Case Study: Flat Tummy (continued)

To demonstrate how an influencer can utilize the TARES test we will examine a controversial Instagram post made by Kim Kardashian West. In May of 2018, Kardashian West posted an ad for a hunger suppressant lollipop from the company Flat Tummy.

In this post, Kardashian West did include #ad. Although she was not criticized for product promotion, controversy arose over the product she endorsed. Backlash stemmed from followers accusing Kardashian West of perpetuating unhealthy dieting habits. Fellow influencer/actress Jameela Jamil responded to the post referring to Kardashian West as a “terrible and toxic influence on young girls” (Mahdawi, 2018). Kardashian West deleted the post.

This example showcases how FTC disclosure regulations are not enough to conclude whether an ad is ethical or not. It further illustrates how acting unethically can harm an influencer’s public image. To better understand the functionality of the TARES test we will walk through the process by considering the above ad. As with all ethical dilemmas, your reasoning may differ from others.

The advertisement is not truthful in its claim to provide users with a flatter tummy. A Harvard medical school professor told the Guardian that “dietary supplements sold for detox or weight loss are snake oil, plain and simple” (Wong, 2018).

Effects of Advertising (continued)

Consumers

Supporters of native advertising claim that a reasonable person should be able to identify native advertising from authentic content (Schauster, Ferrucci, & Neill, 2016). However, studies have shown that a majority of people are unable to correctly identify it even with proper disclosure. (Wojdynski & Evans, 2015, Hyman et al., 2017).

A national study of college advertising students found that one-in-four could not correctly identify “sponsored content” as advertising. This study also found “one-fifth of students misidentified legitimate news articles as advertising” (Fullerton, McKinnon, & Kendrick, 2020, pg.14). For the general population these numbers are more concerning with one study reporting 92 percent of adults studied were not able to correctly identify paid content from non-paid content (Wojdynski and Evans, 2016).

This misidentification can be particularly troubling considering a Pew Research survey found that young adults (18-29 years) rated social media as their preferred platform for news consumption compared to TV, radio, and print (Shearer, 2018). By using social media platforms as their primary news source, the younger generations may be particularly vulnerable to native advertisements (Nee, 2019).

Effects of Advertising

Company

Utilizing native advertisements is a successful and profitable investment for brands (Boland, 2016). Sharethrough (2018), a native advertising agency, published a report with Interpublic Group indicating native advertisements were looked at 25 percent more often than traditional banner ads. Also, by placing ads natively, advertisers are gaining the perceived authority of the source (Conill, 2016).

In regards to brand attitude toward the sponsor, Sweetser et al. (2016) found that awareness of the content being advertising did not negatively impact the perceived trustworthiness of the sponsor.  Although this attitude is dependent on the quality of the content within the advertisement.

Medium

The biggest impact native advertising holds for the mediums presenting it is gained ad revenue. Native advertisements are predicted to take up more than 74 percent of all advertising revenue by 2021 (Boland, 2016).

However, the use of native advertising may have a negative impact on the credibility of the medium particularly a print or news source (Cameron & Ju-Pak, 2000). The Society of Professional Journalists code of ethics (2019) states journalists should act independently and “deny favored treatment to advertisers.” The code of ethics goes on to highlight the importance of “distinguishing news from advertising and shun hybrids that blur the lines between the two.” As sponsored content by definition is the blurring of the lines between editorial content and advertisements, its ethicacy may be called into question. 

Schauster et al. (2016) took a qualitative look at professionals in the fields of journalism, public relations, and advertising to gauge their professional opinions on native advertising. The researchers found that while their participants believed native advertising to be a necessity in the financial sustainability of the modern news model, professionals in the field found it overall unethical.

Conill (2016) further points out that by placing ads natively, advertisers are gaining the perceived authority of the source. However, it is surmised that there is a distinct difference between source credibility and message credibility. If this distinction between message and source credibility can be made by consumers, it could aid the discussion that disclosure is sufficient in differentiating advertisements from editorial content (Appleman & Sundar, 2016).

Disclosure (continued)

One thing to note when discussing disclosure placement is the concept of banner blindness. Banner blindness occurs when a web user overlooks what they perceive to be advertisements (Hsieh, Chen, & Ma, 2012). Benway (1998) theorized that users ignore banner ads because they are associated with unimportant information or “fluff.” If banner blindness can be attributed to advertisement disclosure, it may relate to how users misidentify sponsored and editorial content.

Examples of Disclosure

Discussion (continued)

It is also important to consider recommendations from public relations professionals who have maneuvered the fake news environment. Through interviews with 21 public relations professionals in agencies and corporations, Ewing and Lambert (2019) developed strategic recommendations for combating online fake news attacks.

First, practitioners should have a contingency plan. If ever the subject of fake news coverage, it is better to have developed a strategic response strategy in advance. Research also revealed that during a fake news crisis, practitioners should engage with online influencers. Although this may seem counterintuitive, online influencer hold significant power. Thus, engaging influencers may aid practitioners in shaping the online conversation.

Ewing and Lambert (2019) offer the following ideas for online engagement:

1. Build goodwill in advance
2. Inspire advocacy
3. Correct false information
4. Be responsive and transparent
5. Integrate media relations and social media strategies

Their findings also suggest that listening to stakeholders is a key factor in preparing for a fake news crises. Taking a proactive approach, practitioners should listen for potential issues, to identify influencers, and to include diverse perspectives.

Discussion Questions

1. Compare and contrast the different types fake news.
2. Reflect on your own experiences and encounters with fake news stories. Think of an instance for each level of fake news and analyze their individual public relations approach.
3. Of all the Page Principles, which do you think is the most important ethical value for public relation professionals to uphold and why?
4. With future technological developments, do you anticipate that fake news will become more or less of a problem?
5. How can a client avoid being the focus of fake news?
6. How can public relations professionals manage fake news crises?

Discussion

The spread of satire, parody, manipulation, fabrication, and propaganda is likely inevitable in modern society. Indeed, social media plays a large part in its imminent spread.

News is no longer simply reported by journalists or distributed by public relation professionals. The audience is also an active participant in creating and sharing news. Unfortunately, fake news stories gain power as misinformation and disinformation are spread. Practitioners need to be aware of the potential for fake news coverage and should consider ways to manage and combat fake news.

During a fake news crisis, practitioners should keep in mind the Page Principles to guide their ethical reasoning and strategic recommendations. 

Case Study – Fake News Dissemination: Pizzagate (continued)

Pizzagate Case Background

Just before the Presidential Election in 2016, a man walked into a pizza parlor and fired gunshots. While no one was injured, this incident happened because of false information being shared online.

A conspiracy theory circulated on social networking sites which claimed the Comet Ping Pong restaurant, located in Washington D.C., was hiding a child prostitution ring run by Hillary Clinton and her campaign manager. This case study will examine fake news dissemination through an article published by The New York Times, written by Aisch, Huang and Kang (2016). The authors developed a step-by-step timeline briefly explaining how the fake news spreads.

Consequences

In many cases, when people ignore fake news, it spreads. However, this case study proves that fake news can still result in tangible actions. (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018). Thus, fake news can have consequences. The spread of this particular disinformation threatened much more than just a brands reputation, it put lives at risk.

James Alefantis, Comet Ping Pong’s owner, blamed the unfortunate event on the individuals who took part in spreading false information. He said in a statement to The New York Times, “I hope that those involved in fanning these flames will take a moment to contemplate what happened here today and stop promoting these falsehoods right away” (Aisch, Huang & Kang, 2016).

Discussion Questions

1. Who should be blamed for the spread of fake news?
2. After reflecting about the extreme consequences from the spread of fake news exhibited by the Pizzagate scandal, do you think that the accusations of disinformation went too far?
3. At what point, if any, should the spread of false information be stopped?
4. How would you recommend that Comet Ping Pong respond to guard their reputation?
5. What should the Democratic Party have done to respond to the false allegations?

Case Study – Fake News Dissemination: Pizzagate

Dissemination

A convergence of factors in today’s digital society has resulted in a range of challenges involving the origin, dissemination, veracity and effects of many types of messaging including news, “fake” news, sponsored blog posts and native advertising, to name a few. 

Contributing to these challenges are the relative ease of individual self-publishing online, the re-dissemination of messages by both individuals and organizations, the speed at which information is circulated and the blurring of age-old lines between advertising and editorial staffs – historically, “church and state” (Conill, 2016). These factors can compound the difficulty of determining the source, intent, and accuracy of much of what is consumed on the Internet and in social media.

If “fake news” is false, or only partly true, how does it spread? As simple as it sounds, sometimes people don’t realize what is real or what is fake. In fact, a Pew Research Center survey found that 23 percent of Americans say they have shared fake news whether that be knowingly or not (Mitchell, Holcomb, & Barthel, 2016).

Yet the spread of fake news stories, despite anyone’s underlying intentions, are contributing to a growing dissemination of falsehoods. Therefore, it is no wonder that 64 percent of U.S. adults blame fake news stories for confusion surrounding basic facts about politics or events in the country (Mitchell, Holcomb, & Barthel, 2016).

Social media networking sites have completely changed how fake news is spread. The leading networking site, Facebook, with well over 1 billion users, now is said to contribute to providing news to 44 percent of the population (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018). While the platform is enjoyed for its instantaneous connections and free flowing information, unfortunately, many users have participated in the spread of fake news stories.

In fact, a BuzzFeed News analysis found that Facebook trended more top news stories, before the 2016 presidential election, even over its major news counterparts including The New York Times, Washington Post, Huffington Post, NBC News, and others (Silverman, 2016). Unfortunately, one of those high-profile stories was Pizzagate.

Propaganda

Finally, the last type of fake news is propaganda. Scholars define this kind of disinformation as “news stories which are created by a political entity to influence public perceptions” (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018, p. 146). It’s important to highlight the fact that propaganda often may have some plausible truth to it; however, the information is paired with strong political bias intended to persuade those who read and, or, see the presented information. (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018).

While propaganda is not commonly seen throughout the United States due to our freedoms and democratic run government, it is still a type of fake news that communicators should be able to recognize.

For example, the world has been upended by the global pandemic caused by the COVID-19 virus in 2020. Yet, the concern surrounding the virus turned from being just a medical issue to a political one.

The New York Times reported that the Chinese government had created several thousands of fake Twitter accounts in order to spread disinformation online about the coronavirus and where it initially began. Many of the social media stories claimed that the virus originated in the United States. The propaganda filled messages gained lots of traction online and resulted in a large number of retweets and likes.

In response to the widespread disinformation, Twitter took down roughly 150,000 fake accounts purposely trying to “amplify China’s leading envoys and state-run news outlets” claimed The New York Time’s article (Conger, 2020).

As time went on, government entities, news organizations, and the public became more aware of how the virus actually came to spread. As a result, the false Twitter accounts shifted their messaging in March of 2020 and began comparing the response initiatives between the United States and China. Specifically, China was referred to as the “responsible big country” in comparison to the United States who was called on to “put aside political bias,” according to The New York Times (Conger, 2020).

In response to the fake Twitter accounts, a statement was issued from the director of the International Cyber Policy Center, Fergus Hanson, who directly worked alongside the social media company to put an end to the propaganda. “Persistent, covert and deceptive influence operations like this one demonstrate the extent to which the party-state will target external threats to its political power,” Hanson said (Conger, 2020).

Manipulated Content-False Connection

While fabrication is 100 percent false, the next type of fake news actually has some truth to it. Manipulation can be described as news stories that use “real images or videos to create a false narrative” according to the scholars Tandoc, Lim & Ling (2018, p. 144). Despite there being some truth, using an adaption of imagery to sensationalize a story still misleads consumers by developing a false connection.

One example of manipulated content was an incident that widely become known as “kids in cages.” Photos taken by The Associated Press in 2014 were published with an article discussing Trump’s immigration story claiming that the administration had “lost track of nearly 1,500 immigrant children” according to the AP. The story trended on social media and grabbed the attention of many due to its particularly compelling images of kids confined behind what looks like a fence. One tweet, by Antonio Villaraigosa, the LA mayor, wrote “Speechless. This is not who we are as a nation” (Flaherty & Woodward, 2018).

The compelling photo was in fact real and Trump’s immigration policies were reported accurately; however, the photo placed next to the news story manipulated the content to indicate differently. In response to these allegations, President Donald Trump himself tweeted, “Democrats mistakenly tweet 2014 pictures from Obama’s term showing children from the border in steel cages. They thought it was recent pictures in order to make us look bad, but backfires” (Flaherty & Woodward, 2018).

While there may be some truth to manipulated content, the falsehoods overshadow otherwise important facts or information. Given that Trump popularized the term “fake news” in the wake of the presidential election, incidents that question the credibility of otherwise trusted sources continue to contribute to the lack of believability from consumers. If something is only somewhat true, then it is still fake news.

Fabricated Content/Imposter Content (continued)

It is important to realize that it is not just the public who can be misled by entirely false information. Unfortunately, sometimes credible news outlets are fooled and often they may not realize it until it is too late.

One instance, referred to as Rathergate, demonstrates just how strong fabricated messages can be. In 2004, Dan Rather, a journalist for CBS, presented six documents during an episode of the broadcast TV show, “60 Minutes.” The files being discussed, known as the Killian documents, contained information about President Bush’s service in the Texas Air National Guard (Rutenberg and Zernike, 2004). The news was believed until only two months before the presidential election happened. Breaking news reported that CBS failed to factcheck the documents before broadcasting it to the public.

It was later learned that the Killian documents were not written on a typewriter in 1973, but instead created on Microsoft Word (Rutenberg and Zernike, 2004). The experts suggest it would have been impossible to develop such a document that many years before.

In response to the allegations, Andrew Heyward, the CBS President said, “We should not have used them. That was a mistake, which we deeply regret," according to an article written by The New York Times by Rutenberg and Zernike.

Additionally, Rather, the CBS reporter, also gave a personal statement regarding the fake news story that got him fired. He writes, "I want to say personally and directly I'm sorry" (Rutenberg & Zernike, 2004). This is just an example of how powerfully persuasive messaging can be. Often, timing is a key factor to the spread of political fake news stories. One might only image how the courses of history would have changed if the files were not declared as yet another believable “fake news” story.

Fabricated Content/Imposter Content

While satire and parody play on humorous attacks, this first level of “fake news” does not require immediate attention due to its widely acknowledged entertainment value. However, this next level of fake news, fabrication, requires a different response due to its lack of facticity and intent to deceive.

This type of information has no factual basis; however, the stories are presented or “published in the style of news articles to create legitimacy,” and often are believed to be a trustworthy source because partisan organizations often present information with some neutrality (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018, p. 143).

According to the scholars, Tandoc, Lim and Ling (2018) research acknowledges that this type of information is often spread for the purpose of financial gain or now, more frequently, by artificial intelligence online sources.

On May 1, 2019, newspapers, appearing identical to The Washington Post, were distributed on the streets in Washington D.C. The headline, “Unpresidented,” appeared in large bold letters alongside a story which claims President Trump resigned from office. According to one of The Washington Post reports, the purpose of the newspaper was to show “the future and how we got there — like a road map for activists,” said Jacques Servin, a leader of the initiative  (Heil & Farhi, 2019). The article also points out that the collection of fabricated materials cost nearly $40,000 to print and distribute which signifies the level of planned intention and commitment of spreading disinformation (Heil & Farhi, 2019).

In response to the distribution of look-alike newspapers, The Washington Post took immediate action by issuing a disclaimer warning that the paper was not legitimate on their Twitter account, “Washington Post PR.”

This was an important effort by public relations professionals because they shined light on the spread of disinformation as quickly as possible before releasing an official response. Later on, a spokeswoman Kris Coratti, responded by writing, “We will not tolerate others misrepresenting themselves as The Washington Post, and we are deeply concerned about the confusion it causes among readers. We are seeking to halt further improper use of our trademarks” (Heil & Farhi, 2019). While communication professionals may not have the ability to stop fake news stories from happening, implementing an instant response, by utilizing social media, can quickly stop false information, as fast as it is being shared.

Satire and Parody (continued)

It is important to note that studies include satire and parody under the category of fake news because of their formatting. Unlike other types of misinformation, satire and parody have no intention to cause harm which significantly separates the two from other types of fake news. Because of this, there is some controversy surrounding the spread of this type of information. On one hand, scholars like Tandoc, Lim and Ling (2018) claim humorous articles and trendy social media headlines can help people become aware of cultural events.

Yet, at the same time, research also proves that satire and parody sites can have a strong influence on a person’s belief system and may be more persuasive than people might think (Tandoc, Lim and Ling, 2018). When criticized for encouraging “fake” satirical sites, like The Babylon Bee, by mainstreamed journalists, The Babylon Bee’s Editor in Chief, Kyle Mann, responds to his critics, ironically, through satire (Andros, 2020).

Satire and Parody

Content that typically makes fun of news programs and uses humor to engage with their audience members can be classified as news satire (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018). Often, the overall intent of spreading this type of information is to provide entertainment by suggesting humorous critiques of political or pop cultural events.

For example, Saturday Night Live’s “Weekend Update” is an example of a highly appraised fictitious news program that uses satire to poke fun at current events. While still categorized as “fake news,” satirical information does not come from journalists, but rather comedians or entertainers (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018).

While similar to satire, parody is another type of fake news. The difference between the two is simply a function of how the humor is used. “Instead of providing direct commentary on current affairs through humor, parody plays on the ludicrousness of issues and highlights them by making up entirely fictitious news stories,” according to the scholars, Tandoc, Lim and Ling (2018). Specifically, political parody outlets capitalize on the “vague plausibility of the news item” (p. 142). The Babylon Bee is a leading parody site where they claim the motto, “totally inerrant in all its truth claims.”

Types of Fake News

Lesson 1 provided an in-depth look at one of the most pervasive types of fake news: native advertising. With native advertising, the persuasive message content is generated by the client. Thus, native advertising and other sponsored content allows strategic communicators the opportunity to shape the media content.

Lesson 2 focuses on the remaining types of fake news: satire, news parody, fabrication, manipulation and propaganda (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018). With these types of fake news, the organization does not create the editorial content. Instead, it is often the target of the messages created by a third-party source.

Therefore, public relations professionals must understand the types of “fake news” that could potentially threaten their clients or stakeholders.

From a public relations perspective, it is important to consider fake news types focusing on both facticity and level of deception.

By examining fake news stories, as well as strategic responses, PR professionals can understand how to successfully and ethically respond to fake news stories.

While the ultimate goal of news coverage may differ for journalists and public relational practitioners, both professions operate under the same ethical principle of telling the truth.

However, truth, itself, is now at odds with a cultural shift where people often associate news with the word “fake.” Despite the lack of an agreement upon definition and the various types of fake news, the phenomenon has critical implications for the functioning of a democratic society, press freedom, individual citizens and professional communicators.

Fake News Content

A convergence of factors in today’s digital society has resulted in a range of challenges involving the origin, dissemination, veracity, and effects of many types of messaging. Contributing to these challenges are the relative ease of self-publishing online, the re-dissemination of messages by both individuals and organizations, the speed at which information is circulated, and the blurring of lines between advertising and editorial content (Conill, 2016).

These factors often compound the difficulty of determining the source, the intent, and the accuracy of information consumed. While the ultimate goal of news coverage may differ for journalists and public relational practitioners, both professions operate under the same ethical principle of telling the truth. However, truth, itself, is now at odds with a cultural shift where people often associate news with the word “fake.”

With truth called into question, the definitions of fake news vary. Legal analysts confine the definition to “online publication of intentionally or knowingly false statements of fact” (Klein & Wueller, 2017, p. 2), while other scholars include political “spin,” propaganda, and native advertising (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018). 

Fullerton, McKinnon and Kendrick (2020) conclude that “fake news” includes content that may be misleading, sensationalized or deliberately false.

Indeed, “fake news” is a very broad term. To develop a typology, Tandoc, Lim, and Ling (2018), reviewed 34 academic articles focusing on “fake news” that includes six categories: news satire, news parody, fabrication, manipulation, advertising, and propaganda.

Often the contributing factor to understanding fake news is the content’s motivation. While it may seem obvious to distinguish credible news from “fake news” stories, it is not. Results from a 2016 Buzzfeed survey found that “fake news headlines fool American adults about 75% of the time” (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018, p. 137). Fake news stories may be more obvious to the audience, such as humorous stories trending on social media.

However, fake news also may be advertising that is strategically crafted to look like editorial content while promoting a more meaningful agenda (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018). Despite the lack of agreement upon  “fake news” definitions and categorization, the phenomenon has critical implications for the functioning of a democratic society, press freedom, professional communicators and individual citizens.

Lesson 2: Fake News Content

President Donald Trump popularized the term “fake news,” using it to describe negative news coverage during the campaign and after his 2016 election.  After Trump’s inauguration ceremony, media disputed whether the audience size was accurately reflected in his description of the enormous crowd. Responding to the inauguration coverage, Press Secretary Kellyanne Conway coined the term “alternative facts” (Fandos, 2017). 

Since Trump took office, his accusations of “fake news” coverage have increased and his description of what is “fake” has expanded. According to Keith (2018), Trump’s tweets about news that he deems “fake,” “phoney,” or “fake news” has increased both in scope and frequency. These tweets reference “fake books,” “fake dossier,” “Fake CNN,” and “fudged news reports.” An NPR Analysis of Trump’s tweets found that he included the words “fake news” in 389 posts (Keith, 2018). Not only has media content been called into question, but trusted news organizations have been labeled as “fake news” providers.

Case Study (continued): Authenticity

Authenticity refers to the persuader's use and honest belief in the product. While the Instagram ad does depict Kardashian West with the lollipop in her mouth there is no indication that it is a product she uses on a regular basis.

An anonymous staffer from Flat Tummy who helped direct influencers on their Instagram photos alluded that they did not expect influencers to actually use the product they were promoting (Wong, 2018). It can be argued that by not being a genuine user of the product, Kardashian West is not showing due respect to her followers.

Regarding equity, there was an imbalance between knowledge presented in the ad when compared with knowledge the buyer would need to make an informed decision about purchasing the product.

Social responsibility can also be questioned in this ad. Critics of the ad pointed out that the timing of the ad being posted during Mental Health Awareness Week was especially troubling (Mahdawi, 2018). An estimated 20 million women and 10 million men in America have struggled with an eating disorder according to the National Eating Disorders Association (2019). Ads such as those for Flat Tummy lollipops perpetuate an unhealthy and irresponsible view of body expectations (Wong, 2018).

In this case, it also is important to consider the difference between law and ethics. The post followed FTC disclosure guidelines and was therefore legal. Instagram does have policies in place to lessen the inclusion of ads that may show a negative self-image (specifically warns against before/after photos and zoomed body parts) in order to sell health, fitness, or weight loss products. However, the policies apply only to paid Instagram advertisements.

