Semester's end

The semester is done, and this blog is on hiatus. But here's one last shot of the PR 191 crew, taken on the last day of class.

OK, I had to do it.

As seen on thesuperficial.com, Paris Hilton has been spotted walking around town carrying a copy of "The Holy Bible" and "The Power of Now" as an effort to clean up her image a bit. (In case you've forgotten, she faces 23 days of jail time for driving with a suspended license. She got her sentence cut in half for good behavior. i.e. showing up to her court date on time.) Does her publicist really think that shoving religion and a New York Times bestseller into her hands will make the public forget all about the Paris we used to know?

I guess it's a cheap way to try to change your image, but...you definitely get what you pay for. If anything, this stunt will get the TV newsmagazines and tabloids talking about how unbelievable it is that Paris is a) religious and b) literate.

Who Will be the Next American Idol?

Tonight the votes are tallied and this season's American Idol will be crowned. American Idol is in its sixth season and ratings continue to reflect the shows phenomenal success. According to Nielsen, Idol is at the top of the prime time ratings for yet another season. The shows unparalleled success has drawn in hundreds of advertisers and sponsors, including Coke and Ford. The show has also created a PR buzz.

All of the shows contestants do hundreds of interviews and some do advertisements. They are promoting the show, products, and most importantly themselves. Media coverage of this show is constant and so a smart contestant who knows anything about PR knows that they need to idolize (no pun intended) their time in the spotlight to promote their image.

Successful Idol contestants include Carrie Underwood, Kellie Pickler, Taylor Hicks, Fantasia Barrino, Ruben Studdard, and Kelly Clarkson. These contestants marketed themselves well and have continued on to have very successful singing careers.

Ocean's 13 Cast Raises Money for Darfur

Ocean's 13, a second sequel to the rat pack classic, Ocean's 11 made its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival last week, but that is not why its cast is getting so much publicity. The Ocean's 13 cast, which includes George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, and Don Cheadle are working towards raising money and awareness for the humanitarian crisis in Darfur.

Cheadle recently co-authored the book Not on Our Watch: The Mission to End Genocide in Darfur and Beyond. Cheadle admits that getting media coverage of the crisis in Darfur is an uphill battle. The use of the upcoming Ocean's 13 release has been a way to gain publicity on the issue. Cheadle has gained the support of his co-stars and with this powerhouse team of actors behind the Darfur project progress is being made.

Over 9 million dollars have been raised already, with a $1 million contribution from Stephen Spielberg. The charity effort is proving to have benefits for everyone. The Darfur crisis is finally getting some of the attention it deserves and the movie's stars are getting good publicity because media coverage is showing their campaigning efforts to help with this worthy case. The Ocean's 13 cast is making good use of their time in the spotlight.

What do PR and Accounting Have in Common?

What do PR and Accounting share in common? This may seem like one of those riddles that doesn't seem to have an answer. Although public relations and accounting may seem to be on completely different ends of the career spectrum they offer one common benefit to college graduates who go into these fields. They both allow you to work in a field that you may be passionate about. For example, if you played football in college, you can find a job working with any of the hundred professional teams that all have communications, public relations, of media relations departments. Accountants can do the same, but their jobs just don't seem as interesting (maybe I'm a little bias).

This freedom to find a job with a team, company, person, or organization that you are passionate about is almost exclusive to PR graduates. PR professionals are needed in all kinds of businesses. A person with a passion for animals could work with the SPCA. A person who is concerned about the environment could work for a non-profit environmental group. The possibilities are endless.

So when entering the work force, search for a position that allows you to incorporate the things you know and care about. It will make work much more enjoyable.

Jerry Seinfeld Makes a Buzz

At this year's Cannes Film Festival Jerry Seinfeld answered questions about what he has been doing since his "Seinfeld" days and created some big "buzz" in the process. Jerry has returned to the scene to promote his latest project, a movie titled, "Bee Movie." This is a DreamWorks film thought up by Seinfeld and directed by Stephen Spielberg. With such a successful animation production team, legendary director, and hilarious comedian behind the film you wouldn't think outlandish publicity stunts would be necessary to create buzz, but Jerry wasn't taking any chances.

On the morning of May 17, Jerry Seinfeld suited up in a giant bee costume and was attached to a guy wire. He then proceeded to fly hundreds of yards from the top of the Carlton Hotel onto the pier. Below, Co-star Chris Rock was doing play by play commentary. The two comedians engaged in comedic banter before Jerry made his final landing.

Jerry landed unharmed and apparently unembarrassed. He claimed, "No desperation here, just good advertising." He also said, [If there's] anything I hate its publicity that smacks of any kind of desperation." Apparently Jerry doesn't view his flying bee stunt as desperate, just clever. I agree. At a film festival, reporters are forced to choose between event and films and many of them passed up other events to watch Jerry fly in a bright yellow and black bumblebee suit.

