57210 Managing Public Communication

Warning: The information on this page is indicative. The subject outline for a particular session, location and mode of offering is the authoritative source of all information about the subject for that offering. Required texts, recommended texts and references in particular are likely to change. Students will be provided with a subject outline once they enrol in the subject.

Subject handbook information prior to 2025 is available in the Archives.

Description

In this subject students gain an understanding of the management aspects of public communication.They explore barriers and challenges to ethical communication practices. In understanding the dynamics of client-agency relationships, they explore issues in and skills for managing client relations, such as taking a brief, writing proposals/reports, and keeping confidentiality.By critically analysing and applying different ethical perspectives on the selected cases, students understand the significance of ethics at every step of managing communication, from planning to implementation.In addition, by creating a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) campaign proposal for a client,students learn to adapt to stakeholder and public expectations to maintain a social licence to operate and to ensure sustainability.Students also learn the principles and tools of project management, such as scheduling, budgeting and measuring effectiveness of communication programs.Students review and discuss managing communication practices in different operating environments.By the end of this subject, students understand and are able to perform key tasks for managing communication teams, campaigns and projects.

Subject learning objectives (SLOs)

Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs)

This subject engages with the following Course Intended Learning Outcomes (CILOs), which are tailored to the Graduate Attributes set for all graduates of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences:

• Apply a body of practice-oriented knowledge and skills to develop, implement and evaluate innovative solutions to real-world communication challenges with a high level of personal autonomy and accountability (1.1)
• Critically and creatively re-think and reflect on public relations, advertising and organisational change models and practices for the 21st century beyond dominant models and approaches (2.2)
• Locate, gather, organise and synthesise information across diverse platforms to guide their mastery of contemporary communication issues and challenges (2.3)
• Graduates are able to exercise leadership in the development of communication strategies that address challenges and implement solutions on issues of exclusion, equity, cultural difference and social justice (5.1)
• Graduates are able to persuade and engage diverse audiences through both written and oral communication strategies across a range of media formats with consideration of others' needs and views (6.1)

Teaching and learning strategies

By examining case studies of organisational behaviour, this subject introduces students to frameworks and models that inform ethical decision making for managing public communication. Students participate in a one-day ethics workshop which helps them critically examine ethics in professional practice with a focus on resolving ethical dilemmas in a public communication setting. From the beginning of the session, students have ongoing opportunities to discuss their individual and group projects with tutors and to receive feedback from them via the online discussion board and consultations.

Content (topics)

The subject introduces students to diverse approaches to manage ethical dilemmas in public communication practices. It includes project management skills as well as different theories and models that inform current practices of corporate social responsibility and ethics. Students explore dynamics of agency-client relationships, organisational barriers, corporate social responsibility, sustainability, corporate governance models, ethical orientations, and cultural and social issues that affect organisations’ ethical decision making and communication with stakeholders and publics.

Assessment

Assessment task 1: Written Critical Case Study Analysis

Assessment task 2: Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability Proposal

Assessment task 3: Online Participation and Reflection

Minimum requirements

Submission of assessment tasks

In this subject assessment tasks are cumulative so that each task builds understanding and/or skills, informed by formative feedback. Consequently, all assessments must be submitted in order for students to receive feedback. Students who do not submit all assessments will not pass the subject.

Attendance

Attendance at classes is essential in this subject. Classes are based on a collaborative approach that involves essential workshopping and interchange of ideas with other students and the tutor to build capacities towards meeting the subject learning objectives. A roll will be taken at each class (whether on campus or online). Students who have more than two absences from class will be refused marking of their final assessment.

Referencing

Use of Generative AI needs to be referenced. Please refer to UTS Library guide: https://www.lib.uts.edu.au/whats-on/news/referencing-generative-ai-in-assignments. In addition, students are required to include clickable links for all references in the Reference List if available.

Required texts

There are no required texts for this subject. Recommended readings will be available on Canvas (Reading List).

References

Bivins, T. H. 1992, "A system model for ethical decision making in public relations", Public Relations Review, Vol. 18 No. 4, pp. 365-383.

Bowen, S.A. 2004, “A state of neglect: Public relations as ‘corporate conscience’ or ethical counsel”, Journal of Public Relations Research, Vol. 20, pp. 271-296.

Bowen, S. A. 2016, "Values, ethics, and professionalism in public affairs", in P. Harris, P., Fleisher, C., & Oldfield, M. (Eds.), The Sage Handbook of International Corporate and Public Affairs (2 ed.) Sage: Thousand Oaks, CA, pp. 316 - 331.

Bowen, S. A., Hung-Baesecke, C. J. F., and Chen, Y. R. R. 2016, "Ethics as a precursor to organization-public relationships: Building trust before and during the OPR model", Cogent Social Scinces, Vol. 2,No. 1.

Chen, Y. R. R., & Hung-Baesecke, C. J. F. 2014, "Examining in the internal aspect of corporate social responsibility: Leader behavior and employee CSR participation", Communication Research Reports, Vol. 13, No. 2, pp. 210-220.

Chen, Y. R. R., Cheng, Y., Hung-Baesecke, C. J. F., and Jin Y. 2019, "Engaging international publics via mobile-enhanced CSR(mCSR): A cross-national study on stakeholder reactions to corporate disaster relief effort", American Behavioral Scientist, Vol. 63, No. 12, 1603-1623.