The policies do not apply to the Kardashian West post and to other posts from paid endorsers (Wong, 2018). Today, the Instagram “flattummyco” has 1.7 million followers. In its rise to success, it has focused the majority of its marketing efforts on social media (Wong, 2018). Although Kardashian West, suffered backlash from the initial Flat Tummy lollipop post, she and her sisters have since endorsed other Flat Tummy products, including Flat Tummy shakes and Flat Tummy tea. With the subsequent posts, online backlash also has followed (Nzengung, 2019; Zollner, 2020). It is the questioned unethical actions, not legal infringement, that has caused backlash for the Kardashians as Flat Tummy endorsements. Although the sponsored posts are legal, the application of the TARES test may indicate they are not necessarily ethical.

Discussion Questions

1. If Kardashian West put her decision to post about the Flat Tummy lollipop through the TARES test, would she have realized the ethical questionability of the company?
2. Would she have decided to promote the product?
3. Would she have experienced the backlash and harm to her public image?
4. What would you have advised Kardashian West to do in this case?

Case Study: Flat Tummy

One of most successful forms of native advertising is the use of social media influencers to promote products on social media sites. An influencer is defined as an individual with a large social media following who uses that clout to persuade people to purchase products or services (Kirwan, 2018).

Influencers are generally considered to have an expertise in a field in which their followers share an interest such as fashion or food (Hall, 2016). This perceived expertise gives the influencer a greater effect in persuading their followers.

Instagram, the photo sharing social media application created in 2010, has grown its user base to include a recorded 37 percent of Americans in 2019 with 67 percent of those users being between the ages of 18-29 years, according to a Pew Research survey (2019).

Advertisers have successfully moved into this space by utilizing influencers. Ninety-four percent of marketers found influencer ads to be successful, providing 11 times the rate of investment when compared to traditional advertisements (Ahmed, 2018). In 2016, 40 percent of Twitter users reported that they had purchased something based off an influencer’s tweet (Karp, 2016).

One aspect making influencer marketing so successful is that influencer ads are considered to be more authentic than traditionally branded ads (Talavera, 2015). Furthermore, Swant (2016) found that people rate influencer opinion equal to that of their friends.

Credibility is an important factor for influencers as it directly impacts their ability to persuade their followers (Hall, 2016). Lou and Yuan (2019) found that influencers' trustworthiness or credibility resulted in more positive thoughts toward the brands the influencers were promoting. To enhance credibility, many brands pay celebrity endorsers to advertise their product.

According to Wong (2018), the Kardashians are reported to collect six-figure payments for their sponsored Instagram posts.

Social Responsibility and Ethical Decision Making

Baker (1999) explained that a communicator must consider their responsibility to the community over that of their raw self-interest. Self-interest in this context includes profits and career success.  The common good in social responsibility signifies that, as persuaders are members of the community, the overall benefit to the community should be examined when creating persuasive messages (Baker & Martinson, 2001). Moyers (1999) argues that persuaders are a privileged voice in society and as such share a responsibility to improve and not hinder the communal well-begin. Persuaders should consider social responsibility on both the macro and micro levels. They must consider how each message will affect an individual and group and balance that information in order to create a message that positively impacts society (Baker & Martinson, 2001).

To measure the social responsibility of a message ask yourself the following questions:

Balancing the Elements of the TARES Test

It is important to note that at times the elements within the TARES test may conflict with one another. This conflict results in an ethical dilemma. Kidder (2009) defined an ethical dilemma as a ‘right-versus-right’ decision. With any ethical decision-making situation, there is not always a clear correct answer. For instance, when being truthful can negatively impact the public, an ethical dilemma occurs, calling for the need to question the social responsibility of the piece.

In ethical decision making there is not always a clear answer. The TARES test is designed to start a conversation in order to make the messenger consider the ethical implications of the message. Each element should be compared and weighed against the overall good versus the overall evil of the message and the potential ramifications of the message.

Respect and Equity

Respect for the Persuadee

Respecting the persuadee means the persuader does not see the persuadee simply as a means to the end of selling their product or idea, but rather that the persuader considers the ramifications of any messaging on the persuadee and the public at large (Baker & Martinson, 2001). The well-being of the persuadee must be called into question and considered in any form of messaging so that the persuadee may make a well-informed, uncoerced choice. This concept goes back to the idea that the results of the action are equally important as the action itself.

Asking yourself the following questions will aid you in insuring you are treating the intended persuadees with respect as consumers and individuals:

Equity of the Persuasive Appeal

In the TARES test, the terms equity and fairness are used interchangeably. Equity refers to the balance of treating each persuadee with the same level of respect and concern. Persuasive appeals must not unjustly target a demographic without the ability to comprehend the message or exploit vulnerable populations. Exploitation refers both to the message itself and the motivations of the persuader. The TARES test specifically tasks communicators to examine their messaging, not only from their own perspective, but also to consider the intended audience to determine if the message is equitable (Baker & Martinson, 2001).

Asking yourself the following questions will help to determine if the message is equitable to all involved and to those targeted:

Truthfulness and Authenticiy

Truthfulness of the Message

Trust is essential in the field of public relations and presenting misleading information or misrepresenting information breaks that trust. In order to maintain trust, it is important that public relations professionals be truthful in their messages. Truth in this context does not mean only literal truth, but also conceptual, complete, unobstructed truth (Baker & Martinson, 2001).

To determine if a message is expressing the full complete truth, ask yourself the following questions about the message you are crafting:

Authenticity of the Persuader

The TARES test focuses on the responsibility the communicator carries in developing messaging. As such the authenticity of the persuader must be called into question. When crafting messaging, you must evaluate your own motivations, loyalties, and attitudes regarding the message (Baker & Martinson, 2001).  In order for the persuader to be authentic in their actions, they must believe in the product or idea they are communicating to the public

To explore your own authenticity on a matter ask yourself the following questions:

The TARES Test

An important part of ethical decision making is the ability to defend your choices. To aid in this process, we will examine the TARES test as a guide for making and defending ethical choices. The TARES test was developed by Baker and Martinson (2001) to focus on five principles for ethical persuasion. This framework functions under the theory of utilitarianism, which maintains that the results of an action are equally important to the action itself when evaluating its ethicality (Patterson, Wilkins, & Painter, 2019).

TARES is an acronym for truthfulness (of the message), authenticity (of the persuader), respect (for the persuadee), equity (of the persuasive appeal), and social responsibility (for the common good). These attributes are echoed throughout varies codes of ethics in the communication field including that of the Public Relations Society of America.

Disclosure

Wojdynski and Evans (2016) pinpoint two distinct factors that are required for successful disclosure of sponsored content. First, consumers must notice the disclosure itself. Second, consumers must comprehend what that disclosure means in reference to the content they engaged with.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) mandates every paid post be disclosed with language such as “#ad,” “sponsored content,” and “paid content.”  It further demands that disclosures be:

• In clear and unambiguous language
• As close as possible to the native ads to which they relate
• In a font and color that’s easy to read
• In a shade that stands out against the background

*for more information regarding FTC native advertising disclosure go here

However, it is important to note that law and ethics are not the same. Law stresses what you must do, while ethics considers what you ought to do. 

Disclosure language can impact an individual’s ability to correctly identify the content as advertising. With a variety of disclosure language utilized, consumer confusion and their inability to correctly identify native advertising may occur even when disclosure is present. Disclosure language that has been tested to have the greatest correct identification include: “paid ad,” “paid content,” “this content was paid for by,” “paid post,” and “ad” (Hyman et al., 2017). While other terms such as “brand voice” have been used by online publishers such as Forbes, they are not as readily identified as native advertising (Moore, 2014).  Disclosure language, size and placement is important in signaling to the reader what they are viewing is an advertisement.

Trust

Persuasive communicators should consider ethical issues on both the macro and micro levels. Without considering the ethical impact, the overall distrust of communicators may increase. Baker and Martinson (2001) explain that the public exhibits distrust in communicators “because they fear those in the field do not respect them as individuals and are interested only in achieving immediate and narrowly defined self-interest goals or objectives” (p. 165). 

To build trust with the community and to get the most out of persuasive messaging is of high importance to communicators. It is to the benefit of public relations professionals, the organizations they represent, and society as a whole to consider ethical issues when crafting native advertisements.

Lesson 1: Native Advertising

Native advertising is defined as “any paid advertising that takes the specific form and appearance of editorial content from the publisher itself,” (Wojdynski & Evens, 2016, p. 157). In essence, native advertising is the use of advertisements which are disguised as authentic content. Fullerton, McKinnon, and Kendrick (2020) define fake news as content that is intentionally misleading, sensationalized, or deliberately false.

Native advertising mimics the look and feel of authentic content and falls under the umbrella of fake news.

One of the most common forms of native advertising is that of sponsored content. Ikonen, Luoma-aho, and Bowen (2016) describe sponsored content as a hybrid between advertising and journalism. Companies pay content providers to create articles which paint their product, service or idea in a positive light and then place those sponsored articles within the context of the independently written editorial medium. “It is about creating content that is so appealing that the potential customer wants to enjoy it, unlike advertising which is generally just disliked and skipped” (Lehto & Moisala, 2018, p. 3).

For sponsored content to be successful, the articles must look real. However, because the advertisements look like real articles, the audience may be deceived into thinking it is a credible editorial, not an advertisement (Schauster, Ferrucci, & Neill, 2016).

Making the Business Case for Diversity

Some researchers point out that while improving diversity is the right thing to do from a moral or ethical perspective, it also is essential from a business perspective. Diversity in the public relations workplace can help stakeholders such as employees, shareholders, and customers.

But the bottom line is this: The more diverse a company is, the more money it is likely to earn.
A 2018 McKinsey&Company study involving over 1,000 companies in 12 countries found the following regarding profitability and economic profit margins:

• Companies ranking in the top quarter for gender diversity at the executive level were 21 percent more likely to outperform their peers on profitability, and 27 percent more likely to have excellent economic profit margins.
• Companies with the same ranking for having ethnically and culturally diverse executive teams were 33 percent more likely to lead their industry on profitability. The report further suggested that including other diverse people, such as people with international experience, individuals from different ages, and members of the LGBTQ+ community, could enhance the company’s bottom line.

Regarding LGBTQ+, research shows that companies are embracing diversity among that population. For the first time, 686 of the nation's leading companies and law firms earned a perfect score of 100 for their LGBTQ policies and practices, according to the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2020 Corporate Equality Index (CEI), which measures inclusion in the workplace. Those organizations had an estimated $12 trillion in revenue, with 12.4 million workers in the United States and 11.9 million around the world, according to the CEI.

Multicultural buying power

Another way to make the business case for diversity is to research and understand the economic impact that people of color -- Hispanics, Blacks, Asians, and Native Americans -- make on society through their buying power. In the Multicultural Economy (2018), Jeffrey M. Humphreys of the Selig Center for Economic Growth defines buying power as after-tax personal income for all spending, excluding money borrowed or previously saved. The combined buying power of these racial and ethnic groups was projected to grow faster than the white market.

Humphreys suggested that “as the U.S. consumer market becomes more diverse, advertising, products, and media must be tailored to each market segment” (p. 4).

• Hispanic buying power is projected to be $1.9 trillion by 2023. Mexicans are the largest subgroup and represent over half of the buying power, followed by Puerto Ricans, Central Americans, South Americans, and Cubans.
• Black buying power is estimated to be $1.5 trillion by 2023. Part of that has to do with more Blacks becoming more educated, which could result in higher-paying occupations, according to Humphreys. Because they are much younger, Black consumers increasingly are seen as trendsetters for teens and young adults.
• Asian buying power is forecasted to be $1.3 trillion by 2023, Chinese (except Taiwanese) are the largest subgroup but are second to Asian Indians in buying power, followed by Filipino, Korean, and Vietnamese people. Chinese are the largest subgroup of Asians, who are younger and better educated than the average American.
• Native American buying power is predicted to be $136 billion by 2023.

In summary, Hispanics’ buying power will account for 11.2 percent of the U.S. total, while the combined buying power of Blacks, Asians, and Native Americans is expected to account for 17.5 percent.

Starbucks and Black Lives Matter

Angela Chitkara (2019) noted that millennials and Y and Z generations want to work for diverse, inclusive companies that make meaningful contributions to society. In the age of activism and cancel culture, where reputation is no longer a non-financial asset, a brand’s actions must align with its values, Chitkra explained.

Amid protests in summer 2020 demanding justice after the murders of George Floyd, Breanna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and others, many brands began posting Black Lives Matter statements on social media and donating money to social justice organizations such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

Starbucks is an example of a brand where its actions and values came into question during this period of unrest. The coffee chain tweeted, “Black lives matter. We are committed to being a part of change.” Shortly thereafter, Starbucks faced backlash because it would not allow employees to wear Black Lives Matter attire or accessories, fearing the political message could be misunderstood, the New York Times reported. Starbucks lists “acting with courage, challenging the status quo and finding new ways to grow our company and each other” as one of its four values.

Employees and customers quickly pointed out that Starbucks handed out LGBTQ pins and T-shirts during Pride Month. Then a #BoycottStarbucks hashtag emerged, MarketWatch reported. Starbucks soon backpedaled and partnered with its Black Partner Network and Black Starbucks leaders to make available a quarter of a million Starbucks-branded Black Lives Matter T-shirts.

It also donated $1 million in neighborhood grants to promote racial equity and inclusion. Other initiatives include a To Be Welcoming online curriculum that addresses bias.

“Starbucks stands in solidarity with our Black partners, community and customers, and understand the desire to express themselves. This is just one step in our journey to make our company and our communities more inclusive,” according to a company statement.

This was not the first time Starbucks has faced flak for race-related issues. In 2015, the coffee chain came under fire for asking its baristas to write “Race Together” on cups and engage in conversation with customers about race. The initiative arose after the murders of Michael Brown and Eric Garner and resulting unrest. The effort flopped because Starbucks didn’t spend enough time "discussing how it would look for a white billionaire to front a national dialogue on race," a Black woman who is a Starbucks board member told Fast Company.

Chitkara concluded that “the lack of strategic integration of Diversity and Inclusion efforts poses significant business and reputation risks to an organization, as social issues become a greater focus for investors, partners, customers and employees” (p. 40).

Discussion Questions

1. Are brands such as Starbucks supporting Black Lives Matter because it aligns with its values or because it could help improve their profits? Explain.
2. How well did Starbucks’ stated value align with its actions in 2015 and 2020?

Retaining Diverse UK Public Relations Practitioners

Public relations practitioners of color in the United Kingdom experience similar workplace issues as their counterparts in the United States.

For example, the CIPR Race in PR report (2020) found these key themes: Racism and microaggressions. A microaggression is “a statement, action, or incident regarded as an instance of indirect, subtle, or unintentional discrimination against members of a marginalized group such as a racial or ethnic minority” (p. 14). One of the 17 BAME practitioners interviewed stated:

“I once mentioned to a white colleague that I went to a private school and his response was, how did your parents afford that? That’s an example of a microaggression, people assuming that because you are black that you come from a deprived background” (p.15).

Inflexible and noninclusive culture. This includes pressure to conform, moving in the right social circles, and cultural rigidity. Another public relations professional noted the following:

“It’s such a polished world in comms in London. You need to say the right things and speak the right way. I’m not posh at all, it has been years of tailoring my voice, the way I sound and act …. My dad is from Southeast Asia and my mum has a strong UK regional accent, so I didn’t sound or act like the people in this industry. I had to really work on it” (p. 16).

Lack of equal opportunities and progression. Next, this BAME practitioner echoed what many African American parents tell their children:

“My dad had always said to me ‘Son, you’ll have to work twice as hard to get what the white man has got’. He wasn’t wrong! It certainly has felt like that in PR” (p. 18).

Unconscious bias. Finally, this BAME professional mentioned a pejorative used to describe some African American women:

“As I’ve progressed I’ve come to realise that some, a minority, question my ability based on the colour of my skin. I also have a general sense, and some experience, of some people labelling Black women as aggressive when they are simply being assertive” (p. 20).

CIPR noted that although it did not discuss disability, sexuality, age, gender and social mobility, reported experiences mirror Race in PR report findings.

Diversity in the UK and PR Workplace

Public relations is practiced globally, but this section will focus solely on diversity in the United Kingdom (UK) because of a 2020 report titled “Race  in PR: BAME lived experiences in the UK PR industry.” The UK consists of England, Wales, and two other countries. The UK uses the acronym BAME -- Blacks, Asian, and Minority Ethnic -- to classify ethnic groups who are not white.

In England and Wales, the white ethnic group is 86 percent, while the BAME population stands at 14 percent, according to the 2011 UK Census, the latest available updated in 2019. In London, however, BAMEs made up 40.2 percent of the population.

The London, England-based Chartered Institute of Public Relations, the largest group for public relations practitioners in the UK and overseas, acknowledges that the profession has a diversity problem.

In its Race in PR report (2020), CIPR found that the number of BAMEs has declined from 11 percent in 2015 to 8 percent in 2019. Similarly, CIPRs State of the Profession Report 2019 found that the public relations industry is becoming less diverse in terms of ethnicity and sexuality. Also, women still lag in leadership roles and pay.

Regarding ethnicity, 92 percent identified as white, an increase of over 86% in 2018, and 90% in 2017, CIPR explained. With sexuality, 89 percent identified as heterosexual, an increase of 4% from the previous year.

Furthermore, women made up 67 percent of the profession, but men held 44 percent of executive roles, the CIPR report states. However, the report found that the gender pay gap decreased from the previous two years.

Finally, in listing the top challenges facing the public relations industry, “lack of diversity amongst PR professionals” ranked No. 9 out of 11, according to CIPR.

“The PR industry agrees that diversity is important in attracting the best talent, to bring fresh thinking, creativity and insights, but our actions speak louder than our words,” Avril Lee MCIPR, CIPR Chair of the Diversity and Inclusion Network, writes in the 2019 report. “Without those inside changing the status quo, those outside will remain locked out and our profession will be poorer for it.”

Defining Gender

In addition to race and ethnicity, gender is one of “the big three” often discussed regarding diversity in the female-dominated public relations profession.

As race and ethnicity sometimes are used as synonyms, gender and sex also are confused. The Associated Press Stylebook notes that they are not the same.

“Gender refers to a person’s social identity, while sex refers to biological characteristics,” the AP stylebook points out, noting that everyone does not fall under these categories.

For example, a person’s sex can be male at birth, but their gender identity can be a woman.

Defining Race & Ethnicity

The number of people of color of various races and ethnicities is increasing in the United States, but not in the public relations profession. Let’s define race and ethnicity before exploring those figures. The words race and ethnicity sometimes are used interchangeably, but they are different.

Regarding race, Webster’s New World Collegiate Dictionary (WNWCD) notes that it refers to groups of people different from others “because of supposed physical or genetic traits.”

Race also can refer to groups of people united based on “common history, nationality, or geographic distribution,” WNWCD states. However, the dictionary points out that some scientists say that classifying race as biological is invalid.

Many scholars have asserted that race is a social construct, not a biological one. Sonya Nieto and Patty Bode (2018) wrote that differences are rooted in sociology, not biology because they are based on experiences within a cultural group.

“There is really only one race—the human race,” Nieto and Bode suggested. “Historically, the concept of race has been used to oppress entire groups of people for their supposed differences” (p. 36).

The U.S. Census Bureau’s definitions of race and ethnicity are based on how people identify themselves. A person can self-identify as two or more races. Race falls into five categories on the 2020 Census:

1. White
2. Black or African American
3. American Indian or Alaska Native
4. Asian
5. Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander.

“The race categories generally reflect social definitions in the U.S. and are not an attempt to define race biologically, anthropologically, or genetically,” according to the Census Bureau. “We recognize that the race categories include racial and national origins and sociocultural groups.”

Regarding ethnicity, WNWCD defines it as a person’s “cultural background or where they came from.” The Census Bureau states that ethnicity refers to whether a person is Hispanic, Latino, or not. It added that Hispanics and Latinos could be of any race.

Finally, Damion Waymer (2012) argues that ethnicity “typically refers to some mixture of race, religion, language, and/or ancestry”(p. 8).

Case Study: Kendall Jenner & Pepsi

Background

PepsiCo faced criticism in April 2017 with a short-film commercial starring then 21-year-old Kendall Jenner, a white model and reality TV star featured on “Keeping Up with the Kardashians.” The nearly 3-minute commercial was titled “Live for Now” and featured the song "Lions" by Skip Marley. The commercial aired on April 4, 2017, the 49th anniversary of the assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Pepsi notes that consumers enjoy its products “more than one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world,” according to pepsico.com. Pepsi points outs that “supporting diversity and engagement is not only the right thing to do, it is the right thing to do for our business.” The corporation also notes that it “embraces the full spectrum of humanity” by “building a more diverse, more inclusive workplace, and promoting what we call courageous engagement in our company and the communities we serve.”

The controversial commercial first depicts Jenner in a blonde wig, silver dress, and dark lipstick posing for photos while smiling people from diverse racial, ethnic and cultural backgrounds peacefully protest with signs reading “Join the Conversation” and “Love.” After a young man nods for Jenner to join in, she rips off her wig, wipes off her dark lipstick, and makes way through the crowd, now clad in a blue-jean outfit. In a pivotal moment, a smiling Jenner grabs a can of Pepsi and hands it to a police officer lined up in front of the protesters. The crowd cheers and the police officer smiles. The screen reads: "Live bolder. Live louder. Live for now.”

Dilemma

Many social media users accused Pepsi of being tone-deaf and trivializing the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement for financial gain. The Rev Dr. Bernice King, the youngest daughter of the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., tweeted, “If only Daddy would have known about the power of #Pepsi.” Civil rights activist and podcaster DeRay Mckesson, tweeted, “If I had carried Pepsi I guess I never would've gotten arrested. Who knew?”

BLM  was founded in July 2013 after George Zimmerman, a white-Latino neighborhood watch captain, was found not guilty of fatally shooting Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old Black male, in Sanford, Florida, in February 2012. Since then, BLM has grown to 16 chapters, including 14 in the United States and the rest in Canada and the United Kingdom, according to blacklivesmatter.com.

The commercial debuted roughly nine months after over 100 BLM protests erupted after the July 2017 deaths of two Black men: Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on July 5 and Philando Castlle in St. Anthony, Minnesota, a day later. Police shot and killed both men.

Many people compared the image of Jenner handing the police officer a Pepsi to the real image of Ieshia Evans, a Black woman who stood silently in front of police during a protest in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on July 9. Police later arrested her.

The clip resurfaced in summer 2020 after protests erupted nationwide after the death of another Black man in Minnesota, George Floyd, who died May 25 after a police officer held his knee on his neck for nearly nine minutes.