The film is scheduled to premiere on November 2. Guest appearances include Oprah Winfrey, Larry King, Chris Rock, and Ray Liotta.

To read more about this film and Jerry's publicity stunt go to time.com.

It's all starting to make sense now.

Over the semester, the blog assignment was very hard for me. It was always something i forgot about and ended up skipping a few. But it was good to learn how to write 'real' blogs rather than the fake ones on Myspace. It is good to show just how much the PR industry is changing and how soon-to-be PR professionals need to adapt to these changes. It has also been great to read the various types of blogs. The ones that focused on celebrity gossip as well as the ones that gave us great tips for blogging in the future.

Overall, it was a great way to learn from one another as well as create self-learning skills. I've learned how technological the world is getting from the other side of the spectrum. Actually creating virtual news is a lot harder than just reaping the benefits from it.

PR 191...

This class blog has been an interesting look into what interests my fellow classmates. Some blogged about politics, some celebrity gossip (ok, more than some. and sometimes even I.), and some stuck just to public relations topics. Most posts were well written and all exhibited each students personal writing style.
I think this blog is a good exercise for public relations students because the face of public relations is changing. It is keeping up with technological advances and requires its practitioners to do the same. Blogs are becoming more and more common and people in the pr field must realize that they play a part in shaping public opinion...which can be both good and bad.
Hell, people in pr even have to keep up with that pesky little wikipedia site. The times they are a'changing.

Paging Karl Rove...

This Salon article asks the questions that are on many Americans' minds. Regardless of how you feel about the Bush presidency, I posit that Karl Rove, senior political advisor to the president is a public relations genius. Rove's ruthless PR tactics enabled the administration to stay afloat for six years, albeit by a narrow majority. I appreciate how this article highlights those tactics, both as a citizen and as a future public relations practitoner.

Final thoughts on PR 191

PR 191 opened my eyes on new topic. I did not pay attention to blog from before. Following a blog during the semester was challenging and made me realize that this is the new trend in business. Blogging is becoming more important than ever, even businesses use it to polish their company’s image like in “Sun” case.

But, the problem resides in who is behind the blog? Who is writing the blog?
We saw in Walmart case that Walmart hired secretly people to start blogging in its favor. Blogging can confront unethical problem.

Overall PR 191 was a challenging class, looking back, I feel that I learnt a lot of valuable information whether in doing position paper, annual report, a direct mail package or blogging.

PR class

This class has placed a new perspective on my future role in public realtions. I have learned many useful tools that I will look back and rely on as a PR practitioner. Who knew the strong effects of a position paper, as well as the aspect of writing a blog every week?

The lessons we have learned are skills that will encompas us to succeed in the business world.

One skill that has lead us into the heart of public relations is blogging. Blogging has become one of the most used and useful tools to the public relations field. It has become a source of marketing, persuasion, and good publicity. As a blogger I have learned to browse other bloggers for news and current events. Blogging is another way to market yourself to future employers. It can be a useful way to market your skills in creative writing as wewll as your professionalism.

This class has helped spin a simple internet tool into a wonderful way to speak your mind about a certain topic. I was very happy to learn a new skill that is becoming more and more useful in public relations.

Reflection On Our PR 191 Class

Before this class, I had never understood what a blog was or how to create one. In addition, I never saw myself ever posting any. PR 191 has taught me a lot in regards to the "new" media and the popularity of online technology.
Blogging has seriously taken over the traditional media, as more and more people are able to connect with each other through blogs. They are so easily accessible and easy to post, something that scares me a little. Unlike anything else, anyone can read your blogs and hear what you say.
Let me just say, I was surprised when posting my blog regarding Blogger and Podcaster Magazine. It was shocking to find that the magazine's publisher, himself, posted a comment in reaction to what I wrote. Interesting how easily accessible any blog can be!
Realizing the astonishing effects of the "new" media, I see myself maybe utilizing it in the future. It may affect my career plan, who knows. It might benefit me, even though I never had a liking to it. But reality is reality. Sooner or later, blogging, podcasting, vlogging, and any of this online "new" media will one day be the dominating media in society.

Shrek & McDonald

Since Shrek the Third is coming soon, McDonald cross-over Shrek a series of product. Firstly, McDonald products 4 edition of Shrek glasses, consumer can buy it with any food purchase. Clearly. the target audience (TA) for this collection is kids and supporter of Shrek.

To broader the TA, McDonald has new burger, Ranch BLT with innovative slogan, "Feed your inner Ogre". Definitely, the word "Ogre" can enhance loyalty of Shrek's fans.

