discussions
Genre
· Was it hard for you initially to describe a clear difference between advertising and PR? Why? Why not? Does the concept of genre help?
· What have you noticed about the genres of PR and advertising? (e.g. degrees of entertainment and news; genres within genres)
· How do you think the use of genre helps establish relationships between institutions and their audiences?
Media, advertising, and PR
In Module 1, we looked at media as process, as content, and as technology. In Module 2, we have discussed genre as a set of defining features and started to look at the various processes and functions involved in producing the broad generic forms we have investigated. In your group, choose one of the print articles you have brought along to class, and define the article according to your own generic (genre) categories. What institutions might have been involved in producing the piece?
Using the same print article, and its generic attributes, think about other similar examples. List these and see if you can identify an audience. List your rationale for identifying these audiences.
Genre is also useful for defining differences. Compare the same article with another that is different. What is different? What is the same? Is it aimed at a different audience?
Again, using the same piece, outline what you think the overall message strategy might have been, and how this might fit strategically in to a larger media campaign.
· How do the interactions of genres, media, and audiences affect perceptions: Do they reinforce certain expectations? Do they break certain expectations? If so, how do they do this?
Give the following to your lecturer after class:
· Your description of the Filemaker site.
· Your newspaper or magazine clippings of an advertisement and a PR piece, along with your assessments of these.
· Your list of defining generic features for advertising and public relations.
· Your table of descriptions and a half-page summary of the pieces we looked at in this module.
table 2.1 (suggested table for defining genre)
Media modes, media spaces, and audience effects
(2004) 3rd Edition
Author: Phi Graham
With educational design by
Trish Andrews
Copyrighted materials reproduced herein on behalf of The University of Queensland, are used either under the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968 as amended, or as a result of application to the copyright owner. The material may not be reproduced in any manner except for the purposes of individual learning.
© The University of Queensland, 2001
ISBN 1 86499 218 2
Produced by the UQ Business School
The University of Queensland
Media modes, media spaces, and audience effects
Overview of the topic
In this module, we look at the strengths and weaknesses of particular media technologies. We will consider media practices in terms of time and space; in terms of mode (or the kinds of resources you can use within a particular medium; and in terms of audiences, with particular reference to how they interact with media and modes at particular times and in particular spaces.
Learning Objectives
The objectives for Module 3 are to:
· introduce you to the concept of modality;
· increase your awareness of media space and time;
· introduce you to new ways of thinking about the relationship between media and audiences.
Readings for Module 3
Myers, G. (1999). In Ad Worlds: Brands, Media, Audiences.
(pp. 84–92). London: Arnold.
Silverstone, R., & Haddon, L. (1996). Design and the Domestication of Information and Communication Technologies: Technical Change and Everyday Life. In R. Mansell & R. Silverstone (Eds.), Communication by Design: The Politics of Information and Communication Technologies. (pp. 44–74). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Wolf, M. J. (1999). The Battle for Your Attention. In The Entertainment Economy: How Mega-Media Forces Are Transforming Our Lives. (pp. 82–116). New York: Times Books.Broadcast media: “the very idea!”
Home invasion
Common misapprehensions about the nature of media can be seen in the early arguments about the expected effects of radio. Radio, it was often thought, was an invasion of space:
Writing on “Air as Raw Material” in the Annals of the American Academy for March, 1924, Walter S. Rogers, American adviser to the Peace conference in Paris, said that one of the serious problems in dealing with the subject of international electrical communications was the question of who owns the right to use space for communication purposes …
Of course air has nothing to do with the matter, whether as raw material or otherwise. Nothing is property unless it can be reduced to possession and exclusively occupied and held. The newspapers of Washington D.C., called attention, some few years ago, to the purchase of space overlying a lot of ground by the owner of a tall building adjoining, in order to secure the right to the perpetual use of whatever light and air might fill that space. Air drifts in and out with every zephyr, and light passes through at the rate of 186,000 miles per second.
The purchaser can only own so much of them as he can use. What he bought was something more imponderable than light. In economics it is known as land, or natural resources; in everyday English it is space.
Source: Childs, W.W. (1924). Problems in the Radio Industry. The American Economic Review, 14, (3), p. 521.
Childs goes on to say that:
[i]t is a faulty analysis which discovers some new kind of property in the possibilities revealed by science. Property in real estate is not only exclusive, but inclusive –it embraces all possibilities. A scientific interloper has no more right to start an injurious or offensive commotion among electric or radio vibrations within my space than he [sic] has to drive a horse and cart through it or set off a ton of dynamite’ (p. 521).
Now, this gives us an excellent and interesting insight into the typical confusions caused by the emergence of new media. People take a long time to understand them, if they ever do. Usually we just end up taking media and their effects for granted — until a new medium comes along, or until something like the disasters of World War II happen.
The excitement about the internet is nothing new, but it does raise some interesting questions and issues. Like Childs, many people are outraged or befuddled or excited or doing entirely outlandish things, all because a new medium is making its effects noticed (mostly in the old media!). The space that Childs is talking about is nothing like land or homes. It is, indeed, nothing like airspace. It’s another sort of space altogether …but what?!
As you work through this module, you should be aware of your own interactions with media: where do you interact with them?; at what times?; what else is happening at the same time?
Is it odd that people might be having sex in front of the television while the late-night news is on? At such a moment, we would see the intermingling of the most intimate and public aspects of social life:
“The death toll in the Eritrean flood rose to over one million today …” .
“Ooooh … baby, oooooh!!!! … ”
And so on.