The commercial was a “blatant example of white privilege,” senior style editor Kelsey Stiegman wrote in Seventeen magazine June 2020.  “Kendall, a white, millionaire supermodel, may be able to safely engage with a police officer, but for a Black person, this harmless act could be a death sentence.”

Course of Action

A day after the commercial was released, Pepsi pulled the ad and issued the following statement:

“Pepsi was trying to project a global message of unity, peace and understanding. Clearly we missed the mark, and we apologize. We did not intend to make light of any serious issue. We are removing the content and halting any further rollout. We also apologize for putting Kendall Jenner in this position."

Five months later, Indra Nooyi, who was PepsiCo’s CEO at the time, told Fortune that when she saw that people were upset, she pulled the ad because she didn’t want to offend.

"This has pained me a lot because this company is known for diversity, and the fact that everybody who produced the commercial and approved the commercial did not link it to Black Lives Matter made me scratch my head," Nooyi told Fortune. "I had not seen that scene. And I take everything personally."

Jenner never publicly responded to the backlash. Instead, she spoke out about the matter six months later in the October 2017 season 14 premiere of “Keeping Up With the Kardashians.” Jenner said, “I would never purposely hurt someone ever. And I would, obviously, if I knew this was gonna be the outcome, like, I would have never done something like this. But you don’t know when you’re in the moment. I just felt so f—ing stupid.”

Consequences

According to BrandWatch, PepsiCo’s social media sentiment was 53.3 percent negative on the day the commercial appeared and 58.6 percent negative the next day. Additionally, MarketWatch reported that in 2016, PepsiCo’s brand value dropped by 4 percent. Researchers say the ad could have cost between $2 million and $5 million.

Moral of the Story

PepsiCo’s in-house team created the commercial, which suggests that the team needed more diverse perspectives. Hearing different sides could have been achieved by seeking input from or hiring an outside firm to develop the commercial. Others have suggested that the beverage-maker needed more planning and research with its consumers, or needed to get an external perspective, particularly from protesters and activist groups. In summary, sometimes trying to save money on the front end is not worth the cost to an organization’s reputation on the back end.

Organizations must choose the right spokespersons who have authenticity and integrity. They also must seek outside opinions.

Discussion Questions

1. How does this case connect back to what you have learned about the principle of requisite variety?
2. Other than issuing an apology, what other course of action could PepsiCo have taken?
3. How well did Pepsi live up to its diversity and engagement statement?

Works Cited

About the company. (n.d.). PepsiCo, Inc. Official Website. https://www.pepsico.com/about/about-the-company

CBS This Morning. (2016, July 15). Woman in iconic Baton Rouge standoff photo breaks silence [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFC6l0DjDF0

Cady Lang. (2017, October 2). Kendall Jenner cried while addressing Pepsi ad backlash. Time. https://time.com/4965293/kendall-jenner-cries-addresses-pepsi-ad-backlash/

Carlos. (2017, April 5). Kendall Jenner for Pepsi Commercial [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9x15lR9VIg

Diversity and engagement. (n.d.). PepsiCo, Inc. Official Website. https://www.pepsico.com/about/diversity-and-engagement

Hobbs, T. (2019, July 26). Pepsi’s ad failure shows the importance of diversity and market research. Marketing Week. https://www.marketingweek.com/pepsi-scandal-prove-lack-diversity-house-work-flawed/?nocache=true&login_errors%5B0%5D=empty_username&login_errors%5B1%5D=empty_password&_lsnonce=e170cca5a5&rememberme=1

Joyce, G. (2017, April 7). Data on the extent of the backlash to the Kendall Jenner Pepsi ad. Brandwatch. https://www.brandwatch.com/blog/react-kendall-jenner-pepsi-ad/#:~:text=Within%20the%20most%20common%20reactions,social%20movements%20for%20commercial%20gain

Pepsi statement re: Pepsi moments content. (2017, April 7). PepsiCo, Inc. Official Website. https://www.pepsico.com/news/press-release/pepsi-statement-re--pepsi-moments-content04052017

Victor, D. (2017, April 5). Pepsi pulls ad accused of trivializing Black Lives Matter. The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/05/business/kendall-jenner-pepsi-ad.html

Wright, I. (2017, April 10). 3 lessons brands should learn from Pepsi's Kendall Jenner ad disaster. PRNEWS. https://www.prnewsonline.com/pepsi-ad-kendall

Pepsi statement re: Pepsi moments content. (2017, April 5). PepsiCo, Inc. Official Website. https://www.pepsico.com/news/press-release/pepsi-statement-re--pepsi-moments-content04052017

Stiegman, K. (2020, June 1). Fans slam Kendall Jenner for not addressing police brutality after clips from Pepsi commercial resurface. Seventeen. https://www.seventeen.com/celebrity/a32729598/fans-slam-kendall-jenner-for-not-addressing-police-brutality-after-pepsi-commercial-clips-resurface/

Taylor, K. (2017, September 21). Pepsi CEO reveals her surprising response to controversial Kendall Jenner ad. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/pepsi-ceo-defends-kendall-jenner-ad-2017-9

International and Global Public Relations

International public relations refers to the practice of public relations that occurs across 

international boundaries and cultures. This type of public relations occurs when an organization and its publics are in different countries.

International public relations takes a local approach by focusing on differences among publics and audiences, while global public relations takes a global approach that focuses on similarities (Alaimo, 2017).

First, with international public relations, PR practitioners “implement distinctive programs in multiple markets, with each program tailored to meet the often acute distinctions of the individual geographic market” (Anderson, 1989, p. 413). This relates to the local approach, which states that “different countries and cultures are so different that they require strategies that are specifically designed to respond to local opportunities and challenges” (Alaimo, 2017, pp. 3-4).

Second, global public relations “superimposes an overall perspective on a program executed in two or more national markets, recognizing the similarities among audiences while necessarily adapting to regional differences” (Anderson, 1989, p. 13). This relates to the global approach, where practitioners "believe that there are certain best practices and messages that are generally successful across countries and cultures” (Alaimo, 2017, pp. 3-4).

An example of the local vs. global approach occurred in 2012 when IKEA, a Swedish furniture company, decided to airbrush a woman out of a catalog it would use in Saudi Arabia because women had to cover their faces and bodies to appear in public (Alaimo, 2017). IKEA apologized after the trade minister of Sweden, a country that advocates for women, complained. The company faced a conundrum in deciding whether to develop content specific to the Saudi culture or project a shared global identity.

Discussion questions

1. One public relations scholar, Krishnamurthy Srimamesh (2009) has argued that there is no need to separate the term global public relations from international publications “because even ‘domestic’ publics are becoming multinational and multicultural due to globalization." What is your position on this topic?
2. Rather than airbrushing the woman out of the catalog, what else could IKEA have done that would have been cost-effective? How does your suggestion relate to the global or local approach?

Multicultural and Global Public Relations

In 1995, Stephen Banks defined multicultural public relations as “the successful negotiation of multiple meanings that result in positive outcomes in any communication activity” (p. 42). Five years later, the author improved his definition to take diversity into consideration.

Banks (2000) wrote: “Multicultural public relations can be defined as the management of formal communication between organizations and their relevant publics to create and maintain communities of interest and action that favor the organization, taking full account of the normal human variation in the systems of meaning by which groups understand and enact their everyday lives."

Multicultural public relations helps the profession see diversity as part of its daily practice that connects with an organization’s values, according to Dean Mundy (2016). The multicultural perspective also removes the “western-centric, corporate-centric lens” and helps an organization forge meaningful relationships with diverse stakeholders.

While some public relations scholars have separate definitions for each approach to public relations, Juan-Carlos Molleda and Sarab Kochhar (2019) combined the definition of global and multicultural public relations:

“A strategic and dynamic process that cultivates shared understanding, relationships, and goodwill among organizations and a combination of their culturally heterogeneous home, host, and transnational stakeholders, with the aim of achieving and maintaining a consistent reputation and established legitimation.”

Molleda and Kochhar note that all types of organizations practice global and multicultural public relations, including government and nongovernmental organizations and agencies. The authors also note that public relations programs become more complex when organizations operate across borders.

Approaches to Worldwide Public Relations Practice

Public relations practitioners can use different approaches to reach diverse stakeholders across the globe. Some of these approaches include multicultural public relations, global public relations, and international public relations. These approaches differ from domestic public relations because they must take cultural differences and dimensions into consideration.

Cultural Dimensions Theory

Geert Hofstede (2001), a Dutch social psychologist, developed six cultural dimensions based on his research with IBM in 40 countries.

Hofstede defines culture as “the programming of the human mind by which one group of people distinguishes itself from another group.”

The six dimensions are:

• Power distance
• Individualism/collectivism
• Masculinity/femininity
• Uncertainty avoidance
• Short-term/long‐term orientation
• Indulgence/restraint

The initial version of the cultural dimensions theory included only the first four dimensions (Hofstede, 1984).

Hofstede’s cultural dimensions theory is used in global public relations to understand cultural nuances to craft, strategies, tactics, and messages that resonate with target publics, according to Juan-Carlos Molleda and Sarab Kochhar (2019). The authors cautioned that the following characteristics of the six cultural dimensions “can vary within a country where the urban meets the rural, and where the dominant culture meets a variety of subcultures.”

First, high power distance cultures, such Russia and China, value hierarchy; respect is given, rules are followed, and status symbols are valued, according to Kara Alaimo (2017). Low power distance cultures, such as Sweden, where fashion retailer H&M is based, is more egalitarian, and it is acceptable to question your boss, Alaimo notes.

Second, in individualistic cultures, such as the United States, people see themselves as distinct from others and put the interests of themselves and their immediate family first. The majority of the world’s cultures are collectivistic; China is an example of a society that values relationships and will put their extended families and organizations first.

Third, in masculine cultures, such as Japan, men are expected to be assertive, competitive, and driven by salary, status, and success. Women are expected to be caring, unassuming, and focused on quality of life. In feminine cultures such as Norway, both men and women are supposed to embody the “emotional gender roles” associated with women in masculine cultures.

Fourth, uncertainty avoidance refers to the level of comfort people in this culture feel when matters are ambiguous, unknown, or unclear. Low uncertainty avoidance cultures such as the United States internalize stress and emotions and are OK with few rules. High uncertainty avoidance cultures, such as Greece, worry more and must have formalized, precise instructions.

Fifth, cultures with long-term orientation, such as parts of Asia, focus on future rewards and respect thrift and tradition. In contrast, cultures with short-term orientation, such as Australia, are more focused on the past and present and expect to see immediate rewards and results from their efforts.

Sixth, in high indulgence cultures, such as Mexico, people are healthier, happier, and hopeful about the future. On the other hand, low indulgence cultures, such as Pakistan, are pessimistic and less optimistic.

Queer Theory

Queer theory challenges the perspective that heterosexuality is the norm and argues against stereotypes, categorizing sexuality, and labeling someone’s identity. Queer theory originated in 1990 with Italian feminist Teresa de Lauretis.

Natalie T.J. Tindall and Richard Waters (2012) applied queer theory by interviewing gay male public relations practitioners. The study marked the first time the approach had been used in a real-world setting beyond textual and literary analysis, which helped substantiate some of queer theory’s claims.

Tindall and Waters point out that queer theory adds value to research about avowed and ascribed identities, disavows stereotypes, and acknowledges differences. They argue that applying queer theory to public relations can help achieve excellence theory’s concept of diversity and requisite variety. It also can help with recruitment and retention; help an organization accept the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community; and improve the organization’s bottom line.

Intersectionality

Intersectionality maintains that people have multifaceted social identities rather than one isolated identity that makes their lived experiences unique. Kimberlé Crenshaw, a law professor and Black feminist, coined the term intersectionality in 1989. The author wrote about how systems of power oppress Black women at work and in their everyday lives.

Jennifer Vardeman-Winter and Natalie T.J. Tindall (2010) argue for a theory of intersectionality in public relations for two reasons:

1) simply explaining diversity and difference through the concept of requisite variety lacked complexity; and 2) as responsible advocates for their clients, public relations practitioners cannot simply reduce publics to psychographics and demographics.

Vardeman-Winter and Tindall (2010) further argue that intersectionality in public relations can be analyzed on nine levels: intra-industrial, organization-publics, publics and community, representational, media, multinational/global, theoretical, and pedagogical.

Finally, the scholars further note that intersectionality operates on various levels that can oppress some groups for the privilege of others.

“For example, research suggests that a lesbian of color working in public relations may be relegated to communicating only with publics from her same race, may not receive the same salary as her heterosexual, white female or male counterparts, and as a public of certain campaigns, may not be communicated with about diseases for which she is at higher risk than are white, female, heterosexual publics” (p. 232).

Case Study: H&M’s Coolest Monkey in the Jungle

Background

H&M faced backlash across the globe in January 2018, when it advertised an image of Liam Mango, a 5-year-old Black male, modeling a green hoodie sweatshirt emblazoned with the words “coolest monkey in the jungle” in white capital letters. The term monkey is considered a degrading stereotype of people of African descent. Liam is the son of Kenyan immigrants.

H&M, a fashion retailer based in Sweden, has 51 markets with online shopping and 5,000 stores in 74 markets across the globe, according to its website. At the time, H&M owned stores in 69 countries on six continents. The clothing brand states that diversity strengthens the company and that it values “diversity in people and ideas, as much as in personal style.”

H&M also notes the following in its inclusion and diversity statement: “In an inclusive and diverse environment, everyone can contribute to optimising decision-making and team performance by reflecting, respecting and relating to our employees, customers and communities.”

Dilemma

Social media users, activists, and consumers across the globe condemned the ad as racist for using the word monkey, which is considered a racial slur.

Equating Black people to apes dates back to the 16th and 17th century in Europe and America and was used to sanction slavery, segregation, and second-class status, historian Arica L. Coleman explained. Whites viewed Black males as subhuman beasts and brutes who lusted after white women. This image was reinforced in the 1930s movie King Kong, according to Wulf D. Hund. The movie was under production at the same time as the rape trial of the Scottsboro Boys, nine Black male teens on trial for allegedly raping two white women.

“The racist ideology of the ape trope is no joke,” Coleman asserted. “It has had devastating effects on Black people globally.”

On social media, Kate Osamor, a Black UK Labour Party member, tweeted, “I was totally shocked, dismayed to say the very least to find this online imagine [sic]. @hm do you think this imagery is an appropriate representation of a young Black boy?”

The Weeknd, a Canadian artist of Ethiopian descent, tweeted, “woke up this morning shocked and embarrassed by this photo. i’m deeply offended and will not be working with @hm anymore…” The Weeknd had been appearing in H&M ad campaigns since 2017.

Course of Action

H&M apologized on January 8, 2018, for offending others, but not for posting the ad, and said it removed the ad from its online stores. However, media outlets found the sweatshirt ad running without the model the same morning, on European sites later that day, and in Spanish countries the next day.

When the media and public criticized the apology, H&M issued a more detailed statement the following day. The brand stated that it stopped selling the sweatshirt and recycled it. Part of the updated apology posted on the H&M website reads:

“We agree with all the criticism that this has generated – we have got this wrong and we agree that, even if unintentional, passive or casual racism needs to be eradicated wherever it exists. We appreciate the support of those who have seen that our product and promotion were not intended to cause offence but, as a global brand, we have a responsibility to be aware of and attuned to all racial and cultural sensitivities – and we have not lived up to this responsibility this time.”

Over two months after the ad ran, H&M named Annie Wu, a Taiwanese immigrant raised in Queens, New York, as the global leader for diversity and inclusiveness. Wu, who had worked with H&M since 2012, said she planned to meet with supporters and critics in the United States and South Africa.

Here are some other H&M initiatives that occurred after Wu took the helm, according to Annie Wang, who spent time at H&M headquarters in Sweden:

• Hired a Nigerian-American as the North America head of inclusion and diversity
• Created a seven-step processing system for all new clothing before they are for sale
• Created a system where at least 12 people in the studio will see a photo after it is uploaded
• Created a system to flag clothing at every stage and make notes about sensitivities
• Increased from one to five the number of people doing final-round quality checks
• Pledged that by 2025, 100 percent of employees would feel they have the same opportunity as anyone else and see visible diversity in leadership positions.

Consequences

The company faced boycotts and protests, which forced it to temporarily close some stores in South Africa.

Members of the South African Economic Freedom Fighters demonstrated, marched through malls, and destroyed some H&M store property. Their protests were held in locations including Cape Town, Pretoria, and Johannesburg.

Additionally, Terry Mango, Liam’s mother, faced backlash for defending H&M and the ad. She was called a traitor to her race, and H&M stepped in to relocate her when journalists showed up at her home.

H&M’s finances took a hit in the aftermath of the sweatshirt fiasco, but the company also was dealing with other issues that contributed to the decline. In the first quarter of 2018, H&M had $4.3 billion in unsold clothes, a pile that had grown 7 percent in the past year, The New York Times reported. Additionally, the company said operating profit dropped 62 percent between December 2017 and February 2018, which forced the shares to their lowest closing price in 2005.

Critics questioned whether H&M lacked diversity, but “each office was close to a real reflection of the ethnic demographics within the cities they were in,” Wang wrote, detailing the story behind the sweatshirt. Compiling ethnic data is against the law in Sweden and voluntary in the United States.

Wang’s report revealed that the strong H&M culture led to employees rejecting outside opinions, an idea revealed in an unconscious bias workshop.

Moral of the Story

Get your apology right the first time.

Employing people from diverse ethnic backgrounds is not enough to combat racism.
”If we’re honest, we must admit that there is some truth in the fact that we have maybe been too centralized and that we need to challenge ourselves in an open and constructive way to get everyone, everywhere to be more culturally sensitive, racially aware, and more critical of how the outside world might see what we do,” Wu said in an interview.

Application

About two-and-a-half years after the incident, in June 2020, H&M pledged to donate $500,000 to the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, Color of Change, and the American Civil Liberties Union. The move came after the world erupted in protests following the death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, in Minnesota.

“We also acknowledge our past mistakes and they have made us acutely aware of how much we still need to learn. As a company, we are growing, but we can and must do better,” stated Helena Helmersson, CEO H&M Group. "We re-commit to taking tangible steps to challenge racism and support our colleagues, customers and communities. Symbolic support is not enough – we will take action.”

Discussion Questions

1. Reflecting on H&M’s actions over two years after the sweatshirt fiasco, what is your opinion of the organizations that the company chose to donate to and its reasons for donating?
2. What recommendations do you have for a company that already has a diverse workforce but still is accused of being racist?

Work Cited

Coleman, A. (2018, May 31). Here’s why Roseanne’s tweet was a racist slur, not a botched joke. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/made-by-history/wp/2018/05/31/heres-why-roseannes-tweet-was-a-racist-slur-not-a-botched-joke/

Fortin, J. (2018, January 13). H&M closes stores in South Africa amid protests over ‘Monkey’ shirt. The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/13/world/africa/hm-south-africa-protest.html

Helmersson, H. (2020, June 1). We stand with and support the Black community – today, everyday and everywhere. H&M Group. https://hmgroup.com/media/news/general-news-2020/we-stand-with-and-support-the-black-community---today--everyday-.html

H&M issues unequivocal apology for poorly judged product and image. (2018, September). H&M Press site. https://about.hm.com/zh_cn/news/general-news-2018/h-m-issues-unequivocal-apology-for-poorly-judged-product-and-ima.html

Hund, W. D. (2016, February 28). Comparing Black people to monkeys has a long, dark simian history. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/comparing-black-people-to-monkeys-has-a-long-dark-simian-history-55102

Interview with Annie WU. (2018, March 29). H&M Group. https://hmgroup.com/media/news/general-news-2018/interview-with-annie-wu.html

Paton, E. (2018, March 27). H&M, a fashion giant, has a problem: $4.3 billion in unsold clothes. The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/27/business/hm-clothes-stock-sales.html

People are boycotting H&M over ‘racist’ hoodie. (2018, January 13). The Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/fashion/hm-hoodie-racist-boycott-advertising-people-h-m-a8149246.html

Picchi, A. (2018, January 8). H&M monkey hoodie sparks outrage for "racist" image. CBS News - Breaking news, 24/7 live streaming news & top stories. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/h-m-the-weeknd-coolest-monkey-in-the-jungle-racist-hoodie/

Stack, L. (2018, January 8). H&M apologizes for ‘Monkey’ image featuring Black child. The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/08/business/hm-monkey.html

Stump, S. (2018, January 9). H&M apologizes following outrage over 'monkey' hoodie ad seen as racist. TODAY.com. https://www.today.com/style/h-m-apologizes-following-outrage-over-monkey-sweatshirt-ad-seen-t120979

[@theweeknd].Twitter. (2018, January 8). Welcome to Twitter. https://twitter.com/theweeknd/status/950447182829699072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E950447182829699072&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2018%2F01%2F08%2Fbusiness%2Fhm-monkey.html

Tan, E. (2018, January 9). H&M apologizes and removes 'racist' sweatshirt from stores. US Home. https://www.prweek.com/article/1454063/h-m-apologizes-removes-racist-sweatshirt-stores

Wang, C. (2019, July 23). The real story behind H&M's racist monkey sweatshirt. Refinery29. https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2019/07/237347/h-m-racist-hoodie-controversy-diversity-problem

Reaching Diverse Audiences

Public relations practitioners can reach diverse publics by researching their culture and dimensions of diversity.

Dean Mundy (2016) found examples of using strategic communication to reach diverse publics, based on his review of research on diversity in public relations over a 15-year period. Some of his findings included understanding the diverse needs of individuals, understanding the power of telling individual stories, using new tools and technologies to reach the under-represented and marginalized, and reaching and mobilizing diverse publics while giving priority to them.
The following recent examples show how public relations practitioners used these four strategies.

Understanding the diverse needs of individuals

First, Cafe’ Bustelo, a 90-year-old coffee brand, wanted to reach its Latino target audience and expand its reach to a mass audience, “culturally open millennials,” according to a Public Relations Society of America 2019 case study. During a time when immigration was a hot-button issue, the cafe unified these two diverse groups through Latin music, food, and art to forge “authentic, cross-culture connections” (p. 1). The coffee brand showed that it understood the needs of millennials who, according to research, valued diversity regardless of their background or ethnicity.

Understanding the power of telling individual stories

Then, HP, a technology company, wanted to raise awareness of unconscious bias and stereotyping in hiring practices. As part of its Reinvest Mindsets campaign, the company used some verbatim comments from focus groups with employees and diverse community leaders to create a series of short films, according to a Public Relations Society of America 2019 case study. One of the films, titled “Proud Portraits,” shows lesbian and gay parents of various ages, races, and ethnicities enjoying life and placing their family photos on their desks. “We all know what family means, but what it looks like is unique to each of us …. and no matter what  … we should all be able to proudly show who they are whether at home or at the office.” These are examples of understanding the power of telling stories that reach diverse stakeholders while educating others.

