MCC-UE 1750
PUBLIC RELATIONS—THEORY AND PROCESS
Course Description
This course considers the role of public relations in persuasion from practitioner, historical, and
theoretical standpoints. By the end of the semester, students should have a substantive understanding of
the public relations field and its role in the terrain on which it functions.
Class Structure
The course will include lectures, discussions, and guest speakers, with an emphasis on classroom
interaction based on the reading material.
Groups to Study/Group Presentation
As part of the coursework, students will serve as mock public relations professionals for real-world
organizations by studying these organizations’ goals and press activity. Students will study one
organization, which will serve as the source for a group project. These groups will develop a multi-part
media strategy for the studied organization. Strategies will be presented near the end of the semester (see
“Requirements” below).
The groups to be studied are the following:
Advocacy Groups: Bob Woodruff Foundation/Remind.org (www.remind.org) and Catalyst
(www.catalyst.org)
Business Group: Clean Currents (www.cleancurrents.com)
Non-profit Groups: Children Now (www.childrennow.org) and Institute of International Education
(www.iie.org)
Research Group: Social Science Research Council (www.ssrc.org)
Requirements
Your grade will be based on the following requirements:
1.
Group assignment/Class presentation: Your group will develop a public relations campaign
addressing a specific goal or problem for a real-world organization. A rough description (one or
two sentences) for each group’s plan will be due on OCTOBER 9 and the presentations will be
given on DECEMBER 4.
2.
Midterm examination: An in-class exam that will include short answer and multiple-choice
questions as well as one (slightly) longer essay question will be given OCTOBER 23.
3.
Analytical paper: One 3-4 page paper will be assigned during the first half of the semester. The
assignment, which will require an analytical application of concepts discussed in class, will be
provided approximately two weeks before it is due (due date: SEPTEMBER 25).
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4.
One assignment: One 2-3 page paper will be assigned during the second half of the semester. The
assignment, which will require a practical application of concepts and examples discussed in class,
will be provided approximately two weeks before it is due (due date: NOVEMBER 27).
5.
Final examination: The format will be the same as the one for the mid-term examination. This
will be cumulative, but the focus will be on the latter half of the semester. The final examination is
scheduled for the final day of class—DECEMBER 11.
6.
Class participation: The quality of your in-class comments and analyses will determine your class
participation grade.
7.
Weekly “In the News” Minutes: Each week different students will brief the class with separate
three-minute summaries of one item in the news, highlighting the PR aspects/influence of the
story. Student assignments will be posted on Blackboard after the second class. You’ll each present
one news item in the course of the semester. You will receive a “plus,” “check,” or “minus” for
your presentation, which will be factored into your class participation grade.
These items will be calculated in the following manner to determine your grade:
• Analytical Paper:
20 percent
• Assignment:
20 percent
• Midterm:
20 percent
• Group Presentation:
10 percent
• Final exam:
20 percent
• Class participation
10 percent
Calculation of Grades
Letter grades are translated into points out of 100 in the following manner: A+=100/100; A=95/100; A=92/100; B+=88/100; B=85/100; B-=82/100; C+=78/100; C=75/100; C-=72/100.
The final grade scale for Steinhardt School courses is as follows: A = 94-100; A- = 90-93; B+ = 87-89;
B = 84-86; B- = 80-83; C+ = 77-79; C = 74-76; C- = 70-73; D+ = 65-69; D = 60-64; F = 0-59
Class Policies
1. If you miss class, you’re responsible for the material presented.
2. Cheating or plagiarizing the work of another will trigger disciplinary procedures for violation of the
university’s academic integrity policy. Under such a circumstance, I will advocate assigning an F in the
course.
Required Text
• THINK Public Relations, Dennis Wilcox et al. (eds.) (Allyn & Bacon)
• Additional reading material—on BlackBoard (under “Course Documents”)—will supplement the
textbook.
Readings for each week are to be completed before class.
Weekly Schedule
September 4: OVERVIEW
September 11: Understanding Public Relations; History; PR Models
• THINK Public Relations: Chapters 1 & 4/3
• Ken Auletta, “The Fixer,” the New Yorker, Feb. 12, 2007, pp. 46-57
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September 18: Communication Theories, Public Opinion, and Persuasion; Role of the News Media
(ASSIGN GROUPS)
• THINK Public Relations: Chapter 8/7
• Drew Westen, “The Evolution of the Passionate Brain” in The Political Brain: The Role of
Emotion in Deciding the Fate of the Nation (PublicAffairs, 2007), pp. 45-68
• “The End of ‘Objectivity’ in New Era: A Good Thing?” Editor & Publisher, Nov. 1, 2008
• “Casting about for Your Vote,” California magazine, Spring 2011.
