Join us for an interesting look into internships on this week’s episode of Around the Sphere! Senior public relations major Hannah Mayer interned with Live Nation and senior journalism major Reegan Saunders interned with the San Francisco Chronicle. Both had amazing stories and advice for students just starting to look for internships. 

Also in this episode, hear from PRSSA about what they are, and what meetings are coming up!

Episode 14: Internships! Two CCI Students Speak about Their Experiences

Grace and Macy discuss what exactly happened in East Palestine, Ohio and the impact it had on locals thus far. As an East Palestine native, Macy brings the inside scoop. After discussing what happened, the two take a dive into the digital presence of Norfolk Southern throughout the crisis, the lack of communication on social media during the critical first two weeks and the impact that has online.

This episode examines both what and WHEN Norfolk Southern used social media to communicate with their public, along with the social media posts that occupied the topic's space in the time NS waited to post their statement. 

Take a look at the sources discussed in the episode:

Norfolk Southern newsroom statement:
https://nscorp.mediaroom.com/news-releases?item=123032

First NS Instagram post since the crash:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CoyIaAnu6p9/
Three posts before the crisis: 
https://www.instagram.com/p/CoLSOhfsQMP/
https://www.instagram.com/p/CoIRvfEMqBH/
https://www.instagram.com/p/Cn4us4rvp1Q/

Nick Drom TikTok:
https://www.tiktok.com/@nickdrom/video/7197262870793473322?q=east%20palestine&t=1678937121389

Fall 2023

The Digital Environment: Norfolk Southern

Maddie Goerl and Alex Zito discuss the public relations nightmare that was the Kendall Jenner Pepsi commercial. Although Jenner and Pepsi had good intentions, the commercial seemingly used the Black Lives Matter movement as a secondary element that was inappropriately used. 

In this episode, Maddie discusses how celebrities and large corporations float above the rules and the backlash of a crisis like this. She also talks about the importance of research in public relations and how it can affect a company's campaign. Additionally, Alex talks about comparable campaign failures and some digital public relations tools companies can use to refine their story and ensure it suits their audience. The common theme with all of the companies is their lack of thoroughness when going through the ideation process of their campaign. At the end of the episode, Maddie and Alex review best practices for creating a campaign that appropriately and effectively reaches an audience

Check out related resources below:

Kendall Jenner Pepsi Ad:
https://time.com/4726500/pepsi-ad-kendall-jenner/
https://www.fridaythings.com/recent-posts/pepsi-commercial-kendall-jenner

Burger King:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2021/03/08/burger-king-uk-under-fire-women-belong-kitchen-tweet/4627505001/
https://twitter.com/BurgerKingUK/status/1369036021925638154

Dove:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/dove-ad-1.4347314

Spring 2023

PR Nightmares: Kendall Jenner Pepsi Commercial

When it comes to staying up to date with celebrities, we have seen a movement from tabloid news to social media since 2016. Since then, celebrities have begun to share their news on social media rather than relying on news organizations to always disperse news for them. In this episode, Taylor Cook and Eduardo Strobel dissect celebrities’ public relations tactics on social media. 

Celebrity Tea comments on the shift in how celebrity public relations function and provides positive and negative instances of their public relations on social media.

Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis’s apology video after showing support for the harassment case against Danny Masterson caused serious backlash on social media. We take a deep dive into other PR tactics they could have employed to handle the situation.

We also compare social media accounts of other celebrities, such as Taylor Swift and Nina Dobrev. Looking at the differences between these celebrities’ posts and their engagement with the public. Our goal is to examine each celebrities use of online listening, organic social media, and overall PR knowledge to leverage their social media platforms in their favor.

Tune in to Celebrity Tea to learn more about celebrities’ public relations and what works to create a bond with their followers.