Also, P&G, which sells personal care and home cleaning products, wanted to address racial bias in the United States. As part of its “My Black is Beautiful” campaign, P&G created a video titled “The Talk,” which features conversations Black parents have with their children. Some of the talks included a mother explaining that being told you’re “pretty for a Black girl,” is not a compliment. Other mothers ensured that their male and female teenagers carried IDs while hanging out or being pulled over while driving. This is another example of understanding the power of telling stories that reach a target audience but also raises awareness among other publics

Watch Videos
Proud Portraits
The Talk

Discussion Questions

1. What other examples of tools and technology can you provide that show how public relations has been used to reach certain diverse audiences?
2. What other examples of campaigns can you provide that told individual stories to reach its target audience?

Using new tools and technologies to reach the under-represented and marginalized

Next, the Los Angeles LGBT Center wanted to reach gay/bisexual men of color and transgender women to increase the number taking PrEP, a once-a-day HIV prevention pill, according to a 2018 Public Relations Society of America case study. PrEP stands for Pre-exposure prophylaxis. The center considered intersectionality by targeting men of color. As part of the campaign, “F*ck w/out Fear, PrEP Here,” the center ran an ad on major gay dating apps such as Grindr, Scruff, Hornet, and Jack’d with original, intimate photos of men and transgender women of color. Additionally, Fearless F*cker was used as a Grindr persona. This is an example of using new tools and technologies to reach under-represented and marginalized communities.

Reaching and mobilizing diverse publics while giving them priority

Finally, Color of Change (CoC) is an example of an organization that mobilized diverse publics by using technology such as cell phones. The online racial justice organization was founded in 2005 in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina to “move decision-makers in corporations and government to create a more human and less hostile world for Black people in America.” CoC uses texts and emails to mobilize members to call, write, or petition people in power.

Also, CoC gives its publics priority over the organization by providing them with tools and technologies to tackle injustices in their communities. CoC’s digital platform, Organize For (https://organizefor.org/), trains grassroots activists on how to create digital campaigns and petitions. For example, a Black mental health advocate at a youth center used Organize For to create a #nonewSFjail petition that stopped a facility from being built in her San Francisco community, according to CoC. As a result, her petition kept Black people from being unfairly incarcerated for profit, CoC suggested.

CoC experienced a major victory in 2011 when it forced major corporations to leave the American Legislative Exchange Council, an organization accused of suppressing the Black vote. Those corporations included Walmart, Coca-Cola, and AT&T, according to the Associated Press.

Today, amid worldwide protests demanding racial justice, CoC is using its platform to mobile its members to fight for unarmed Black victims murdered by police. For example, CoC partnered with Black Lives Matter Louisville (Kentucky) to launch a campaign, #justiceforBre, on behalf of Breonna Taylor, 26, an emergency medical technician who was fatally shot March 13, 2020, more than eight times in her home while she slept in her bed.

Three officers with the Louisville Metro Police Department had executed a no-knock warrant, did not have a search warrant, and were at the wrong house, according to CoC. At the end of June 2020, the petition to get the officers fired and charged had reached 97% of its goal to secure 1.3 million signatures. On Juneteenth, June 19, 2020, one of the officers was fired. Eight days earlier, city officials voted to ban no-knock warrants.

Lesson 2: Exploring PR Diversity in Demographics, Academia and Workplaces

Lesson 2 begins by comparing key U.S. demographics on race, ethnicity, gender, and salary with the public relations profession. It also offers an international perspective by examining similar demographics in the United Kingdom, another region of the world with a majority white population.

It also provides definitions of key concepts such as culture, inclusion, unconscious bias, microaggressions, stereotypes, prejudice, and ethnocentrism.

This lesson also discusses the top three knowledge areas for future public relations practitioners, recruiting diverse public relations students, retaining diverse public relations practitioners, reaching diverse audiences, and making the business case for diversity.

This lesson ends with an example and discussion of a case involving Starbucks and recent Black Lives Matter protests. It also includes a case study on the controversial H&M ad featuring a Black boy wearing a “coolest monkey in the jungle” hoodie sweatshirt.

Theoretical Perspectives

Some theories related to diversity have been applied to public relations.

They include:

• Feminist theory
• Critical race theory
• Intersectionality
• Queer theory
• Cultural dimensions theory

Diversity & Ethics

From an ethical standpoint, organizations do the right thing when they value internal diversity to communicate with diverse publics effectively. As Larissa Grunig and Elizabeth Toth (2006) point out, “ethical public relations can equate with effective public relations.”

The authors also note that organizations adapting a deontological diversity concept “see their publics as more than means of attaining their ends.” Deontology refers to following the rules, or a code of ethics. These organizations also “seek to minimize the power differences that too often have put women, young people, old people, those from minority races and cultures, the so-called under classes, those who are too plain or too good-looking, and the physically challenged in a one-down position based on their supposed reference group” (p. 52).

L. Grunig and Toth (2006) point out that public relations societies often specifically mention diversity and cultural differences in their Code of Ethics.

For example, the Code of Ethics for the International Association of Business Communicators notes the following as No. 6 out of 11 principles:

“I am sensitive to others cultural values and beliefs.”

Additionally, the Global Principles of Ethics for the Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management notes the following as No. 2 out of 16 guiding principles: “Obeying laws and respect diversity and local customs.”

Furthermore, the Code of Conduct for the International Public Relations Association notes dialogue as No. 3 of its 18 principles:

“Dialogue: Seek to establish the moral, cultural and intellectual conditions for dialogue, and recognise the rights of all parties involved to state their case and express their views.”

However, the Public Relations Society of America, which describes itself as the nation’s leading professional organization serving the communications community,” lists fairness in its professional values statement: “We respect all opinions and support the right of free expression.”

Feminist Theory

In the 1980s, researchers began studying gender issues in public relations, such as the feminization of the profession, salary inequities, roles, and organizational power. The International Association of Business Communicators studied these inequities in two projects:

"The Velvet Ghetto: The Impact of the Increasing Percentage of Women in Public Relations and Business Communication" in 1986 and "Beyond the Velvet Ghetto" in 1989. Velvet ghetto refers to the disproportionate amount of women in public relations compared to the other professions.

Some findings revealed that women were more likely to see themselves as technicians rather than managers; women were paid less than men; and status and salaries diminished when more women entered the public relations profession, note Linda Childers Hon, Larissa Grunig, and David Dozier (1992).

Hon (1995) argued for a feminist theory of public relations with a “practical, activist goal” (p. 29). The author wanted women to be seen as effective communicators and managers who are treated as individuals.

Feminist theory generally falls into three areas:

• Liberal
• Socialist/Marxist
• Radical

Liberal feminists seek equality and assimilation, whereas socialists/Marxists focus on class and capitalization, and radicals seek to dismantle male-dominated systems. Most public relations scholarship at the time had a liberal feminist framework, according to Hon, L. Grunig, and Dozier (1992).

More on Feminist Theory

Hon’s feminist theory of public relations fuses several liberal feminist tactics with radical feminism and falls into four categories: women, public relations, organizations, and society.

The women category includes five areas:

1. Monitoring behavior
2. Creating a “persona” for promotability
3. Joining professional organizations,
4. Helping other women
5. Becoming the boss

The public relations category includes three areas:

1. Addressing the marginalization of the function and devising specific strategies for overcoming the problem
2. Reassessing the mission of undergraduate education
3. Incorporating women’s perspectives into the curriculum

The organization category includes four areas:

1. Establishing family-friendly policies
2. Rethinking the masculine ethic in organizations
3. Valuing the feminine
4. Making recruiting, hiring, and promotion criteria more objective

The society category contains seven areas:

1. Raising levels of awareness about sexism
2. Electing women to high government posts
3. Passing federal legislation that supports working parents
4. Outlawing sexual harassment
5. Recouping affirmative action losses
6. Mandating equal representation for women in government and organizations supported by government
7. Breaking down gender stereotypes.

Critical Race Theory

Critical race theory (CRT) maintains that race is not biological; instead, it is a social construction used to protect the social, economic, and legal interests of whites so they can maintain their power.

Developed by legal scholars, CRT emerged in the mid-1970s and gained attention in the 1980s partly to examine race and racism. Scholars point out that CRT is used to reveal covert discrimination; combat affirmative action backlash; and question objectivity, neutrality, colorblindness, and meritocracy.

Donnalyn Pompper (2005) introduced CRT to public relations after her research revealed that public relations scholars rarely addressed differences in race, ethnicity, and culture. In addition, her research showed that scholarly works addressing differences were money-driven and lacked theoretical foundation.

“Tragically unprepared to address remarkable demographic shifts in the United States and economic globalization trends, we are handicapped to do excellent public relations (p. 155),” Pompper wrote. “We must responsibly personalize our work, improve methods used, and affect smooth transition to CRT perspectives.”

Pompper suggested adopting a CRT perspective in public relations by first increasing awareness of race. Doing so would help build respect and relationships with research participants and adapt research methods.

Nneka Logan (2011) used CRT in her critical analysis of the white leader prototype, which also traced the beginnings of public relations to race. She noted how Blacks were legally excluded from the profession when it emerged in the early 1900s.

She cited Madame C.J. Walker, an activist and the first woman self-made millionaire, as one of several examples of how Blacks successfully used public relations strategies.

“However, this knowledge developed outside the mainstream and remained primarily in African American communities. Thus, for the most part, as public relations developed, the field missed opportunities to capitalize on a wealth of relevant knowledge able to diversify theory and refine practice” (p. 449).

Logan (2016) notes that applying CRT to public relations practice could generate racial discussions and support social justice initiatives. She applied the four principles of CRT to the Starbucks Race Together public relations campaign.

“They include (1) placing race at the center of analysis, (2) acknowledging dominant groups often have trouble recognizing the discriminatory role race plays in society, (3) valuing the voices and lived experiences of racial minorities, and (4) maintaining a commitment to human liberation and racial equality” (p. 98).

Logan’s application of CRT principles coincides with how Lee Edwards (2012) extended Pompper’s arguments by discussing the role of public relations in five areas.

Those areas include:

1. Contributing to the social construction of race
2. Normalizing race
3. Engaging with other social systems and with what racializing effect
4. Contributing to the “othering” of marginalized groups
5. Countering racism and racialization.

Edwards (2012) also notes that race intersects with and cannot be understood without considering other identities such as gender, class, and religion.

Defining Diversity

Public relations scholars and practitioners have offered several definitions of diversity. They also have broken diversity down into dimensions and identities.

Damion Waymer (2012) defines diversity as “the means of celebrating, appreciating and synergistically incorporating different subcultures into a larger organizational framework for the purposes of individual, subcultural, and organizational advancement” (p. 3).

Waymer describes diversity as a subsidiary of culture, which is learned and passed on through generations.

Elizabeth Toth (2009) offers a sampling of six definitions that include those provided by Sha and Ford (2007). Those authors note that diversity falls into two categories: Primary dimensions that cannot be altered and secondary dimensions that can be altered. Sha and Ford base this premise on the 1991 work of Marilyn Loden and Judy Rosener.

Primary Dimensions

Primary, unalterable identities are age, race, sexual orientation, gender, ethnicity, and physical abilities/qualities.

Secondary Dimensions

Secondary, alterable dimensions are class, language, income, marital status, parental status, hobbies, interests, geography, values, religion, military experience, and living arrangements related to types of families (p. 386).

Additional Dimensions

Additional dimensions of diversity include two cultural identities, avowed and ascribed, Sha and Ford (2007) point out. Avowed identities refer to how we see ourselves, while ascribed identities refer to how others perceive us. The authors note that these two cultural identities could help communicate with publics to avoid ascribing identities that they would not avow to themselves.

“For example, a chemical factory located in a primarily Hispanic neighborhood might try to communicate with local residents in Spanish; yet, this effort would backfire if residents are in fact second- or third-generation Hispanics with both a strong command of the English language and a sore spot for being perceived as Spanish-only speakers” (p. 386).

The Public Relations Society of America Diversity and Inclusion Committee expounded on the concept of diversity by noting the importance of "diverse skill sets, mindsets and cultures.” The committee also noted that the definition of diversity could relate to “professional life and length of experience, type of job, and job classification” (p. 4).

Furthermore, the committee listed diversity of thought as a best practice and defined it as “the significance of differences in perspective and approach rooted in diverse identity and experience” (p. 12).

Gender and Salary in the U.S. and PR Workplace

Unlike with people of color in public relations, women are over-represented; like people of color, regardless of gender, they are underpaid and under-represented in executive roles.

The public relations industry traditionally has been made up of whites — predominantly white women — from affluent backgrounds, Angela Chitkara (2018) states.

Women, who are 50.8 percent of the U.S. population, make up 70 percent of the public relations workforce but only 30 percent of executives.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that women comprise 63.6 percent of public relations specialists and 71.4 percent public relations/fundraising managers in 2019.

Similar to the findings above, the 2017 Global Women in PR Survey “revealed that although women represent two-thirds of the global PR industry, 78 percent of the CEOs in the top 30 PR agencies worldwide are men and that they also occupy 62 percent of seats at the PR boardroom table.”

Although most gender issues focus on women’s low salaries and lack of leadership positions in the public relations profession, Donnalyn Pompper and Taejin Jung (2013) studied men working in the female-dominated profession. The men “report negative effects of gender-minority status at entry-and mid-levels and worry about a future when women will replace them at public relations’ highest management levels” (p. 1).

The gender balance is improving among executives in the 10 largest public relations firms in the U.S., PR Week reported in 2020. Women run 43.2 percent of those offices across the globe, and three of the 10 have more than 50 percent female leadership. Additionally, the PRWeek/PR Talent 2020 Salary Survey points out that 39 percent of respondents saw more women hired in the corporate-suite levels of their organizations.

Despite these gains, men still hold more executive roles in public relations and earn more than women. White males earned $6,072 more per year than white females and $15,374 more than non-white females, with Latinas/Hispanic women faring the worst, PRovoke Media reported in 2017. Although men still outearn women in the field, the PRWeek/PR Talent 2020 Salary Survey reported that pay for women overall increased by $8,000 between 2019 and 2020. 

Equal pay continues to be an issue nationwide and in the public relations industry.

2020 U.S. Census Bureau figures show that women earn 81.6 cents to every $1 that a man makes. Figures based on Census data further show a wider gender gap for some women of color who hold full-time, year-round jobs. Black women earn 62 cents, while Native American women make 57 cents and Latinas 54 cents for every dollar paid to white men.

To address these gender salary issues, the PR Council, which consists of over 110 of the top communications firms in the U.S., approved a pay equity statement in 2018. In the statement, the Council encourages its members to “adopt policies that ensure fair pay for all PR professionals and to utilize consistent criteria when determining initial and subsequent compensation decisions.”

Recruiting Diverse Public Relations Students

Some organizations have noted that they do not have public relations practitioners from diverse backgrounds because of issues recruiting and retaining top talent.

Angela Chitkara (2018) found that the issue is because potential hires may not be aware of the profession, the pay isn’t competitive compared to fields, and, if hired, they may not have the training/mentoring they need to advance from entry-level positions.

Culture could contribute to why some Asians, Hispanics, and Latinos do not enter the public relations profession. Jing Qiu and Nancy Muturi (2016) note that some Asians may view public relations as “self-promotion” and “face-saving,” which are discouraged in their culture built on strong community and family ties.

Henry Cervera Nique (2016), a public relations professional from Peru, noted that Hispanic and Latino families have similar expectations of career choices for their children. “Our academic and career goals may be in conflict with the cultural expectations of our families and cultural surroundings,” Nique noted when discussing the criticism he faced for choosing to study public relations.

Qui, Muturi, and Nique point out that Asian, Hispanic and Latino parents teach their children more about becoming leaders in fields, such as science, engineering, medicine, and law and less about the arts and humanities.

Qiu and Muturi suggest that because Asian families have a major influence on career choice, parents and community members must be educated about public relations. They also must be told about the difference between technician and managerial roles for those interested in leadership positions and the scientific nature of research in the public relations profession.

Other public relations scholars and practitioners have explored why there are not more minority public relations practitioners and how to recruit and retain them. Kenon A. Brown, Candace White, and Damion Waymer (2011) suggest that the first step is getting students of color interested in majoring in public relations, helping them have a successful college experience while studying the field, and providing the support they need to succeed when they enter the profession.

Their recommendations include visiting high schools, recruiting students of color to recruit others, recruiting minority students to serve in leadership roles with student organizations such as the Public Relations Student Society of America, inviting minority speakers, and hiring minority adjunct professors.

Brown, Waymer, and Ziyuan Zhou (2019) surveyed nearly 300 public relations students who were white, Black, Hispanic or Latinx to see if they had different educational experiences based on their racial background or gender. Their findings show that race and gender played significant roles.

They reported similar recommendations but other suggestions include more professional networking and mentoring opportunities, getting male students and others from underrepresented backgrounds to interact with other students, and discussing public relations diversity issues in the classroom.

Educating about Diversity in Public Relations

Diversity in public relations is as essential to public relations professionals as it is to your professors.

In rating the 12 knowledge areas that entry-level public relations practitioners should have, practitioners and educators ranked diversity and inclusion second and cultural perspective third, with ethics being No. 1, according to the Commission on Public Relations Education (CPRE).

Lesson 1 provided several definitions of diversity and references culture. Inclusion is related to both diversity and culture but has a different meaning. For example, diversity refers to differences that make people unique.

Culture includes behaviors, thinking, beliefs, values, communications styles, and language expressions, according to CPRE. Culture can refer to an individual, organization, or society.

Inclusion, however, refers to treating people equally with fairness and respect so they can feel valued and welcomed. In public relations, inclusion can refer to the workplace, in research such as focus groups, and during special events.

Diversity without inclusion means nothing, stated Judith Harrison, senior vice president of diversity and inclusion at Weber Shandwick, at a 2019 Global PR Summit. “Diversity is being invited to the party. Inclusion is being invited to dance. And belonging is dancing like no one is watching.”

In addition to learning about diversity and inclusion and cultural perspectives, CPRE also stresses avoiding stereotypes, prejudice, and ethnocentrism in research, planning, implementing, and evaluating public relations campaigns. Unconscious bias occurs when people unknowingly associate stereotypes with others based on factors such as race or gender in a manner that influences how they are seen.
 

Stereotypes

Stereotypes are “judgments about an individual based on that person’s membership in a particular classification,” according to CPRE. Stereotypes can be negative or positive and can lead to prejudice. For example, the media portrays some Black males as hypersexualized, unemployed, violent criminals. However, they also are portrayed as successful athletes, musicians, and entertainers.

Prejudice

Prejudice “is an irrational dislike, suspicion or hatred of a certain demographic group” and “is often manifested as racism, sexism and homophobia, creating negative actions, policies, words and beliefs based on race, gender or sexual orientation,” according to CPRE. An example is using the word “urban” as a code word for the Black community to take advantage of racial tensions and cut social services.

Ethnocentrism

Ethnocentrism is defined as “the negative judgment of other cultures based on the belief that a particular cultural perspective is better than others,” CPRE states. For example, people in North America may believe that their culture is superior to the cultures of people on the African and South American continents.

Retaining Diverse Public Relations Practitioners

Some public relations practitioners of color are experiencing the same issues today that researchers documented in the 1980s. These issues may cause them to leave the public relations profession or become owners of public relations firms.

In 1989, Marilyn Kern-Foxworth found that some minority public relations practitioners experienced issues related to racism and prejudice, such as being pigeon-holed to work solely on race-related projects.

Kern-Foxworth also mentioned companies hiring people of color to fill minority quotas.

In 2018, nearly 30 years later, some Black public relations practitioners echoed similar sentiments in a PR Week Black History Month video titled “What it’s like to be black in PR.”

Regarding being pigeon-holed, a female interviewee reported that some Blacks try to shy away from working on multicultural projects and brands. However, doing so is a core competency because they also are capable of working on general projects, she noted.

Regarding quotas, a female interviewee suggested that she would not like to have quotas, but if hiring Black people is not happening organically, quotas could help Blacks get a seat at the table.

In addition to race, socioeconomic status came into play.

Socioeconomic status refers to factors such as education, income, and occupation. For example, some Blacks and Latinos may not fit in because they do not come from affluent backgrounds, did not attend private schools, or did not earn a master’s degree.

The 2018 PR Week video also noted that diversity and inclusion initiatives work for entry-level or middle managers, but not in the leadership ranks. One Black male interviewee discussed being the first and the only Black person in the room.

His experience mirrored the findings in a National Black Public Relations Society (NBPRS) 2015 report. The organization found that 37 percent had no Black female communicators in leadership roles and 14 percent had no Black female employees. Also, 62 percent had no Black men communicators in leadership roles and 47 percent did not employ any Black males.

Recent figures from PR Week for Blacks and other people of color show that the situation has not improved much. 2019 numbers from PR Week show that 55 percent of U.S. firms had no people of color on boards or in the C-suites, Thomas Moore reported in 2020. Also, 39 percent of the top 25 agencies in the country had no Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) in those spaces.

In conclusion, some Blacks and other people of color do not want to continue to work in places where their work is limited, they are hired to meet a quota, they do not fit in, and they do not see reflections of themselves.

WATCH THE VIDEO

Discussion questions

1. Regarding pigeon-holing, would you prefer to work on a general project or brand, or one specifically related to one of your specific avowed identities? Why or why not?
2. Do you think quotas are necessary in the public relations profession? Why or why not? How do you think implementing quotas relates to the definition of inclusion?

Race and Ethnicity in the U.S. and PR Workplace

More Black, Asian, and Hispanic or Latino families are giving birth to children, which is shifting the race and ethnicity of the U.S. population. Most children born in 2020 are expected to be a race other than white, U.S. Census Bureau figures show. Less than a quarter of a century later, the United States is predicted to become a multicultural majority nation.

“While the non-Hispanic White alone population will still be the largest, no race or ethnic group is projected to have greater than a 50 percent share of the nation’s total,” according to the Census Bureau. “Shifts in the racial and ethnic composition of the future population are projected to occur primarily within the native population, which will become majority-minority by 2044” (p. 1).

By 2060, people of two or more races are expected to be the fastest-growing population, followed by Asians and Hispanics, the Census Bureau reports. The number of multiracial people is forecasted to triple in size; in contrast, Asians are forecasted to more than double, and Hispanics are predicted to represent nearly 30 percent of the population, according to the bureau. Additionally, the number of people born in another country is expected to grow from 14 percent to 17 percent, or by 25 million people.

Compared to U.S. demographics, people of color are under-represented in the public relations profession. Whites make up 76.5 percent of the population, 2019 Census data show, but 83.6 percent of public relations specialists, reported the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in the same year.