September 25: (ANALYTICAL PAPER DUE): Planning, Execution, and Evaluation
• THINK Public Relations: Chapters 6/5 & 7/6
• “A New Weapon For Wal-Mart: A War Room,” Michael Barbaro, New York Times, Nov. 1, 2005
• Scott Keeter, “Poll Power,” Wilson Quarterly, Autumn 2008, pp. 56-62
• Dalia Sussman, “A Question of What to Ask,” the New York Times, Feb. 28, 2010
• “The Growing Gap between Landline and Dual Frame Election Polls,” Pew Research Center for
the People and the Press, Nov. 22, 2010
October 2: Law and Ethics
• THINK Public Relations: Chapter 9
October 9: Crisis Communications and Conflict Management (GROUP PRESENTATION TOPIC
DUE)
• THINK Public Relations: Chapter 3/8
• “In Case of Emergency: What Not to Do,” Peter Goodman, New York Times, Aug. 21, 2010
October 16: No class (Fall Break)
October 23: MID-TERM EXAMINATION
October 30: Tactics—The Written Word and Media Outreach
• THINK Public Relations: Chapter 12/11
• “Write a News Release” and “Write a Guest Opinion” in Jason Saltzman, Making the News: A
Guide for Nonprofits & Activists (Westview Press, 1998), pp. 83-94 and pp. 156-160
• David Shipley, “And, Now, A Word from Op/Ed,” New York Times, Feb. 1, 2004
• “How to Write an Op/ed Article,” Office of News and Communications, Duke University
November 6: Tactics—The Spoken Word; Branding
• George Lakoff, “Anna Nicole on the Brain,” in The Political Mind: Why You Can’t Understand
21st-Century Politics with an 18th-Century Brain (Viking, 2008), pp. 21-42
• “How Integrated Branding Differs from the Alternatives” (pp. 21-35), in LePla, Joseph and Lynn
Parker, Integrated Branding: Becoming Brand-Driven Through Companywide Action (Quorum,
1999)
• “With Billions at Stake, Firms Play Name That Mop,” “Morning Edition,” National Public Radio,
May 13, 2011
GUEST SPEAKER: Hayley Berlent, senior brand strategist, Siegel + Gale
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November 13: Tactics—New Technologies & Social Media
• THINK Public Relations: Chapter 11/12
• “Small Change: Why the Revolution Will Not be Tweeted,” Malcolm Gladwell, the New Yorker,
Oct. 4, 2010
• “Does Social Media Have a Return on Investment?” Farhad Manjoo, Fast Company, July/August,
2011
• “State of the News Media 2012/ Digital: News Gains Audience but Loses Ground in Chase for
Revenue,” Project for Excellence in Journalism, May 2012
•
•
“A New Kind of Visual News,” July 16, 2012, Project for Excellence in Journalism,
“How the Kony Video Went Viral,” New York Times, March 9, 2012
November 20: No class
November 27 (ASSIGNMENT DUE): International Public Relations and Diverse Audiences; Tactics—
Visuals; Media Training
• THINK Public Relations: Chapters 10 & 14
• “The Press as a Storyteller,” in Kathleen Hall Jamieson and Paul Waldman, The Press Effect:
Politicians, Journalists, and the Stories That Shape the Political World (Oxford, 2003), pp. 1-23
• Jennifer Senior, “The End of the Trench Coat Mafia,” New York Times Book Review, April 19,
2009
• Louis P. Masur, “How the Truth Gets Framed by the Camera,” Chronicle of Higher Education,
Nov. 23, 2007
• Rhonda Gibson and Dolf Zillmann, “Reading Between the Photographs: The Influence of
Incidental Pictorial Information on Issue Perception,” Journalism and Mass Communication
Quarterly, Summer 2000, v. 77, no. 2, pp. 355-366
GUEST SPEAKER: Patricia Gutierrez, vice president, GFI Group
December 4: Group presentations and final examination review
December 11: Final Examination
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