The point is that prior to radio, the mixing of the public and private spheres to such an intense degree was impossible. News came by telegraph, newspaper, post, or word of mouth. Nobody was pumping a flood of moving pictures and sounds — intrusive forms of media — into homes 24 hours a day. Consequently, the public and private were distinctly different spheres, at least for large numbers of people. Today, there is no such clear distinction. The most intimate personal experiences are bought and sold in the media, and the sheer amount and diversity of available media information is literally immeasurable.
Learning tip
You should keep the following issues in mind when you are writing your media diary.
Throughout this module you should think about the following:
· Where, when, and why you encounter media;
· What sort of media you encounter;
· What elements they deploy (music, pictures, text, sound);
· What effects media processes have on you;
· What effects you think they might have on someone else;
· What you remember from yesterday’s media encounters;
· What aspects of your life do not include media;
· How much time you spend engaged in the media;
· What else happens at the same time.
Activity
Media diary — instructions
Throughout this module, keep a media diary. Ideally, you would keep note of every encounter with media, but you will find that to be impossible. Nevertheless, be as detailed as you can. If a media event strikes you as odd or interesting or significant in some way — for whatever reason — make sure you make a note of it. Try and work out what makes it unusual or striking. At the end of each day, remember to briefly summarise your impressions of the day’s media events. But before you do this each day, and before looking at your previous day’s diary entries, think about what you most remember about yesterday’s media experiences. Write that down first each day. It doesn’t matter if you can’t remember any of yesterday’s media events; in fact, in many cases you won’t, and this in itself is a significant lesson.
Now read this
Myers, G. (1999). In Ad Worlds: Brands, Media, Audiences.
(pp. 84–92). London: Arnold. Start from the heading: “Exile from advertising: tobacco ads”.
Notes to this reading
Tobacco and transposing messages across media
Myers briefly tracks the movement of the tobacco industry as it is chased by legislative pressure from one medium to another. Think about this for a moment. Can we merely take one form of advertising, for instance, an advertisement made for the newspaper, and transfer it to the radio, the television, or the internet? Why? Why not?
Think about the elements and processes involved in producing an advertisement for a newspaper or magazine.
What elements do we have to play with and deploy?
In newspapers and magazines we have words, drawings, and photographs (not counting the now-defunct “scratch-n-smell” patches popular in the mid-1970s!). But even within this array of resources, we have different modes: we have hand-drawn art as opposed to computer-generated art. We have product-oriented WYSIWYG photographs. We have composite, “fantasy” photographic art, again generated by computers. We have cartoons; a million different typefaces; myriad colour combinations; black-and-white and shades of grey; different thicknesses of paper, in glossy or matt.
When we move to radio, though, what do we have? What about television? The internet?
Each medium has its production elements, which are also restrictions. On radio, we only have sound to work with. But we can do things with radio that are impossible in print. How do we manipulate sound to achieve our objectives?
In your media diary, try to keep a track of anything you find novel or unusual on the radio, or in print.
What does all this have to do with moving between media?
How do we create a coherent image with consistent and favourable associations for a brand of products or services using different media? You might wish to compare the modes and resources used in a single campaign for your media diary. This may assist you in your major assignment.
Learning tip
Make sure you read the conclusion in Myers (pp. 91–92). Here, he briefly outlines the links between some of the modalities (i.e. between print and pictures, for instance) that are deployed within media and the kinds of meanings that can be more easily made with them. He also gives a brief outline of some of the practices that are bound up with media forms. If you want to, you can read the entire chapter, which will be available in the library.
Part of the furniture
Media are felt everywhere: in your house, your car, along the sides of the road, in the mall, in your bedroom. They have, quite literally, become part of the furniture. Even CD and video storage has become an item of furniture, often a central part.
Now read this
Silverstone, R., & Haddon, L. (1996). Design and the Domestication of Information and Communication Technologies: Technical Change and Everyday Life. In R. Mansell & R. Silverstone (Eds.), Communication by Design: The Politics of Information and Communication Technologies. (pp. 44–74). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Think about this
In the not-too-distant past, there was a Fisher and Paykel advertisement for a washing machine. It was set along what seemed like the River Ganges. People were gathered around it thrashing clothes on the top of the washing machine, using it for exactly the purpose it was built for, but in an entirely different way, we assume, than that which the manufacturer had in mind.
This is, in part, a metaphor for what Silverstone and Haddon are telling us.
Media diary
Be aware of your immediate environment. How have media technologies “settled in” to the areas in which you live and work? Do you consider them in terms of their public nature, i.e. as representatives of the public that occupy your most private spaces? Do you ever feel that media intrude into your private space? Why? When?
Think about this and include any thoughts you have somewhere in your media diary.
“May I have your attention please!”
That, of course, is not a question. It generally means “SHUT UP AND LISTEN TO ME!!!” When corporations spend money on media messages, they firstly want you to notice them. They want your attention. But do you want to pay attention? The notion of paying attention has led to the metaphor of the “attention economy” (rstmonday.dk/issues/issue2_4/goldhaber/" http://www.firstmonday.dk/issues/issue2_4/goldhaber/ http://www.fi) coming into use in the last few years. In fact, Worrall Communications (http://www.worrall.net/content/home.html http://www.worrall.net/content/home.html) has apparently registered the “attention economy”TM as a trademark! Attention, presumably, is the scarce resource … but for whom? And furthermore, why has it become scarce? Think about this question as you do the next reading.
Now read this
Wolf, M. J. (1999). The Battle for Your Attention. In The Entertainment Economy: How Mega-Media Forces Are Transforming Our Lives. (pp. 82–116). New York: Times Books.