Regarding people of color, the latest Census figures show Latinos at 15.9 percent, blacks at 13.4 percent, and Asians at 5.9 percent. However, for public relations specialists, the numbers show 13.6 percent Hispanics or Latinos, 9.9 percent blacks, and 5.8 percent Asians, according to BLS.

The issue of under-representation of people of color has permeated the public relations profession since its inception, and it has become increasingly relevant as the U.S. population shifts.

Origins of Diversity in Public Relations

An early mention of diversity in public relations occurred in 1992 in the book "Excellence in Public Relations and Communication Management." Excellence theory linked diversity in public relations to requisite variety, a term Karl Weick coined in 1979. Requisite variety refers to how an organization must be diverse internally to build effective strategic relationships externally.

In making this connection, Larissa Grunig, James Grunig, and William Ehling note that if all of the public relations practitioners are white, they may not realize that their organizations can impact, or be impacted, by people of color, some who may see the organizations as illegitimate.

This observation led the Grunigs and Ehling to conclude that diversity in public relations may enhance the effectiveness of an organization and the careers of communicators of color.

Communicators from culturally diverse backgrounds can serve as go-betweens to translate for organizations and their diverse publics, according to David Dozier, Larissa A. Grunig, and James E. Grunig in the 1995 book "Manager's Guide to Excellence in Public Relations and Communication Management." The authors also note that these communicators “cannot provide needed requisite variety” if they are not a part of, or do not have access to, senior management.

“Employees from diverse backgrounds provide organizations with the requisite variety to construct pictures of reality inside the organization that more closely match the reality as others outside the organization understand it,” Dozier and the Grunigs wrote.

Regarding those diverse backgrounds, James Grunig notes that initial excellence theory research emphasized gender, particularly the roles of women in a female-dominated industry. Doing so eventually led to adding race and ethnicity to the theory to be applicable outside the United States “in diverse cultural, political, and economic contexts.”

Larissa Grunig and Elizabeth Toth (2006) argue that requisite variety does not guarantee effectiveness in public relations. The concept also does not mean that the percentage of minorities in the workplace should mirror the percentage in the environment. The authors suggest that “providing opportunities for women and

Lesson 1: Understanding Diversity in Public Relations

Introduction

Lesson 1 begins by explaining that diversity has been considered an essential aspect of effective public relations since its inclusion in the excellence theory.

Then it defines diversity and explores its link to ethics in public relations.

This lesson also explores some key theories and approaches that can be used to reach diverse stakeholders domestically and globally.

This lesson ends with an example and discussion of a case involving Swedish furniture-maker IKEA. It also includes a case study on the Pepsi commercial featuring model and reality TV star Kendall Jenner.

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Applying the PRSA Code of Ethics

Professionals who find themselves in an ethical dilemma can look to the PRSA Code of Ethics for guidance as to how they should act in their situation. As mentioned in Lesson 1, codes dictate the appropriate actions for professionals in a field, based on the field’s values and ideals. Although not always enforced via punishment – as are other codified structures based on values and ideas, such as laws – codes provide a member of the profession with a good idea of what is considered ethical behavior in the practice.

Professionals with an ethical dilemma can look first to the examples of improper conduct to see if they can find a parallel to their current situation. A situation that matches or resembles very strongly one of these explicitly mentioned scenarios is likely unethical, and the professional should act accordingly. Checking the situation against the stated intent of the code provision and/or the core principle of each code might also provide some insight into the situation’s ethical standing.

Lacking a clear parallel to one of the sample scenarios or the code provisions, a professional can assess his or her ethical dilemma by considering the stated values of the profession. While these values are also reflected in the remainder of the code, they can stand alone as drivers of ethical practice by public relations professionals.

Features of the PRSA Code of Ethics

The current PRSA Code of Ethics consists of three parts:

1. A preamble that sets out the goals and role of the document
2. A statement of professional values, which identifies and describes six values of the public relations profession
3. A list of six “code provisions of conduct,” each of which is elaborated with a core principle and examples of the provision in practice.

At the end, a pledge to uphold these values and promote the reputation of the profession – as well as to accept any appropriate sanctions for aberrant behavior – can be signed.

Reflecting the code’s aspirational nature, the preamble to the Code of Ethics describes the ethical orientation of the PRSA and the desire for ethical behavior on the part of its members. It clearly states that, while no formal system of enforcement is in place, the PRSA may restrict association membership to those who violate the code.

Six professional values are listed, described as “the fundamental beliefs that guide our behaviors and decision-making process”: advocacy, honesty, expertise, independence, loyalty, and fairness. These values serve a number of purposes for the field of public relations. They seek to improve the reputation of the industry (expertise, fairness, honesty) while also emphasizing the value of its services to clients (advocacy, loyalty, independence). More detailed descriptions of these values can be found in the graphic below.

The next section gives six code provisions of conduct. For each code provision, a guiding statement (identified by the code as a core principle) and 1-2 statements explaining the provision’s intent are followed by specific guidelines for behavior by public relations professionals. For each provision of conduct, 2-4 related examples of improper conduct are provided.

For example, the provision titled “competition” outlines the equitable and appropriate competition between professionals in the public relations industry. Its core principle, “promoting healthy and fair competition among professionals preserves an ethical climate while fostering a robust business environment,” is followed by the stated intent “To promote respect and fair competition among public relations professionals” and “To serve the public interest by providing the widest choice of practitioner options.” It gives the following guidelines:

A member shall:

• Follow ethical hiring practices designed to respect free and open competition without deliberately undermining a competitor.
• Preserve intellectual property rights in the marketplace.

It then provides the following examples of improper conduct under this provision:

• A member employed by a “client organization” shares helpful information with a counseling firm that is competing with others for the organization's business.
• A member spreads malicious and unfounded rumors about a competitor in order to alienate the competitor's clients and employees in a ploy to recruit people and business.

All in all, 14 potential examples of improper conduct are covered among the six provisions of conduct. Clearly, this list does not exhaustively cover all potential ethical crises that might face public relations practitioners. However, it does provide some concrete examples for comparative use by professionals who find themselves in a questionable ethical situation.

Developing PRSA’s 2000 (current) Code of Ethics

The two-year process to develop the current PRSA code of ethics was undertaken strategically with a number of goals in mind. The 2000 Code differs significantly from its predecessors on three levels:

1. It assumes the professionalization of public relations and those who practice in the field.
2. It promotes the role of public relations professionals as advocates for their clients.
3. It does not include any enforcement component.

PRSA designed its new code to be aspirational in order to “[reflect] the Society’s desire to position PRSA as the ethics brand leader in the industry and to raise the ethical performance of public relations professionals.”

The focus of previous codes on enforcement and punishment had led to an overly litigious approach to ethics in public relations, and those accused of ethical violations often brought in lawyers to contest the charges against them. However, the group tasked with revising the code felt that a code rooted in the ideals and values of the profession would serve the profession better by setting a high standard for professionals to hold themselves to. PRSA leaders involved with the process felt that high expectations for members’ ethical behavior – and a Code that reflected that high standard – would help the profession’s credibility.

After an initial meeting to discuss the need for the Code revision and what the new code should entail, research to support the new code actively engaged PRSA’s members in contributing their thoughts on public relations ethics. A nonprofit engaged by the PRSA to assist in the effort, the Ethics Resource Center (ERC), solicited feedback from local PRSA leaders and later conducted focus groups among PRSA members. Finally, the ERC developed and conducted a survey of all PRSA members based on the knowledge gained in the previous research efforts. This 79-item survey was sent to more than 20,000 PRSA members in January 2000; just over 10% of members completed the survey.

PRSA tasked a nine-member team with turning the survey results into an operable code of ethics. Driven by the research, this team developed a two-part code of ethics built upon the PRSA mission that elaborates the core values of the profession. The new code of ethics, which describes six professional values and six code provisions based on core principles of the practice, was approved at the 2000 PRSA Assembly Meeting.

The decision to eliminate enforcement from the 2000 Code was not without controversy. Although both leaders and members of the PRSA supported a means of enforcing the code, all were reluctant to actively engage in the enforcement process by turning people in or testifying as a witness. This took the teeth out of the enforcement process, as cases were often dropped before they were seen through to their resolution.

Some have criticized the lack of enforcement of the current code, arguing that such an element is necessary to the achievement of professionalization of the profession. Ultimately, the PRSA leaders engaged in the process of building the 2000 Code decided to focus on education about an aspirational code, rather than enforcement of a punitive one, as the best way to promote ethics in public relations.

History of the PRSA Code of Ethics

In the United States, the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) has guided the work of professionals in the field since 1948. In 1950, the organization adopted its first code of ethics in order to provide guidance for its members about ethical behavior in the field. Although general in nature, this first code both “laid the groundwork for future codes and established the direction of its successors.”

The 1950 code did not emerge from a vacuum. While the society intended for the code to legitimize the field of public relations as a profession, those who perceived misdoings among the members of the field also advocated strongly for such a guide. Many members hoped that the existence of such a code would eradicate this behavior moving forward.

Enforcement mechanisms in the bylaws of the PRSA were added when the PRSA revised the code in 1954. The rewritten code in 1954, more straightforward than the previous one, used action-based principle statements (e.g., “We will safeguard the confidence…”) to describe and define ethically appropriate behavior by public relations professionals.

When the PRSA revised the Code of Ethics once more in 1959, enforcement language was added to the text of the code. Bylaw revisions at this time established six regional boards to adjudicate ethical violations by PRSA members. In 1962, the society established a board to actively seek out ethical violators, a responsibility that had previously been assigned to PRSA members.

The 1960s saw further revision of the code to clarify guidelines on conflict of interest and the rising problem of so-called front groups. Additional revision during this time brought the PRSA together with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to adapt code sections to the growing area of financial public relations. During this time, guidance was also provided via revisions to the code about the use of public relations for political campaigns.

The PRSA once again interacted with the federal government when an FTC (Federal Trade Commission) review of the organization’s code of ethics, undertaken as part of a larger project, raised some red flags regarding the code’s ban on contingency fees and its provisions preventing professionals from poaching each other’s clients. A 1977 revision of the Code aligned with other PRSA revisions that year, including a new Declaration of Principles that referenced the importance of human rights. 1977 also saw the deletion of a previous provision that prevented public relations professionals from making derogatory statements about other products.

In 1988, the PRSA adopted a three-part code of ethics with a declaration of principles, a pledge of professional conduct, and a 17-item list detailing appropriate behavior on the part of public relations professionals. Two years later, the organization provided specific interpretations of these guidelines, where appropriate, for certain fields such as financial public relations and politics. This 1998 code and its 1990 interpretations remained in place until the revision that produced the 2000 PRSA Code of Ethics, still in use today.

Case Study: Smoke and Mirrors: RJ Reynolds Creates Front Group

Background

The tobacco industry has not had the cleanest track record with respect to honest and ethical communication with consumers and the public. Public relations pioneer Edward Bernays famously sold the pro-smoking “Torches of Freedom” march as a women’s rights effort. The industry was silent, and in fact even denied, for years that the use of its products had health implications for smokers.

The tobacco industry in particular has been known for the use of third parties and coalitions of organizations to promote its interests indirectly. As tobacco products and their negative effects on smokers became more well known, the industry and its corporations tried to mask their efforts to fight regulation of tobacco products. This case study looks at one particular effort to use a so-called “front group” – funded by a tobacco corporation but not publicly affiliated with it – and its ethical implications with respect to the PRSA Code of Ethics.

The Issue

In the mid 1990s, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) proposed policy changes that would influence the way that tobacco was regulated by the government. Specifically, the regulations would consider alcohol a drug and eliminate smoking in the workplace. Concerned that the regulations would lower their profits, the tobacco companies decided to take action.

However, the companies themselves had become so unpopular that they could not advocate directly to the public and to lawmakers in hopes of halting the changes. Instead, they created an opaque effort to stop regulations aimed at smoking by taking aim at the regulations themselves.

Course of Action

Launched in 1994, the “Get Government Off Our Backs” campaign was led by a public relations firm employed by tobacco giant RJ Reynolds. However, there was no mention of the tobacco company’s involvement in public materials about the campaign. The messaging of the campaign portrayed so-called “average Americans” complaining about the increasing role of government in their lives.

Of course, there were no “average Americans” involved in this campaign. As the campaign grew, it amassed a coalition of lobbying organizations in and outside of the tobacco industry. In fact, the group became so powerful – and its origins so nebulous – that organizations began proactively seeking to attach to the group in hopes of taking part in its share of media attention.

Consequences

The PRSA Code of Ethics was revised in the 1960s specifically to address the problem of front groups such as Get Government Off Our Backs. Such groups, while often effective, are fundamentally dishonest in the way they represent their funding and intent. This violates the PRSA Code’s provision emphasizing the free flow of information and the professional value of honesty.

In addition, a public relations firm that undertakes an effort like this one runs the risk of harming the reputation of the public relations industry overall. Such underhanded efforts perpetuate the notion that public relations is an unethical, win-at-all-costs profession that cares only about achieving its clients’ results. This violates the code provision about enhancing the profession, which states that ethical behavior by public relations practitioners should benefit the overall reputation of the field.

Moral of the Story

Ultimately, the efforts of the Get Government Off Our Backs front group were successful, at least for the RJ Reynolds tobacco company: The FDA did not regulate tobacco as a drug, and OSHA did not act to outlaw smoking in workplaces. However, the stated success of the group’s efforts should not be obscured by the serious ethical considerations presented by the use of front groups and other opaque efforts that deny consumers the ability to make educated decisions based on available, truthful information.

Lesson 2: The PRSA Code of Ethics

A code of ethics symbolizes the professionalization of a field or practice. In order to be accepted as a professional endeavor, public relations needed to have a code of ethics.

In a 2013 study, Yang and Taylor examined 36 countries and found that all but one had professional codes of ethics for the public relations field. Further, 36% of these countries had codes of ethics that affected accreditation and/or licensure of professionals in the industry. Based on their wide-ranging research, Yang and Taylor confirmed that robust codes of ethics, along with other factors, can help the public relations industry contribute positively to the development of democracy.

The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) created its first code of ethics in 1950, about fifty years after the practice started to be professionalized with the Publicity Bureau. Over the years, the code has changed considerably, often influenced by the context of modern culture and particular trends within the field.

For Discussion

Discussion Questions

1. What makes one person more or less ethical than another? Where does that component of an individual’s character come from?
2. What does it mean for an organization to be ethical? What is the difference between an unethical and an illegal act?
3. What does it mean for an organization to be conscious?
4. What is the difference between an ethical company and a conscious company?

Ethics & the Public Relations Models: Two-Way Asymmetrical Model

The third model of public relations, the two-way asymmetrical model, advocates two-way persuasive communication. This model utilizes persuasive communication to influence the attitudes and actions of key stakeholders. Its two-way design supports a feedback loop to allow public relations practitioners to monitor the effectiveness of the persuasive communication. While the model includes an outward focus, the central concern is the organization and its interests. Like the press agentry model, the two-way asymmetrical model adheres to teleological ethical reasoning. As a result, the outcome is typically in the best interest of the organization. However, the feedback loop allows professionals to assess the associated benefits and costs to those external to the organization and make necessary ethical adjustments.

The two-way asymmetrical model highlights the conflict of loyalty common in public relations practice. Professionals are often divided in their loyalty to their organization and their loyalty to key stakeholders. The Golden Rule maxim offers a good guide for practitioners to balance this conflict of loyalties. This rule instructs professionals to act in a manner that they would expect from others. Public relations professionals can also use the “test of sincerity” when creating persuasive messages. The test of sincerity, much like the Golden Rule, says that professionals should use only persuasive methods and arguments that, if directed toward themselves, would seem legitimate.

Although resembling the press agentry model, the two-way asymmetrical model offers important ethical advantages. The model builds on the professional virtues found in the public information model and incorporates a feedback loop in the creation of its persuasive messages. The two-way communication provides a consideration for those beyond the organization that is absent from the press agentry model. Further, the model suggests that public relations professionals should consider the implications of their persuasive messages on others. Such a broadened focus illustrates the ethical development of public relations from a self-interest approach to one that incorporates a concern for others in its actions.

Self-Check Questions

Lesson 2 Self-Check Questions

1. Explain how the press agentry model exemplifies a teleological approach. What are the ethical advantages/ disadvantages of this practice of public relations?
2. How does the application of the PRSA code of ethics represent a deontological approach in the public information model of public relations?
3. How does the two-way asymmetrical public relations model offer an “other” perspective absent from the two lesser models? Why is this perspective important to ethical development?
4. How does Habermas’ theory of ethical discourse support the ethical practice of two-way symmetrical public relations?
5. How might the pillars of ethical public relations guide the ethical behavior of public relations professionals?

Self-Check Questions

Self-Check Questions for Lesson 1

1. How do personal values guide ethical behavior?
2. The axiology ethical orientation believes values are habitual and consistent. How might this approach impact public relations practice?
3. Using the deontology ethical orientation, explain the importance of intention to ethical action.
4. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of utilitarianism in public relations practice.
5. How might the prevalence of subjectivism impact the perception of public relations as an ethical profession?
6. Why might ethical literacy be important to a public relations professional?

Case Study: Wonder Woman: An Honorary Ambassador or a Mascot?

Background

Gender equality is a fundamental human right, but not one that woman and girls enjoy worldwide. In recognition of this need, the United Nations (U.N.) named gender equality as the fifth of their 17 goals to transform the world. Their goal is to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. A first step toward this goal was to name an official honorary ambassador for the U.N. The effort, while notable, drew ire from many. Why? Because the honorary ambassador was . . . not real.

On October 21, 2016, the United Nations announced Wonder Woman, the classic DC Comics super-heroine, as the official honorary ambassador for the United Nation’s year-long campaign to “Stand Up for the Empowerment of Women and Girls Everywhere." The iconic comic-book character was chosen for her commitment to justice and her portrayal of strength.

Wonder Woman’s appointment was part of goal five in the 2015 U.N.’s 17 sustainable development goals that aspire to leave no one behind by 2030. Wonder Woman’s appointment was designed to highlight women and girls who are wonder women in their own right, to illustrate what can be achieved if women and girls are empowered, and to bring about positive change in the home, workplace, community, country and the world.

“Wonder Woman's character is the most iconic and well known female comic book superhero in the world, known for her strength, fairness and compassion, and her commitment to justice, peace and equality," Maher Nasser, outreach director of the United Nations' Department of Public Information, said. The appointment corresponded with the 75th anniversary of Wonder Woman’s debut and with the upcoming Wonder Woman movie, featuring Israeli actress Gal Gadot.

Dilemma

The appointment lasted a mere two months amid a firestorm of protests, comprised predominately of U.N. staff. Staff protested on the grounds that Wonder Woman is “culturally insensitive, overly sexualized, and not real.” Within 48 hours of the announcement, concerned U.N. staff posted an online petition to encourage U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to reconsider Wonder Woman as the honorary ambassador for the empowerment of women and girls. Their petition stated, “Although Wonder Woman was originally created to represent a strong and independent ‘warrior woman’ with a feminist message, she instead, in her current iteration, is a large-breasted, white woman of impossible proportions scantily clad in shimmery, thigh-baring body suit with an American flag motif and knee-high boots – the epitome of a ‘pin-up’ girl.”

The ceremony announcing Wonder Woman’s appointment featured several prominent entertainment figures, including Lynda Carter, who played Wonder Woman in the 1970s hit television show, Gal Gadot, the actress portraying Wonder Woman in the upcoming Wonder Woman movie, and Diane Nelson, president of DC Entertainment. The ceremony also announced a joint U.N. and DC Comics social media campaign to promote women’s rights.

During the ceremony, concerned U.N. staff stood in silent protest by turning their back, raising a fist in the air, and leaving halfway through the ceremony. In addition, nearly 100 staff members held signs in the U.N. lobby that read, “I am not a mascot,” and “Let’s get real.”

Course of Action

The U.N. addressed concerns of Wonder Woman’s appearance by “toning down” her image. At the announcement ceremony, a life-size image of Wonder Woman depicted her from the waist up with a cape around her shoulders, covering her chest. In subsequent photos, Wonder Woman is consistently shown from the waist up, omitting the patriotic aspect of her costume, and with a darker skin tone.

Two days following the announcement, the U.N. held a press conference to address the concerned U.N. staff and petition supporters. Cristina Gallach, a senior U.N. spokeswoman, dismissed the idea that the U.N. does not represent “real” women as role models for gender equality. “To these views, I would like to say that the United Nations has many real-life women and men fighting for gender equality and the empowerment of women every day,” she said.

Former Wonder Woman actress Lynda Carter also dismissed U.N. staff’s concerns. Describing the petition supporters as “nitpicking” and to “get over it.”

Online petition supporters disagreed. On their petition site, one supporter stated, “The bottom line appears to be that the United Nations was unable to find a real-life woman that would be able to champion the rights of ALL women on the issue of gender equality and the fight for their empowerment . . . this role is too important to be championed by a ‘mascot.’”

Consequences

After only two months, Wonder Woman’s role of honorary ambassador ended. U.N. Spokesman Jeffrey Brez said that the U.N.’s decision to end Wonder Woman’s role was made soon after the launch. He emphasized that the decision was not due to the online protest, despite the nearly 45,000 signatures collected at the time of his announcement.

“The objective was to reach out to Wonder Woman fans to raise awareness of U.N. Sustainable Development Goal 5,” Brez said. “We did that. We are happy.”

DC Comics spokeswoman Courtney Simmons echoed their pleasure with the brief campaign. “[We] are extremely pleased with the awareness that this partnership brought to United Nations Sustainable Development Goal #5, as well as elevating the global conversation around the empowerment of women and girls,” she said. “Wonder Woman stands for peace, justice and equality, and for 75 years she has been a motivating force for many and will continue to be long after the conclusion of her UN Honorary Ambassadorship."

Moral of the Story

Wonder Woman is not the first fictional character to be chosen as a U.N. ambassador. Winnie the Pooh served as an honorary ambassador for the International Day of Friendship and Red, one of the characters from the Angry Birds mobile game, was chosen as an honorary ambassador for the International Day of Happiness. Yet, U.N. staff note that neither of these fictional characters represented humans. Not everyone, however, agrees with the U.N.’s latest decision. At the time of this writing, a new online petition is requesting the reinstatement of Wonder Woman as the honorary ambassador for the empowerment of women and girls. The U.N. has not provided additional comment.

Discussion Questions

1. Which model of public relations do you believe is most prevalent in the United Nations’ decision to appoint Wonder Woman as honorary ambassador? How well did the U.N. assess the ethical implications of this model?
2. The U.N. staff described Wonder Woman as a “mascot.” What public relations model did they perceive in the announcement? Explain their ethical concern in this use of this public relations model.
3. Wonder Woman’s appointment was part of a larger societal cause to impact positive change for women and girls globally. How well did the United Nations maintain their moral obligation to society, as described by Bivins? Do you perceive other obligations in the U.N.’s ethical decisions?
4. Using Parsons’ five guiding questions, how well does the United Nations uphold the ethical pillars of public relations? Explain your answer.

