The theme for tomorrow's class is broadly--philosophical issues related to social media and the Internet.
The first of those issues is reviewed nicely by Jeffrey Rosen in an article titled, "The end of forgetting." Link here. While Rosen focuses more on the philosophical and legal issues related to the longevity of information posted on the Internet, you should think about the practical issues associated with public relations.
What will it mean for your career to operate in an environment where so much information is accessible? What will it mean for the practice of public relations now and in the future?
The second of the issues is privacy and the degree to which companies collect information about visitors to their websites. There is an ongoing series of articles by The Wall Street Journal that investigates how much information companies gather and how that information is used. The first article in the series is "The Web's new gold mine." Link here.
As you read this article, you should think about what line--if any--exists between how much information a company or organization should gather and some degree of privacy. You should also think about how gathering information from website visitors fits within our definition of public relations, particularly the concept of "maintaining and enhancing relationships."
You should also read another of the articles in the series and be prepared to discuss what you learned next class.
I look forward to hearing what you have to say.
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Friday, May 4, 2012
Summer session of "Social media and public relations"
There are three required textbooks for undergraduates in PR 4301: Social Media and Public Relations:
The main text will be Brian Solis and Deidre Breakenridge's book Putting the public back in public relations. While I think the authors go a little too far in some of their assertions about how social media is changing everything about PR, I also think they do a nice job of highlighting the key issues related to public relations and social media.
I stumbled onto Dave Kerpen's likeable social media, and I really like the simple and straightforward way that he talks about the practical aspects of using social media.
For some of you, Dan Zarrella's book the social media marketing book might seem too elementary. Perhaps, but Zarrella performs a valuable service by providing a simple (yet not simplistic) overview of the main classes of tools we associate with social media.
All three books are available at the campus book store. (I would have included a link, but the link off the main TTU web page does not work. D'oh!) You can also find the books (new or used) in many other locations on the interwebs.
I look forward to our first class!
The main text will be Brian Solis and Deidre Breakenridge's book Putting the public back in public relations. While I think the authors go a little too far in some of their assertions about how social media is changing everything about PR, I also think they do a nice job of highlighting the key issues related to public relations and social media.
I stumbled onto Dave Kerpen's likeable social media, and I really like the simple and straightforward way that he talks about the practical aspects of using social media.
For some of you, Dan Zarrella's book the social media marketing book might seem too elementary. Perhaps, but Zarrella performs a valuable service by providing a simple (yet not simplistic) overview of the main classes of tools we associate with social media.
All three books are available at the campus book store. (I would have included a link, but the link off the main TTU web page does not work. D'oh!) You can also find the books (new or used) in many other locations on the interwebs.
I look forward to our first class!
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
The Long Tail (summer version)
As part of our discussion of social networks and how they are structured, I'd like you to read two articles for Thursday's class. They aren't that long, so it shouldn't take you more than about a half hour to read through them.
The first article is a classic article by Clay Shirky titled "Power Laws, Weblogs, and Inequality." Link 1 here
The second article is an essay that became the basis for the book "The Long Tail," by Chris Anderson. Link 2 here
If you have time, you may want to check out Anderson's blog by the same title, The Long Tail blog, although you should note that the blog is on hiatus. Even so, some of the older posts are quite interesting.
The first article is a classic article by Clay Shirky titled "Power Laws, Weblogs, and Inequality." Link 1 here
The second article is an essay that became the basis for the book "The Long Tail," by Chris Anderson. Link 2 here
If you have time, you may want to check out Anderson's blog by the same title, The Long Tail blog, although you should note that the blog is on hiatus. Even so, some of the older posts are quite interesting.
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Transparency and data harvesting
Here is an interesting article that came across my Twitter feed: An ethical bargain
In it, the author (Jim Stogdill) uses the example of a relationship he has with a bookseller, who is always ready with a book recommendation, and compares that to his relationship with a large grocery chain, which asks for information such as date of birth when someone purchases alcoholic beverages.