Notes to the Wolf reading and more media diary notes
The title of Wolf’s chapter is “The Battle for Your Attention”. Here, again, we see the relationship between journalistic practices, media, and audiences. Your media diary will, to a large extent, reflect those media events that take or get your attention. But what else happens? Do they change the way you think or act? Do they spur you on to go and buy something? Do they annoy or offend you? Do they influence your opinion on important matters? Or do they merely get your attention?
Many advertisements and public relations events do not have the consequences that their designers intended. This can be clearly seen in the John Laws “cash for comment” affair. The first step of all successful media practices for business is to get attention, and almost all media events manage to do this to some degree. But attention is not usually enough.
Nevertheless, media practices seem to be becoming oriented solely towards getting attention, often at the expense of all other effects. According to Wolf, this is because of media and/or audience fragmentation.
Media diary
Think about all the different media you use and how (or even if) the media practices of corporations influence you. If a corporation wanted to reach you every time you interacted with media, how many media would the corporation have to occupy? Include video games, videos, outdoor advertising, news — any media that you use.
Record your thoughts in your media diary. It might take a few days before you realise exactly how much media you come into contact with.
Summary of Module 3
Your media diary should give you some insights into your own media habits, and into your own perceptions of media. It should also give you some insights into the possibly transparent effects that all-pervasive media have. It might take a few days before you realise exactly how much media you come into contact with, and even longer to work out what effects this might have.
In this module, we have focused on the resources that people have to deliver media messages (typography, pictures, words, sound, music, colour, and so on). We have called these modalities. We have seen how modalities work in different media, and how media processes pervade our lives, our homes, our streets, and even our clothing.
Learning tip
Remember! Think of media as a set of processes that people do. This will make it easier for you to grasp the essential characteristics that you will need to understand for successful media practices. Once you think of media as a collection of technological “things”, all sorts of confusions follow.
Classroom activity for Module 3
Bring the following to class
1. Your media diary.
2. A half-page summary of what you have learnt from keeping your media diary.
In class we will use these questions as a discussion guide.
Media …
· What were the most striking things you learnt about your interactions with media?
· Has keeping the media diary changed how you view the process of mediation?
· Have you noticed any specific strengths or weaknesses in certain media?
Modes …
· What combination of modes from the following list are you likely to respond to?
Music
Sound in general
Moving pictures
Photography
Written text
Spoken words
· What are the advantages and limitations of the modes outlined above?
· Think about pre-telegraph societies: what differences can we identify or perhaps imagine in the media environment, especially where the modes available for deploying in mediation are concerned?
Audience effects — time and space
· Where are you when you are most affected by media?
· What else is usually happening?
· What effects do your media interactions have on you?
· Do you think that you are representative of a typical audience?
· How often are you in the company of other people when you interact with media?
· Does the presence of other people affect how you use media?
· What does this tell you?
General discussion
If you get time, talk about the notion of media time and space; about the idea of an attention economy (who pays what to whom?); and about the place of media technologies in the home.
Learning Portfolio exercise 3
Due: Before class starts
Give the following information to your facilitator after class:
· Your media diary.
· The half-page summary of your media diary.
BSOC3608 Advertising, Public Relations, and Corporate Identity
Module 4
Advertising: What it says about itself
(2001) 1st Edition
Author: Philip Graham
With educational design by
Trish Andrews
Copyrighted materials reproduced herein on behalf of The University of Queensland, are used either under the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968 as amended, or as a result of application to the copyright owner. The material may not be reproduced in any manner except for the purposes of individual learning.
© The University of Queensland, 2001
ISBN 1 86499 219 0
Produced by the UQ Business School
The University of Queensland
Advertising: What it says about itself
Overview
In this module we will examine what advertising aims and claims to do; think about ways of measuring its effects; and see how these compare with an advertising campaign you have seen recently. Perceptions of advertising and its effects are often closely connected to assumptions about media effects in general. In this module we will see how the dynamics of mediation might change all of these things.
Objectives
The objectives for Module 3 are to:
· understand what advertising sets out to achieve;
· develop skills and methods to identify which objectives an advertisement can or cannot meet;
· apply these skills by briefly analysing one element of an advertising campaign.
Readings for Module 4
Ogilvy, D. (1983). How to make TV commercials that sell. In Ogilvy on Advertising. (pp. 102–116). London: Pan Books.
Wells, W., Burnett, J., & Moriarty, S. (2000). Introduction to Advertising. In Advertising: Principles and Practice (5th ed.).
(pp. 1–25). New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Advertising
Claims and aims
Nobody will ever seem more certain about the power of advertising than the person who is selling the services of an advertising agency or a media outlet. The reality is, of course, far more sticky. In any case, we need to know why we are advertising before we start. If the purpose of advertising is to create brand awareness, the outcomes are far more difficult to measure than if we are trying to increase floor traffic during a particular period, or trying to sell a specific quantity of a particular product. The latter two, we can just count. The former, though, requires field research.
During this module, we’ll see what different purposes advertising can set out to achieve. Among these, we will identify common elements of the advertising message which are considered necessary for effective outcomes. The first of these common elements is, of course, attention.
Throughout your reading, you will need to keep one element of a current advertising campaign in mind and keep comparing this to the objectives of advertising.
Read this first
Wells, W., Burnett, J., & Moriarty, S. (2000). Introduction to Advertising. In Advertising: Principles and Practice (5th ed.).
(pp. 1–25). New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Then do the following
1. Try to find an advertisement that answers all the criteria of “what makes an ad great?” (Wells et al., 2000, p. 3).
2. Choose an advertisement, ideally one from the campaign that you are analysing for your major assignment, and see which of the criteria you think it would answer, and which ones it wouldn’t. Write down why you think it does or doesn’t meet the criteria. How would we measure, for instance, “attitude change”?
