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#COMM4333 Final Exam, Spring 2010

New pens and crochet-in-progress by hddod.COMM 4333 Spring 2010 Students Only

For your final exam in COMM 4333, we’ll do something a little non-traditional. Create a list of the ten most important things that you learned in our class, and explain why these things are important. Be sure to touch on a variety of the topics we covered in COMM 4333; the only required topic to discuss is the importance of AP Style.

This exam (as noted on your syllabus) is worth 10% of your grade in the class.

Format (your choice)

  • Write a blog post of ~500 words
  • Create a PowerPoint & upload it to SlideShare (should have at least 7 slides, with detailed notes in the Notes panel). Embed the SlideShare slides into your blog.
  • Create a podcast (audio recording) using Utterli or Podbean (should be ~5-10 minutes long). Embed the audio into your blog.
  • Create a video & upload it to YouTube (should be ~5-10 minutes long). Embed the audio into your blog.

DUE: No later than Tuesday, May 4, at 1:50 pm. Submit the URL of the specific blog post in BlackBoard.

NOTE: Since our final is completed using an online method, do not physically come to class for the final.

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Spring 2010 Final Blog Checklist

We are in the homestretch of Spring 2010, believe it or not. I will start evaluating/grading your blogs soon (dates vary by class).

If you are in PRCA 3030, PRCA 3330, COMM 2322 or COMM 4333, please complete this checklist to be sure your blog is complete. NOTE: You will need to scroll down in the form to complete all areas and find the Submit button.

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Portfolio Review Assignment :: #PRCA3711

As PR students near the end of their college careers, many of you will need to create a portfolio that highlights your best work over the past few semesters. See Portfolios for Public Relations Students for details on how to create a portfolio.

For the Spring 2010 PRCA 3711 class, you have five options for completing the Portfolio Review Assignment. Choose an option by April 15 and let me know your choice on this Google form. (If you do not make a choice, your choice will default to Option Five.)

Option One: Hard-Copy Portfolio

  • Create a hard-copy portfolio with at least five work samples & mail it to me so it arrives no later than April 30. E-mail me to let me know when you have mailed the portfolio.
  • Include a “script” with what you would say if the potential employer asked you to talk him/her through your portfolio (why you included each piece, how the client benefited from the piece, etc.)
  • There’s no need to go to great expense with the portfolio itself; a simple folder will suffice for this assignment
  • In GeorgiaVIEW, submit the date you mailed the portfolio to me.

Option Two: Social Media Resume

  • Create a Social Media Resume
  • In GeorgiaVIEW, submit the URL of the Social Media Resume.
  • NOTE: If you are in PRCA 3030, you can use the same SMR as you are creating for that class (if you chose that option in PRCA 3030).

Option Three: Video Pitch

  • Create an 8-10 minute YouTube (or Vimeo) video of you pitching yourself to potential employers.
  • Show some of your portfolio pieces in the video
  • OPTIONAL: Embed the video in your blog
  • In GeorgiaVIEW, submit a link to the video

Option Four: Skype Interview

  • Meet with me via Skype (audio and video) for a 10- to 15-minute mock interview. Contact me via e-mail to schedule this interview.
  • Prepare as you would for an video-based interview with a potential employer (dress appropriately, consider what’s in the background of the video, etc.)
  • In GeorgiaVIEW, submit a self-evaluation of the mock interview, including what you would do differently in a future video-based interview.

Option Five: No Portfolio

  • Have your grade in PRCA 3711 based only on the other assignments you have completed, and not do a portfolio review.
  • In GeorgiaVIEW, for the Portfolio Assignment, insert a comment that reminds me you are choosing not to do a portfolio review.
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Distributing News to the Media

Play by Niecieden.Writing a news release is all well and good . .  . but if it is not sent to the media for (potential) distribution, it’s a futile effort. I created this small crossword puzzle to help students understand some of the wide variety of options when it comes to news distribution channels. Try it out!

NOTE: Most clues in the puzzle come from:

Wilcox, D. (2009). Public Relations Writing and Media Techniques (6th Edition). Boston, MA: Pearson Education.

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Social Media News Releases :: #PRCA3330 #COMM4333

sf weekly by caffeina.For your final assignment in Public Relations Writing, you have a choice between two projects. You can either prepare a Social Media News Release OR write a detailed blog post about Social Media News Releases.

See GeorgiaVIEW/BlackBoard for the due date.

Option #1: Prepare a Social Media News Release

  • Using either PitchEngine (or PRXbuilder, if you are at Georgia Southern University… it’s blocked at Southeastern University for some reason) OR your WordPress blog create a Social Media News Release for your client.
  • See pages 136-139  in Public Relations Writing and Media Techniques on creating your SMNR (NOTE: Your book calls them Smart Media Releases or Multimedia Releases.)
  • Include one news release (it can be based upon a release you’ve turned in for a previous assignment use your revised Personality Profile), along with
    • at least one photo to accompany the story
    • at least two relevant quotations
    • at least two relevant hyperlinks
    • boilerplate information about your client
    • tags that help describe your release & client
  • If any of the information you are using in the release is not factual, you’ll need to make this very clear with a disclaimer.
  • In GeorgiaVIEW/BlackBoard, submit the URL to your SMNR.

