Is information a ‘public good’ in public relations?

This week I am looking at the Creative Commons, Internet law and issues including copyright and IP. The main focus of this post is to answer the following question…

How is information a ‘public good’ in your profession?

So, what is a public good?

There are two components to a public good;

1. It must be non-rivalrous – the consumption or use of the good by one individual cannot reduce the ability of another individual to use or consume the good

2. It must be non-excludable - it is not possible to stop anyone from consuming it

“It can be seen that public goods tend to be intangible items, that is, things which are difficult to grasp with the hands, and that many of them fall into the category of information or knowledge”

Source: The Linux Information Project

In terms of the public relations profession, information is undoubtedly a public good!

The purpose of public relations is to form mutually beneficial relationships between an organisation and its publics. This is primarily achieved through two-way communication. Evidently, communication is information. However, intellectual property (IP) and copyright are two factors that must be considered when distributing information.

What is intellectual property?

According to Flew there are two visions of intellectual property – information as a public resource and information as a private resource (2008, p227)

Information as a public resource

1. Free speech and free circulation of ideas and information

2. Draws primarily upon existing materials (not new)

3. Information and efficiency

4. Inequitable access to information in society

Information as a private resource

1. Individual property rights and rights of personal privacy

2. Individual creativity and originality

3. Innovation and incentives

4. Denial of individual rights and creativity

(Flew, 2008)

What is copyright?

Copyright law recognises that original work can belong to individuals. The law also states that there should be compensation (usually monetary) for the original owner of the work if the work is used by others.

According to Flew, facts, concepts and ideas are not outright copyrightable because they cannot be owned by an individual. However, copyright seeks to protect creative works such as books, paintings and music lyrics. It is important to realise that the orignal author/creator does have ownership of the ‘creative expression’ but not once the work has been distributed in physical form.

Lastly, Flew acknowledges that some information is exempt from copyright law when it is in the best interest of the public to have this information readily and easily available and accessible (2008, p227).

So, of course information is a public good in the public relations profession.

There are a number of reasons why information is a public good in public relations;

1.The purpose of public relations is to inform and educate publics, using information to communicate. Public relations is concerned with making information public. Our aim is to provide information as a public good so that it can be consumed, shared or even retweeted. Therefore, information is a public good.

2. Public relations practitioners use websites, media releases, feature articles, brochures, social networks (blogs, Twitter, Facebook), campaigns and many other forms of communication to inform and influence publics. All of these forms of communication are non-excludable and non-rivalrous. All of these forms of communication are common public relations practices.

3. Public relations practitioners use the mass media (public good) to disseminate messages, including newspapers, television programs and magazines.

Public relations information is a public good because it is non-excludable and non-rivalrous.

Want more?

This is a very interesting video from Michael from Ogilvy PR in China about the 360 degrees digital influence… Is this YouTube video a public good? I think so, it’s user-generated content.

This is the latest ‘statistics’ clip…very interesting

What the Public Believes: New Trends in Corporate Reputation Management.

Read: The Public Domain: Enclosing the commons of the mind

My resources

Public Goods: A Brief Introduction (2006). The Linux Information Project.

Flew, T. (2008). New Media An Introduction (3rd. Ed.) Melbourne: Oxford Press. Davis, P. (2009).

Information as Property. The Scholarly Kitchen. Society for Scholarly Publishing.

Participatory culture & interactivity

The topic that I have chosen to examine  is participatory culture and interactivity.

I will do this by answering the following question,

In what ways has the growth of participatory culture and interactivity changed your profession in recent years?

According to Flew, participation allows anyone to use ICTS to participate as a user, consumer, worker or citizen (2008).

In a white paper by Clinton, Purushotma, Robison, Weigel and Jenkins defined participatory culture as one…

1. With relatively low barriers to artistic expression and civic engagement

2. With strong support for creating and sharing one’s creations with others

3. With some type of informal mentorship whereby what is known by the most experienced is passed along to novices

4.Where members believe that their contributions matter

5.Where members feel some degree of social connection with one another (at the least they care what other people think about what they have created).

After considering these five definitions, the notion of participatory culture became quite clear to me. It’s all about sharing  & caring, and with the help of globalisation and convergence, it’s embedded into our ‘technoculutre’.

Evidently, the terms interactivity and participatory culture are very closely related, but they are not the same.  According to Flew, interactivity is the most important attribute of new media. The two main concepts of interactivity are interconnectivity and interoperability. Interconnectivity is the ability to connect across difference networks. Interoperability is the ability to access a range of information and media using different operating systems (2008). The three main attributes of interactivity are;

User-to-user interaction

Para-social interaction

User-to-system interactivity

(Flew, 2008)

Here’s another interesting interview with Jenkins (he’s becoming a regular on this blog!)

