Karen’s PR & Social Media Blog

I have been off from teaching classes for the last couple of weeks, so this has given me time to work on research, conference presentations (I have four coming up in two different states and two different countries), and prepping for projects and classes for the fall. However, it has also given me time to catch up on shows my students, friends, and family members have recommended to me to see as soon as I have free time.

One of these shows of course has been the HBO hit Game of Thrones. This show is finishing its third season and the books go up to five (so far) – but there are some interesting themes that emerge from the series. One in particular is the issue of power – how it makes people do whatever is necessary to get it and can be almost corruptive in nature.

When thinking about this very issue, I saw this article talking about how brands can be looked at from this standpoint as well from the Game of Thrones perspective. After seeing this, it raised an interesting question – can we look at academia the same way? Are we searching for power and are there the same elements emerging in our field as in this book and TV series?

Interesting question – and I would have to say that the answer is indeed yes. Here are five ways academia is like the Game of Thrones:

• Rise of Power for Academic families:  Like in Game of Thrones, there are “academic families” that have dominated or are strongly present in the field. There are successions and quote “academic offspring” that are supposed to follow the line and duties from the previous research and so forth. However, if you do not have an academic family, you are technically looked down on, which is unfortunate and not fair. Look at what happened with John Snow in the book and series.
• A huge focus on where you came from: This is not necessarily based on location, but this really does focus on your academic institution. This does have a judging impact on the overall perception and reputation of an academic professional – and it is almost something that embodies the overall identity of the researcher. However, shouldn’t the work and personality of the person dictate how they should be perceived? You almost have to introduce yourself as not necessarily I am so and so, son of x, lord of xyz, etc – but you do have to introduce yourself with your position and where you are from.
• Gatekeepers role in power: I see this all the time in academia – the gatekeepers that position themselves to decide who gets published, who presents their research or gets a position on a specific committee, and other activities that are not necessarily judged based on the work presented. The same goes with the Game of Thrones – this is a powerful message to say that life is not fair, but you have to be able to handle the deck of cards you are dealt with and strategize how to get around the gatekeepers. Sometimes it is tough, but it can be accomplished, even in academia. Everyone wants to be on the “iron throne” or the position of being a changer in the particular field they are in.
• Growing need to formulate your own “teams” and alliances: The world for Game of Thrones characters is a tough place to be in, so they have to formulate teams to help them accomplish their goals and objectives.  Alliances have to be made, so you are seeing this with the Starks and the Lannisters in the series and book. Same in academia – there are going to be those that will do whatever possible to see your work not get published and there will be others that will help you and support you. Find these similar professionals and collaborate with them on projects to accomplish your goals. I have been very fortunate to have been able to work with some amazing professionals in the field on collaborative projects, which is good.
• Triumph over adversity and challenges: Lots of the characters are either killed or are challenged during the course of the series, but some have overcome these challenges and obstacles. The same goes with academia – persistence and hard work will allow you to accomplish your goals and objectives.  If you get a rejection from a journal, find another outlet to publish in. If you find a conference where there are tons of politics going on, find another one. Look at the potential opportunities each action can give you – and go for it. Do things that are not excepted to keep people guessing – this is one of the things that worked well with Rob Stark with his war efforts in the book.

In summary, what are seeing here is a connection to the TV and book series with academia. There are times where we see great challenges ahead of us and that there are some things life throws at us in our field that are not fair. It is how we handle these situations and overcome them that makes us stronger, which is one of the lessons we can take away from Game of Thrones.

Staying focused, working hard, and thinking outside the box and formulating teams are just a few best practices we can look at when operating in the field of academia. We are seeing this become more of a trend and challenge for young professionals trying to establish themselves in the field and the growing pressures due to the tough economy and lack of job opportunities.  It’s definitely tough out there. As they say in Game of Thrones – winter is coming.

Hope you all are having a great day.

Best Wishes,

Karen

I was pretty surprised when I saw this article on LinkedIn titled “Don’t go to Grad School.” The post was written by Penelope Trunk, who is co-founded Brazen Careerist, which is a new generation career management tool. While Ms. Trunk stated in her bio on her website that she did indeed go to graduate school for English, but did not mention whether or not she finished the program.  However, she did document her activities in graduate school in this post - some were quite surprising admissions. With this in mind, after reviewing this article by Ms. Trunk, I personally did not attribute any credibility to it as a source and authority on whether or not someone should go on for a graduate degree.

As someone who has not only gone on for a Master’s degree but also a doctoral program [and graduated with her degrees], I can say not only have I grown as a professional and scholar in the field of public relations, but also as a person.  Graduate school has not only transformed my learning capabilities and knowledge in the field, but opened the door to numerous opportunities and connections I would have not had otherwise.

To address some of Ms. Trunk’s comments – my parents did not pay for my graduate school – I did.  I paid for my Master’s degree by competing as a track and field athlete at the University of Southern California where I was an All-American and school record holder in the shot put. So, if you saw the tuition for USC recently for graduate school, you can see that it is not “free.”

