Explain the relationship between PR and reputation.
What would you say to somebody who said that all PR does is propaganda? Use the Grunig and Hunt models to help you.
Look at the PR job websites for the CIPR, PRCA and newspapers such as The Guardian. How many different types of PR jobs can you see advertised? What does that say about PR?
If you were working for a charity looking to increase its fundraising PR efforts, how would you go about choosing a PR agency to help you?
How would you explain the PR process to somebody? Use the example of launching a new shampoo for woman over 50.
Can you think of any recent PR campaigns that you enjoyed? Why was this?
Try and explain the difference between corporate (or strategic) PR and consumer PR? What examples can you provide?
How would you explain the differences between PR, advertising and marketing?
Do you think that social media helps us to understand PR better or to make the dividing lines more confusing between the different occupations?
Chapter 2
What do you see as the differences between one-way and two-way communication approaches? Provide some examples.
Discuss the idea of noise. What impact does this have on the practice of PR?
Look at the Maletzke Model. Put yourself in the role of receiver. What type of things do you think shape the way you think and see the world?
Think about the Uses and Gratification model? How do you use media and what role does it play in your life?
Think about the idea of a network approach. How might you use this if you were devising a communication strategy? What networks do you belong to?
What are your thoughts on persuasion? Do you think it is wrong or can it be used for good?
Explain your own decision making when buying new products using the Diffusion of Innovation Model.
Choose three organisations and look at their logos and the About Us section of their website. Look at the images and words used and relate this to the idea of semiotics – meanings, signified and signifier.
Think about the last seven days, what role has media including digital media played in your life? What theories can you see at work?
How has social media affected different communication models?
Chapter 3
What are the key media management strategies used by governments in democratic societies?
All political parties and all governments spin. And there is nothing wrong with it’ (Finkelstein, 2003). Do you agree with Finkelstein’s assessment?
Do you agree with Fairclough (2000) that democratic dialogue is being replaced with a ‘managerial and promotional’ approach to the political process in the UK?
How useful is the concept of the ‘public sphere’ in the context of government communication and PR?
Examine a media campaign surrounding a current policy initiative by the British Government. In what ways have politicians and their media advisors attempted to ‘manage’ the British media to achieve the maximum favourable coverage of their policy?
Does lobbying of political elites subvert the democratic process?
Why should public affairs practitioners pay attention to ‘language frames’, ‘narratives’ and ‘discourses’ in the policy sphere?
Should lobbyists in the UK be more tightly controlled? Would you favour statutory regulation similar to that which exists in the US for the UK lobbying industry?
Analyse the impact of ‘celebrity power’ on a specific socio-political cause. In your judgement has the celebrity involvement increased and expanded public debate and engagement or has the narrative of ‘celebrity as saviour’ trivialised the cause and rendered the political process superficial?
Examine a current public affairs campaign in relation to a key policy issue. Which strategies are utilised by those advocating the policy, or policy change and how do they frame the language or discourse in public policy debates?
Chapter 4
How helpful are the strategic management or systems approaches in explaining public relations as a strategic activity? What are their strengths and weaknesses? Are there other more appropriate approaches?
What information resources might you use to enable you to undertake a comprehensive EPISTLE analysis for your organisation?
What research techniques might you use to find out what your target publics think of your organisation?
Sometimes public relations practitioners are also called Risk Managers. What contribution do you think practitioners can make to risk management?
What training do you think practitioners need to be equipped to analyse information accurately?
What personal skills do you think a boundary-spanner requires?
What are the business environment and sectoral influences that would affect Easy Jet airlines and Routledge, the book publisher?
What factors might turn a stakeholder into a public? Give three examples.
Why do you think public relations is undervalued in some organisations?
What do you think is the most powerful contribution public relations can bring to an organisation?
Chapter 5
Should the professional public relations associations in the UK merge to increase their representation of the industry?
Has chartered status for the CIPR improved the image of public relations? How could you prove this?
Would mandatory licensing improve the reputation of public relations?
Is the Global Protocol on Ethics realistic? What changes should the Global Alliance make to update this in 2015 and beyond?
What are the benefits of membership of a professional association to public relations practitioners? To their clients or employers?
Does a voluntary system of CPD address the need for practitioner competency? If not, how might that need be addressed?
How might the introduction of the compulsory module on Ethics in the CIPR CPD scheme affect practitioner behaviour?
“As a profession, public relations must uphold the principles of truth and accountability, which are vital to building trust and credibility with all stakeholders.” (Corbett 2012). Is Corbett’s ‘lofty goal’ attainable?
Discuss Farrington’s opinion that we all know what behaving professionally means. What do you think constitutes professional behaviour?
How might professional behaviour be promoted within the industry?
Chapter 6
How does corporate communication differ from consumer public relations?
What constitutes a good reputation?
To what extent can BOS build or erode social capital?