Curtin, P. A., Gallicano, T. and Matthew, K. 2011, “Millennials’ approaches to ethical decision making: A survey of young public relations agency employees”, Public Relations Journal, Vol. 5 No. 2, pp. 1-22.

Fam, K.-S. and Waller, D. S. 2008, "Agency-client relationship factors across life-cycle stages", Journal of Relationship Marketing, Vol.7 No. 2, pp. 217-236.

Fitzpatrick, K. and Gauthier, C. 2001, “Toward a professional responsibility theory of public relations ethics”, Journal of Mass Media Ethics, Vol. 16, No. 2-3, pp. 193-212.

Graham, J., Haidt, J., Koleva, S., Motyl, M., Iyer, R., Wojcik, S. P., & Ditto, P. H. 2012, “Moral foundations theory: The pragmatic validity of moral pluralism”, Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, Vol. 47, pp. 55-130.

Grunig, J. E. and Hunt, T. 1984, "Identifying organizational linkages to publics", in Managing public relations. Holt, Rinehart and Winston: New York, pp. 138-162.

Hunt, S. D., and Chonko, L. B. 1987, "Ethical problems of advertising executives", Journal of Advertising, Vol. 16 No. 4, pp.16-24.

Kruckeberg, D. 1993, “Universal ethics code: Both possible and feasible”, Public Relations Review, Vol. 19, No. 1, pp. 21-31.

Kim, J.-N., Ni, L., & Sha, B.-L. 2008, "Breaking down the stakeholder environment: A review of approaches to the segmentation of publics", Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, Vol. 85 No.4, pp. 751-768.

Kim, J.-N. and Grunig, J. E. 2011, "Problem solving and communication action: A situational theory of problem solving", Journal of Communication, Vol. 61 No. 1, pp. 120-149.

Kim, S., Kim, J.-N., and Tam, L. 2015, “Think socially but act publicly: Refocusing CSR as corporate public responsibility”, Journal of Public Affairs, Vol. 16 No. 1, pp. 91-104.

Kim, S. 2016, "Strategic predisposition in communication management: Understanding organizational propensity towards bridging strategy", Journal of Communication Management, Vol. 20 No. 3, pp. 232-254.

Kim, S. and Kim, J.-N. 2016, "Bridge or buffer: Two ideas of effective corporate governance and public engagement", Journal of Public Affairs, Vol. 16 No. 2, pp. 118-127.

Kim, S., Krishna, A. and Dhanesh, G. 2019, "The role of CSR expectations in explaining consumers’ perceptions, motivations, and communication behaviors about corporate misconduct", Public Relations Review, Vol. 45 No. 1, pp.76-87.

Kerzner, H. 2013, Project Management: Value based project management metrics, A systems approach to planning, scheduling and controlling, 11th edn, Wiley, Stafford, pp. 806-812.

Krishna, A., Kim, S. and Shim, K.-J. 2018, "Unpacking the effects of alleged gender discrimination in the corporate workplace on consumers’ affective responses and relational perceptions", Communication Research. doi:10.1177/0093650218784483

Lindenmeier, J., Schleer, C., and Pricl, D. 2012, “Consumer outrage: Emotional reactions to unethical corporate behaviour”, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 65, pp. 1364–1373.

Macdonald, J. E. and C.L. Beck-Dudley. 1994, "Are deontology and teleology mutually exclusive?" Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 13, pp. 615-623.

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Macnamara, J.R. 2018, Evaluating public communication:Exploring new models, standards, and best practice, Abingdon, UK: Routledge.

Mitchell, R. K., Agle, B. R. and Wood, D. J. 1997, "Toward a theory of stakeholder identification and salience: Defining the principle of who and what really counts", Academy of Management Review, Vol. 22 No. 4, pp. 853-886

Moyer, J. 2011, “Ethics and public relations.” Institute for Public Relations. Available at: http://www.instituteforpr.org/ethics-and-public-relations

Neill, M. S. and Drumwright, M. E. 2012, “PR professionals as organizational Conscience”, Journal of Mass Media Ethics, Vol. 27 No. 4, pp. 220-234.

Pratt, C. B., Im, S.H. and Montague, S. N. 1994, "Investigating the application of deontology among U.S. public relations practitioners", Journal of Public Relations Research, Vol. 6 No. 4, pp. 241-266.

Rim, H. and Kim, S. 2016, "Dimensions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) skepticism and their impacts on public evaluations toward CSR", Journal of Public Relations Research, Vol. 28, No. 5-6, pp. 248-267.

Shim, K. and Yang, S.-U. 2016, "The effect of bad reputation: The occurrence of crisis, corporate social responsibility, and perceptions of hypocrisy and attitudes toward a company", Public Relations Review, Vol. 42 No. 1, pp. 68-78.

Smith, R. D. 2013, Strategic Planning for Public Relations, New York and London: Routledge.

Spielthenner, G. 2005, “Consequentialism or deontology?” Philosophia, Vol. 33 No. 1-4, pp. 217-235.

Tilley, E. 2005, "The ethics pyramid: Making ethics unavoidable in the public relations process", Journal of Mass Media Ethics, Vol. 20 No. 4, pp. 305-320

van Dijk, H., van Engen, M. and Paauwe, J. 2012, "Reframing the business case for diversity: A values and virtues perspective", Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 111, pp. 73-84.

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Yexley, H., 2013, "Budgeting and resourcing", in Theaker, A. & Yaxley, H. The Public Relations Strategic Toolkit, Routledge: New York, NY, pp. 118-130