PR 3310
Principles of Public
Relations
Tuesday, 6/16/09
Class Objectives
 Presentations: S. Campus and K. Black
 Lecture
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Ch. 9, Public opinion
 Homework assignments
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Presentations tomorrow: C. Gallagher and A.
Fanning
Read chapter 9 in book, not covering theories
Paper 2 due on Thursday 6/18 at 12:05 pm
What’s in the news today
 The Indonesian government is sponsoring
a national campaign promoting honesty
(country is widely known to be corrupt in
many ways)
 http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/16/w
orld/asia/16indo.html
 Opening up “cashier free” honesty
cashier-free “honesty cafes” (7000 so
far), in schools and gov’t offices
 The attorney general’s office says the honesty
cafes will halt corrupt tendencies among the young
and straighten out those known for indulging in
corrupt practices
 PR aspect: persuade from the bottom up,
preventive measure rather than reactive
What’s in the news today
 Twitter and Facebook get serious for the opposition group in
Iran, a case of cyber activism
 http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/16/world/middleeast/16media.
html?_r=1&hp
 The Iranian government has blocked texting and cell
transmissions, has (today) limited the news coverage, but is
having a hard time blocking posts to Twitter and Facebook
 Too many ways to originate a post (by cell phone, web site,
or specialized applications)
 Too many ways to post new content (like a whack-a-mole
game)
 Can use a proxy/mirror site
 PR aspect: a new way for an activist group to assemble
protests, speaking events
Public Opinion
 Opinions on controversial issues that one can
express in public and not isolate themselves

Unless you’re in the Borat/Bruno movie
 Public opinion consists of multiple individual
opinions
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Different groups may agree on a goal but
disagree on a method to achieve the goal

Public opinion is that childhood obesity is a
problem
 Ban McDonald’s from selling Happy Meals
 Further restrict items that can be purchased with food
stamps
Assumptions with Public Opinion
 1. That an audience is normally passive and tends to
follow
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Therefore public opinion may be expressed by a small
and highly vocal group
 2. That those with no interest in a topic do not
contribute to public opinion
 3. That events of unusual magnitude swing public
opinion from one extreme to another

Need time away from event to stabilize public opinion
 Ex. from book is 9/11
Stages of Public Opinion
 1. Form opinion, define it, take a side
 2. Involvement of leaders (more about this
later)
 3. Public awareness grows
 4. Possible Government regulation (passing
of laws, re-count of votes…)
 5. Resolution (actions, passage of time to
change opinion)
Public Opinion, who is your audience
 Look at them in terms of demographics, but
psychographics is better (with public opinion)
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What is their lifestyle and behaviors?
Can we group them under categories?

Pew reported a groups of people who use technology
 Link to 14 item survey:
http://pewinternet.org/Participate/What-Kind-of-TechUser-Are-You.aspx
 Groups, http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2009/5-TheMobile-Difference--Typology.aspx?r=1
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PR should tailor the message for these different
groups
Public Opinion
 Opinion is determined by self-interest
 Opinion is not easily changed
 Opinion is not aroused for long periods of time
 Again, it’s a collective opinion
 Opinion is highly sensitive to events that have
an impact

On health of people, safety, security, etc.
 Normally public opinion does not anticipate
an event, it reacts to it
Opinion Leaders
 Informed people that others assume are
experts on the topic and can clearly articulate
their views
 Formal opinion leaders are voted into position
or have title (e.g. President, CEO, etc.)
 Informal opinion leaders have clout for some
other reason
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May be role models (sports figures,
celebrities)
May have a following and can therefore exert
peer pressure on them (Twitter’s suggested
users)
Opinion Leaders
 PR publicists attempt to sway opinion leaders just as they
do journalists, other media gatekeepers, and the public at
large
 Journalists will ask opinion leaders what they think (use as
a source in their story)
 Many consider opinion leaders “visionaries” in their field
 Opinion leaders filter information provided
by mass media to their followers, who
communicate it to their peers
 Domino effect
 Faberge shampoo…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TgDx
WNV4wWY
Mass Media
 The dissemination of the opinion leaders’ views spreads fastest
through mass media channels
 Traditional outlets are radio, tv, newspapers, magazines
 New outlet is the Internet
 With mass media, you can rapidly communicate with millions of
people
 Versus 1-to-1
 Pr publicists are providing content to the mass media; some say
up to ½ of the information carried in mass media comes from PR
sources
 Can include background information on a person,
information on a new product, arranging an interview with a
local sports hero, providing statistics and numbers about
your client
Role of Mass Media
 By selecting which types of messages they will report
(and what stories to write), they trigger public
discussion on issues
 They help form an opinion for those with no
background