Now that the technicalities are out of the way, let’s relate this to the creative industries and more specifically, to public relations.

Participatory culture and interactivity have changed the public relations professional in recent years.

Two-way communication:

New media facilitates the conversation between public relations practitioners and publics. Public relations is based on building relationships and communicating effectively and participatory culture allows for instant feedback (good or bad) which facilitates two-way communication. Public relations professionals now have to respond very quickly when an unhappy or disgruntled individuals voice his/her opinion online through social network platforms like blogs, Facebook and Twitter or online news sites. Public relations practitioners cannot ignore user-generated content, they must facilitate two-way communication to maintain relationships.

Social media allows public relations professionals to communicate more effectively and efficiently. In recent years public relations professionals have had to quickly and effectively adapt to the latest social media trends. The internet is a fantastic platform for voicing personal opinion about a brand, organisation or news story, to millions of people. Blogs, Twitter, Facebook and other social media sites like Digg, allow individuals to produce and share opinions.

In 2006, Twitter was born. This “information network” soon became a popular way to communicate among professionals, celebrities, organisations and individuals. For public relations practitioners, getting a message out in a sentence may prove to be difficult. One of the biggest challenges is fitting a message into only 140 characters. However, public relations professionals have mastered this tool with honest messages that are customised. Most importantly, public relations professionals are participating in the conversation. Additionally, public relations practitioners can track the need of journalists through Twitter, which can prove to be extremely beneficial.

In recent years social media has allowed public relations practitioners to better prepare for a crisis through monitoring online content and responding to individuals concerns in a timely manner.  As one of my lecturers says, “a crisis ignored, is a crisis ensured”. Public relations professionals are using social media to understand publics and to reach specific groups of publics.

For example, Kmart recently applied to open its stories on ANZAC day because it believed that by closing customers would be inconvenienced. Kmart soon changed its stance and avoided a potential crisis through monitoring public opinion online and actually valuing these views. More than 400 people voiced their opinion here… So my point is, participators can influence decisions. Public relations practitioners can avoid a crisis.

This is a really interesting lecture with Evan Williams, CEO and co-founder of Twitter. Grab a cup of coffee… it’s long, but worth it.

But, with so many social networks and platforms for users to produce and distribute content, how can public relations practitioners keep a ‘finger on the pulse’?

Google Alerts is a free service provided by Google that can prove to be helpful in avoiding a potential crisis. Public relations practitioners can benefit from this service by using it to…

1. Monitor public opinion

2. Monitor message dissemination

3. Research competition or potential clients

How do you use it?

1. Simply enter your keyword (organisation or topic) into the search terms

2. Choose the type, how often and email length that suits you

3. Enter your email address

4. Click “create alert”

You can activate and deactivate your alert through your email. It’s simple!

Message dissemination:

With the emergence of participatory culture, public relations has made a fundamental change to online message dissemination. Seeking Media allows public relations professionals to write, edit and send media releases online. So what are the benefits of online media releases?

1. Allow for even faster publication and message dissemination

2. Increase brand awareness through Google rankings

3. Direct distribution to journalists and consumers

Public relations practitioners have now started customising messages to suit specific new media platforms. For example, viral campaigns on YouTube have become increasingly popular in recent years. The “Are you my man in the jacket?” campaign by Witchery is one example of a recent viral campaigns that received a considerable amount of air time across Australia and overseas.

Are you my man in the jacket? received more than 200,000 hits on YouTube.

Citizen journalism:

With the emergence of blogs, twitter and devices such as the iPhone, people are constantly telling their own stories, breaking stories and sharing stories with the world.

The way in which stories are being told has forced public relations practitioners to customise and personalise their messages even more. In addition, users/participators are becoming more trusting of other participators. I know that when I am looking for a restaurant, I value and trust the opinions of people who have recommended it or blogged about it or tweeted about it. Instead of advertorial. Public relations practitioners must participate, otherwise their messages will be ignored and their credibility will suffer.

Are you a citizen journalist?

Want more?

Here’s a short explanation of citizen journalism…

Here’s an article about Linkedin and its plan to open offices in Sydney. Linkedin is a popular social network for professionals and it is quite popular in Australia.

In conclusion, participatory culture and interactivty has changed the way that public relations practitioners work on a daily basis. It is important for public relations practitioners to participate and interact with key publics to ensure the credibility of their organsiation and client.

Flew, T. (2008). New Media An Introduction (3rd. Ed.) Melbourne: Oxford Press.

Jenkins, H. Confronting the challenges of participatory culture: Media education for the 21^st century.

Transmedia storytelling & marketing

This week I am looking at transmedia storytelling and how it applies to my planned profession, integrated marketing communication and public relations.

Before I go any further, it is necessary to define transmedia storytelling.