In addition, writing papers and exporting these emerging issues and concepts allow you to be able to articulate this with some authority. Yes, it is a tough market out there for jobs, but graduate degrees are not only recommended now, but are expected for applicants because they bring great value to them for their future careers. Plus, there are so many additional points that you learn along the way in graduate school to take into consideration.

Why should you GO to graduate school?   There are several reasons why and I would be happy to share them with you:

• Opportunities to explore and contribute to research and practice: What graduate school allows you do to is explore what has already been done and what questions have not been answered.  Being in an environment where you are with classmates asking the same questions from various perspectives is really enlightening.  Also, having premier scholars in the field as professors who have both researched and worked in the field is key to have.  We were able to have some of the leading PR pros come into my classes at USC to share their experiences and expertise – and I would not have gotten this otherwise if it wasn’t for being in graduate school.
• Practicing how to present your insights and expertise on a subject:  Yes, graduate school has a lot of papers and presentations you have to do – but this is essential to become an expert in the field. Having the experience to present, refine, and articulate your insights with others is key to establish credibility as a source on a subject. I can’t tell you how many presentations and papers I had to write in my six years of graduate school – but it was a lot. However, all of these activities have helped me become the person I am today and what I am currently doing in social media and PR practice and research.
• Learning beyond the classroom: With graduate school, you have to think about what opportunities you can take advantage of during your time that will make you marketable for the workplace.  Internships are a huge plus, and with the USC International Internship Program, I was able to spend four months in South Africa working in PR and with various clients.  I was able to build networking opportunities and focus on my PR skills during this time.  I would not have had this experience otherwise if it wasn’t for graduate school. This one experience shifted my way of thinking both professionally and personally, and resulted in my interest to grow and expand my horizon to other ventures. Since I was in South Africa, I presented research in various countries including China (2008), The Netherlands and Greece (2009), Brazil (2010), Milan and Australia (2012), and will be heading to Spain and China in a few weeks to present.
• Respect for advanced degrees: Whether or not Ms. Trunk wants to admit it, there is still a huge amount of respect for advanced degrees. You do see a lot of graduate degrees out there, but not too many – if graduate school was early, everyone would have a graduate degree.  Graduate school is hard work – not only at the Master’s level – but especially at the PhD level.  We’d see a lot more PhDs around if it was easy.
• Gives you options:  Graduate school does give you more options as well. With a graduate degree, you are able to consult or work at an agency if you are pursuing a PR degree.  Also, you are able to teach at the college level. However, another benefit for graduate school is the fact that it does teach you adaptability. If something comes your way, you can go down another path.  Personally, for me – I am able to say I am a researcher and professor – but I am also a consultant. I wear many caps, and graduate school as allowed me to do this. If I just got a bachelor’s degree, my options would be fewer in number.

With this in mind, while Ms. Trunks is entitled to her own opinion, we have to understand the overall purpose of what graduate school is all about.  Graduate school is NOT easy – it takes hard work, perseverance, and dedication to achieving your goal.  However, graduate school is very rewarding in that it is an investment towards your future and a time to become more of a lifelong learner in your craft – it’s really about becoming an expert in the field of study you are passionate about. Graduate school is about focusing on refining your skills as a professional and scholar in the field while being able to sustain this learning ability for the future.

We are always going to be students of life and lifelong learners, and graduate school is part of the equation.

Hope you all are having a great day!

Best Wishes,

Karen

Kristin and I had the opportunity to do a webinar on our research study and presentation from ICRC this past March on Social Media Command Centers in Crisis.  We first met Karen and Jim at the ICRC Conference, and they expressed an interest in hosting a webinar with us for their company, Firestorm Solutions, on this particular topic. Both Kristin and I were very honored and excited about this wonderful opportunity.

Presenting research at ICRC 2013

How did we come up with this research study in the first place? Both Kristin and I have done previous collaborations in the area of social media, but we were discussing one day how so many brands, organizations, and agencies are all focused on getting a social media command center up and running. This was interesting for us to see since we were like – well, what are they actually measuring and monitoring? After looking at both the crisis academic and practitioner literature, we realized that this is something that needed to be explored further.

So, we went ahead and came up with this research idea – combining both of our perspectives together – into a comprehensive view of social media command centers in crisis. What is great about this is the fact we are coming from two different disciplines – I am coming in from PR and Kristin is from Systems Engineering. This is where the field is going and more companies and brands need to realize – welcome to the 21st century of professional and academic collaboration!

We were able to do the webinar yesterday, and we had about 130 people participate from six continents (wow!) – thank you to all who came to the webinar! The webinar was recorded, so if you did not have a chance to watch the webinar and are interested in the subject of social media command centers in crisis, here’s the video:

Overall, it was a fun project to work on not only with a great collaborator and researcher, but also my sister. We are a family of researchers – our next conference will be in Washington D.C. for the APS Conference. As part of the tradition for the last couple of years, we have our t-shirts already designed related to our project, so that is fab!