3. Which of these criteria do you think would be hardest or easiest to measure? Why?
4. Which is most important? Why?
5. Write down your answers. About a half-page should be plenty for this.
Types of advertising
Wells et al. list 9 functional types of advertising (pp. 8–9). Are these mutually exclusive functions? The answer is: no. They happen all at once and should be seen as different aspects of advertising objectives, or as advertising that emphasise one or more of these functional objectives (for example, business-to-business advertising in papers like the Australian Financial Review can also create brand awareness). The question ought not to be “which of these types of advertising do I want to do?” Rather, you should select your approach on the basis of the question “which of these aspects do I want to emphasise most?” because all or most of these functional aspects will be present to some degree in a given advertisement.
Now do the following
Using the same advertisement as you did in the first exercise, identify the various functions that your ad performs in terms of those outlined by Wells et al. (pp. 8–9). Answer the following questions:
1. What do you think was the primary function of the advertisement?
Why?
2. Do you think the ad successfully performs this function?
Why?
Note:
If you want to say that the ad is unsuccessfully performing a function, you might find that the last two questions are loaded: you have identified the function and must say why it has not worked as such.
Learning tip
Don't forget! All these functional aspects will help in defining the genre of an advertisement. Also, the medium you choose will highlight one or more of the functions of advertising. For instance, television is not the most obvious medium for business-to-business advertising.
Write about a quarter to a half-page for you answers.
Now read
Ogilvy, D. (1983). How to make TV commercials that sell. In Ogilvy on Advertising. (pp. 102–116). London: Pan Books.
Notes to this reading
David Ogilvy is seminal in 20th century advertising. If you are interested in how modern advertising got to be the way it is, anything by Ogilvy is worth reading, especially Confessions of an Ad Man (1964/1971) and Blood, Brains, and Beer (1978). These are both in the UQ library and they are recommended reading.
In this chapter, Ogilvy is discussing a particular functional type of advertising (corporate advertising) and what makes this type of advertising “good”, or successful (surprisingly enough, the two terms need not necessarily mean the same thing in the advertising world! He means “successful” here).
Make sure that when you read his “sixteen tips” for good advertising, you think about their limits, and the limits of their generalisations. Also note that things change, especially in culture. Advertising is a culture-bound activity and must therefore respond to changes in culture. But it also changes culture!
In this reading, you’ll see what advertising creatives call a storyboard, which is often the way television and print campaigns are presented to a client. Radio is almost always presented in audio (the reasons for this may be clear to you now. If they are not, we need to discuss this in class).
I want you to start thinking about the phenomenon of using celebrity sports stars in advertisements. Is it a good idea? Why? Why not? Under what conditions might it be the best “strategy”?
Classroom activity for Module 4
Bring the following to class
· A list of things you found interesting in the reading.
· Your answers to the activities associated with reading one (Wells et al.).
· A copy of the advertisements you used to answer the questions.
· Your thoughts on the Ogilvy reading (brief notes are fine. You won’t have to hand these in).
Smart beep ™ “Blind date” and Terry Tate Reebok advertisements
In class, we’ll discuss the ad which can be found at this address:
http://www.detmer.com/video/videos/Beep.qt http://www.askdavis.com/movies/smart-beep-first-date.mov ACIL
http://www.philgraham.net/tt.asx
If you have trouble accessing the ad, let your l;ecturer know. Also contact to ITS for help (hopefully you will have no problems).
Learning tip
You will most probably need to be on campus to retrieve the multimedia artifacts like the Smartbeep advertisement. The files are usually quite large and you may be unsuccessful at home. Either that, or you will just get frustrated waiting for the things to download.
Questions to think about:
· Is this a good advertisement? Why?
· What is the basis of its appeal?
· What has the “plot” got to do with the product?
· What does this tell us about the nature of advertising?
· What elements is the producer using to cover the criteria of “great ads” and which elements are addressed in the advertisement (Wells et.al.)?
· We will discuss all these questions in class.
Experiential activity
Imagine that you have a product to advertise. It’s a mobile phone service for regional Australia that has set itself up in opposition to Telstra. In your groups, discuss various ways you could develop an advertising appeal, including some of the elements and strategies you would use. You may use any combination of media you wish and the budget is unrestricted (this hardly ever happens except when a government goes to war or wants to implement a goods and services tax). Keep a note, not only of the types of appeals you have chosen, but of the factors that have led you to formulate the appeal this way.
Write your strategies and appoint a spokesperson for the group to report to the rest of the class.
Learning portfolio exercise 4
Give the following information to your facilitator after class:
· Your answers to the activities associated with reading one (Wells et al.).
· A copy of the advertisements you used to answer the questions.
Suggested further reading on advertising
Ogilvy, D. (1978). Blood, brains & beer: the autobiography of David Ogilvy. London: Hamilton.
Ogilvy, D. (1971). Confessions of an advertising man. New York: Ballantine.
Supplementary Reading
McLuhan, M. (1964). Ads. In Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man. (pp.226–233). London: Routledge.
Module 5
Public relations and public crises
(2001) 1st Edition
Author: Philip Graham
With educational design by
Trish Andrews
Copyrighted materials reproduced herein on behalf of The University of Queensland, are used either under the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968 as amended, or as a result of application to the copyright owner. The material may not be reproduced in any manner except for the purposes of individual learning.
© The University of Queensland, 2001
ISBN 1 86499 220 4
Produced by the UQ Business School
The University of Queensland
Public relations and public crises
Overview of the topic
In this module we will focus on the relationship between public relations (PR) and the media. Media practices are only a small part of what PR practitioners do. They also engage in negotiations with lobby groups, with interest groups, with people who are disgruntled by corporate decisions or actions, and so on. PR also defines any number of “publics”, including the employees of the organisation. While recognising that PR media practices constitute only a small part of what PR practitioners do, we note that it’s a very important part, both to the corporation on whose behalf they do it; to the media, through which it is done; and for the communities affected by such practices taking place.