Additional Resources

ABC News. (2016, October 21). Wonder Woman named honorary UN ambassador, staffers
protest ‘sexualised cartoon character.’ Retrieved from http://www.abc.net.au

Alexander, E. (2016, October 21). Wonder Woman named UN ambassador in controversial
move. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com

Concerned United Nations Staff Members. (n.d.). Reconsider the choice of Wonder Woman as
the UN’s honorary ambassador for the empowerment of women and girls. Retrieved from http://www.thepetitionsite.com/741/288/432/reconsider-the-choice-of-honorary-ambassador-for-the-empowerment-of-women-and-girls/

Goal 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/gender-equality/

Hersher, R. (2016, October 13). Wonder Woman named honorary U.N. ambassador for gender
equality. Retrieved from https://knpr.org

Roberts, E. (2016, December 13). UN drops Wonder Woman as honorary ambassador.
Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/

Williams, A. (2016, December 22). Lynda Carter deflects critics of Wonder Woman. Retrieved
from http://www.nytimes.com

Case Study: Responding to a Pandemic: WHO and CDC’s Response to the Zika Virus

Background

Brazilian maternity wards were in chaos. Nurses had never seen so many newborns with microcephaly-like symptoms. Babies were being born with enlarged heads that resembled a wizened old man rather than a newborn. Some babies were unable to move their arms or legs; others cried inconsolably. Some were deaf; others were blind. All were born to mothers who had contracted doenca misteriosa, or mystery disease, months earlier.

Today, the mystery disease known as the Zika virus derived its name from the Zika forest of Uganda where it was first discovered in 1947. The disease migrated to the Yap Islands in the Pacific before disappearing. Zika reappeared in the French Polynesia Islands and then arrived in Brazil, brought to the country by the FIFA Confederation Cup soccer games. From there, the Zika virus reached a pandemic state that led the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to declare a world health emergency. This case study details the emergence of the Zika pandemic crisis and the response of the world’s health organizations to the crisis.

For most, Zika is a benign virus. When the mystery disease was first identified as the Zika virus, doctors breathed a sigh of relief. For most adults, Zika is not serious. The virus includes a rash, headache, and fever, leaving many adults to believe they have a cold rather than the virus. Zika does carry the possibility of serious health risk, such as Guillain-Barre. This syndrome is a slow-moving paralysis of the body and can be fatal if not treated immediately. Those cases are rare, and 99 percent of Zika cases for adults are classified as mild.

The Zika virus, however, is a serious threat for unborn babies, attacking the neurological functions of a fetus at any point during the pregnancy. Babies who appear perfectly healthy on the ultrasound can suddenly become unresponsive in the womb. The virus can cause serious malformation and even death. The attack stems from the virus’ presence in the mother’s body that is passed to the fetus. From there, the virus attacks the fetus’ neurological system, severely debilitating its development or prohibiting its development at all. 

Like most viruses, the Zika virus was originally assumed to spread through a bite from an infected Aedes aegypti mosquito. Later medical studies revealed that the Zika virus can also be transmitted sexually, the first mosquito-borne virus to do so.

Dilemma

Initially, the WHO and the CDC were slow to respond. Unwilling to disrupt tourism and the upcoming 2016 Olympic games in Brazil, the organizations offered little information about the Zika virus beyond the standard advice to avoid mosquito bites. Travelers were cautioned to wear mosquito repellent, especially those who were pregnant or who may become pregnant. No information was issued for residents of Zika-infected areas, and Zika’s connection to microcephaly was not mentioned.

Despite the preliminary precautions, the Zika virus continued to spread, leading the WHO to make another announcement. On February 1, 2016, the WHO declared a world health emergency, but they were reluctant to establish a link between Zika and microcephaly. Rumors and misinformation circulated on the “true” cause of the Brazilian microcephaly outbreak, further minimizing the connection between the Zika virus and micro cephalic newborns. As a result, the dangers of Zika to pregnant women were unclear.

Not everyone was silent about the dangers of Zika. New York Times science and health investigative reporter Donald McNeil, Jr. spent much of 2015 and 2016 describing the Zika virus and debunking the myths surrounding it. Previously, a rumor had circulated that Brazil had over-counted the cases of microcephaly, reducing the possible connection of Zika and micro cephalic newborns. McNeil proved differently. In December 2015, Brazil changed the definition of microcephaly, reducing the head measurements of newborns with microcephaly from less than 33 centimeters to less than 32 centimeters. Thus, McNeil reasoned, Brazil should have had far fewer microcephaly cases, not more.

Course of action

With the connection established, health ministers in the affected countries of Brazil, Columbia, Ecuador, Jamaica, El Salvador, and the Dominican Republic were convinced of the danger and asked women to consider delaying pregnancy if possible. Their request for universal delayed pregnancy was unprecedented, and the backlash against the request was immediate. Women’s reproductive rights groups protested, saying that the government cannot tell women what to do with their bodies. A spokesperson from Amnesty International said that such advice placed women, “in an impossible position by asking them to put the sole responsibility for public health on their shoulders by not getting pregnant when over half don’t have that choice.” A spokeswoman from the Center for Reproductive Rights in New York called the health ministers’ announcement “irresponsible,” noting that they “were not issuing any recommendation for the men to use condoms, which is very unfair.” The news media also protested with headlines such as "Zika Virus and the Hypocrisy of Telling Women to Delay Pregnancy." The WHO and the CDC agreed, stating that pregnancy was a personal issue not a health issue.

McNeil was also outraged, but at the reluctance of the health organizations to communicate the dangers of pregnancy in Zika-infected areas. He reasoned that the only true way to avoid Zika-induced microcephaly in babies was to avoid becoming pregnant. He argued that the issue had been “hijacked,” and the public’s response was a result of the health organizations’ “terrible job explaining why they were asking women to wait.”

McNeil further charged the WHO and the CDC with doing a disservice to women exposed to the Zika virus. McNeil expressed his frustration with the CDC’s response in an exchange with Dr. Denise Jamieson, the leader of the CDC’s women’s health and fertility branch.

“Why,” McNeil asks, “will the CDC not advise women to wait?”

“I think the government getting involved in highly personal decisions about when to have a baby is not likely to be very effective,” Jamieson explained.

“Suppose you were in your job in 1964,” McNeil said, “and you knew that huge rubella outbreak was starting. There was no vaccine. You knew the consequences. Babies would suffer. What would your advice have been then?”

“I’d say,” Jamieson answered, “‘This is an extraordinarily risky time to get pregnant.’”
“But you won’t give the same advice now?”

“This is different,” she said. “There was no vaccine then. Highly motivated women can avoid mosquito bites.”

“For nine months, 24 hours a day?” McNeil asked. “Is that realistic?”

Realistic – probably not – and as the communication lagged, Zika continued to spread.

Consequences

The Brazilian epidemic peaked at 8,000 new Zika cases a week. The virus then moved to Puerto Rico where it was predicted that 25 percent of the population would be infected. In late 2016, the Zika virus arrived on the mainland of the United States. Current estimates believe the virus will circulate in the U.S. for at least three years. In the wake of these predictions, the WHO issued an advisory in June 2016 asking women to consider delaying pregnancy. The CDC did not issue similar advice. Rather, they continued to urge women who are pregnant or trying to become pregnant to avoid Zika-infected areas, and for those in Zika-infected areas, to take proper mosquito precaution.

Moral of the Story

McNeil believes that the CDC’s lack of a response is the real disservice for women. ‘The debate had been hijacked,” said McNeil. “Millions of poor women were being denied life-saving advice because it has become politically incorrect.” Others disagree, believing that advocacy of a universal plan for pregnancy avoidance was equally unethical.

Discussion Questions

1. What values can you identify that guided McNeil’s response and the WHO and CDC’s response to the Zika virus? How do their values compare?
2. Which ethical orientation(s) best describes the health organizations’ response to the Zika virus?
3. Using the different ethical orientations (axiology, deontology teleology, situational ethics), how would you approach this situation? How would you counsel the WHO and the CDC in their response to the Zika pandemic?
4. Using three of your identified values from the Barrett personal values assessment, how would you respond to the Zika pandemic crisis? Explain how your values guide your response.

Additional Resources

Fox, M. (2016, February 1). WHO declares Zika a public health emergency. NBC News. Retrieved from https://www.nbcnews.com

Garrett, L. (2016, July 28). Review: ‘Zika” tracks the trajectory of an epidemic. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com

McNeil, D.G. (2016). Zika: The emerging epidemic. New York: W.W. Norton & Company.

McNeil, D.G. & Cobb, J.S. (2016, October 31). Columbia is hit hard by Zika but not by microcephaly. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com

Satel, S. (2016, July 24). Book review: Zika: The emerging epidemic. The Denver Post. Retrieved from http://www.denverpost.com

Zika virus: What we need to know. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/zika/prevention/index.html

The Pillars of Public Relations Ethics

In conclusion, the public relations profession has grown in its ethical practice, as evidenced in the public relations models. Yet, it is erroneous to assume that the application of the lower public relations models is unethical. Rather, ethical public relations literacy guides the professional in the ethical considerations in inherent to each model. By understanding the values and ethical orientations of each, public relations professionals can better assess appropriate ethical behavior.

Parsons offers a comprehensive ethical guide to help professionals in this assessment. Derived from the maxims of bioethics, she suggests five ethical pillars to summarize ethical literacy and support ethical decision making.

The five pillars are veracity (to tell the truth), non-maleficence (to do no harm), beneficence (to do good), confidentiality (to respect privacy), and fairness (to be fair and socially responsible). Parsons argues that the pillar to do no harm offers a starting point to avoid intentional and foreseeable harm. This pillar is balanced by the proactive pillar of “doing good.” Looking for opportunities to do good offers an “altruistic ethical intent,” that professionals should strive to uphold. The pillar of fairness is reminiscent of the ethical orientations that value and respect all individuals and balances the pillars of veracity and confidentiality. These pillars can be translated into five guiding questions to help professionals in ethical public relations practice:

1. Will anyone be harmed if we use this approach?
2. Are we taking advantage of an opportunity to contribute something good to society?
3. Is the message truthful? Could anyone be misled?
4. Does this respect the privacy of individuals and the organization?
5. Is this approach unfair to anyone including society?

Using these questions, public relations professionals can better assess the ethical implications of public relations practice and grow deeper in their ethical development.

TARES: Ethical Message Development

Message development is central to each of the public relations models. As such, professionals need to incorporate ethical literacy into their messaging. While the ethical orientations described earlier provide guidance, the TARES test developed by Baker and Martinson and Gower offer specific guidance in message development:

These questions offer professionals a means to incorporate ethical literacy throughout the message creation and dissemination process. By considering TARES, professionals can better balance the priority of the organization and society to ensure that their public relations practice reaches the ethical maturity found in the two-way symmetrical public relations model.

Public Relations Value Systems

The four models of public relations not only represent the development of ethical practice in public relations, but they also illustrate two value systems within public relations. Albert Sullivan identified these two value systems as a partisan value system and mutuality value system. The partisan value system is displayed in the first three models of public relations: press agentry, public information, and two-way asymmetrical. In these models, the organization is primary. The public relations professional uses the values of loyalty, commitment, and obedience to enhance the organization and its position in society. The second value system, mutuality, is displayed in the two-way symmetrical model of public relations and includes the interests and rights of others. Sullivan believed that the mutuality value system leads the truly ethical public relations professional. Using this value system, public relations professionals not only consider the interests of the organization, but also the basic rights of all stakeholders affected by the organization.

Sullivan identified three basic rights that the mutuality value system protects:

1. the basic rights of individuals to accurate and complete information regarding matters that affect them
2. the right to participate in decisions that affect them
3. the right to have their rights represented by others

Like the two-way symmetrical model, mutuality is societal focused. It is built on the ethical development of previous models. For example, the press agentry model introduces the importance of organizational interest in the practice of public relations. The public information model adds the importance of honest and accurate information when promoting the organization. The two-way asymmetrical model incorporates a feedback loop that allows professionals to expand their ethical focus to key organizational stakeholders. Finally, the mutuality value system or the two-way symmetrical model, encourages ethical professionals to develop a societal perspective that can guide the ethical practice of public relations.

Ethics & the Public Relations Models: Two-Way Symmetrical Model

Finally, the two-way symmetrical model of public relations is considered the most sophisticated and ethical practice of public relations. This model focuses on dialogue that creates and sustains mutually beneficial relationships between an organization and its key stakeholders. This model attempts to minimize the potential imbalance of power between organizations and stakeholders found in the asymmetrical model of public relations and embraces a broader social responsibility perspective. As a result, the organization is not considered the primary beneficiary of public relations activity. Rather, stakeholders and society are both important considerations.

Curtin and Boynton noted that Kant’s categorical imperatives of equality, justice, and fairness guide many of the ethical decisions within this model. Kant believed that there were certain universal laws that all reasonable people must meet. These principles help guide professionals in the development and sustenance of mutually beneficial relationships. Utilitarianism is another ethical reasoning common to the two-way symmetrical model of public relations. Utilitarianism reasons that the most ethical decision is one that brings the greatest good for the greatest number of people. From this standpoint, the organization is often subservient to societal needs as public relations professionals seek the greatest good.

Dialogue is a central component of the two-way symmetrical model. This model supports continuous two-way communication between an organization and its stakeholders. Ethical literacy, however, must guide the dialogue to ensure ethical communication. Habermas’ theory of ethical discourse offers guidance in this area. He believed that ethical discourse cannot be dominated by one party, but must represent a give-and-take form of communication. Ethical discourse occurs when individuals treat one another with openness and respect. Habermas identified four criteria necessary for ethical discourse: the communication must be comprehensive; it must be true; it must be appropriate for the audience; and it must be sincere. Pearson built on Habermas’ theory and offered four additional conditions necessary for ethical public relations symmetrical discourse:

• There must be the opportunity for beginning and ending communicative interaction
• There must be the opportunity for suggesting topics and initiating topic changes
• There must be the ability to provide a response and to have that response treated as such
• There must be the ability to select channels of communication

Using these guides, professionals can ensure ethical, two-way communication. Unlike the asymmetrical model, the symmetrical model includes a larger societal focus. Communication is designed to include a myriad of voices in order to ascertain the most ethical action.

Many researchers believe, however, that the two-way symmetrical model represents an idealized practice of public relations. Kohlberg would agree. He believed most adults would never reach a societal focused ethical maturity displayed in this model. Yet, this level of ethical development is important to the ethical practice of public relations.

Ethics & the Public Relations Models: Public Information Model

The public information model, the second level of public relations, is often described as the “journalist-in-residence” model. It utilizes media relation techniques to place public relations information into news stories. Championed by public relations pioneer Ivy Lee, this model focuses on truthful and accurate information in order to gain third-party endorsement.

Curtin and Boynton identify two ethical orientations for this model, axiology and deontology. Axiological ethical reasoning supports a focus on virtues. Aristotle, a leading axiological ethicist, believed virtues guide ethical behavior. A virtuous person has ethical habits that guide consistent ethical action. The public information model introduces the virtues of honesty and accuracy and encourages the consistent application of these virtues. Public relations professionals in this model provide honest and accurate information to news media. Unlike the press agentry model, the practitioners in this model adhere to virtues to ensure the ethical development and dissemination of information.

The identification of virtues in the public information model leads to the deontological ethical orientation through the systematic adoption of these virtues by professional organizations. Both the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Code of Ethics and the Society of Journalists Code of Ethics require professionals to adhere to honesty and the dissemination of accurate information. The adherence to a professional code of ethics follows a deontological ethical approach. Professionals follow a prescribed code of ethics that guide their behavior. For example, the PRSA Code of Ethics directs professionals to “adhere to the highest standards of accuracy and truth,” and to “advocate the free flow of accurate and truthful information,” when working with the media. Such a deontological perspective guides public relations practice within the public information model.

This model represents an ethical step forward in the development of public relations practice. While the press agentry model embraced a self-interest approach, this model highlights the needs of others in its ethical consideration, using the code of ethics as a guide. Public relations professionals can test the ethics of the public information model using the professional ethic principle. This principle guides professionals to only take action that would be considered appropriate by an objective panel of public relations professionals.

Ethics & the Public Relations Models: Press Agentry Model

The press agentry model is the lowest “level” of ethical public relations. This model focuses on publicity or press agentry to gain attention for the organization. Reminiscent of P.T. Barnum’s publicity stunts, this model focuses on self-interest or gaining attention, whether good or bad. As a result, this model can be used to exploit a situation for personal gain. For example, pharmaceutical CEO Martin Shkreli hiked the price of daraprim from $13.50 per pill to $750 per pill overnight, a 5,000 percent price increase. In response to the uproar, Shkreli replied that his responsibility was to the investors of his organization, not the affected patients. His actions thrust him and his organization into the media limelight and spurred many antagonistic Twitter exchanges. Some suggest that the price hike was a publicity stunt to bring daraprim to the forefront of a broader audience. If so, the maneuver was successful, as the drug currently enjoys high name recognition beyond the scope of its current patients. Examples such as this one highlight the often-seamy side of the press agentry model. Manipulation and/or deception can often be used to achieve short-term rewards.

Like the teleological approach, the press agentry model focuses on outcomes more than processes. It considers the outcome more important than the means to get to the outcome. As a result, an ethical outcome could be the result of an unethical process. Laczniak and Murphy offer a maxim to help ensure the ethical dimension of this model. They suggest that professionals use the “TV test,” by always asking if you would feel comfortable explaining the action on television. Granted, the “TV test” isn’t foolproof. Shkreli seems to have enjoyed, even acerbated, his villainous profile in media interviews and on social media. In one Twitter exchange, a user said, “you should be ashamed of yourself. You have given people their death sentences. A person’s life is not business,” to which Shkreli replied, “No, you are wrong.” It seems in his mind that the outcome of increased profits was the most important.

Ethics & the Public Relations Models

Public relations practice, as represented by the four public relations models, also represent ethical development in public relations. Grunig and Hunt identified four models of public relations that progress from an elementary method of public relations to a more sophisticated practice. The models from basic to sophisticated include press agentry/publicity, public information, two-way asymmetrical communication, and two-way symmetrical communication. Each model represents a specific ethical orientation that when considered collectively illustrates the ethical development of public relations.

Ethical Development

Everyone grows up. Our physical attributes, language skills, and reasoning capabilities develop as we get older. Ethical philosophers believe that we also “grow up” in our ethical development. Kohlberg believed that people develop from rudimentary understanding to a more advanced knowledge and practice of ethics. He developed three levels of development:

1. The first level represents an elementary understanding of ethical development that focuses on avoiding personal punishment and meeting personal needs. Kohlberg explains that a child will not avoid stealing because stealing is wrong, but will avoid stealing in order to avoid punishment.
2. At level two, an individual might do what is right, but will do so in order to maximize personal gain. Individuals begin to consider others in addition to themselves, but they often act ethically in order to appear as a good person or to fulfill professional obligations. For example, many professionals will act ethically because they have agreed to follow a professional code of conduct. Kohlberg believed that most adults reach this level and are heavily influenced by a desire to be perceived as a “good person.”
3. The final level is considered the highest level of ethical development, and according to Kohlberg, reached by few adults. At this level, professionals show a genuine interest in the welfare of others and have a deep sense of universal ethical principles that guide their behavior.

These stages of ethical development move professionals from a basic individual concern to a recognition of their behavior on others. Bivins conceptualized this development as moral obligations, identifying five specific moral obligations for public relations practitioners:

• To themselves -- to preserve their own integrity
• To clients -- to honor contracts, to use professional expertise in their behalf
• To organizations/employers -- to adhere to organizational goals and policies
• To the profession/colleagues -- to uphold the standards of the profession
• To society -- to consider societal needs and claims

Like Kohlberg’s levels, these obligations progress from an individual ethical orientation to an outward ethical orientation. Such a progression is inherent in a deeper understanding of ethical public relations literacy. As professionals become more ethically literate, they have an increased understanding of the concentric influence of their ethical behavior on others.

Ethical Orientations: Situational Ethics

The final ethical orientation considered here is situational ethics. Popularized by Joseph Fletcher in the late 1960s, this approach believes that ethical laws or rules are applied based on the context. As communities vary over time, so do the ethical laws that best direct human action. Situational ethics asserts that love, human welfare, and individual happiness should always be upheld; however, the orientation does not provide guidelines or absolutes for application.

Situational ethics is the most common ethical orientation used by public relations professionals. Wright found that professionals rely most often on situational ethics, but not the classical situational ethics orientation described above. Yes, professionals make consequence-based choices that vary based on the situation, but they do so using subjectivism, meaning that public relations professionals respond differently to the same ethical situation.

Such diversity of ethical approaches heightens the need for ethical literacy. Public relations professionals need to be able to assess a situation, identify the personal values at play, and consider the most appropriate ethical orientation. Further, a public relations professional must be ethically literate in order to understand the diverse behaviors and the ethical orientations that guide others. Only through ethical literacy can public relations professionals successfully “mind the ethical gap.”

Ethical Orientations: Teleology

In contrast to the deontological approach, the teleology ethical orientation emphasizes outcomes over the process. It is a results-oriented approach that defines ethical behavior by good or bad consequences. Ethical decisions are those that create the greatest good. The most common teleology approach is utilitarianism, which stresses the greatest good for the greatest number of individuals. Jeremy Bentham, an influential proponent of utilitarianism, believed a good or moral act would result in the “greatest happiness of the greatest number of people.”

In the 2002 Spiderman blockbuster film, Spiderman faces an utilitarian ethical quandary when the Green Goblin forces him to choose between saving a cable car full of young children or his girlfriend Mary Jane. The teleology ethicist believes Spiderman should save the children. After all, the tram car is full of children whose lives are in jeopardy. Unable to save both, the greater good of saving the children justifies the means of sacrificing Mary Jane. Of course, in Hollywood reality, Spiderman manages to save both, but public relations professionals rarely have “save both” as an option. In reality, it is often unclear which outcome will be good or bad prior to the action. Public relations practitioners are left to their best guess on the nature of the outcome.

Teleology’s focus on outcomes is further problematic as unethical behavior could be justified if the result is good. To offset utilitarianism’s shortcomings, John Stuart Mill suggested that both the quality of good and the long-term consequences of an outcome should be considered. He defined good as including “higher” and “lower” pleasures. Higher pleasures were positive and included intelligence, mental pleasure, and health while lower pleasures were negative and included ignorance, stupidity, selfishness, and physical pleasures. Later friendship, loyalty, and fairness were believed to have positive, intrinsic worth. Mill believed that a person must consider all potential consequences of a particular action. The risks and benefits of an action must be weighed in order to maximize benefit and minimize harm. In the opening example, the benefit of increased goodwill among patients, staff, news media, and fans would be a positive outcome that might outweigh the harm, or the means, of using children’s sickness and football stars’ notoriety as a platform for the activity.