Vanity Fair article: https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2016/12/celebrity-social-media-replacing-pr-publicists 

Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis’s apology video: https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cw-6kG2PusA/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

PR tactic by Molly McPherson: https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMjbosNp4/ 

Taylor Swift’s Instagram account: https://www.instagram.com/taylorswift/?hl=en 

Nina Dobrev’s Instagram account: https://www.instagram.com/nina/?hl=en 

Nina Dobrev’s TikTok account: https://www.tiktok.com/@nina?lang=en

Celebrity Tea: Dissecting Celebrity PR Moves on Social Media

"College Culture" is your go-to podcast for college experiences tailored to young women, offering insightful discussions on topics like navigating challenging roommates and building a strong personal brand during your college years. 

Hosted by Jill and Emily, this podcast shares practical advice, relatable stories, and insights to empower you on your personal journey. Whether you're just starting out in college or preparing for graduation, "College Culture" is your trusted companion for all things college, helping you develop the skills and confidence to thrive personally, and setting you on a path to future success.

Tune in and embrace the "College Culture" designed exclusively for the remarkable women shaping their college experiences and future careers.

Podcast Show Notes:
0:35 - Episode Intro 
1:34 - Personal Branding
3:26 - Personal Obstacles, COVID, Bad Roommates
7:05 - Self-Reflection
8:23 - Female Obstacles 
9:20 - PR Crisis 
10:24 - Finding Yourself
11:45 Digital PR & Social Media 
13:00 - Online Presence 
17:45 - Episode Conclusion  


Check out some articles and videos to learn more about personal branding:
- https://www.forbes.com/sites/goldiechan/2023/04/05/5-reasons-to-start-building-your-personal-brand-in-college/?sh=6ab0301a4c96 
- https://blog.hubspot.com/sales/the-ultimate-guide-to-personal-branding 
- https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/building-personal-brand-women-seema-chokshi/

College Culture

Welcome to "Swifty Strategized," where Veteran Swiftie Jocy and New Swiftie Katie dive into the enchanting world of Taylor Swift's ingenious PR strategies that have shaped Swift’s iconic career. Join us as we unravel the carefully crafted moves behind the music industry powerhouse, exploring the artistry of her public image, media interactions, and the strategic decisions that have solidified her status as a global pop sensation.

Where were you on National Snake Day? In this episode, Katie and Jocy recount the infamous feud between Taylor Swift and Kanye that led to Taylor Swift’s social media blackout. This feud ultimately changed Swift’s use of social media. Listen to find out if it was for better or worse.

In this episode, we cover:
- National Snake Day (1:06)
- The feud between Taylor Swift and Kayne West (2:10)
- Taylor Swift’s year hiding from the public (6:43)
- Taylor Swift’s social media blackout (7:05)
- Release of Reputation (7:15)
- How Taylor Swift used social media before the blackout (8:12)
     - Cat scratch photo (8:33)
     - Posts with Austin and Lorde (9:01)
     - Taylor Swift’s Tumblr presence(9:44)
- Taylurking (9:53)
- Secret Sessions (10:16)
- How Taylor Swift used social media now (11:00)
- Easter Eggs (12:34)
- How much should we share on social media? (14:00)
     - Pros of oversharing (14:25)
     - Cons of oversharing (15:15)
     - Cons of having a private social media presence (15:49)
- How a social media presence can contribute to misinformation (16:33)
- The impact and importance of Taylor Swift’s strategic social media plan (17:13)

To learn more about Taylor Swift’s old Instagram, check out this account that recreated all the old posts. https://www.instagram.com/taylorswift_insta13/

Check out some of our old Taylor Swift posts, including the new family drama series and Meredith owing Taylor 40 million dollars. And check out our not-so-favorite tweet from Kim Kardashian about National Snake Day. 
- Family Drama Series: https://www.instagram.com/p/CYmIPBCODXg/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
- Meredith: https://www.instagram.com/p/CSZ5Nkvn8QF/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
- Kim Kardashian's tweet https://twitter.com/KimKardashian/status/754818471465287680?lang=en

Connect with Jocy and Katie on socials!
Jocy: Instagram (holtsberry.jocy) & Tiktok (jocyholtsberry)
Katie: Instagram (katiemasko)

We want to hear from you! Message us your thoughts on the episode and share your favorite old Taylor Swift social media memory.