In the case of the former, Stogdill argues that what Al the bookseller is doing is open, honest and ethical. He (Al) observes the types of books that Stogdill has purchased and liked and then uses that information to make better recommendations for future purchases. In the case of the latter, Stogdill states that asking for a purchaser's DOB is "sociopath[ic]" in the sense that the grocery store chain wasn't really open about why it wanted the information and what it would do with it in the future.
Hmm, I wonder if what we have here is a distinction without a difference. That is, even though Al doesn't say that the reason he watches what his customer buys is so that he can sell more books, because he is a real live person, they have a relationship and are "friends." But at the most basic level aren't both Al and the grocery store collecting information that will make it more likely they will make future sales?
I do agree with Stogdill that corporations are often less transparent in how much data they collect and how they use it and that there is value in rethinking how open we (as representatives of clients) should be about the nature of our activities.
It's also worth noting that Stogdill is not just some technophobic crank. Rather, he works trying to make sense of customer data--something he seems not to like when others do to him.
In it, the author (Jim Stogdill) uses the example of a relationship he has with a bookseller, who is always ready with a book recommendation, and compares that to his relationship with a large grocery chain, which asks for information such as date of birth when someone purchases alcoholic beverages.
In the case of the former, Stogdill argues that what Al the bookseller is doing is open, honest and ethical. He (Al) observes the types of books that Stogdill has purchased and liked and then uses that information to make better recommendations for future purchases. In the case of the latter, Stogdill states that asking for a purchaser's DOB is "sociopath[ic]" in the sense that the grocery store chain wasn't really open about why it wanted the information and what it would do with it in the future.
Hmm, I wonder if what we have here is a distinction without a difference. That is, even though Al doesn't say that the reason he watches what his customer buys is so that he can sell more books, because he is a real live person, they have a relationship and are "friends." But at the most basic level aren't both Al and the grocery store collecting information that will make it more likely they will make future sales?
I do agree with Stogdill that corporations are often less transparent in how much data they collect and how they use it and that there is value in rethinking how open we (as representatives of clients) should be about the nature of our activities.
It's also worth noting that Stogdill is not just some technophobic crank. Rather, he works trying to make sense of customer data--something he seems not to like when others do to him.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Welcome to Social Media and Public Relations: Summer version
Please read the following article by Jeffrey Rosen: End of Forgetting. There is also an 8-minute interview with Rosen on the same topic that I would like you to listen to prior to class on Thursday.
Also, please read the story Web's New Gold Mine, which is part of a series of articles by the staff at The Wall Street Journal. Everyone should read an additional story that is part of that series and be prepared to discuss it in class on Thursday.
Finally, there is a "model" blog post that appears below ("Politics and Social Media"). Keep in mind that all of your posts will be focused on public relations as it applies to a specific industry (broadly defined: politics, fashion, sports, entertainment, etc.). I will write another model post sometime this week, so that you will have another example of what I am looking for.
I allow anonymous comments, so you do not need to be logged in to comment. I would appreciate it if you would leave your name in the text, though.
I look forward to our (short!) time together!
Also, please read the story Web's New Gold Mine, which is part of a series of articles by the staff at The Wall Street Journal. Everyone should read an additional story that is part of that series and be prepared to discuss it in class on Thursday.
Finally, there is a "model" blog post that appears below ("Politics and Social Media"). Keep in mind that all of your posts will be focused on public relations as it applies to a specific industry (broadly defined: politics, fashion, sports, entertainment, etc.). I will write another model post sometime this week, so that you will have another example of what I am looking for.
I allow anonymous comments, so you do not need to be logged in to comment. I would appreciate it if you would leave your name in the text, though.
I look forward to our (short!) time together!
Friday, October 8, 2010
Interviews with the experts
This link came across my Twitter feed: http://tinyurl.com/2572zgv
The link is to a story by blogger Arik Hanson, who has interviewed a series of PR professionals from top agencies and organizations throughout the country. The interviews are interesting (I've only read a few), but they also demonstrate what we've talked about in class--the value of finding a niche when you are starting a blog.