What is the role of communication in establishing legitimacy?
Why is a stakeholder perspective important? Can it be used cynically?
How can PR practice damage or benefit the democratic process?
Draw a stakeholder map for BOS.
Should an organization centric view of stakeholders be avoided?
What criteria should be used to measure a company’s contribution to society?
Does ‘A good reputation enhance profitability because it attracts customers to the company’s products’? (Fombrun 1996:81)
Chapter 7
Can a carefully managed corporate identity affect a strategically important corporate image?
What ethical issues should be considered when formulating and managing corporate identity?
How can stakeholders be involved?
Critique the assumption that corporate identity can be ‘wholly managed’.
What is the effect of a marketing centred perspective of corporate identity management as opposed to a public relations centred approach?
To what extent is issues management part of CI management?
Specify how an existing corporate identity can be audited.
Critics such as Christensen and Cheney consider CI management to be the domain of a small elite within organisations who become self-absorbed and deluded about the role and importance of identity: ‘In a world saturated with symbols, where there is a great demand for every organisation to keep communicating, it is easy to think that each message and every campaign are taken seriously and received in the ways designed. But such meanings are often malleable, unstable and of only ephemeral interest. In fact in many cases, cynicism may be the most prominent outcome’ (Christensen and Cheney in Schultz et al. 2000: 267). How could this view influence approaches to CI management?
How would you justify the resources necessary for the introduction of a CI management programme to a sceptical CEO?
To what extent is consistency important to managing corporate identity and how can multiplicity and diversity be facilitated?
Chapter 8
Can a carefully managed corporate identity affect a strategically important corporate image?
What ethical issues should be considered when formulating and managing corporate identity?
How can stakeholders be involved?
Critique the assumption that corporate identity can be ‘wholly managed’.
What is the effect of a marketing centred perspective of corporate identity management as opposed to a public relations centred approach?
To what extent is issues management part of CI management?
Specify how an existing corporate identity can be audited.
Critics such as Christensen and Cheney consider CI management to be the domain of a small elite within organisations who become self-absorbed and deluded about the role and importance of identity: ‘In a world saturated with symbols, where there is a great demand for every organisation to keep communicating, it is easy to think that each message and every campaign are taken seriously and received in the ways designed. But such meanings are often malleable, unstable and of only ephemeral interest. In fact in many cases, cynicism may be the most prominent outcome’ (Christensen and Cheney in Schultz et al. 2000: 267). How could this view influence approaches to CI management?
How would you justify the resources necessary for the introduction of a CI management programme to a sceptical CEO?
To what extent is consistency important to managing corporate identity and how can multiplicity and diversity be facilitated?
Chapter 9
Critically analyse Milton Friedman’s claim that ‘there is one and only one social responsibility of business – to use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits’ (1993: 254)?
Critically assess the practicalities of achieving Evan and Freeman’s view that stakeholder groups have ‘a right not to be treated as a means to some end, and therefore must participate in determining the future direction of the firm in which they have a stake’ (1993: 255)?
In what ways may CSR highlight a dilemma (L’Etang 2006) at the heart of PR practice? The remaining questions require you to research your own case study example of CSR practice. Chose a company and analyse the documentation - its website is the best place to start - which outlines and explains its CSR programme(s).
Does the company tend to adopt the language of ‘utilitarianism’ or the language of ‘deontology’ when explaining and justifying its CSR initiatives?
What independent reporting indices does the organisation use in its CSR reporting? Does its report reflect recognised indicators from, for example, the United Nations Global Compact (2002), the Global Reporting Initiative (2006) or the national guidelines such as UK/Ireland Business in the Community (BITC) CR Index?
Assess the overall standard of reporting and evaluation of the company’s CSR activities. Is this clear, detailed and transparent?
Does the CSR report include research on stakeholder feedback? If so how is this reported? Which stakeholders are cited?
How does the company use its website to measure stakeholder views on CSR issues? For example, does the website include evaluation tools such as online opinion forms and interactive feedback tools (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, forums, blogs, etc.)? Is there evidence that Web 2.0 capabilities are being utilised to their full potential?
In what ways are stakeholders included in corporate governance in respect to CSR, i.e. does the organisation explain how their views ultimately feed into decision making surrounding policy and practice?
In your judgement is the company’s corporate engagement driven by an idea of collaborative governance or is it a manifestation of promotional culture?
Chapter 10
Is evaluation essential in helping PR to gain credibility as a profession?
Could ‘goal-free’ evaluation be applied in the PR context?
How can senior management/clients be persuaded to invest in evaluation?
Will AVE ever be replaced as an evaluation method?
How could ‘Social Return on Investment’ be applied in the PR context?
What is the main reason for low levels of impact evaluation in PR?
What can be done to encourage more evaluation among practitioners?
To what extent do the Barcelona Principles represent best practice in PR evaluation?