PR and the media have a long and controversial relationship. Many people feel that PR “spin” is nothing short of propaganda. See, for example, these websites:
http://www.motherjones.com/mother_jones/SO97/blow.html http://www.motherjones.com/mother_jones/SO97/blow.html
http://www.mojones.com/mother_jones/ND97/sipple.html http://www.mojones.com/mother_jones/ND97/sipple.html
http://www.prwatch.org/books/index.html http://www.prwatch.org/books/index.html
http://www.prwatch.org/prw_issues/ http://www.prwatch.org/prw_issues/
http://www.prwatch.org/prw_issues/1996-Q4/index.html http://www.prwatch.org/prw_issues/1996-Q4/index.html
However, it is not the case that PR is inherently bad or propagandistic. Every company needs publicity at some stage or other, and these are not necessarily malevolent occasions (although they sometimes are). Some businesses, individuals, or government departments get publicity precisely when they don’t want it, and this will be a major focus of this module.
Objectives
The objectives for Module 5 are to:
· be aware of why people choose to use a public relations approach rather than advertising;
· understand when and when not to use PR;
· understand the crisis potential of media use in general;
· understand the nature of media crises, especially as they relate to PR.
Readings for Module 5
Bernays, E. (1928). Manipulating public opinion: the how and the why. American Journal of Sociology, 33, (6), 958–971. (Available at http://www.jstor.org http://www.jstor.org — you must enter this database through a UQ computer account.)
Bleifuss, J. (1999). Ethics for Beginners: PR faces a Skeptical Public. PR Watch [On-Line], 3, (4). Retrieved June 8, 2000 from the World Wide Web: http://www.prwatch.org/prw_issues/1996-Q4/index.html http://www.prwatch.org/prw_issues/1996-Q4/index.html.
Granato, L. (1991). News value. In Reporting & Writing News.
(pp. 29–41). Sydney, Australia: Prentice Hall.
Takeshita, T. (1997). Exploring the Media’s Roles in Defining Reality: From Issue-Agenda Setting to Attribute-Agenda Setting. In M. McCombs, L. Shaw, & D. Weaver, (Eds.), Communication and Democracy: Exploring the Intellectual Frontiers in Agenda-Setting Theory. (pp. 15–27). London: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Publicity, propaganda, and PR: what’s the difference?
Edward Bernays is, wrongly or rightly, generally considered to be the “father” of PR. But the first recognisably modern PR campaigns were probably conducted by the Creel Committee, a US government organisation dedicated to preparing an isolationist US population to engage in a vicious war in Europe against Germany (WWI) (Lutz, 1933). By the late 1920s, radio had taken on mythical proportions of much the same magnitude as information and communication technologies (ICT) have today and public opinion became seen, literally, as a commodity (cf. Bernays, 1928).
Probably the easiest way to cut through the theoretical issues and define propaganda is to rely on the notion of consensus. When government, business, bureaucracy, and the media are putting out the same message about a particular issue of public significance for a sustained length of time, we can safely say that we are in the midst of a propaganda. Propaganda is not necessarily false. Nor is it necessarily true. It is merely the propagation of a particular point of view by all organs of the state for the purpose of promoting a particular attitude amongst as many people as possible. If we were clever and persistent enough, we could probably measure such phenomena in terms of the weight and energy of communicative materials dedicated to putting forth a point of view (in this sense, “the weight of opinion” has a very real meaning!).
Learning tip
It has long been recognised that consensus can be manufactured. But not by one group of people. And even at the height of a propaganda, many people are likely not to hold the dominant opinion as being true, even if it is.
Possibly because modern propaganda, PR, and, as it became known, “public opinion studies”, originated as an organ of the military in modern states, it saw, and still sees itself in many cases, as an essential part of the “fight” for democracy. This is clearly an assertion open to debate. Here are some words from George Creel, the namesake of the Creel Committee, that demonstrate this patriotic claim attitude impeccably:
Without national unity, based on high resolves and unfaltering determinations, the courage of the firing line is bound to be weakened, for the morale of the firing line is bound to be weakened, for the morale of the army derives from the morale of the nation, of which the army is only the fighting part. Ask any admiral or general, and he will admit that propaganda – the fight for public opinion – is as integral a part of any war machine as ships, guns, and planes. The “mind” of a people must be mobilised as well as its man-power. (Creel, 1941,
p. 340)
From its inception, modern PR has maintained that it is essential to democracy (Bernays, 1928). That remains the case today. For instance, Jowett and O’Donnell (1999) define propaganda as ‘the deliberate, systematic attempt to shape perceptions, manipulate cognitions, and direct behavior to achieve a response that furthers the desired intent of the propagandist’ (p. 6). They include advertising and public relations campaigns as propaganda, but exclude certain other forms of persuasion (although it’s not quite clear which). They also claim that propaganda agencies are ‘essential’ (but they don’t say why). This is an unhelpful definition that doesn’t take into account the diversity of opinions on “offer” in the marketplace of ideas. Advertising is part of propaganda strategy, but it isn’t always propaganda; sometimes, it is simply advertising. Similarly with PR.
The dangers of propaganda for governments are very much the same as the dangers of PR for business (remember, we are only talking about PR media practices). As exemplified by the recent dot.com mania and the subsequent share market collapse, people can getting swept away in their own publicity, especially when it becomes an accepted truth. PR also becomes ineffective when it is unmasked as disingenuous, deceitful manipulation of public opinion, especially on issues that are important to people.
