Corporate Ethics--Do All Companies Fail?

Burston-Marstellar, WorldCom, Enron, Exxon, Southwest---All are companies that have in a small way or in a much larger way had corporate ethic issues. In fact there is quite a long list of companies that have problems with Business Ethics.

But there is another list with companies that have high ethical standards and do not bend their values and morals for a profit. Unfortunately those companies are a bit harder to find.

Communications professionals face a whole new set of issues when it comes to ethics.
In previous decades PR professionals are only seen as spin doctors, basically liars for their company, saying what the company tells them to say and not giving the truth to the consumer/customer. In previous decades those reports and bias were not without some backing. Many PR professionals did indeed doctor the truth and basically said what they were supposed to say in order to keep their jobs.

Nowadays it’s a different story—

1. You can be fired if you are found to be telling something that is false or hiding the truth or omitting the facts.

2. It is much easier for the public to discover the facts on their own thereby giving them the power to “out” the suspected wrongdoer or company that is practicing questionable ethics

3. Eventually the truth will come out. For example, ENRON. The truth will not hide forever and if it comes out sooner rather than later it is better for everyone involved.

4. PR professionals have protection if they do have to be a “whistle blower”. Nowadays this protection is given to those employees that have felt they must bring an issue to the attention of the authorities or the public.

5. Communications students are being taught right next to journalists and the same principles that are being ingrained in young journalists are being hammered into PR students as well.

Companies should always try to maintain a high standard of integrity and ethical conduct. It should be consistent with their general Company values and in compliance with both the letter and spirit of all applicable laws and regulations. I believe that the business environment has never been more challenging or complex, particularly for a companies that conduct business in almost every country in the world.

I think that only through the highest ethical conduct, and through a corporate culture that recognizes the value of compliance with these standards, can companies look forward to continued success in the future.

We are responsible for our actions---let us remind companies that they are responsible for theirs--

The Chinese Government is Right to Censor the Internet

Looking at net neutrality it is indeed a touchy subject for most citizens of the United States as well as people in other countries.

I’m going to play devils advocate in this entry and play on the other side.

According to Colin Rhinesmith in “Community Media in Transition”.

“At last weeks FCC hearing at Harvard Law School, the issue of network neutrality once again took center stage. As the Internet giant Google describes the issue “Network neutrality is the principle that Internet users should be in control of what content they view and what applications they use on the Internet.” Therefore, proponents of network neutrality believe that Internet service providers should not be in the business of deciding what content users get to view and what applications they get to use. As Fuller writes -As individuals and community groups begin to consider television not just passively but also as an outlet for their artistic and/or informational interests, they need to develop a whole new mind-set toward media in general and television in particular. Next, they must actively participate in media policymaking and stop defering to policies in place, theoretically, to protect their interests. What is being presented here is a control issue, and until we personally and professionally consider the implications of where we want the locus of control, we are no where."

But why shouldn't countries government be allowed to decide what should be allowed to be viewed, heard and read by their citizens. If the government has been elected by the country than they have that right.

If the United States elected a congress, a senate and a president that believed that the internet should be censored than why would we be upset when they followed through with their orders.

How can we look at another countries elected government and fault them for the decisions that they are making with their country, their people and their computers.

The Chinese government wants their citizens to only hear about the best things about them, only see the highlights of the administration and only read what they think will best keep them happy and content.

Why should we fault a government that only wishes to keep their citizens content and satisfied with its system of government?

If the Chinese people wish to gain net neutrality than they should elect a government that believes the same...

Any discussion?

The Die Hard Republican Loses Her Composure

For this assignment I was asked to find a PR case study that demonstrated a company or organizations successful communication strategy.

I am a political junkie; I love the whole arena of politics, the backbiting, the negative ads, the general organized chaos of an election year. I find it stimulating to see people clawing and fighting their way to the top. It’s kind of cool

I’m also a hard core Republican, something sort of unique for a college student. I believe that Universal Health Care is the worse idea ever. I listen to Sean Hannity and Mark Davis on the radio (conservative talk show hosts). I whine about big government and how it’s stifling the free market. Yup I’m one of “those” people.

And yet

I was practically moved to tears during Obama’s “Yes We Can” music video. It was full of passion, excitement, anger, sadness, empathy and a strong call to action.