Midterm exam will take place when we meet next.
Enjoy the break.
The link is to a story by blogger Arik Hanson, who has interviewed a series of PR professionals from top agencies and organizations throughout the country. The interviews are interesting (I've only read a few), but they also demonstrate what we've talked about in class--the value of finding a niche when you are starting a blog.
Midterm exam will take place when we meet next.
Enjoy the break.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Politics and social media
Geoff Livingston has an interesting post on mashable about the social media efforts of the Republican and Democratic parties for the upcoming election. Link: http://mashable.com/2010/09/23/congress-battle-social-media/
According to Livingston, the GOP strategy has focused on community listening, crowdsourcing and targeting "influencers" and bloggers who will advocate positions held by the Republican Party or other conservative positions.
Livingston says the social media strategy of the Democrats is focused on trying to facilitate peer-to-peer connections and to drive voter turnout for the upcoming election. He also points out that while the Republicans are catching up, the Democrats have the advantage of the considerable social media presence of President Obama that was built during the '08 election. (The Obama and national Democratic efforts are coordinated under the umbrella of "Organizing for America.")
A couple of things stood out to me about the article. The first was the effort by the GOP to use social media to connect with women voters and activists. Connecting with female voters is an area where the GOP has struggled in the past (or at least according to conventional wisdom), so it will be interesting to see what impact the "RNC Women" website and social media campaign has on the upcoming election.
The second thing that stood out was the iPhone application developed and implemented by Organizing for America. The app helps supporters find people who live nearby that the supporters can visit to talk about politics. Here, you have interpersonal interaction and influence driven by social media and technology--the online leads to the offline.
When I step back and think about how both parties are using social media, I am fascinated, and I applaud the Republicans and Democrats for using social media to encourage and enact the democratic process. Social media is helping supporters of both parties can become more engaged politically and that social media helps them find others to engage in the political process.
At another level, though, I sometimes find myself frustrated by how these social media campaigns spill over and influence my own social media use--without my permission. My Facebook and Twitter feeds are increasingly cluttered with calls to action from my friends on the left and the right--so cluttered that it is easy for me to miss video links posted by nonpartisan friends. Links like this: http://tiny.cc/gbyyj
I mean who doesn't want to see Justin Bieber get hit on the head with a water bottle?
According to Livingston, the GOP strategy has focused on community listening, crowdsourcing and targeting "influencers" and bloggers who will advocate positions held by the Republican Party or other conservative positions.
Livingston says the social media strategy of the Democrats is focused on trying to facilitate peer-to-peer connections and to drive voter turnout for the upcoming election. He also points out that while the Republicans are catching up, the Democrats have the advantage of the considerable social media presence of President Obama that was built during the '08 election. (The Obama and national Democratic efforts are coordinated under the umbrella of "Organizing for America.")
A couple of things stood out to me about the article. The first was the effort by the GOP to use social media to connect with women voters and activists. Connecting with female voters is an area where the GOP has struggled in the past (or at least according to conventional wisdom), so it will be interesting to see what impact the "RNC Women" website and social media campaign has on the upcoming election.
The second thing that stood out was the iPhone application developed and implemented by Organizing for America. The app helps supporters find people who live nearby that the supporters can visit to talk about politics. Here, you have interpersonal interaction and influence driven by social media and technology--the online leads to the offline.
When I step back and think about how both parties are using social media, I am fascinated, and I applaud the Republicans and Democrats for using social media to encourage and enact the democratic process. Social media is helping supporters of both parties can become more engaged politically and that social media helps them find others to engage in the political process.
At another level, though, I sometimes find myself frustrated by how these social media campaigns spill over and influence my own social media use--without my permission. My Facebook and Twitter feeds are increasingly cluttered with calls to action from my friends on the left and the right--so cluttered that it is easy for me to miss video links posted by nonpartisan friends. Links like this: http://tiny.cc/gbyyj
I mean who doesn't want to see Justin Bieber get hit on the head with a water bottle?
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