Ethical Orientations: Deontology

Americans are familiar with the unalienable rights espoused in The Declaration of Independence. Through this document, America’s founding fathers established the basic rights of all humanity.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

The belief that all humans deserve respect because of their humanity is based on deontological thinking. Deontology respects the integrity of all humans and does not treat people as a means to an end. Rather, people are believed to be deserving of respect because of their humanity.

Deontology derives from the Greek word “deon,” meaning duty or obligation. This ethical orientation uses processes and rules to guide ethical decisions. These rules are considered absolute, meaning that the acts must be done regardless of the consequences. For example, notable deontologist Immanuel Kant proposed that truth must always be told, no matter the consequence. If someone must tell a lie in order to save a person’s life, Kant would categorize the lie as unethical because the lie violates the rule to always tell the truth. He believed that each person has a categorical imperative to tell the truth. Actions can be judged as ethical if they can be translated into an acceptable “universal law” that would apply to everyone faced with the same situation, creating an acceptable standard of human behavior.

Further, deontology believes that the intention of the action is as important as the action. If an individual performs an action that results in a good outcome, but does so with a negative intention, then the action is unethical. As a result, a good consequence does not guarantee that the action is ethical. In the opening example, the visit of the university football players resulted in a good outcome for the patients and hospital staff. However, if the action was performed with an intent to minimize negative press, a deontologist would consider the action unethical, despite its positive outcome.

Ethical Orientations: Axiology

Axiology is derived from the Greek to mean “value or worth,” and is primarily concerned with classifying things as good and how good they are.

Often called the theory of value, axiology is the philosophical study of goodness or the worth of something. This approach is often guided by the question, “if I were a “good” person, what would I do?” Key to this ethical orientation is the identification of ethical virtues. Aristotle, one of the earliest proponents of this orientation, identified justice, moderation, and eudemonia, or happiness, as key virtues. His ethical philosophy focused on personal character rather than on universal rules or consequences. Core virtues, such as courage, compassion, and loyalty guide ethical action and are instrumental in the art of living well. He further advocated that these virtues could only be developed through consistent practice.

Aristotle sought to identify virtue ethics through the Golden Mean. He believed every situation has two extremes of action, one extreme (vice) of defect and a vice of excess. The ethical action or the virtue ethic was the mean of the two extremes. For example, the vice defect of confidence would be cowardice, or too little confidence, while the vice excess of confidence would be rashness or too much confidence. The ethical virtue between the two would be courage, the mean between cowardice and rashness.

Aristotle further believed that the identification of the Golden Mean is based on a person’s character, or virtue, which is engrained by habitual action. For example, an honest person will not lie because telling the truth is a personal value and a personal habit. The key to virtue ethics is that the ethical action is based on the individual.

Thomas H. Bivins:
“A person of strong character developed through habitual right action will make the right decisions, most of the time. A person of weak character will not. It’s as simple as that.”

The Greeks also believed that virtue ethics were not only habitual, but consistent. A truly virtuous person would act the same publicly as in private. A person’s character and the associated values are constant and the consistency of the person’s action illuminates the person’s virtue. Based on this idea, in the opening scenario, the sports public relations director’s value of making a difference would be considered an ethical virtue if it was a personal habit and a consistent value that the director espoused in both public and private life.

Ethical Orientations: Guiding Ethical Literacy

Ethical literacy also requires a clear understanding of the ethical orientation commonly used to understand and guide ethical action. While several approaches exist, this lesson will consider four common orientations: axiology, deontology, teleology, and situational ethics.

Personal Values: The Foundation of Ethical Literacy

Personal values are the bedrock of ethics as they guide what a person considers good/bad or desirable/undesirable. Values create the foundation for personal and societal judgment and action.6 It is important then before discussing ethics to have a clear understanding of the personal values that guide us.

Personal values are what a person believes to be important. They help prioritize life’s demands and often serve as a compass or guide in decision making and behavior. Yet, many people are unable to verbalize the values that guide them. This omission does not suggest an absence of values. Rather values are often so ingrained in personal beliefs and worldview that they become “invisible.” People often do not recognize the value that is guiding their decision. Yet, to establish ethical literacy, public relations professionals need to be cognizant of the values that guide their judgments and behavior.

Parsons divides personal values into two types: terminal values and instrumental values. Terminal values are life-long personal goals and include freedom and salvation or inner harmony. Instrumental values are behaviors that help people achieve their lifelong goals and include independence, ambition, and obedience. There are several online tools available to help people identify and understand the values that guide them. The Barrett Values Centre offers a free, comprehensive personal values assessment that leads individuals through self-development exercises. This tool orders values into three categories: self-interest, transformation, and common good. Self-interest focuses on the personal needs for security, for love/belonging, and for self-esteem. Transformation establishes a sense of personal independence and an authenticity of who we are and how we choose to live. The final stage, common good, seeks to identify a meaning or purpose that leads to a recognition of others. According to the Barrett Values Centre, the key is to have a balanced values approach.9 Individuals with values rooted in personal interest are most focused on their own personal needs, but those who focus exclusively on the greater good may also lack the skills to meet their basic needs.

Foundational to ethical literacy is to know the values that are guiding ethical reasoning. Values can lead us to protect personal security or encourage us to make a positive difference. In the opening scenario, the sports public relations director may have been motivated to protect the organization’s image, the self-interest value of security, or the director may have been motivated by a belief that athletes should make a positive difference, a common good value. Ethical literacy does not seek to determine which value should have guided ethical reasoning. Rather, the operationalization of a value alerts us to a public relations ethical issue and the value that is guiding the ethical reasoning. By developing values awareness, public relations professionals not only identify a personal ethical viewpoint but can better understand the ethical viewpoint of others.

Public Relations Ethical Literacy

Ethical literacy is the ability to articulate a personal ethical viewpoint and to understand the ethical position of others. In psychology, the American Psychological Association (APA) defines ethical literacy as the ability to understand the codes of ethics/conduct relevant to psychology, to identify ethical issues, and to act ethically. Likewise, public relations ethical literacy allows professionals to:

• identify personal values as well as the values of others
• understand the ethical orientations that shape our perspectives
• critically analyze the appropriate ethical frameworks
• apply the ethical principles
• evaluate the ethical decision

This lesson considers the initial steps for ethical literacy: identifying ethical viewpoints and understanding the ethical orientations. Taken together, these beginning steps help public relations professionals “mind the gap.”

Mind the Gap

“Mind the Gap,” it’s a common phrase for those on the northbound platform at the Embankment underground station. The recorded voice reminds London travelers to carefully cross the space between the train and the passenger platform.  The message “mind the gap,” repeats as the train slows for passengers to embark or disembark at the station. No other words of wisdom follow. The message offers no advice on how to cross the gap. It simply alerts travelers to its presence, to “mind the gap.”

Public relations professionals are also being urged to “mind the gap” due to ethical organizational scandal. Practitioners have encouraged other professionals to reread PRSA’s code of ethics and consider its application, to create a chief ethics officer position in their organization, and to promote ethical behavior. In fact, “Mind the Gap” was the 2015 PRINZ conference theme that encouraged attendees to be aware of, eliminate, or minimize any gaps between clients and organizations in issues of transparency, trust and leadership. In her conference keynote address, Dr. Elspeth Tilley offered a similar message for public relations professionals, highlighting the need for ethics integration throughout the public relations process.

Each of these initiatives offer important advice and insight into the practice of ethics in public relations; however, they assume that public relations professionals recognize that an ethical gap exists. The London “mind the gap” message makes no assumption and neither should the public relations profession. Before practitioners can avoid the gap or close the gap, they must recognize the presence of an ethical gap. In an interview with the sports public relations director in the opening scenario, the sports public relations director did not consider the ethical dimension of his action. He did not “mind the gap,” because he did not recognize that a gap existed. He is not alone.

Many public relations professionals do not recognize an ethics gap in their personal practice; yet, they recognize the presence of an ethical gap in the behavior of others. According to a survey by Princeton Survey Research Associated International, 96 percent of Americans say it is important for companies to ensure employees behave ethically, but only 10 percent have confidence that major organizations will do what is right.  In fact, only 7 percent of Americans think top-ranking organizational leaders are highly ethical. Clearly, the public identifies an ethical gap in their expectation of ethical action and in their confidence that ethical action will occur. But before considering the ethical gap collectively, let us develop a personal ethical literacy by first “minding the gap” from an individual perspective.

Case Study: US Airways Flight 1549

Background

On January 15, 2009, US Airways Flight 1549, an Airbus A320, took off from LaGuardia Airport with 150 passengers and 5 crew members, bound for Charlotte, NC. Three minutes into the flight, it struck a flock of Canada geese and lost power in both engines. Air controllers tried to divert the US Airways plane back to LaGuardia or a nearby airport in New Jersey. Captain Chesley "Sully'' Sullenberger decided he could not safely land the plane in either of the airports, instructed passengers to “brace for impact,” and glided the plane into the Hudson River.

As water got in the drifting plane, the passengers walked out of the doors to stand on the wings or the partially submerged slides. A few swam away from the plane fearing an explosion. The temperature was 21 degrees Fahrenheit. Soon New York Waterway commuter ferries, police boats, fireboats, tugboats and Coast Guard craft converged on the scene to join the rescue effort.

All passengers and crew members were picked up and sent for treatment in hospitals in Manhattan and New Jersey for exposure to the brutal cold. A few people suffered serious injuries.

As the dramatic event unfolded in the media hub of New York City, with many eyewitnesses, it instantly became the headline story of the day internationally. The media and officials used the phrase  “miracle on the Hudson” to describe the water landing and quick rescue. Gov. David Paterson said at a news conference in Manhattan: “This is a potential tragedy that may have become one of the most magnificent days in the history of New York City agencies.”

The Challenge

US Airways faced an immense amount of questions from the reporters and family members. Some of the passengers felt horrified by the shocking experience. Their family members, stunned by the news coverage, were worried about their well-being and eager to get in touch with them or reunite with them. Some passengers wanted to get to their planned destinations but worried about flight safety and preferred to travel by land. The passengers’ belongings, such as wallets, cell phones, computers, and luggage, were still in the partly submerged plane. Later a few passengers contacted law firms to consult about suing for emotional distress and other losses.

From the moment after the landing, survivors have been interviewed by the media, some immediately after being pulled from the wings of the floating plane. There was also an instant social media frenzy about the event. Meanwhile, National Transportation Safety Board started to conduct an investigation into the incident. Under these circumstances, any response action by the airline would be under close public scrutiny.

Course of PR Actions

US Airways immediately activated an emergency response plan and the staff was mobilized for on-site support in New York and Charlotte. The company kept providing the newest information through press releases and news interviews. It also stated that the company’s primary concern was those on board the airplane and their families. The communication team headed by James Olson learned from a call from the pilot that he walked up and down the aisle twice to make sure everyone was off the plane. But they still needed to have every person accounted for and confirmed to have survived, a process that took 24 hours. Company CEO Doug Parker made a statement before flying to New York from the company headquarter in Arizona, and appear in a joint news conference on January 16th with city officials to honor the crew and first responders.

US Airways activated a special 800 number for families to call and dispatched more than 100 employees as the Care Team on a Boeing 757 from headquarters. Scott Stewart, managing director for corporate finance, managed emergency funding for passengers and credit cards for employees to buy any medicines, toiletries, or personal items that passengers needed.

Passengers were provided dry clothes, warm meals, and prepaid cell phones, as well as flights for family members and daily calls from counselors. Staffers escorted each passenger to a new flight or a local New York hotel. They also arranged train tickets and rental cars for those who didn't want to fly. As some people lost their driver's licenses, US Airways reached out to high-level executives at Hertz and Amtrak to make sure they had no trouble getting a rental or a train ticket. The airline also retained locksmiths to help passengers who had lost their keys get back into their cars and homes.

US Airways sent $5,000 checks over the weekend to each of the 150 passengers to help compensate for items left behind, with a letter explaining that their luggage and other belongings might have to stay with investigators for months. The airline also reimbursed passengers for their ticket costs. Although some passengers and the National Air Disaster Alliance & Foundation considered the amount not high enough, US Airways indicated it employed claims adjusters to compensate passengers whose losses were higher than $5,000. The company didn't require passengers receiving the compensation to waive their legal rights, which was seen as an exception to the industry norm. The company also sent follow-up letters offering the service of the Customer Care Team and information on retrieval of their belongings.

The publicity events around Fight 1549 continued as time goes on. In the following months the entire crew made media appearances in programs such as 60 Minutes, CNN, and the David Letterman Show. Sullenberger’s return to work later that year and his retirement in March 2010 made headlines again. The passengers and crew still hold reunions at the anniversaries of the landing. In 2016 the film Sully, starring Tom Hanks and directed by Clint Eastwood, was produced based on Sullenberger’s autobiography. Meanwhile James Olson was appointed by United Airlines as senior vice president of Corporate Communications.

Moral of the story

A Bloomberg Businessweek article praised the airline's care of Flight 1549's passengers as a model for crisis management. Public relations practitioners should learn that in an emergency situation, even when the news media was friendly, being in the spotlight makes it all the more important to follow ethical guidelines of public relations and address various aspects of the public’s concerns dutifully and conscientiously.

Further Readings

Fearn-Banks, K. (2016). “Transportation Crises.” In Crisis communications: A casebook approach. Routledge. 281-302.

Foust, D. (2009, Feb 19) “US Airways: After the ‘Miracle on the Hudson.’” Bloomberg Businessweek. Retrieved from https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2009-02-18/us-airways-after-the-miracle-on-the-hudson

McFadden, R. (2009, Jan 15) “Pilot Is Hailed After Jetliner’s Icy Plunge.” New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/16/nyregion/16crash.html

Considerations of Public Disaster Literacy

Recently, scholars have suggested that clear and open communication cannot be considered only from the perspective of the party sending the message. Rather, careful consideration of the audience's ability to comprehend and act on the information is equally important.

Disaster literacy is defined here as an individual's ability to read, understand, and use information to make informed decisions and follow instructions in the context of mitigating, preparing, responding, and recovering from a disaster.

Although many government, nonprofit, and relief organizations have endeavored to educate and prepare the American public for disasters, it is found that adults with physical, mental, and educational disabilities remain among the most vulnerable and least prepared subgroups of the population. If there is a gap between the literacy demands of existing disaster preparedness and recovery materials and the literacy skills of many vulnerable subgroups, their ability to understand and effectively use potentially life-saving information would be hampered. There is a need for organizations to examine existing disaster preparedness or recovery materials based on the following criteria:

• readability levels
• understandability of content
• acceptability of format
• the ability of community-dwelling, vulnerable adults to act on the information presented

A Dialogic Approach In Addressing The Public’s Concerns

The public has the right to know what risks it faces, and ongoing efforts should be made to inform and educate the public using science-based risk assessments. At the same time, public concerns about risk should be accepted as legitimate. To achieve a standpoint of dialogue, an organization managing risks or experiencing a crisis needs to listen to the concerns of the public, take these concerns into account, and respond accordingly.

During a crisis, the public should be informed about what is happening, and organizations managing crises have a responsibility to share this information. This has specific implications for the timely and accurate communication of information to the public, and for the solicitation of concerns and questions from the public. Ideally, the public can serve as a resource, rather than a burden, in risk and crisis management. Thus, crisis communication best practices would emphasize a dialogic approach.

During times of crisis, handling media inquiries and taking proactive approaches to communicate with the public are crucial for effective and ethical crisis communication. For example, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the leading national public health institute of the United States, develops and delivers health messages for a variety of audiences, including the public, health care professionals, public health researchers and practitioners, and policy makers. News media outlets have been the major channels for disseminating messages to these audiences. Following the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the anthrax incidents that followed, CDC transformed its media monitoring system into a broader communication monitoring system, with both listening and telling functions, to support CDC's public health emergency response.  As public health agencies become more aware of the threat of chemical and biological weapons, and the risk posed to human populations, they have begun to assess and elevate their level of communication preparedness for all risk and crisis scenarios.

According to WHO experts, most measures for managing public health emergencies rely on public compliance for effectiveness. “Measures ranging from hand washing to quarantine require public acceptance of their efficacy, as well as acceptance of the ethical rational for cooperating with instructions that may limit individual liberty so as to protect the broader public from harm.”  This requires that the public trust not only the information they receive, but also the authorities who serve as the source of this information, and their decision-making processes. Maintaining information transparency is not only highly important for public trust during an emergency, but also in building risk communication capacity to support all phases of emergency management.

According to Covello, public health risk and crisis communication plans need to have a checklist that involves listening to people and accept and involve stakeholders as legitimate partners:

Ethics Of Withholding Information

In general, an organization that withholds pertinent crisis-related information by stonewalling, offering only selected disclosures, creating ambiguity, etc., is considered unethical.

However, there may be legitimate reasons to withhold information temporarily. For example, it’s ethical to withhold the names of dead victims until the families are notified.  Sometimes it is necessary to withhold strategic information because of concerns of national security, for instance, a case involving ongoing investigation of a terrorist plot. Or sometimes it is a good choice to temporarily withhold information that might unnecessarily panic the public.

According to O'Malley, the following types of information might justifiably affect how information about risk is communicated:

• information that jeopardizes national security or an ongoing police investigation
• information that unnecessarily violates the privacy and confidentiality rights of individuals
• information that might lead to undue stigmatization of individuals or groups within society, and
• information that, if released, might lead to behaviors that would result in increased spread of disease.

Eventually, the reasons for knowingly withholding information should be fully defensible and based on ethical considerations.

Acknowledge Uncertainty and Ambiguity

Crisis spokespersons often feel an urge to be overly certain and overly reassuring. This may be a result of a belief that the public cannot accept uncertain situations and needs certainty in the face of a crisis, even when information is not available yet. However, in an inherently uncertain and equivocal situation, overly reassuring statements may reduce a spokesperson’s credibility. 

In addition, over-reassuring statements that lack credibility may even create higher levels of alarm among the public, particularly when there is not a high level of trust between the organization and the victims affected. In the long run, admitting to the ambiguity of a situation does less damage to an organization’s credibility than pretending all is in hand.

For example, in a study of media portrayal of leadership during the Hurricane Katrina crisis in 2005, Littlefield and Quenette examined the news images of the military, the Department of Homeland Security, President Bush, the federal government, and the local government. The authors concluded, “It would be wise for authorities to acknowledge deficiencies in their crisis responses to avoid conflicting perspectives (mortification) that will emerge later."

A best practice of crisis communication is to acknowledge the uncertainty inherent in the situation with statements acknowledging that not all the facts are available, or the situation is still evolving. This form of strategic ambiguity allows the communicator to refine the message as more information becomes available and avoids statements that are likely to be shown as inaccurate as the situation becomes clearer.

Acknowledging uncertainty should not be used as a strategy, however, to avoid disclosing uncomfortable information or closing off further communication. Through the use of strategic ambiguity, organizations sometimes emphasize an interpretation where the organization is viewed favorably.

For example, Ulmer and Sellnow used the ethic of significant choice to evaluate the ethical implications of strategic ambiguity used by the tobacco industry. The industry leaders attempted to place responsibility on consumers, claiming that they simply manufacture the product and consumers make the choice to purchase.

Ulmer and Sellnow explained the argument’s flaws: “From a significant choice perspective, this claim is valid only when consumers have a complete and unbiased explanation of the potential risks and benefits associated with a product.”  The researchers concluded that because the ambiguity it produced was based on incomplete and biased information, the tobacco companies were not acting ethically.

Communication Ambiguity in Crises

Due to the complexity of organizational crises, there could be multiple interpretations of evidence, intentions, and responsibility surrounding the crises.

Communication ambiguity is defined as multiple interpretations of an event.

It is not possible to have a clear-cut, precise answer to every important question following a crisis. For example, even if organizations could provide information on when and what happened in an industrial accident, they may not know why it happened or who is responsible immediately after the incident.

Also, during a crisis, various groups may have communication goals and viewpoints that potentially conflict with each other. This could also become a source of ambiguity.

“Those organizations associated with a crisis or disaster may seek to limit damage to their reputation, avoid responsibility, and even shift blame. Governmental agencies may prioritize reestablishing public order while the public may prioritize being informed, protected, and even reimbursed. During a crisis, the media seeks immediate information for wide distribution while public health is likely to be concerned with clarifying the facts and protecting patient privacy.”

Coordinating messages enhances the probability of consistent messages and may reduce the confusion the public might experience. The consistency of message is one important benchmark of effective crisis communication. Also, coordination and communication with other agencies are usually necessary to mount an effective crisis response.

Intentionally heightening the level of ambiguity in a crisis is unethical and irresponsible. In a crisis, events may easily have a traumatizing effect and cause panic. People may have a harder time listening and processing information. It may take repeated exposure to the same message before people understand and act on the information. Organizations should constantly update their stakeholders if new information becomes available.

Challenge of Information Uncertainty in Crises

Crises and disasters are by definition, sudden, dynamic, and unpredictable events. Due to the unexpected nature of many crisis situations and consequences that are often hard to foresee, crisis managers need to acknowledge the uncertainty and ambiguity inherent in a crisis situation.  Uncertainty is the inability to determine the present or predict the future. Organizations experience uncertainty “due to lack of information, due to the complexity of the information, or due to questions about the quality of the information.”

Uncertainty created by a crisis about what to say and how to make sense of the situation is a key communication challenge. When a crisis occurs, there is usually the public inquiry about responsibility, causes, and the impact on stakeholders. The public would like to know who is responsible, why the crisis happened, and how they can protect themselves. While stakeholders often want clear and quick answers to these questions in order to make sense of what happened and make decisions about what actions to take to protect themselves, it is often difficult to meet these information needs. The crisis events might be still unfolding, the full scale of the disaster may still be unknown, and the investigation process may take a long time to reach a conclusion. In some cases, such as nuclear contamination, the ultimate impact on stakeholders could be uncertain, complex, and open to public debate and argument.

This inherent uncertainty often complicates the decision to issue warning messages, such as recalls of food products that may be contaminated. Warnings and recalls often must be issued even when some level of uncertainty exists about the exact nature of the harm. If the crisis manager waits until all uncertainty is reduced, this could mean that the warning comes too late.