Does online evaluation differ from evaluating offline PR?
What financial proxies could be applied to the outcomes and impact identified in the ‘Workplace Charter’ case study?
Chapter 11
Do social media make the reality of globalisation of public relations practice more likely?.
To what extent has the acquisition of business and brands in Europe and America by businesses from emerging economies been made easier by public relations. How has public relations supported dialogue with different publics?
What instances of different cultural sensitivities to time have you experienced? How were they resolved?
Is country of origin more important than place of work? Do you agree with Holden’s view that organisational culture is more influential than societal culture?
How do you see ‘western public relations practice’ adapting to achieve an organisations objectives in countries with an aural tradition and high penetration of mobile phones but limited access to the net.
Think of a successful PR message disseminated in the UK by a global company. How might this be received in China? In India?
What research would you need to carry out to implement a successful campaign across the US, the UK and Australia? What similarities and differences would you expect to find?
How would you improve the image of the US in Arab countries?
How would you respond to the norm of paying for editorial coverage in India, China, Russia or the Ukraine?
To what extent do you think that that the Karen Hughes model for public diplomacy with a country’s multi-national businesses taking responsibility for promoting the country’s image abroad is integral to global public relations?
Chapter 12
Where does your news come from?
Think of a subject that matters to you. Where do you hear opinions that influence your thinking?
Should PR students still learn to produce a traditional “news release”?
Has the arrival of digital media meant PR needs to rethink the term ‘journalist’?
Do former journalists make good PR practitioners?
Is the growth in ‘Churnalism’ claimed by Nick Davies good or bad for PR?
Why don’t young people read newspapers? Does it matter?
How valuable is third party endorsement when readers don’t trust the endorser?
Why do the vast majority of all news releases end up in the recycle bin?
Should a news release be balanced, fair and accurate?
Chapter 13
Thinking of an organisation that you know, how do they undertake internal communication? What is the connection between communication and the organisation achieving it aims?
Thinking about an organisation that you know, how would you segment the workforce? How might different internal groups react to a current issue?
How might you go about gathering intelligence inside an organisation? What data would you need and how would you gather it?
Thinking of line managers in an organisation which you know, how well equipped are they to lead communication?
What are the channels that exist for communication in an organisation that you know well. What purposes do they fulfil?
Think about a communication team that you are familiar with. What do they do well and what do they need to develop?
What stops an internal communication team from being effective and how might these obstacles be overcome?
How might you present feedback to senior managers in a way that they would find useful?
Thinking of an organisation at the centre of a contentious issue (such as sugar in drinks, oil exploration or airport expansion) and consider how employees of that organisation might be briefed on the facts and what to say to family and friends.
How can communication help reduce staff turnover in an organisation that you know?
Chapter 14
What was Kraft’s opening bid for Cadbury’s and its successful final bid? What was the composition of the final offer?
Analyse what impact communicating detailed financial data has on the communications narrative.
What was Cadbury’s main bid defence to the offer?
What was Kraft’s main reasons for bidding?
Do you think financial communications employs asymmetrical or symmetrical communications in mergers and acquisitions? Give examples to support your argument.
Analyse the Kraft takeover of Cadbury in a shareholder and stakeholder perspective and its influence on communications strategy? Are stakeholder perspectives becoming more important in communications around takeover bids?
Evaluate the role taken by senior management of both companies and their role in communications.
Which company had a more effective communications strategy?
What role did small shareholders play in the takeover and was any communications directed towards them?
Evaluate some of the communications problems which have remained from the takeover. What lessons are there for financial communications generally in the future from the overall result of this takeover and eventual split?
Chapter 15
What are the challenges of working in public relations in the public sector?
What are the differences between the types of public relations used in local government compared to the NHS?
Should councils be allowed to publish their own magazines or newspapers? Do they represent unfair competition to local commercial media or are they fulfilling an unmet need for information about what councils do?
What skills are important for a public relations practitioner in the public sector today compared to those that would have been important twenty years ago?
Read your local newspaper and note the stories about your local council. What could be done to improve the number of positive stories about the council in the local media?
How is social media affecting the model of public relations undertaken by the public sector?
In the age of financial austerity in the public sector should local councils have public relations departments at all?
What does the drive to increase patient choice in the provision of healthcare mean for public relations in the health sector?
One of the reasons corporate reputation is important in the private sector is to differentiate a company from its competition. Why is corporate reputation important in the public sector when often there is no competition among providers?
Is it ethical for the public sector to seek to influence the publics it serves to manage its reputation and build trust?
Chapter 16
How do public relations and marketing overlap in the area of consumer public relations?
Should all campaigns be carried out from an integrated marketing communications viewpoint? What challenges does this present?
How has the balance of power changed between brands and their consumers?
What are the consequences of new technologies and social media channels on consumer PR?