Swiftly Strategized: Unpacking Taylor Swift's Social Media Strategy

COVID-19 has impacted our lives in a million ways; in this podcast, Maddie and Sophia talk about its impact on social media and the digital realm. With "non-essential" employees working from home, many social media moderators are off the clock and leaving monitoring to automated systems. We ask ourselves, "is fake news and misinformation slipping through the cracks?". We delve deep into what this human absence means for users and brands.

Check out some of these articles to learn more:
https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/3/17/21183557/coronavirus-youtube-facebook-twitter-social-media
https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/03/23/facebook-moderators-coronavirus/
https://www.wired.com/story/coronavirus-social-media-automated-content-moderation/

Spring 2020

COVID-19: Is Social Media Content Slipping Through the Cracks?

In this episode of the Digital PR Podcast, Katie, Lauryn and Sam delve into the topic of authentic brand advocacy. We talk about how social media has really set apart brands that are authentic advocates versus brands that may be jumping on the bandwagon.

We discuss popular brands that are B-Corporations and how these companies prioritize a triple bottom line of people, purpose and profit. Each B-Corporation is scored out of 200 in five different impact areas being governance, workers, community, environment and customers. A certification can be granted to organizations in many different industries. Some of the popular B-Corporations we mention include Ben & Jerry’s, Patagonia, Klean Kanteen, S’well and Athleta. We also talk about brands that are not B-Corps such as H&M and Whole Foods that hopped on the social justice bandwagon, yet fell short. 

Companies need to be authentic and transparent with their consumers more now than ever since the new generation, Generation Z, wants to support brands that stand behind ethics and morals. Social media has put a spotlight on brands who advocate for causes, and we believe other brands will follow by example. It’s not just a trend, it’s a new way of doing business.

For more on B-Corporations, check out https://bcorporation.net/

Authentic Advocacy on Social Media

On this episode of B & B: Food For Thought, Bridget and Brady dwell into fun, fancy, digital food trends and everything you need to know about building up a food community.

Our hosts discuss influencers and how they represent their personal brand or the company, and whether they are concerned with content creation or metrics. They also take a long dive into TikTok as a new platform for food influencers and how their success translates over to other social media platforms. Bridget shares her experience as a food blogger (@bridgetlikestoeat on Instagram), how community is created through Thanksgiving and shared interests, and how influencers create community through food. By the end of this podcast, you will probably be starving for some munchies and that is exactly what we hoped for!

Check out some articles and videos to learn more about food blogging and food influencers:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbpMy0Fg74eXXkvxJrtEn3w
https://www.gordonramsay.com/
https://www.stellarising.com/blog/infographic-the-impact-of-food-bloggers
https://mediakix.com/blog/best-food-youtubers-channels-cooking/

Fall 2020

B&B Food For Thought

In this episode, Aaron and Riley discuss traveling during the COVID-19 pandemic. There’s no doubt the travel industry has faced major challenges over the past year. This week’s podcast covers how the travel industry has been adapting and how it is communicating and using PR tactics to reach the public. 

In this episode, we’ll dive deeper into some of our travel experiences this year and what trends we’ve seen happening in the tourism industry. We talk more about the importance of companies communicating regulations and being transparent about their policies. We discuss how travel companies are utilizing social media to communicate with customers in real-time and other digital tactics, like virtual reality and live streaming, they have adopted to stay relevant during this time. 

Check out these resources to learn more:
https://rturne26.wixsite.com/backyardexplorer
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/how-covid-19-changed-travel-3-surprising-trends-revealed-301102387.html
https://www.provokemedia.com/latest/article/covid-19-what-it-means-for-travel-pr
https://marketing.sfgate.com/blog/tourism-marketing-trends
https://thepointsguy.com/guide/travel-changed-coronavirus/

#Travel #TravelingduringCOVID #PRonlinechat #Travelsafety #Tourismindustry #TravelPR
#DigitalPR

How the Covid-19 Pandemic has Impacted Travel PR

The Digital PR Podcast is brought to you by public relations students at Kent State University. Join us as we talk about news and trends in the digital space and how it connects to the field of PR and communications.

The Digital Environment: Norfolk Southern

Digital PR Podcast

Related tracks