Option #2: Write a Blog Post about Social Media News Releases

  • Blog post should be 500-1000 words. (NOTE: This will be in much more depth than other blog posts you’ve written your Week 15 Topic of the Week.)
  • Include the following in the blog post
    • What is a Social Media News Release?
    • What are the advantages & disadvantages of a SMNR?
    • When should a PR practitioner consider using a SMNR?
    • Offer links to at least two websites that will help one create a SMNR
    • Provide a link to a SMNR that an organization has created
    • Provide 5-10 tips for SMNR creation
  • There should be at least five hyperlinks in your blog post. ALWAYS link to sites where you get your information; not doing so is plagiarism.
  • In GeorgiaVIEW/BlackBoard, submit the URL to your blog post about the SMNR.
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Creating a Social Media Policy :: #PRCA3030


P6033675 by afsart.

Due: April 28 by 11:59pm in GeorgiaVIEW

Worth: 200 points

For the final project in PRCA 3030, students have the option of creating their own Social Media Resume or writing a Social Media Policy for a client organization. This blog post describes the Social Media Policy assignment.

The Process

Using the Policy Tool for Social Media, a free service of PolicyTool.net, create a Social Media Policy for your client. (Choose your own client.) In order to do this, you will make and justify several decisions, including the following questions (taken directly from Policy Tool for Social Media):

  • Who can use social media in your company?
  • Must employees obtain permission from someone to use social media?
  • May employee login ID’s or user names include the [“Organization Name”] without approval?
  • Are there certain well known employees who must follow these rules even for personal social media?
  • Are there any ethical standards that your employees must normally follow for publishing or commentary?
  • Do you offer internal assistance in setting up social media accounts and settings?
  • Must the user’s social media profiles be consistent with [“Organization Name”] website or publications?
  • Must official corporate photos be used for profile photos?
  • Should the employee include a disclaimer stating that they are not speaking on behalf of the company?
  • Do you want to add tips for successful use of social media that are helpful, but not strictly speaking required for a policy?

At each stage of the creation process in the Policy Tool for Social Media, you are asked to make a decision about the above questions. For each decision you make, provide a paragraph or so description of how you made the decision. You will want to get input from your client, rather than making these decisions in a vacuum. Put these questions and how you arrived at each decision in the Appendix of your paper.

The Paper

Your Social Media Policy Paper will consist of the following:

  • A short description of your client
  • A description of your client’s current involvement in social media (including how leaders & employees in the organization are using social media). See the Social Web Strategy Worksheet (from Chapter 1) on the Resource CD that came with A Survival Guide to Social Media and Web 2.0 Optimization: Strategies, Tactics, and Tools for Succeeding in the Social Web for suggestions of types of social media sites the organization may be involved in.
  • A few paragraphs on the need for a social media policy (for any client, not just this one). Include information on the dangers of NOT having a policy in place.
  • The policy that you create using Policy Tool for Social Media (copy and paste)
  • A recommendation for how to implement the policy in the client organization
  • An appendix, which lists your justification for each of the answers to the policy questions, along with contact information for your client, just in case I have any questions

Remember

If you use information in your paper that you did not write yourself (for example, the client description), it’s critical for you to cite your sources. For the policy portion of your paper, you can simply indicate that you used the Policy Tool for Social Media to create the policy. As is common in our field of study, use APA Style for citations.

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Media Contact List :: #PRCA3330 #COMM4333

Rolodex by renaissancechambara.All successful public relations practitioners have their own media contact lists that they maintain on a regular basis. They will contact different members of the media depending on the messages they are seeking to share on behalf of their clients. In the “olden days,” we would maintain our contact lists in our desktop Rolodexes.

For our PR Writing class, create a Media Contact List. With your specific client in mind, create a media contact list that will be helpful when you are seeking to share messages on behalf of your client.

At a bare minimum (to earn a C), your media contact list must include at least one radio station, one TV station, one blog and three print publications. Use a table to compile this list; you can use either Word or Excel.

Contact info will include:
  • Organization
  • Contact’s Name
  • Title
  • Snail Mail Address
  • E-mail Address
  • Phone Numbers (phone, fax, cell . . .)
  • Website/blog address
  • Twitter username (if relevant)
  • Comments about this contact
  • AND, rationale for including this media outlet
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Public Service Announcement Assignment :: #PRCA3330 #COMM4333

Echoes From Another Time by drp.One way that nonprofit and government associations get the word out is through public service announcements.

For our PR Writing class, create a 30-second public service announcement or radio news release for your client. (If you have a nonprofit or gov’t client, write a PSA. If you have a for-profit client, write a radio news release.) Review the information in Chapter 9, especially pages 208-222 for tips on how to write.

Things to keep in mind:

  • Thirty seconds is not very long, approximately 75 words. You’ll need to get to the point quickly.
  • You’re writing information that will be spoken, not read silently. There’s a BIG difference between the two. Ask a friend or two to read your PSA or radio news release aloud. Edit and adjust as needed.
  • Write conversationally.
  • Use the same standard header that you have used on previous news release assignments (for contact information, etc.)
  • Feel free to write on the same topic as you have in previous releases, as long as the topic can fit this assignment.

Additional resources:

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Persuasion Using Monroe’s Motivated Sequence

In my Honors Speaking class, we’re discussing using Monroe’s Motivated Sequence as a way to persuade listeners. This tried-and-true process has five steps:

  1. Attention
  2. Need
  3. Satisfaction
  4. Visualization
  5. Action

I discovered this short video this morning which explains the process well:

This one-page handout offers additional details on Monroe’s Motivated Sequence.