Despite many claims to the contrary, there is no one formula for doing ethical PR. Ethics has to do with the aims, intentions, and actual practices that people engage in when they do PR, or anything else for that matter. The first thing you must admit, though, is that all PR media practices are designed to manipulate people’s perceptions about something.
Read these first
Bernays, E. (1928). Manipulating public opinion: the how and the why. American Jounal of Sociology, 33, (6), 958–971. (Available at http://www.jstor.org http://www.jstor.org — you must enter this database through a UQ computer account.)
Bleifuss, J. (1999). Ethics for Beginners: PR faces a Skeptical Public. PR Watch [On-Line], 3, (4). Retrieved June 8, 2000 from the World Wide Web: http://www.prwatch.org/prw_issues/1996-Q4/index.html
Then do the following
Read the following web pages
1. Martha Stewart 1
2. Martha Stewart 2
3. Martha Stewart 3
4. Martha Stewart 4
Some are audio recordings. Some are news stories. You don’t need to go through them all in detail, just enough to get the idea of the story, and most importantly, of how Martha Stewart is dealing with the crisis.
Analyse what’s going on here. Describe the strategy that Stewart is using, if any.
· Is she convincing?
· Why?
· Is this a media crisis or a corporate crisis?
· Is the crisis strategy that Stewart uses successful?
· Why? Why not?
· What would have been a better strategy?
Learning tip
Imagine that you are Martha Stewart. What would you have done? Remember, Stewart is dealing with a global crisis.
Write a couple of paragrpahs for your answers.
Now read this
Granato, L. (1991). News values? In Reporting & Writing News.
(pp. 29–41). Sydney, Australia: Prentice Hall.
Notes to the reading
Granato is talking about news values. These values are very important and can almost be considered as universals. It is not clear whether these values are “what the people want” as a consequence of their innate humanity, or whether several centuries of their being developed as standards in news reporting has shaped our expectations of news so that the genre is almost unerringly written according to these values. But that is irrelevant for our purposes here.
What we need to know is that to do successful PR in the media — to get a story into the news — we need to appreciate these news values and how to get the right “angle” on a story so that news editors run your story. You have to have a story that is “newsworthy”.
Learning tip
These values are best seen as news “production” values. They are the standards by which news is deemed to be “newsworthy”, and thus fit for production. The meaning of the term changes when you are on the wrong end of newsworthiness.
Now think about this
Media crises are also opportunities. How can you use the news values that Granato identifies to your benefit during a media crisis? Is that possible?
One of the key things to realise is that creating your own media crisis is probably the worst possible thing you can do in terms of being able to recover in the media. For instance, even though BHP caused an environmental disaster at the Ok Tedi mine in Papua New Guinea, it has managed to smooth public opinion over for the most part. That is because it has made news out of the positive actions it took in trying to repair the damage it caused.
But when you create a media crisis, you will have almost lost the ability to recover your public image. That is because self-made media crises are usually the product of lying in the media and then being caught out. The John Laws cash-for-comment debacle (http://www.abc.net.au/rn/talks/8.30/mediarpt/stories/s62823.htm http://www.abc.net.au/rn/talks/8.30/mediarpt/stories/s62823.htm) is a case in point here.
Most of all: take note of what newsworthy news responds to!
PR and the agenda-setting function
The other significant fact of PR is that it shapes journalism itself (http://abc.net.au/rn/talks/bbing/stories/s68822.htm http://abc.net.au/rn/talks/bbing/stories/s68822.htm). It does this in a couple of ways. The first is by the sheer volume of PR activities. Every corporation of any significant size, every NGO and government department alike, has a PR agent or department. Every day these people bombard the media with “news” stories designed to show their employer in the best possible light, or to push their point of view. If you want to get an idea of precisely how much PR gets pumped out by a single organ each day, have a look at the White House press site, probably the most prolific and powerful publicity machine in the world: http://www.whitehouse.gov/" http://www.whitehouse.gov/ ÿ$
This constant bombardment of the press by the publicity profession has changed journalism, but not by itself, of course. Media outlets could just as easily ignore the torrent. But for a media business, this would apparently be suicidal. To put it simply, they have a ready source of news all the time, 24 hours a day from around the globe, designed specifically around news values to attract and engage the attention of the public. In other words, it saves money for media owners. They do not have to spend vast amounts of money sending huge numbers of people to “chase” news; the news comes to them, pre-packaged, filmed, edited, and/or printed in many cases. In addition to this, media organisations are now massive conglomerates (in 1998, Disney was “worth” precisely twice as much as South Korea in money terms). They do not have to have people “on the spot”, so to speak. This has been an increasing and uninterrupted trend since the introduction of the telegraph.
This has a number of implications for “news”, the main one being that news is now fairly homogenous in any given area. Our national broadcasters are an excellent example of this trend. This is what the “agenda-setting function” of the media means. Originally, the agenda-setting theorists believed that the media could not tell us how to think about any given situation, but that they could tell us what to think about. The following reading from Takeshita changes that rather dramatically. The propagandists of the thirties would not be surprised by Takeshita’s findings.
Now read this
Takeshita, T. (1997). Exploring the Media’s Roles in Defining Reality: From Issue-Agenda Setting to Attribute-Agenda Setting. In M. McCombs, L. Shaw, & D. Weaver, (Eds.), Communication and Democracy: Exploring the Intellectual Frontiers in Agenda-Setting Theory. (pp. 15–27). London: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Now do the following
1. Watch the news for two nights on all television channels. Write down the headline stories (first three stories on each program, about 5–7 minutes from each news program should do) and the attributions made in each. The only way to do this — with all apologies to the other people in your house — is to channel surf. News times are staggered from 5.00–7.00 pm, and later on starting from around 9.30. Channel 10 starts at 5.00 pm, channels 7 and 9 at 6.00 pm (you’ll need to flick back and forth to find out what’s on on both channels), SBS starts at 6.30 pm (some of you will not be able to get this channel), and the ABC news starts at 7.00 pm.