Remember, public opinion consists of those who have
opinions, not the disinterested
 Goal is to be non-biased in what they are reporting,
however…
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With tv, radio, you hear the tone and/or comments
made about a story
Newspapers, Internet appear more objective because
there is no “voice”
Is the source credible?
Persuasion
 An activity or process where the
communicator tries to change a behavior,
belief, or attitude in another person

We assume the receiver has the freedom to
choose to not be persuaded
 Can be overt or subtle
 Verbal or non-verbal
 Can come from friends/family, close contact,
or distant (opinion leaders)
Persuasion
 Hardest to try to change a negative opinion
into a positive one
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Peer pressure contributes to the challenges of
changing the image
 Easiest to persuade people who already have
some type of self-interest going, and to
reinforce a favorable message
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Is this beneficial to me in some way?
Do I already agree with the message?
Factors in effective persuasion
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Audience analysis
Source credibility
Appeal to self-interest
Clarity of message
Timing and context
Audience participation
Suggestion for action
Content and structure
Persuasive speaking
Source Credibility
 Expertise, sincerity, charisma
 Depending upon who the source is, the ranking and
amount of these factors will change
 Doctor’s = expertise first
 Celebrities = charisma first
 Using celebrities to endorse
 Positive is high-level exposure, reputation (hopefully
good) rubs off onto message
 Negatives: hard to manage celebrities actions, is very
expensive, if celeb has too many endorsements, yours
is less effective
Appeal to self-interest
 Again, this is why a psychographic breakdown of
your target audience is beneficial

I have heard the message and am going to do an
action (e.g. donate to a charity), this is because I feel
that doing this action will
 Improve my self-esteem
 Increase the respect (I have for myself or from others)
 Increase my wealth
 Increase my skill set
 Increase my well being (physical and mental)
Ways to persuade with your message
 Make sure the message is clear and simple

Helpful to tell the audience exactly what to do
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Volunteer at a Boys and Girls Club today
 Try to have it received during an appropriate
time and within an appropriate context

Tide truck going to Louisiana after Katrina
 Create a message that uses statistics,
drama/emotional appeals, personal examples
Ways to persuade with your message
 Have speakers delivering your message use various
tactics (propaganda pg. 238 in book)
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Humble beginnings (politicians use a lot)
Jump on board (join us in supporting…., every mom
wants to know more about…)
Testimonials (I’ve tried it and it works!)
 Package the message various ways
 Transfer/ associate the message with something of
high status (a corporation pays to become a sponsor of
the Olympics)
 Glitter generalities/ associate the message with a
favorable abstract idea (freedom, democracy)
 Use of rhetoric (words) on the name or what to call the
message
 Drilling for independence by the Oil industry
Some Technology Terminology
 Flash mobs: a large group of people who
quickly gather in a public place, perform an
unusual action for a brief time, then quickly
disperse.
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Actions include pillow fighting, silent disco
dancing, blowing bubbles
Events are organized by social media
(Facebook, twitter, myspace) or viral e-mails
Most have been benign in reasons, some
political protests
Viral Videos
 Videos that have gained quick popularity through Internet
sharing/linking of file (through e-mails, IMming, blogs, other
social websites)
 Often are political, humorous
 Can be PR campaigns…
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A PR campaign for a new TV show consisting of a flash mob in a
LA store; video on YouTube is now viral
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfxCnZ4Dp3c&N
R=1
http://www.reuters.com/news/video?videoId=10612
9&videoChannel=6
 …Or promote/launch a product
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Free Hugs campaign video launched the band “Sick
Puppies” into stardom
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vr3x_RRJdd4
How do you monitor public opinion?
 As with research and getting feedback, you
can
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Make personal visits
Look at what the media is reporting
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Helpful to also look at comments to articles online
Pay for a poll, make telephone calls, survey a
certain psychographic segment
Hire an advisory committee (of opinion leaders
or people who’ve been through unique
experiences)
Video: Coke’s Water Bomb
 Video on Coca-cola’s PR “disaster” with
Dasani drinking water in Britain

In 2004, a story broke that revealed that the
source of the Dasani water was treated tap
water, not a natural spring water source

In fact, there was a carcinogenic (a promoter of
cancer) in the water after they treated it!