Think of three common brands. How is their brand personality conveyed through their communications?
Which corporate brands are the most respected in your opinion? What qualities make them respected?
What are the most effective ways to measure are a PR campaign?
How has creative technology changed the way PR is evolving?
What are the most effective channels for finding and recruiting influencers? What are the most effective techniques to leverage influencer relationships?
How should paid media be used in modern brand PR?
Chapter 17
What is the main difference in the audience for B2B and consumer PR?
How are B2B and consumer public relations similar and in what ways do they differ?
Why might targeting be considered to be easier with B2B PR?
Earlier in the chapter, it was said that when dealing with trade journalists, it is important to assume expertise. If you worked for a PR agency and were selling in a story about a firm’s groundbreaking renovation project to an architectural trade publication, how would you prepare and handle the call?
If you were trying to position a senior engineer in an organisation as a thought leader in an industry, what options might you consider and how would you go about securing opportunities?
Look at the lead headline story in a national newspaper. Consider how a thought leader from a business could give a new perspective or angle on the story to generate media attention.
If you looked after the PR for an aircraft manufacturer, how would you go about organising a campaign targeted at trade journalists that involved a facility visit? How could you ensure there were enough exclusive stories or angles during the visit to maximise the breadth of coverage?
Identify the potential characteristics of members of a decision-making unit responsible for purchasing a piece of high-technology machinery for a large organisation. How you would raise awareness of the product among all members of the decision-making unit through PR?
If you were a food manufacturer that had just launched a new product and you wanted to gain the attention of distributors, how would you use social media to create a buzz around the campaign in order to gain the attention of potential distributors and resellers?
If the board of a fashion manufacturing firm asked you to demonstrate the value of B2B PR activity carried out by your department, how would you go about proving this to them?
Chapter 18
How can a not-for-profit professional help to shape and maintain the purposes of a charity?
How do communicators working in the not-for-profit sector ensure their organisation or charity remains relevant?
How do public relations professionals maximise the positives and minimise the risks of a relationship between a not-for-profit organisation and a celebrity?
Apart from Fair Trade, what other modern trends and movements might public relations professionals be able to establish links to in order to promote their own not-for-profit organisation?
What would your strategy be for forming a relationship between a not-for-profit and a private sector body?
Choose a topic of Government policy and discuss how you would persuade a Minister or Member of Parliament to engage with not-for-profits in that area.
What would you choose as the most important messages to share with internal stakeholders such as employees or volunteers?
Describe your favourite not-for-profit awareness or fundraising campaign and discuss the reasons why you found it so effective.
What information could you use to help you measure the effectiveness of your favourite awareness or fundraising campaign?
Thinking about ethics, what issues would you need to consider before using a case study to support a national awareness campaign?
Chapter 19
Do you know anyone who does not access the Internet? Why is this and what impact does it have on their life?
What are the benefits and drawbacks for public relations practice of the increasing number of devices that use RFID technology?
Which of the concepts discussed in this chapter, such as rhizomatic middleness or mobile addiction, reflect your online behaviour?
How does the history of the use of technology in public relations relate to contemporary practice?
Do you think that discussion around technology tends to focus on the interests of certain sectors of society?
What aspects of PR practice could be replaced by automated technology or robots
How do independent innovators help encourage the adoption of new technology by other PR practitioners?
How does new technology influence debate around issues such as nutrition, sport, healthcare and education?
In what ways can new technology help to evaluate multi-channel PR activities?
How do you improve your skills and knowledge of new or emerging ICTs?
Chapter 20
Do you agree that activism is a pure form of public relations?
Should organisations welcome activist stakeholders?
Does clicktivism enrich democracy?
Should ”good cause” activists be held to the same ethical standards as any other organisation? Or does the end justify the means?
Does Greenpeace practice corporate communication?
Occupy is bound to fail because it doesn’t have SMART objectives. Discuss.
Investigate an issue that has hit the headlines in recent days. Is there a difference between the ways in which the targeted organisation or institution and the activists frame the debate?
What issue particularly engages you on an emotional level? What, if anything would spur you to action?
The Grunig Excellence model has evolved over the past 20 years. How helpful is a systems theory approach in explaining the impact of activism on an organisation.
Can a PR practitioner really claim to be an internal activist or the ”conscience” for an organisation?
Chapter 21
Is it important to improve the reputation of PR? Who are the target audiences whose opinions need to be changed?
Are social media a help or hindrance to public relations?
Is good PR essential to a good reputation? What else contributes to this?
PR can only give you the reputation you deserve. Do you agree?
How could PR be delivered in a flexible working environment?
If feminine thinking is the “operating system” for the 21st century, how could both male and female PR practitioners demonstrate this?
Are paid internships the solution to the underrepresentation of BME in PR? What else would bring about change?
What might a new model of PR look like?
How could the PR industry better communicate its value?