Reflection about this log and final entry

After ten entries I must say that this log exercise ended up being rewarding . The biggest benefit derived from doing this reflective log was that it encouraged me to read more. I must say up to the fifth class I use to prepare by reading prior to the classes. However my assignments due dates changed that. For this semester I felt that my understanding of the issues in PR have deepen as a result of the lectures and by extension these logs. I also noticed that many of the issues discussed are related in some way. For example in the case of crisis management , diversity and CSR knowing and reaching out to audiences is very essential. Another example is that when the PR practitioner uses new media they have to apply the same ethics as they would for traditional media. Armed with this knowledge, we as students will no doubt contribute positively to the profession.

On a broader note as the teaching side of the course comes to an end I also reflect on the experience as surreal and unbelievable . I would have to say one of the most challenging element has been perfecting the pitch . I must say last semester I found that one quiet difficult however by the end of this semester I've noticed some growth in the area. Also was it not for this MA I wouldn't have known about new media, need I say more I'm actually using one of the tools.

Education and PR

"Success is determined by personal contacts, public relations qualifications are irrelevant ."

I was on the team that supported this moot, here were some of our arguments:

-persons enter the field from different backgrounds other than public relations namely : liberal arts degrees such as english and journalism and social sciences.

-many people in the industry view PR as a practical practise and so are skeptical about the idea of being taught at universities.

-public relations is becoming increasingly competivity , now ranking as one of the top three most popular in the UK, so graduates have to stand from the crowd. Thus having education isn't enough.

Enough said although my team established that PR education is not necessarily required to obtain a job in PR we had to concede that it is important . Education helps to establish the practise as a worthy profession . In fact Ehling( 1992) asserts that there is a direct link between public relations education and professionalism. He further states, that 'education is the primary means for providing the necessary knowledge and skills needed to fulfil the tasks and responsiblities of any public relations activity.'(pg 339). PR education also has the ability contribute to the profession by increasing knowledge of ethics. This as we know increases standing of the profession.

As was said, by studying PR we are sending a message to future employers that we are serious about it. For this course in particular the practical courses will prove especially useful to those who have no work experience .
My conclusions are that education in PR gives the student a distinct advantage and knowledge to contribute to the upliftment of the profession.

Ehling W.( 1992) .Excellence in Public Relations and Communication.Lawerence Erlbaum Associates, Publishers.

New Media and PR

For me learning about new media and how it relates to PR has to be one of the major highlights of this MA. Although we just touched on it briefly in the first semester my understanding of it was deepen in the NGO module. This sector has adopted the tool new media as a way to mobilize support for a cause and to build momentum for campaigns that will make it in mainstream media.

New media in a way has presented a new challenge for the practise of public relations.Some of these include the fact that reputation management is harder to control, the power of feedback and that the reach is instant. So the practitioner might exert some amount of control on the company websites but there are blogs , social networking sites, virtual worlds that this is not so.

As was illustrated in class the relationship between new media and traditional media is not estranged. They both to an extent depend on each other and as was pointed out the techniques used in traditional media also apply to new media. The PR practitioner has be transparent and ethical when doing online work.

After my classmates presented I was keen to do the podcast but after 3 unsuccessful attempts I was not able to do it for the blog. I want to eventual do one as I might not know when it will become handy.

Dissertation Focus

This class was especially nerve racking but it was well needed. The first exercise allowed us to basically assess if our topics were at all feasible. In so doing I left the class terrified but equipped with more knowledge about what to do for this to make sense. Prior to this class i wasn't aware that we should include what we expect to find and also outcomes we are expecting. Dividing us into related groups allowed us to work out how we approach a dissertation topic by coming up with :

questions

subquestions

what do we expect to find

method

limitations

what will we follow

what PR practitioners will find

The lessons learnt from this exercise will no doubt be used to refine my proposal for the dissertation.