To arouse TA interest, it also designed a game of Shrek on its website, I tried to play, it is pretty good. Check it out: http://shrek.mcdonalds.com/mcd/shrek.html

Changing PR

There have been many transitions in the way the media transmits their news. We have newspapers, internet and radio. Within the media we also have so many new forms of communication that can often overwhelm the content of our messages and instead concentrate on how fast and how concise people can deliver their messages.
The truth is we live in a fast paced world that depends on technology on a daily basis. As time passes more technological advancements that facilitate the way we live our lives. It is important to keep up with these innovations because it is precisely these new podcasts, blogs and web-pages that will become, or have already become, the new way to communicate. This will inevitably affect our career, but the best thing we can do is stay knowledgeable in technology and open-minded to new forms of communication.
Public Relations is very much part of this transition. It's important to know how to blog. It is quickly becoming part of many major organizations as is designing a web-page. It is a difficult task but it is not necessary to become an expert. One can familiarize themselves with the basics skills needed to contribute to this new media.

All Good Things Must Come to an End

This semester has been a particularly trying one, but the information and skills i have picked up this semester have been some of the most useful. This is especially true thanks to PR 191. The activities we did in this class have forced me to explore PR resources and tactics that I was completely unfamiliar with. One of these tools is blogs.

By creating a class blog, all of us have been forced to explore the world of blogging and what it means from a PR standpoint. What I have discovered is that blogging might be one of the most useful resources a PR professional can use. This is because it allows a message to reach a large audience for free. Isn't that the ultimate goal of most PR efforts; to get the message out there without paying for it? It seems to me that blogging might be the future of PR. Blogs have already gained a huge reader base and most companies and public officials have used blogs at one point or another. I don't see an end in sight for blogs. The possiblities seem endless.

As a Public Relations major hoping to break into the field sometime in the next few years, it is going to be important for me to take advantage of these relatively new types of media, which includes such things as blogs and podcasts. Surviving without using these tools seems almost impossible.

Steve Rubel may be onto something here...

If blogging is the new medium for reaching audiences, why not tell them what you're going to blog about and when you're going to do it? Print media has used the editorial calendar to inform advertisers about upcoming editorial and special sections. PR guru Steve Rubel has decided to do it on his blog, too. It will be interesting to see if it draws advertisers, or marks a trend in blogging, since he's the Me2revolution man.

Reflections on PR 191

Weekly blogging is a challege for me. Thankfully, there were several PR flaps this semester to cover, but finding new and interesting material to post proved harder than I expected. New media is the future we face as PR students today. I am thankful that this class taught me more about it. That said, I think I'm going to take MCOM 163 in the fall, because I feel like I need to learn more!

I appreciated our time spent on direct mail and design. It was very fun putting words to the things I had inuited about fonts and design principles, in the past. Learning inDesign is high on my list of priorities, now.

I also really enjoyed getting to know my fellow classmates. You're all a bunch of great people and I look forward to networking and getting to know each other in the future. Thanks also to Prof. McCune for encouraging us and spurring us on toward our best effort.

Final Blog

I’ll start off by saying that this has been a class that has taught me a significant amount of information regarding the world of public relations. It seemed at times, as if I was actually working for a PR agency. Regarding blogs, I have to admit that I finally know what they are all about. I remember that in previous classes blogs were mentioned, nevertheless, I never really knew what they were. This class not only defined what blogging is, but also gave us the opportunity of actually write and comment blogs.

I have realized that blogs are a very important and significant form of communication in the world of PR. I have also learned that they can help, as well as harm. Therefore, being aware of the impact that the blogs have in the world of PR is essential.

In addition, I believe that blogginng is a new phenomenon that will be with me through out my career. I don’t think it will affect me. I’m not an expert at blogging, however, I think I got the hang of it. The impact the it id having in the world of public relations is so intense that I am very much encouraged to become if not an expert a close-to-being and expert blogger.

Final Thoughts...

I am a Marketing major and a PR minor. So I'm not really looking to get into a full blown PR position. But I have to say I have learned a lot this past year and I think it has helped me and could help me in my business career.

Blogs and other new media are not only changing the practice of PR, but I think it is changing everything. It changes the way we communicate as a society and it changes buisness. It's a new way to get a message or opinion across. Or simply, it's a way to let your feelings out. In either case, people are reading blogs. As we all know, it can even lead to new opportunities.

So i think that we as a society, have to adapt, just like any other new technology, we have to adapt to it and incorporate it into our daily lives.

So I just want to say that this semester in PR 191 has been a blast because I have learned so many new things that I haven't ever known before. Dreamweaver, direct mail, position paper, blogs and brochures are some example.

Good luck to everyone on their endeavors and have a GREAT summer!

Vaccine's future murky for Merck?

A recent Los Angeles Times article discusses the results of a study that suggest Merck's human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine only protects against one or two strains of the virus. HPV is known to cause cervical and other cancers in women.

By early 2007, many states created legislation for mandatory vaccination for teenage girls, igniting a national debate. The ramifications of these statues in addition to the efficacy of the vaccination, are ripe grounds for public relations practitioners and lobbyists.

Merck, having weathered the inital round of scrutiny, is again positioning itself as one of several vaccines designed to prevent HPV.