Public Relations in Sports
Taylor Saraco
Professor Wolfe
Comm 201
22 April 2012
Does public relations in sports do more harm than good?
Professional and collegiate athletics have been becoming more and more popular every year. The problem is, it is not just the athletic aspect of the games that audiences are interested anymore. Every day people look for new gossip and/or scandals in the sports world, and unfortunately other people are giving them exactly what they want. The Public Relations industry was originally supposed to be used for managing the flow of information between an organization and its public audiences. The question is; is the industry doing more harm than good in this field today?
Social media has gone out of control in modern day. From Facebook to Twitter, news (or rumors) travels at the speed of light. The problem is that most channels do not know the correct way to control a crisis or deliver information. Most of the time, this will result in exaggeration and scandal. If public relations classes are properly taught, there is a chance this problem can be avoided at some level. The article, “Public Relations Professionals As Shapers Of Public Information: The Role Of Theory In Their Education,” written by Dave Ogden, Chris Allen, and Joan Latchaw, discusses a survey which was used to find out whether majors in mass communication programs were required to study theory as part of the curriculum, and which theories were thought to be most important. The results showed that about 75% required students to study theory in some format. Mass communication theories such as public relations were identified as the most important. If this continues to be the case, people in the public relations industry will know how to deal with crisis, but that does not mean people will stop looking for scandal.
Professional and Collegiate athletics are a business just like anything else. This means that there is a need for investors in athletics as well. When an investor is trying to
Professor Wolfe
Comm 201
22 April 2012
Does public relations in sports do more harm than good?
Professional and collegiate athletics have been becoming more and more popular every year. The problem is, it is not just the athletic aspect of the games that audiences are interested anymore. Every day people look for new gossip and/or scandals in the sports world, and unfortunately other people are giving them exactly what they want. The Public Relations industry was originally supposed to be used for managing the flow of information between an organization and its public audiences. The question is; is the industry doing more harm than good in this field today?
Social media has gone out of control in modern day. From Facebook to Twitter, news (or rumors) travels at the speed of light. The problem is that most channels do not know the correct way to control a crisis or deliver information. Most of the time, this will result in exaggeration and scandal. If public relations classes are properly taught, there is a chance this problem can be avoided at some level. The article, “Public Relations Professionals As Shapers Of Public Information: The Role Of Theory In Their Education,” written by Dave Ogden, Chris Allen, and Joan Latchaw, discusses a survey which was used to find out whether majors in mass communication programs were required to study theory as part of the curriculum, and which theories were thought to be most important. The results showed that about 75% required students to study theory in some format. Mass communication theories such as public relations were identified as the most important. If this continues to be the case, people in the public relations industry will know how to deal with crisis, but that does not mean people will stop looking for scandal.
Professional and Collegiate athletics are a business just like anything else. This means that there is a need for investors in athletics as well. When an investor is trying to
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