I believe that this type of communication strategy can work for almost every age and every demographic.

But it definitely works most strongly for my generation—the actors and actresses that we are familiar with, the type and sound of music that we listen to and enjoy, the fact that it was on YouTube. All of this really bridges the gap and reaches the younger voters. Even though we might not know what to change, who’s going to change it or what the issues are even about we will vote for Barack Obama because of this video.

Yes we can change—into what we don’t know but it doesn’t even matter

Yes We Can-The Obama Music Video

The Airline Blog: Why do we need it?

Looking at all the blogs that are out there on the ginormous internet one cannot help but wonder what one more blog will be able to add to the general public?

Airline blogs are an emerging communication tool—new to the time—and they deal directly with corporate communications. It is important to look at these blogs critically in order to help these companies gain more knowledge of the blog world.

So how do you use an airline blog? Well first off you clink on the links below to access the sites.

http://www.blogsouthwest.com/
http://aaconversation.blogspot.com/
http://blog.delta.com/
http://aviation.beloblog.com/

So still, why would you want to look at the sites above? How do they pertain to your life and what you want to spend your time reading?

Honestly I do not know why I would access these sites. As a customer of the airline I have a certain amount of loyalty to Southwest Airlines. Would that entice me to read their blog? Perhaps yes….but I also know that there are new features in the works for the Southwest blog. It is going to become more interactive with much less actual text which will make it much more entertaining to the average viewer.

In this day and age of fast entertainment and short attention spans I can see how this improved blog would interest me to view the site.

Maybe other companies can realize that just saying good things about their company on the website is not going to drive traffic. There has to be a reason why people are going to their site besides just to hear good things about the company.

In fact it can actually hurt a company to just be posting great things over and over again about their company. Sometimes it can make them seem fake and desperate for good publicity. If your company is neither one than you should not be searching for things to blog about. Just be yourself.

Is too much technology bad?

Looking at the wide variety of technology I realized that on a daily basis I spend more hours of my day texting, on the internet, blogging, talking on the phone, watching tv than I do doing anything else. At work I am on the internet, at school I'm on the internet and at home I'm on the internet.

Communication technology can be used to market and advertise products, companies, etc... and can be a vital part of a organization. This type of technology can be used to relate to employees, customers and the general public. But does this type of technology really help you emotionally and mentally connect with other people or is it all a facade?

My opinion is that while technology can be used to help companies, organization and institutions, it can also distance you from reality and actually talking to other people. The art of public speaking is slowly declining because you don't need to talk to your audience anymore. Conversations are becoming more difficult and less articulate because of the awkardness of actually having to talk to someone instead of IMing someone or texting them.

I believe that communication technology is slowly separating us from having to be close and connected to other people and allows us to isolate ourselves in our little internet worlds.

Anyone have an opinion please feel free to discuss----

SUPERBOWL ADS

Looking at superbowl ads this year shows the prevelance of using shock factors or catchy bright colored lizards to get the attention of the audience--- Is this type of ad really necessary to catch our attention? A new wave of young people very involved in internet use needs something catchy on a screen to get our attention--do we feel more engaged or just tuned out?

http://www.spike.com/superbowl

With politics the same things apply--- as the youthful vote is being courted by each party with brilliant tactics being used to affect the heart of the voter-- to be able to relate to the people in the ad and believe what they say

http://youtube.com/watch?v=jjXyqcx-mYY

This is a perfect example of persuasion and the impact it has on the youth vote
It does make me want to go out and vote but that does not mean I will be voting for Obama
The issues, background and values of the person I'll be voting for are the most important things for me

Media Relations Strategies

Besides the normal avenues of working with the media PR professionals are having to realize that the new media is evolving fast and PR professionals are having to keep up

In this article the problems that PR professionals are having is evident

http://www.ereleases.com/pr/pr-media-relationship.html

Are news releases a thing of the past? Do we really need PR professionals

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3012/is_4_184/ai_n6054815

The problems that are facing all PR professionals are also facing basically every industry that deals with communication and the media

What can we do in this fast paced world to channel the information that is out there about our company or organization?

I believe that online information is going to obliterate the newspaper, magazines and books

Obviously that will be over a long period of time-

The visual aspects of communication and media are becoming more and more necessary to hold the attention of a distracted society.

Visual and fast online communication is the easiest way to reach individuals