2. Write down the subject of the stories (e.g. war in Kosovo/share market crash/union battle … etc.); the characters and attributions made in each story (“evil Serbia”; “heroic/powerful NATO”; “frantic diplomatic efforts by Britain/UN/US”; etc.). Also, note the news “angle” of the story: why is this news? Use Granato’s article as a guide if you want.
3. After you have done this for 2 nights, have a look at the differences between the news programs. By my own observations, nightly television news, apart from that shown on SBS, is fairly much the same for each channel, with slight differences (if any) in order, attribution, and angle. Note the differences briefly. What does this tell us?
4. How many of these headline stories are corporate; how many are what you would call “news”? How have you made the distinction?
5. Think about the social effects that your findings might have: i.e. what effects might this have on social perceptions?
You should write about a half-page summary of your insights.
Reflections on the PR publicity function
This has most to do with the Bleifuss (1999) reading. You may wish to re-read the article, to further clarify your thoughts.
Issues
The Bleifuss article takes a fairly bleak view of the PR function. It has a simple message. When you are managing an organisation, and you need to deal with public perceptions of your organisation, the insights from this article will be useful. The issue that this article most clearly raises is that of truth in the media. “Honesty is the best policy” may be more than a trite platitude where PR is concerned. But the fact remains that if you avoid scandalising the public by adhering to certain standards, you should avoid the need for “damage control” PR, or for obfuscatory media practices.
Analysing PR
Your ability to analyse the appropriateness and/or success of PR activities for your organisation will depend on your ability to realise what PR can and can’t do. It will also depend on your ability to assess the media environment, which is an extremely abstract process, and to take into account public standards on the issue that you are promoting (or denigrating). PR, advertising, and publicity are, without exception, manipulative activities. Bateson and Mead (1941) best summarise the dilemma which faces anyone wishing to manipulate public opinion: ‘The end result of thoughtless and unscrupulous use of manipulative techniques is a dulling of all valuable response’ (p. 215). There is little or no point in buying into the point of view that says there is some intrinsic good in PR, advertising, or publicity. You must develop and rely on some set of standards by which you measure your own media activities and their effects on whole populations of very real people.
Classroom activity for Module 5
Bring the following to class
1. Your analysis of the Esmeralda Mining CEO’s PR response.
2. Your news analyses.
We will use these in class as guides for discussion. If you have time, think about the following questions before you come to class.
PR and you
· Have you been affected by PR? How?
· What might PR be best used for?
· What are the best and worst aspects of PR for an organisation? For society?
Learning portfolio exercise 5
Give the following information to your facilitator before the class starts:
· Your analysis of Marta Stewart's PR response.
· Your news analyses.
References and suggested reading for Module 5
Bateson, G. & Mead, S. (1941). Principles of morale building. Journal of Educational Sociology, 15, (4), 206–220.
Lutz, R.H. (1933). Studies of World War propaganda, 1914-33. The Journal of Modern History, 5, (4), 496–516.
Jowett, G.S., & O’Donnell, V. (1999). Propaganda and persuasion (3rd ed.). (pp. 1–23). London: Sage Publications.
Bagdikian, B.H. (1997). The Media Monopoly (5th ed.). Boston, MA: Beacon Press.
Butler, G. (1999, 28–29 August). PR online: the new software revolution. The Australian Financial Review, p. 20.
Harm, M., & Wiehle, H. (1942). The laws of nature and humanity. In R. Bytwerk (Trans. 1998), Biology for the Middle School For 5th Grade Girls (Lebenskunde für Mittelschulen. Fünfter Teil.
Klasse 5 für Mädchen). Halle: Hermann Schroedel Verlag, 1942. (pp. 168–173). Retrieved March 24, 2000 from the World Wide Web: http://www.calvin.edu/academic/cas/gpa/textbk01.htm http://www.calvin.edu/academic/cas/gpa/textbk01.htm
Lasswell, H. D. (1927). The theory of political propaganda. The American Political Science Review [On-Line], 21, (3), 627–631. (available from http://www.jstor.org http://www.jstor.org).
Lasswell, H. D. (1941). World attention survey. Public Opinion Quarterly [On-Line], 5, (3), 456–462. (available from http://www.jstor.org http://www.jstor.org)
A just-for-fun appendix: Genre, context, and purpose in conflict: Something for language lovers
Here, S.M. Westrop amusingly illustrates how genre can come into conflict with context and function.
Source: Westrop, S.M. (1977). The Cure. The Newsletter of the Royal Institute of Public Administration Act Group, 4, (1), March.
Timothy Bates had been in the Public Service for eight months and was beginning to feel he belonged. At first he had been appalled by the triviality of the work he was expected to do and by the sententious style by which he and his fellow perpetrators of trivia were supposed to lend it dignity in their communications with each other. Now, though, his amazing ability to adapt to his surroundings - an asset in which he had taken enormous pride ever since his undergraduate days - was asserting itself. He realized at last that no topic was too trivial to merit the attention of the aspiring Permanent Head. Indeed he had grabbed the basic maxim that the length of a minute on a given topic should always be in direct proportion to its triviality. He had even grappled with and mastered the subtle distinction, well known to all true public servants, between the verbs 'use' and 'utilize'. In short he was good at his job.