Both Kristin and I want to thank Firestorm Solutions for giving us the opportunity to be part of this webinar – we had a wonderful time! Special thanks to Karen, Jim, and Bill of Firestorm Solutions for all of your hard work and commitment to making this webinar happen. We really appreciate it!

Hope you all are having a great day!

Best Wishes,
Karen

One of the things I have enjoyed about living in Louisville is the fact I have been exposed to something new and unique to this part of the country.  Is it basketball?

No.  Is it snow? Well, no – I experienced this when I was living in Tennessee. It’s horse racing!  I have always enjoyed horses (we had our own horse growing up named Caleb Jones), and so I was excited to be part of the Churchill Downs culture. We do have the Kentucky Derby here every year – and what is amazing is the fact Churchill Downs is nearly right across the street from the university.  This was one of the things that impressed me during my campus visit!

Since I have been at the University of Louisville, we all go together at the end of the semester to Dawn at the Downs, a breakfast event where we are able to experience Millionaire’s Row and watch the Derby and Oaks horses workout in style.  Great times!

This year, the event was pretty fabulous! We all got dressed up and embraced the complete experience of Churchill Downs.  I even made a Ptch of the time we had last week here.

Unfortunately, I was not able to make it to Derby this year (the weather was not that pleasant), however, there are many more years to come to attend the iconic racing event!

Hope you all are having a great day!

Best Wishes,

Karen

We are seeing pictures and articles written about one of the emerging areas to consider in the realm of new technologies – referred to as wearable technologies.

What exactly does it mean when we talk about wearable technologies? These are devices where they are able to sensor, detect, monitor, and push information towards the user in a variety of ways. Here is a great article highlighting this new form of technology more specifically from MIT.

We have seen this occur in pop culture when we look at the role these devices played for movies like James Bond and even in Star Trek (a classic!) – we have been exposed to these forms of technologies through entertainment for years, and some of these advances are being integrated into society as we speak.

Many have stated how certain years are defined for certain platforms or advances, but I think 2013 going into 2014 will be the year of wearable technologies. We will be able to not only receive information directed to us with these devices, but we are able to also share these experiences with our communities as well since these are most likely are going to be connected to various social media platforms.

One type that is generating a lot of buzz of course is Google Glasses. Several influencers in the technology industry have been writing about their experiences and opinions with the new form of technologies and sharing them with the community.  In case you want to learn more about the program, check out their Google+ page.

However, Google has also created a program called Google Glass Explorers, where it asked users to tell them what they would do if they had a pair. I actually participated and said I would show what it was like to be a professor and researcher teaching social media at a university. I got a notice a while ago saying I was part of the program, so I am excited about this opportunity.

So, what does wearable technologies mean for us as PR and strategic communicators?  There are several things we have to be aware of as well as ask ourselves when it comes to this form of technology:

• Increase presence of visual data and information:  We have seen this already with Google Glasses – and how we are getting information directed to us based on visual recognition software components.  More information to consume while performing other tasks can raise both some opportunities and challenges to consider.
• Integrated into persona online and offline: We are basically connected with this form of technology in some fashion, so it is not just something we can put down like a mobile device, but it is going to be part of our identity and how we see the world.
• Transformation of analytics and measurement:  What are going to be some of the new metrics to consider when we are exploring this type of technology and how it impacts society and individual behavior? Are there going to be new metrics or enhanced metrics to consider when looking at wearable technologies – will this be important to consider for PR professionals.
• Having information broadcast for the world to see and issue of privacy:  This raises an interesting issue – what happens if everything you see and say is recorded for the world to see?  What happens when you are conducting an interview and want to rephrase a statement?  What about viewing confidential information for a client and their campaign? As PR professionals, we need to think and discuss all of these possible scenarios and how they will impact the way we are conducting ourselves professionally and personally.
• Enhanced risks and challenges to forecast:  With every new development of technology, we can definitely look at the benefits, but we also have to look at the challenges. What are going to be some of the policies in place to use wearable technologies in certain industries as well as how private/public the data really is going to be? What about the risk of recording all activities 24/7 – how will this be used exactly and how will this amount of storage do we have at our disposal to host all of this information?  What are also the security risks and threats for having people in various industries (ex. health, government, military, bank, etc) wear these devices to broadcast their experiences to the world? These are just a few things to think about and discuss in the community.

In summary, I think wearable technologies will continue to evolve and change over the next couple of months. We will see this part of our daily routines and be integrated possibly in various segments of society.  There are many great opportunities here for communication professionals in social media to take note of, but we have to also consider the risks and challenges that arise with this new type of technology. We have to continue this conversation both in practice and in the academia community.

Hope you all are having a great day!

Best Wishes,

Karen