Thought-Provoking Discussion Questions for Sriramesh and Vercic’s Chapters 3 (Culture) and 4 (Mass Media)
Question 1
In chapter 3, Sriramesh and Verčič (2009, p. 32) reference a question asked by Gerhard Wiebe (1951), in an attempt to typify social marketing, which is “Why can’t you sell brotherhood and rational thinking like you sell soap?” In the face of long-standing social problems epitomized by the teenage pregnancy, drug and alcohol abuse, and the spread of HIV/AIDS, should public relations align with social marketing to motivate socially desirable behaviors? Why, or why not?
Rationale
As explained in Sriramesh and Verčič (2009, p. 32), public relations continues to disregard aligning with social marketing; however, there is a notion that the alignment would have been the rational, reasonable, or sound way for public relations to flee or escape from the “corporate shackles.” Breaking free from the shackles means that there can be an accurate reflection of the reality that governments and non-profits have utilized public relations for undertaking social good manifested by information campaigns. If the scholarship of public relations did a better job of reflecting the impact of the field on culture in a holistic manner, people would have realized that public relations significantly affects culture in the society via motivational campaigns that assist build societies, communities, and nations.
Question 2
From chapter 3, Sriramesh and Verčič (2009, p. 39) explain that in the 20th century, the world became a global village because of the mass media’s (both broadcast and print media) growth and development. Further, the 21st-century dawn came with new, digital media- predominantly enabled by mobile smartphones, the internet, and social networks- that transformed “the global village into a global living room” (p. 39) where it connects all people around the world. However, the growth and development of mass media and digital media have led to a phenomenon referred to as the spread of “fake news.” What do you think is the implication of the “fake news” phenomenon in the public relations industry?
Rationale
According to Sriramesh and Verčič (2009, p. 43), if the active users of some social media platforms are compared with populations of various countries around the world, the revelations are both intriguing and interesting. For example, in 2016, the world’s biggest communities were Facebook with 1.8 billion active users, China (1.4 billion people), India (1.3 billion people), and WhatsApp with 1.2 billion active users, Instagram with 600 million active users, and USA (320 million people), so on and so forth. Based on how large the social media platform communities are, the risk of “fake news” means that “it is conceptualized as an important issue that requires monitoring and management by public relations practitioners” (Jahng, Lee, and Rochadiat, 2020, p. 101907).
References
Jahng, M. R., Lee, H., & Rochadiat, A. (2020). Public relations practitioners’ management of fake news: Exploring key elements and acts of information authentication. Public Relations Review, 46(2), 101907. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2020.101907
Sriramesh, K., & Verčič, D. (Eds.). (2009). The global public relations handbook: Theory, research, and practice (expanded and revised edition). New York, NY: Routledge.