Timothy was reflecting on his new-found talents with no small degree of satisfaction as he left his office and made for the car park one sunny Thursday afternoon. Climbing into his modest but reliable car, he inserted the ignition key and was astonished to find no response in the engine. It seemed to be completely dead. His buoyant mood changed to one of deep pessimism. He loathed machines when they went wrong and was quite helpless about what to do with them. That his car, bought for the reliability of its make, should do such a thing to him was a severe shock.
'Well,', said the man at the garage, phoned from a nearby call-box, 'what is the trouble?'
'There is,' replied a voice, 'a complete cessation of vehicular motion in relation to my automobile.'
'Good God,' thought Timothy, who said that? People don't talk like that. They write minutes like that, of course, but they don't say such things.' He started to explain. 'There is, ' said the voice, 'a no-go situation with regard to my vehicle.'
'It's me,' thought Timothy, horrified.
And it was.
Several hours later, still pale and shaken, he was sitting opposite his doctor. In the intervening period he had spoken as little as possible. It was too traumatic. Every attempt at uttering even the simplest sentence produced a horrifying piece of public service English.
'Now,' said the doctor, 'say "the cat sat on the mat"'. Timothy struggled with himself: 'There is a feline recumbency situation in relation to that floor covering'. It was getting worse!
'Yes,' said the doctor, 'a very bad case. Not the worst I've seen, mind you, but still very bad. Have you had any sudden shocks lately? That often brings it on.'
Timothy was staring at him in horror. How could he take it so calmly? 'Are there any known palliative for the condition?' he asked.
'Is there a cure? Well yes, I usually recommend a course for evening classes in English literature. Most patients are almost completely cured in something like six months. As a matter of fact I've had so many cases recently that I keep the prospectus for the evening classes out in the waiting room. You might like to look through it as you leave. You can pay the receptionist. We prefer cash'.
* * *
Three weeks later Timothy was feeling a little better. His symptoms had subsided and he could now be 90 per cent sure of producing a lucid, comprehensible sentence whenever he spoke. He was enjoying his classes too. He had enrolled in 'English poetry - an overview,' and only last night there had been a stimulating session on 'Chaucer - his life and times'. Timothy smiled as he sat at his desk. He was definitely feeling better.
His phone rang. A summons from his supervisor. He probably wanted to congratulate Timothy on the first draft he had prepared that morning for a press release. Timothy hurried in.
His supervisor looked grave. 'This press release ... ' he said. Timothy waited. Could there be something wrong with it? He wrote so well, always managing to pick up just the right tone for a particular piece of work. He took the paper his supervisor was holding out at him.
'A minister of great renowne
Whose fame was right well known through Canberra towne ....'
* * *
The doctor was obviously puzzled. 'I have to admit I've never seen this side-effect before'. He read through the specimen memo Timothy had brought with him.
To all staff
Present to your mind's eye the office car park
All shimmering in the hazy afternoon,
And mark ye well the large and awesome lorry
That to the oil tanks wends its dusty way.
Aye mark this well - park ye not in its path,
As has occurred full oftentimes of late,
Or else incur the wrath of our great leaders
Who from their windows scan the bustling scene.
Thus ye are warned. Obey this note and know
That departmental business smoothly shall go.'
'I see you're up to Shakespeare,' he said.
'Yes,' said Timothy, 'the minor plays.'
* * *
'The exercises aren't helping doctor.' Two weeks later Timothy was in the surgery again. 'Last week I wrote a paper on the low numbers of third division officers in regional offices that began "I wandered lonely as a clerk". Do you think I should give up the English classes?'
The doctor shook his head. 'I don't think that would help at this stage. There's not much call for romantic poetry in the public services. Tell me, what's the last lesson in the course called?'
'Poetry of the seventies - towards a genealogy.'
'Then I should certainly stay with it. After all once we get into the twentieth century verse it will be a very short step back to prose. Yes, my advice is most certainly to stay with it.'
'I will then,' said Timothy, 'but I must say I'm extremely concerned about next week's lesson'.
'What is it to be?'
'Gerard Manly Hopkins.'
* * *
'Sun deck, dappled deck, dripping drowsy blossoms,
Blowsy blooms dropping, where the fat cat sat.'
'Really,' thought Timothy, 'that was quite good - but perhaps not as an application for recreation leave'. He was definitely more cheerful this week. Hopkins, despite his fears, had been confined to notes with circulation only to his own section, and the paper he had written on administrative procedures after his recent session with T.S. Eliot - 'Between the decision and the action falls the paperwork’ - had been received quite well by his superiors. Yes, it was much easier now that the course was well into the twentieth century. And tonight's session was the one that would bring him almost to the point of total cure. The poets of the seventies. Timothy left the office in a mood of high optimism.
* * *
'Tonight,' began the lecturer, 'I want us to concentrate on some local poets of the present day and to see how they fit into a wider view, indeed a word view, of poets writing in the seventies. I'll begin by reading you a little piece by a very talented local poet - and a great personal friend of mine - Bruce Turtle. It's called "Taxonomy":
'Too often now I find myself
in a situation of on-going depression.
And then I ask
what are the factors regarding myself that contribute by their causal relationship with regard to the status of my soul,
to my State?
How shall I name them?
And I reply ...."'
The reading was interrupted as Timothy leapt to his feet with a shout of joy. 'I'm cured,' he cried, 'completely cured'. Then, realizing that such an exuberant display was not quite in keeping with the image he liked to project of a responsible, sober public servant, he became calm and smiled politely at the lecturer. 'It is not at this point in time necessary to await the termination of the session,' he said decisively. 'Kindly direct me to an established point of egress'.
* * *