Hofstra changing the PR program

I don't know if this is rumor or not but I hear that they are changing up our PR program here at Hofstra, combining 102 and 104 to start. While I am a little disappointed they are doing this after I am graduating, I think it will be really beneficial to future PR majors. Research and Case Studies basically go hand in hand and can easily be covered in one course.

What I am curious about is what class are they adding in its place? I hope they consider adding more writing to our program because I feel that is something that was lacking during my time here. I would have liked to see another course similar to 103, where we get the opportunity to practice writing press releases, pitch letters, blogging, and things like that.

Osama Bin Laden News Coverage

Clearly the biggest news this week is the death of Osama Bin Laden. I personally didn't think we would ever find him. I thought that he would be found when he was already dead, not that U.S. troops would ever catch him and kill him. To be honest, I'm still not so sure that's what happened. I only say this because despite the President's address and all the media coverage on the death, there still isn't much proof.

While they claim that there were DNA tests, that Osama's wife stood over his body identifying him, and that there was an 8 month campaign into the discovery of Osama Bin Laden, United States citizens have yet to witness any actual proof.

(http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/03/world/asia/osama-bin-laden-dead.html?hp )

According to the New York Times, "Bin Laden died near the end of what officials described as an intense, 40-minute firefight that began 12 hours earlier when a team including helicopter-borne Navy Seals raided a heavily fortified compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. He had been living for years in relative comfort with his family on the second and third floors of a home inside the compound, located at the end of a narrow dirt road in Abbottabad, a city an hour’s drive north of Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad." New York Times also states, "His body was washed in accordance with Islamic custom, placed in a white sheet and then inside a weighted bag, a senior defense official said. A military officer read religious rites — translated into Arabic — and then the body was placed on a board, tipped up and “eased into the sea,” the official said."

Although along with many other American's I am glad to see justice be done for 9/11 but also want to take note of how much power the government and the media have in a situation like this. While they claim there was a DNA test, we as the American public might never know if there really was one. We haven't been shown the proof of any test, and we never saw the body either. We also haven't been shown any footage or testimony of the one of Osama's wives that identified his body. Lastly, we haven't seen anything of his burial either. Now in the weeks to come, some type of footage may be leaked(it is likely with YouTube and Google) but it also may not. We are expected to completely trust the media, to trust the government and our President. Just something I was thinking about while watching the news yesterday and this morning.

Why Public Relations?

During the interview process, one of the questions you can ALWAYS expect to be asked is, "Why did you choose PR?" Most of the generic answers are, "I love to write," or "I've always been interested in the media, " and so on. While it is true good writing and interest in the media are needed in this profession, is that a good enough answer? If you sit down and really think about what your favorite part of PR is, can you pin point the specifics?

I was sitting here thinking about this summer, and getting a job wondering, what I like most about this profession. I acutally commented something similar to this on a classmate's blog, but my favorite part of Public Relations is the possibilities. If you are an accountant or a dentist, the variations in what you work on are not going to be many. Variation is almost definite in Public Relations. You might be doing press releases, pitches, media training, event planning, etc. on your day to day work, but your clients can always change. In PR you get the opporunity to work with so many different people and organizations, experience so many different things, and meet so many different people. No matter which avenue you choose in your PR career, be it Fashion, Health, Corporate, or maybe a company that covers all of the above, you get the chance to get creative with every press release, every pitch, and every event.

I unfortunately (against my best efforts) have turned out to be a creature of habit. I find comfort in knowing what to expect and having a schedule. However, one of my biggest fears when coming to college and thinking of a career was being in a job where I find myself bored and stuck. Where you will always be doing the exact same thing, every single day. I enjoy the chance to be creative, and to make sure that 'boring' doesn't happen.

Transitions: Intern to Employee

Among the rest of my classmates, I intern in the city two days a week. Thus far into this semester, I have liked my internship. I feel as though I am learning a lot, the people I work for are fairly patient people who suffer my many questions, and until recently I pretty much was introduced to something new/new project every week. Obviously it has been on my mind lately, especially with graduation around the corner, is this somewhere I could see myself working? Do I want to stay in this area of public relations? Would they consider hiring me?

Yesterday they started interviewing for two separate positions, as best as I can tell because they haven't spoken to me about it other than to say they were having several people coming in for the next couple of days for interviews. I must admitt, I was a little taken back to hear that they were interviewing and didn't speak to me, their intern, about it. It is true that one of the positions requries a little more experience than I have, but I obviously want to speak with them and find out what is going on and why I wasn't spoken to about upcoming positions, whether it be my experience, lack of interest, etc. But here is my question to you:

Do I press the subject if I am not sure this is somewhere I want to be working?

Like I said, I have liked it so far, and could see myself working here. I am not positive that this would be my first pick place, but beggers can't be choosers. Do I pass up on this opportunity, well potential opportunity assuming they didn't tell me because they believe I am uninterested, or do I go after it?

We are all going after jobs, looking for jobs, thinking about where we want to work, or have maybe even been offered a job by places we are interning now. I felt that this was an appropriate post for us Seniors and a relevant topic. What would you do?

Charlie Sheen Good or Bad PR?

Yesterday in my PR 105 class we discussed Charlie Sheen and his new found notoriety due to his recent interviews and public acceptance of image. It is true that Charlie Sheen's use of drugs and "rock & roll lifestyle" as he calls it, is frowned upon by the public. However, can it be argued that his recent interviews and acceptance of this image is good PR? He recently broke a Twitter record of most followers within a certain time period (I'm not exactly sure what it was), and has been covered by several different media outlets. It is rare if not impossible to meet a person in the United States, who has not at least heard of Charlie Sheen and his recent break down (if you will). In this sense of creating a buzz and keeping his name in the media, he has done great PR. But is it still good PR when your behavior has clearly been wrong? When despite the hype that has been created, you've created an image which the public frowns upon? As the Public Relations professional representing Charlie Sheen, do you agree or disagree?