According to Henry Jenkins (2006), transmedia storytelling is,

“a process where integral elements of fiction get dispersed systematically across multiple delivery channels for the purpose of creating a unified and coordinated entertainment experience.”

This concept is a part of convergence, which I explained in my previous blog. According to Dupagne & Garrison (2006) convergence is the “coming together of all forms of mediated communications in an electronic, digital form, driven by computers”. Transmedia storytelling is a form of convergence.

For example, Harry Potter, Sex and the City, Spiderman, Avatar and The Matrix (the list goes on, but these are my picks) have all successfully use transmedia storytelling.

At the top of my list sits the Star Wars empire, which consists of a series of movies spanning over four decades, toys and merchandise, comic books, games, a website and everything in between. In addition, transmedia storytelling can result in a ‘richer entertainment experience’, which is the case for Star Wars (Jenkins 2006). This is a perfect example of how transmedia storytelling applies to marketing.

In the video clip below, Jenkins explains key concepts including transmedia storytelling, user generated content, collective intelligence and ultimately, convergence culture. He explains how the public are retelling stories using the images that are owned by major media companies.

So, what are the implications of transmedia storytelling on IMC and PR?

I think that the biggest advantage of transmedia storytelling for marketers is that if someone hasn’t watched the movie, they might have seen the game, if they haven’t seen the game, they might have seen the website – my point is, one way or another, we’ll get ‘em (consumers).

1. Increased brand awareness: Marketers and public relations professionals are able to use a range of mediums to communicate a message to a large audience. No one can escape Avatar at the moment, I haven’t had the chance to see the movie, but thanks to transmedia storytelling and marketing, I already know the basic storyline and that there are blue people. I will see it one day. Transmedia storytelling enables constant exposure of the story which results in an increase in brand awareness.

2. Synergistic messaging: Of course, with the availability of so many media platforms, marketers and public relations professionals must ensure that their communication efforts are synergistic and appropriate to both the target audience/publics and the media platform.

3. Target market: Transmedia storytelling allows marketers to access the desired target market more effectively and efficiently. However, marketers must be careful not to over use transmedia storytelling or use media platforms that won’t actually reach the desired target market.

4. ROI: Marketers, public relations practitioners and ‘creatives’ in general are always looking for ways to measure and prove the success of a campaign or communications efforts. Transmedia storytelling can provide substantial $$$ to an organisation. Of course, this is due to increased awareness and better targeting of target market and additionally, the ability to gain a ‘follower’ of the story somewhere along the line.

5. Multiple channels for customer feedback: Public relations practitioners value (or should)  2 –way symmetrical communication. Transmedia storytelling allows for valuable customer feedback using a number of media platforms.

6. Use of celebrities: With the increase in transmedia storytelling, where a movie becomes a lifestyle choice, what happens to the characters? Brands regularly use celebrities as endorsers or ambassadors for a range of products. In the future, marketers and public relations practitioners will need to be careful when using celebrities because they might not transfer the story that you’re looking for.

Perryman (2008) says that storytelling must,

“contain enough extra-value for them to be worth seeking out and consuming in the first place, either by adding extra levels of ‘additive comprehension’, or by providing more background history or character development to help shape the world the franchise is trying to create.”

I think that Perryman has made an extremely valuable point which applies to marketers and public relations practitioners. At the end of the day, transmedia storytelling must actually serve a purpose.

Jeff Gomez, CEO of Starlight Runner Entertainment, and an expert in transmedia storytelling explains the concept in detail.

Want more? Here’s some more on transmedia storytelling…

‘Convergence Culture‘ written by Henry Jenkins – worth the read!

Tim Burrowes from Mumbrella looks at McDonald’s food for any mood digital campaign which unfortunately failed due to poor creative and website execution. The mood app is an example of transmedia storytelling that has missed the mark.

Here’s another interpretation of transmedia storytelling from an Australian communications student.

Another helpful definition, ‘a new aesthetic that has emerged in response to media convergence’, where audiences act as ‘hunters and gatherers, chasing down bits of the story across media channels’ (Jenkins 2006).

What do you think about transmedia storytelling? I would love to hear your opinion too.

My resources

Jenkins, H. 2006. Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide. New York University Press.

Dupagne, M., & Garrison, B. (2006). THE MEANING AND INFLUENCE OF CONVERGENCE. Journalism Studies, 7(2), 237-255.

Lawson-Borders, G. (2003). Integrating new media and old media: Seven observations of convergence as a strategy for best practices in media organizations. JMM – The International Journal on Media Management, 5(2), 91-99.

Perryman, N. (2008). Doctor Who and the Convergence of Media: A Case Study in `Transmedia Storytelling’. Convergence, 14(1), 21-39.  (This is a great article!)

