One of my all-time favorite PR professionals (and friends) is Deirdre Breakenridge. PR extraordinaire. Blogger. Professor. Podcast Host. Keynote Speaker. Author. The list goes on and on – Deirdre has truly done it all!
I remember the first time we started corresponding via email and Twitter a few years ago. Actually, it was due to a research project I did that started this great professional relationship.
How I first met Deirdre
I did a study actually on Deirdre and three other social media influencers while I was at the University of Tennessee. This was my first published article in Public Relations Review as well as my first journal article in PR. In addition, this continues to be the most cited article I have so far in my academic career. I remember contacting Deirdre via Twitter and sharing with her the results of my study.
Ever since then, we have been corresponding via social media and have had virtual coffee chats to talk about teaching (her students at Rutgers, NYU, and UMass are SO lucky!), trends in social media, and our enthusiasm for working hard and drinking coffee (but of course!)
Inviting Deirdre as a Guest of #Freberg15
Since Deirdre is such a visionary in the field of PR and social media, I thought it would truly be an excellent experience for my students in #Freberg15 to have the opportunity to chat with her about what is happening right now in the field.
We did a Skype guest lecture this morning, and the students in class were truly captivated by Deirdre. They were engaged both in the class as well as on Twitter live tweeting the main points captured in her talk
Deirdre approached the Skype talk with professionalism and lots of enthusiasm and engagement. She encouraged the students to ask questions about what is going on in the field, and the students asked questions ranging from what to handle situations within companies about bringing forth innovative ideas to working with teams to even exploring what’s next in the field. Deirdre also brought forth the importance of finding a mentor – which I believe as being one of the most important things we as professors have to talk about in our classes. I am really glad Deirdre brought this up and this was one of many points the students really reacted to positively.
Bobby (one of my students in my social media class) wrote a great summary post about what he learned from Deirdre today in class.
Final Thoughts
Overall, this has truly been a once in a lifetime opportunity for my students to have the opportunity to ask questions, engage in conversation, and talk to a innovative thought leader in the industry. To see the creative spark emerge from my students and see their enthusiasm to dive into the field of social media and PR after hearing from Deirdre is what I love about teaching.
Make sure to follow Deirdre as well on Twitter – she’s a definite must follow here! Thank you Deirdre again for such an inspiring and captivating talk today. We truly appreciate it!
Hope you all are having a great day!
Best Wishes,
