"I hate to see any human being—even the enemy—in the clutches of a PR man."
                    Col. Sherman Potter (M*A*S*H)

Room: English House Seminar Room (basement)    Time: 2:35-3:50 p.m.

Instructor: James Plath    Phone: 556-3352    Office: English 102

Hours: M-F 11-12:00, & by appt.

URL: http://titan.iwu.edu/~jplath/    Email: jplath@titan.iwu.edu

Required text: The Practice of Public Relations (10th Edition), by Fraser P. Seitel, and supplementary handouts.

Web Resources: Newspapers & Reporter Sources

Illinois College Press Association Newspapers

The Official Facebook Public Relations Group

Course Objective: This course is intended to give students background, theory, and practice in the field of public relations. During the semester we will use chapters from the book as a starting point for our discussions and problem-solving exercises, and, in the spirit of both the "team" concept that often drives public relations management, and also the "seminar" in academia, this course will operate as a true seminar. That is, students will share the responsibility for generating lively classroom discussions.

Course Requirements: Students must attend class and contribute to discussions on a regular basis. More than three unexcused absences will affect your grade. Missed in-class exercises cannot be made up; the midterm can be made up only with a medical excuse. All work must be completed to receive a grade for the course.

Grades Will Be Determined on the Following Basis:

MIDTERM----------------------------------------------------------------25  percent
FINAL---------------------------------------------------------------------25 percent
CLASS PARTICIPATION----------------------------------------------25 percent
CLASS PROJECTS-----------------------------------------------------25 percent

Tentative Calendar:

Week of Jan 5, 7--WHAT IS PUBLIC RELATIONS?  Read Chapter 1 by the 7th. For each day of reading discussion this semester, a third of the class will rotate and serve as discussion leaders (and also bring in additional materials from the media, published articles and studies, corporations, etc., as applicable)

Week of Jan 12, 14--THE GROWTH OF PUBLIC RELATIONS. Read Chapter 2 by the 14th.
Guest Speaker on Jan 12: Jon Young, Community Relations Manager, Normal CornBelters baseball team.

Week of Jan 19, 21--PUBLIC OPINION. Read Chapter 4. Projects: Mission & Policy Statements.
Guest speaker on Jan 21: Matt Kurz, Vice President for Public Relations, IWU.

Week of Jan 26, Jan 28--PR WRITING. Read Chapters 3 & 16; in-class exercises on both days. Projects: AP Style & Press Releases, Fact Sheets, Backgrounders, Pitch Letters, & Media Kits.
Guest speaker on Jan 26:  Chris Anderson, Media Relations Coordinator, Country Financial, Bloomington.

Week of Feb 2, 4--PRINT MEDIA. Read Chapter 9. Projects: Media Advisories & Press Conferences.
Guest speaker on Feb 2: Bryan Bloodworth, Director of Media Relations, Bloomington Prairie Thunder hockey team.

Week of Feb 9, 11--MANAGEMENT & PLANNING. Read Chapters 5 & 17, one by each day. Projects: Planning Sheet & Writing the Public Relations Program.
Guest speakers on Feb 9: Dan Irvin, General Manager, Corporate Communications, Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc., Normal; and Carol Redfern Ambler, Supervisor, Plant Communications, Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc.

Week of Feb 16, 18--RESEARCH. Read Chapter 8. Projects: Gathering Hard Data, Content Analysis, Surveys & Focus Groups.

Week of Feb 23, Feb 25--ELECTRONIC MEDIA. Read Chapters 10 & 18. Projects: 30-second and 60-second radio spots, webpage design.
Guest speaker on Feb 23: Andrew Matthews, Director of Strategic Communication, Firestorm72.

Week of Mar 2, 4--EMPLOYEE RELATIONS. Read Chapter 11.  Projects: In-House memos and mock newsletter.
Guest speaker on Mar 2: Karin McDowell ('00), ITS Project Manager, Country Financial, Bloomington.

Week of Mar 9, 11--CONSUMER RELATIONS. Read Chapters 14 & 15.  Projects: Letters, Fliers & Brochures.
Guest speaker on Mar 9: Jennifer Christopher Nau ('03), Senior Account Executive, JSH&A Public Relations, Chicago.

MIDTERM--Thursday, Mar 11

SPRING BREAK (Mar 13-21)--NO CLASS!!!!

Week of Mar 23, 25--MULTICULTURAL COMMUNITY RELATIONS. Read Chapter 12. Projects: Begin major plan/program.

Week of Mar 30, Apr 1--CRISIS MANAGEMENT. Read Chapter 19.
Guest speaker on Mar 30:  Phil Supple,  Senior Director - External Relations, State Farm - Corporate Public Affairs.

Week of Apr 6, 8--ETHICS. Read Chapter 6.
Guest speaker on Apr 8:  Leni Uddyback-Fortson, Regional Director of Public Affairs, U.S. Department of Labor, Philadelphia Region.

Week of Apr 13, 15-- Presentations of projects. 

Week of Apr 20--The future.
Guest speaker: Matt Edwards, social media analyst for State Farm.

FINAL EXAM--Thursday, Apr 22, 8-10 a.m. (go figure)