McLellan, H. (2008). Digital Storytelling: Expanding Media Possibilities for Learning. Educational Technology, 48(5), 18-21.

Goggin, G. (2004). Thinking New Media. Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies, 18(1), 138-144.

Carter, L. M. (2007). REVIEWS: Democracy and New Media, edited by Henry Jenkins and David Thorburn. Technical Communication Quarterly, 16(2), 261-264

Convergence & public relations

I’ve chosen to write about convergence this week. The tutorial question asks to…Consider the concept of “convergence” and think ten years in the future. How will your profession be different and what role will convergence play, if any, in your work?

So, what is convergence?

Here’s one interesting explanation…

According to Flew, there are two main elements of convergence. The first is the interlinking of computing and IT. The second element is morphing, which relates to devices becoming multi-purpose devises that can be used for many purposes (Flew, 2008, p22).

The ‘flat earth concept’ is a direct result of convergence as consumers and publishers can access and distribute content of any sort from anywhere in the world. A perfect example of this is YouTube and it’s use generated content that has made it a household entertainment outlet. YouTube has provided insight into the lives of people from all over the world, through the use of video. In my opinion, convergence means convenience.

Last year I purchased my first iPhone. The sleek and shiny mobile phone really impressed me, and it still does. Now, I expect to have music, internet, photos, email, twitter, facebook and my Cooking with Jamie Oliver application all in one device. All of these conveniences are now expected by consumers as there is an increasing demand for accessibility and mobility.

In a recent interview, Griepp told The Age, “2009 saw the continued rise of new movements in the digital sphere and the name of the game will be convergence, with new gadgets that do many more tasks than old generation tools.” (The West Australian, Gadgets to grab your attention, January 18, 2010) So how will convergence influence and change public relations in the future? Zoch and Smith (2002) commented on convergence in their article “The Challenges Of Media Convergence” and said that media organisations are being forced to work together as consumers demand the latest news using the latest technology. Therefore, as the journalism industry changes, so does the public relations industry. Zoch and Smith mentioned a number of changes that public relations practitioners will have to make to keep up with convergence.

The three changes that are most relevant to me are listed below.

1. Media relations – a need for consistency and synergy in main messages

2. Training and staffing – staff must know more than email and how to update websites, the must be able to use social media outlets, podcasts, video clips and more.

3. Globalisation – public relations people must understand other cultures as messages and content are disseminated globally.

In the future, 2-way symmetrical communication will be the norm among public relations practitioners. Grunig’s four models of public relations have been an integral part of public relations theory. In my opinion, convergence will force public relations practitioners to increasingly use 2-way symmetrical communication.

Why? With the power of the internet and the “flat earth concept’ consumers are constantly voicing their opinions about a brand or organisation, both positive and negative. Twitter applications allow people to become citizen journalists as they break news and report on everyday encounters that are happening around them. In addition, social networks and sites like facebook, twitter and blogs create an online community that has developed a sense of trust and respect. For example, instead of flicking through the phonebook to find a restaurant to eat at, people are ‘googling’, they are then reading reviews about particular restaurants, and actually trusting what these people say. This is an example of convergence. Take it one step further; people are looking at how certain brands are perceived. In the next 10 years, public relations professionals will need to understand the power of this online community and they must be able to monitor and respond to this communication. Google Alerts is one free way to gauge public perception and media coverage.

The internet and the convergence of online news outlets has seen a much faster rate of message dissemination. In the next 10 years public relations will heavily involve online media releases. Although this method of dissemination may not be as specific and targeted, online media releases will provide both journalists and public relations practitioners’ with access to a plethora of information worldwide. Seeking Media is an Australian online media release outlet that is a free service for provides public relations practitioners. Furthermore, in 10 years time, online public relations agencies could be the norm.

Below are some interesting websites and articles displaying convergence…

1. Yogavibes – an online yoga class!

2. Foodista – The Cooking Encyclopaedia

3. Sky news ‘unconverges’ – this is a great observation from Mumbrella.com.au

4. Radio Shift – another example of convergence!

5. An interview with Murdoch speaking about his empire and the convergence towards online media content and his fightto stop free content and make them pay! An interesting interview

References

Zoch, L. M., & Smith, K. (2002). The Challenges Of Media Convergence. Public Relations Tactics, 9(6), 12.

Duffy, R. A., & Palmer, M. J. (1994). How Multimedia Technologies Will Influence PR Practice. Public Relations Quarterly, 39(1), 25-29.

Deuze, M. (2007). Convergence culture in the creative industries. International Journal of Cultural Studies, 10(2), 243-263.

“Crafting” Computer Graphics—A Convergence of Traditional and “New” Media. (2005). Textile: The Journal of Cloth and Culture, 3(1), 20-35.