Problems of Misinformation

There are also several forms of communication that could diminish the opportunity for significant choice, according to Nilsen. If an organization provides unclear or biased information to stakeholders, it can corrupt the decision-making process. Some forms of communication such as bias, ambiguity and emotionalized language could distort meaning or create unnecessary alarm among the public. The following is considered to be miscommunication that can lead to problematic consequences:

• incomplete information
• biased information
• statistical units that may be inadequately defined or incomplete
• vague or ambiguous terminology in which listeners find erroneous meanings
• relationships that may be implied between the issue under discussion and other issues, when in fact no relationship exists
• false sense of urgency or false sense of importance
• highly emotionalized language which may distort meaning

In times of crisis, disclosure of timely, relevant, and complete information is particularly important when lack of information can be particularly harmful. In many cases, crisis communicators must perform the dual role of organizational spokesperson and counselor. In both instances, stakeholders’ informational needs and interests must be considered.

“No comment” should not be an option for ethical crisis communication.

Public relations professionals need to take responsible communication actions built on principles of openness and transparency.

Five Standards For Significant Choice

Nilsen states that stakeholders engage in significant choice when the following standards are met:

1. Stakeholders are free from physical or mental coercion.
2. The choice is made based on all the information available.
3. All reasonable alternatives are included in the discussion.
4. Both short-term and long-term consequences are disclosed and discussed.
5. Both senders and receivers of messages are open about the personal motives they have that may influence their decision-making.

With free flow of information and reasonable judgment based on their understanding of the situation, stakeholders can make objective decisions that they believe to be in their best interest.

Lesson 2: Access To Information During A Crisis

Significant Choice Ethical Framework

An important ethical principle that can be applied to crisis communication involves the concept of significant choice, because a crisis has the potential to create great harm while disrupting daily routines. Based on the significant choice ethical framework, individuals must be given enough information to make a reasoned decision. 

According to Nilsen, significant choice is “choice based on the best information available when the decision must be made."

He believes that a good share of human dignity resides in the capacity to make rational decisions. Nilsen defined the concept of the ethic of significant choice as choice making that is voluntary, free from physical or mental coercion, and based on all the information available when the decision must be made. Significant choice is founded on the principle that when a group has vital information the public needs in order to make important decisions concerning their well-being, that information must be disseminated as completely and accurately as possible. It represents the ideal circumstances for free and informed decision-making. Nilsen explains the role of communication in significant choice: “When we communicate to influence the attitudes, beliefs, and actions of others, the ethical touchstone is the degree of free, informed, and critical choice on matters of significance in their lives that is fostered by our speaking.” 

Therefore, the holder of key information – whether individual or organizational – has power when it controls the communication process, as well as the obligation to use that power ethically.

For example, organizations dealing with toxic chemicals have an ethical obligation to inform residents of the surrounding community if there is a risk of contamination, so community members can understand their options, and make informed choices on how to respond. Similarly, when a hurricane is approaching, the government agencies have an obligation to inform residents of the potential destructive power and approximate arrival time of the threat, so the residents will make decisions on protection of their property and evacuation.

Conclusion

This lesson provided an introduction to conscious capitalism, which argues that success in today’s business environmental is correlated highly with ethical, responsible, and inspiring behavior. Firms that meet and exceed the stakeholder needs and concerns in ways that win them over through a virtuous cycle of positive exchange, will be the firms that define the 21st Century. Therefore, an important component of a conscious capitalist system is businesses that reflect the system’s core principles and values. The test of a truly conscious business is its ability to learn and grow from bad experiences, and to emerge even stronger and more committed to a conscious and ethical way of being.

Suggested Reading

John Mackey: Why Companies Should Embrace Conscious Capitalism

Case Study: A Conscious Capitalist Approach to People, Planet, and Profit

Background

Recreational Equipment, Inc. known as REI, is an American retail and outdoor recreation services corporation. With annual revenue $2.4 billion, REI operates 143 retail stores in 36 states and considered as one of the most powerful forces in outdoor retailing, with over $2 billion in sales in 2014. The company is organized as a consumers’ co-operative—owned and managed by consumers with roughly 5.5 million members who pay a one-time fee for a share of the business and contribute 80 percent of its sales. Jerry Stritzke, REI President and CEO, explains the co-op business model:

Our co-op model allows us to support that passion and to think “beyond profit.” The co-op is passed from one generation of stewards to the next. Each generation is connected by a deep love of being in places full of life and wonder. That’s what it means to steward the oldest and largest outdoor co-op. We are working across generations for the outdoors because it helps us live our lives to the fullest.

Beginning in 2014, with the introduction of the REI Co-Op line of clothing, REI has publicly re-emphasized the cooperative aspect of its business model. In October 2015, the company launched a redesigned logo, which includes the word "co-op" for the first time since 1983.

The core purpose of REI guides the organization: “we all work to inspire, educate and outfit for a lifetime of outdoor adventure and stewardship.” REI supports conservation efforts nationwide and sends teams of volunteers, including members, customers and REI employees, to build trails, clean up beaches, restore local habitants.

REI has been ranked in Fortune magazine’s list of the “100 Best Companies to Work For” in the United States every year since the rankings began in 1998 and earned a place in the Fortune “Hall of Fame.” REI employs more than12,000 people and all employees have access to health care benefits.

Employees receive discounts on merchandise, may be eligible for free or discounted outdoor classes, and also receive a "Yay day" pass, entitling them to spend up to six hours outdoors for pay.

“At REI, we inspire, educate and outfit for a lifetime of outdoor adventure and stewardship.” -Jerry Stritzke

Jerry Stritzke highlights the correlation between conscious practices and profit: “When REI is doing well, we can do more for the outdoor community. As REI grows profitably, we can invest more in our people, in our members and in our nonprofit partners.”

On Black Friday 2015, REI closed all of its stores, halted the processing of orders on its website, and gave all employees a paid day off. Although Black Friday has been one of REI's top 10 days for annual sales, the company abstained from Black Friday and launched an #OptOutside marketing campaign, urging people to spend their time outside. REI is the first major retailer to forgo operations on Black Friday.

The Case: REI’s #OptOutside Campaign

USA Today news story

#OptOutside poster

REI CEO Message

Issue & Course of Action

In October, 2015, REI announced that it would close 143 stores, halt its website operations, and give each of its 12,000 employees a paid day off on Black Friday. REI aimed to start a new Black Friday tradition, encouraging people to forgo shopping to spend time outside instead. With the hashtag #OptOutside, REI also asked people to share what they were doing on Black Friday on social media. The company has built a dedicated #OptOutside website with resources on local hiking trails. Furthermore, REI encouraged other companies to join them in what they describe as a stand against the commercial madness that is characterized the day after Thanksgiving for at least a decade and a half.

For REI, Black Friday has consistently been a top 10 sales day. Stritzke acknowledged the business is taking a risk by closing, but he was more concerned with the message the company sends to consumers:

The thing that is powerful to me is this clearly is not a financially self-serving act. It's an act where we're really making a very clear statement about a set of values.

As such, according to CEO Jerry Stritzke, this new move aligns with REI's mission that "being outside makes our lives better.”

Taking such a stand is a bold step toward making REI visibly authentic as well. REI reported that 1 million Americans have participated in “opt outside” activities on Black Friday, many of them pledging to attend some of the 300 outdoor events listed as part of the campaign.

Furthermore, the #OptOutside campaign generated publicity and nationwide media coverage. USA Today praised the company for its bold step: “REI is taking direct aim at the frenzied consumerism that dominates the holidays with a message to do the exact opposite of what Black Friday demands. Forbes announced the news with the headline: “REI Shocks Retail World By Closing For Black Friday, Paying 12,000 Employees to Opt Outside” and noted that the company challenged “the shopping frenzy of, as their CEO puts it, ‘fighting it out in the aisle’.”

The next year in 2016, REI expanded the scale of the #OptOutside campaign and turned it into a well-developed movement. The company closed all 149 of its stores on Black Friday, processed no online sales and paid all 12,287 employees to take the day off and spend time outside instead. This time, more than 1.4 million people and 170 organizations joined the movement. The company explained the evolution in its blog Co-Op Journal:

Last year we started a movement for people to reconnect outdoors over the holidays. We closed on one of the most popular shopping days of the year, paid our 12,000+ employees to spend time outside, and invited America to join us. The response was overwhelmingly positive. More than 1.4 million people and 170 organizations chose to #OptOutside.

Consequences

REI continued its social media campaign with the hashtag #OptOutside and circulated a YouTube video. The company also actively asked other companies to join the #OptOutside campaign. In the second year, REI’s call to join the movement attracted both corporate and nonprofit as well as government organizations, including Subaru, Google, and National Park Services.

The #OptOutside campaign has also enhanced REI’s authentic brand voice and was well received by customers and employees. One customer wrote:

Customers expressed that they are getting a social good along with their purchase, in addition to the good and service received. The #OptOutside campaign started a social media conversation with millions of participants. It was praised and criticized alike. More than 275 organizations have joined REI in supporting the idea of going outside instead of shopping on Black Friday. The company announced that its revenue was not affected by the campaign. As conscious capitalists say REI’s #OptOutside movement is a “win-win-win” practice for people, planet, and profit.

Moral of the Story

Conscious capitalism is a useful way to think about the complex relationship between virtue and profits. Conscious business activities are desirable economically, socially, and environmentally, and ethically.

REI’s decision to close on Black Friday is an important test case for conscious capitalism. It is a brave and expensive decision in an industry that highly relies on this day for the bottom line purposes. Although REI has taken an economic risk, the company has made a strong statement about its values and enjoyed positive reaction from customers as well as employees. For many customers the company provides an “ethical and humane” alternative to the typical corporate model. It is important to note that REI is not a typical capitalist company. Because it is a co-op, it is less concerned about the bottom line, and investors, than its corporate publicly traded competitors.

Nevertheless, the decision highly resonates with customers’ desire to support an “authentic” brand whose values align with their own. From an ecosystem approach, Conscious capitalism attempts to philosophically realign free-market principles with progressive business practices by stressing the profit-making potential of responsible, ethical, and sustainable corporate behavior. The test of a truly conscious business is, thus, its ability to learn and grow from past experiences and emerging future, and to emerge even stronger and more committed to a conscious way of being.

Supplemental Visual Materials

REI closing on Black Friday for 1st time in push to #OptOutside. (November 17, 2015). USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2015/10/26/rei-closing-on-black-friday-for-first-time-in-its-history/74627872/

#OptOutside You Tube Video. http://blog.rei.com/news/optoutside-will-you-go-out-with-us/

Conscious Capitalism vs. Corporate Social Responsibility

Conscious capitalism differs from the traditional understanding of corporate social responsibility (CSR). Moving beyond implementing a local community program or creating a company foundation, a conscious business focuses on an ongoing process of self-awareness. The term “conscious business” implies that a business will seek to be aware of its impact on the world in various spheres, including social and environmental, and continues this inquiry over time. This includes its impact on a human’s inner and outer world as well as environmental well-being. In addition, a conscious business considers short-term and long-term effects of its actions or inactions.

Being conscious is a dynamic state. As such, a conscious business evolves in the ways in which it benefits the world. Therefore, though conscious businesses will be socially responsible, the term “conscious business” proposes larger connotations for the businesses’ actions than does social responsibility. Below is a table comparing conscious capitalism and CSR:

The distinctive contribution of conscious capitalism is that it is a more inclusive and holistic approach to understanding the complex relationship between business and society. It differs from other movements because it is rooted in an evolutionary change–the shift to greater levels of consciousness.

Conscious Businesses

Conscious businesses typically operate with low levels of employee turnover, thus saving on new employee hiring and training. For example, REI is passionate about reconnecting people with nature, and all of its employees are outdoor enthusiasts for whom every day at work is fulfilling because they get to share their passion with customers and help them explore nature.

Conscious businesses typically have to spend very little on marketing. This is because they have satisfied customers who are loyal and passionate advocates for the company. Whole Foods explains: “We want to meet or exceed customers’ expectations on every shopping trip. We know that by doing so we turn customers into advocates for our business. Advocates do more than shop with us, they talk about Whole Foods Market to their friends and others.”

Conscious businesses are very selective about their suppliers, looking for innovative, quality-focused companies that also operate in a conscious manner. Conscious companies that are positioned at a higher point in the price spectrum still offer value to customers, because of the quality of their offerings and the level of service experience that they provide. Examples of such companies include Whole Foods, The Container Store, and Starbucks.

Conscious capitalism is a comprehensive philosophy of doing business.

Conscious businesses have lower administrative costs because they continuously strive to eliminate additional expenses, gathering ideas from their employees and suppliers about how to do so. For example, Whole Foods Market is combating rising healthcare costs through a range of comprehensive employee wellness initiatives that go beyond what could be find at a typical company.

Conscious companies typically operate with much leaner management structures than do traditional businesses. They have created systems in which employees are given autonomy. Most employees operate in the “value zone,” where they are actively creating value for customers rather than “managing” each other. As such conscious businesses are designed to be self-organizing, self-motivating, and self-managing.

Although the conscious capitalism movement offers a holistic approach to understanding the role of business in society, it has received some criticism. Opponents argued that conscious capitalism is an oxymoron and question the ethical ground for capitalism. See O’Toole and Vogel (2011) for a comprehensive discussion of the shortcomings of conscious capitalism

The Conscious Capitalist Credo

Conscious capitalism claims to address the shortcomings of corporate capitalism as it is currently practiced. Thus, the movement offers the prospect of integrating greater social responsibility into mainstream business practices. The credo of conscious capitalism focuses on this philosophical realigning of free-market principles with progressive business practices.

The conscious capitalist credo

We believe that business is good because it creates value, it is ethical because it is based on voluntary exchange, it is noble because it can elevate our existence and it is heroic because it lifts people out of poverty and creates prosperity. Free enterprise capitalism is the most powerful system for social cooperation and human progress ever conceived. It is one of the most compelling ideas we humans have ever had. But we can aspire to do even more.

Conscious capitalism is a way of thinking about capitalism and business that better reflects where we are in the human journey, the state of our world today, and the innate potential of business to make a positive impact on the world. Conscious businesses are galvanized by higher purposes that serve, align, and integrate the interests of all their major stakeholders. Their higher state of consciousness makes visible to them the interdependencies that exist across all stakeholders, allowing them to discover and harvest synergies from situations that otherwise seem replete with trade-offs.

They have conscious leaders who are driven by service to the company’s purpose, all the people the business touches and the planet we all share together. Conscious businesses have trusting, authentic, innovative and caring cultures that make working there a source of both personal growth and professional fulfillment. They endeavor to create financial, intellectual, social, cultural, emotional, spiritual, physical and ecological wealth for all their stakeholders. 

Conscious businesses will help evolve our world so that billions of people can flourish, leading lives infused with passion, purpose, love and creativity; a world of freedom, harmony, prosperity and compassion.

www.ConsciousCapitalism.org

Conscious Capitalism: A Definition

Conscious capitalism is defined as an emerging economic system that “builds on the foundations of capitalism—voluntary exchange, entrepreneurship, competition, freedom to trade and the rule of law. These are essential to a healthy functioning economy, as are other elements of conscious capitalism including trust, compassion, collaboration, and value creation.

Conscious capitalism is ethically grounded free enterprise.

John Mackey, founder and co-CEO of Whole Foods Market, is the leading business proponent of conscious capitalism. Whole Foods Market, founded in 1980 in Austin, Texas and now consisting of 331 stores in the United States and the U.K., has embodied the ideals of conscious capitalism. The company has been listed as one of Fortune magazine’s "100 Best Companies to work for” and was in the The Wall Street Journal ranking of the world’s best corporate reputations.

Conscious capitalism has four pillars guiding a business for conducting socially responsible and ethical practices: purpose, stakeholder, culture, and leadership.

Higher purpose: This is the idea that every business has a purpose that goes beyond making money. “While making money is essential for the vitality and sustainability of a business, it is not the only or even the most important reason a business exists.” By focusing on its higher purpose, “a business may inspire, engage and energize its stakeholders.” Accordingly, a compelling sense of purpose creates a higher degree of engagement for all stakeholders and helps the generation and release of organizational energy.

Stakeholder orientation: This is the idea that life and the human foundations of business are independent, and a business needs to create value with and for its various stakeholders. Like the life forms in an ecosystem, healthy stakeholders lead to a healthy business system. Conscious businesses focus on their “whole business ecosystem, creating and optimizing value for all of their stakeholders.” This idea is represented by the acronym SPICE: society, partners, investors, customers, and employees. In turn, strong and engaged stakeholders lead to a healthy, sustainable, resilient business, creating a win-win-win proposition.

Conscious leadership: This is the idea that conscious leaders understand and embrace the higher purpose of business and focus on creating value for and harmonizing the interests of the business stakeholders. Driven primarily by service to the firm’s purpose, rather than by power or money, conscious leaders “inspire, foster transformation, and bring out the best in those around them.” They recognize the integral role of culture and purposefully cultivate conscious culture.

Conscious culture: This is the ethos – the values, principles, practices – underlying the social fabric of a business, which “permeates the atmosphere of a business and connects the stakeholders to each other and to the purpose, people and processes that comprise the company.” This idea is captured in the acronym TACTILE: trust, authenticity, caring, transparency, integrity, learning, and empowerment. The word “tactile” also suggests that the cultures of these companies are very tangible to their stakeholders as well as to outside observers.

TACTILE: trust, authenticity, caring, transparency, integrity, learning, and empowerment.

These four principles of conscious capitalism are mutually reinforcing. Companies that subscribe to the tenets of conscious capitalism may, in the long term, outperform other companies along multiple dimensions, including financial, while having greater beneficial impact on the world at large. For example, Patagonia has doubled the size of its operations and tripled its profitability.

This has occurred in spite of the company launching a marketing campaign that tells customers not to buy its clothes. Mackey argues that “while there is nothing wrong with making money, indeed it is absolutely necessary for the enterprise to flourish: it is not by itself a very inspiring purpose for the enterprise.” According to the conscious capitalism movement, business exchanges aggregated collectively are the greatest creator of value in the world and this value creation is the source of business virtue.

“Practicing conscious capitalism enriches your life and the lives of people you do business with. And it’s without a doubt, the most fun, enduring and profitable way to build a sustainable business.”
Kip Tindell, chairman & CEO, The Container Store, trustee, Conscious Capitalism, Inc.

Julianne Thomison

Diana Haslett

Lori McKinnon

Case Study: Flat Tummy (continued)

To demonstrate how an influencer can utilize the TARES test we will examine a controversial Instagram post made by Kim Kardashian West. In May of 2018, Kardashian West posted an ad for a hunger suppressant lollipop from the company Flat Tummy.

In this post, Kardashian West did include #ad. Although she was not criticized for product promotion, controversy arose over the product she endorsed. Backlash stemmed from followers accusing Kardashian West of perpetuating unhealthy dieting habits. Fellow influencer/actress Jameela Jamil responded to the post referring to Kardashian West as a “terrible and toxic influence on young girls” (Mahdawi, 2018). Kardashian West deleted the post.

This example showcases how FTC disclosure regulations are not enough to conclude whether an ad is ethical or not. It further illustrates how acting unethically can harm an influencer’s public image. To better understand the functionality of the TARES test we will walk through the process by considering the above ad. As with all ethical dilemmas, your reasoning may differ from others.

The advertisement is not truthful in its claim to provide users with a flatter tummy. A Harvard medical school professor told the Guardian that “dietary supplements sold for detox or weight loss are snake oil, plain and simple” (Wong, 2018).

Ethical Implications of Fake News for PR Professionals

Effects of Advertising (continued)

Consumers

Supporters of native advertising claim that a reasonable person should be able to identify native advertising from authentic content (Schauster, Ferrucci, & Neill, 2016). However, studies have shown that a majority of people are unable to correctly identify it even with proper disclosure. (Wojdynski & Evans, 2015, Hyman et al., 2017).

A national study of college advertising students found that one-in-four could not correctly identify “sponsored content” as advertising. This study also found “one-fifth of students misidentified legitimate news articles as advertising” (Fullerton, McKinnon, & Kendrick, 2020, pg.14). For the general population these numbers are more concerning with one study reporting 92 percent of adults studied were not able to correctly identify paid content from non-paid content (Wojdynski and Evans, 2016).

This misidentification can be particularly troubling considering a Pew Research survey found that young adults (18-29 years) rated social media as their preferred platform for news consumption compared to TV, radio, and print (Shearer, 2018). By using social media platforms as their primary news source, the younger generations may be particularly vulnerable to native advertisements (Nee, 2019).

Effects of Advertising

Company

Utilizing native advertisements is a successful and profitable investment for brands (Boland, 2016). Sharethrough (2018), a native advertising agency, published a report with Interpublic Group indicating native advertisements were looked at 25 percent more often than traditional banner ads. Also, by placing ads natively, advertisers are gaining the perceived authority of the source (Conill, 2016).

In regards to brand attitude toward the sponsor, Sweetser et al. (2016) found that awareness of the content being advertising did not negatively impact the perceived trustworthiness of the sponsor.  Although this attitude is dependent on the quality of the content within the advertisement.

Medium

The biggest impact native advertising holds for the mediums presenting it is gained ad revenue. Native advertisements are predicted to take up more than 74 percent of all advertising revenue by 2021 (Boland, 2016).

However, the use of native advertising may have a negative impact on the credibility of the medium particularly a print or news source (Cameron & Ju-Pak, 2000). The Society of Professional Journalists code of ethics (2019) states journalists should act independently and “deny favored treatment to advertisers.” The code of ethics goes on to highlight the importance of “distinguishing news from advertising and shun hybrids that blur the lines between the two.” As sponsored content by definition is the blurring of the lines between editorial content and advertisements, its ethicacy may be called into question. 

Schauster et al. (2016) took a qualitative look at professionals in the fields of journalism, public relations, and advertising to gauge their professional opinions on native advertising. The researchers found that while their participants believed native advertising to be a necessity in the financial sustainability of the modern news model, professionals in the field found it overall unethical.

Conill (2016) further points out that by placing ads natively, advertisers are gaining the perceived authority of the source. However, it is surmised that there is a distinct difference between source credibility and message credibility. If this distinction between message and source credibility can be made by consumers, it could aid the discussion that disclosure is sufficient in differentiating advertisements from editorial content (Appleman & Sundar, 2016).

Disclosure (continued)

One thing to note when discussing disclosure placement is the concept of banner blindness. Banner blindness occurs when a web user overlooks what they perceive to be advertisements (Hsieh, Chen, & Ma, 2012). Benway (1998) theorized that users ignore banner ads because they are associated with unimportant information or “fluff.” If banner blindness can be attributed to advertisement disclosure, it may relate to how users misidentify sponsored and editorial content.

Examples of Disclosure

Lesson 2: Assessment

Discussion (continued)

It is also important to consider recommendations from public relations professionals who have maneuvered the fake news environment. Through interviews with 21 public relations professionals in agencies and corporations, Ewing and Lambert (2019) developed strategic recommendations for combating online fake news attacks.

First, practitioners should have a contingency plan. If ever the subject of fake news coverage, it is better to have developed a strategic response strategy in advance. Research also revealed that during a fake news crisis, practitioners should engage with online influencers. Although this may seem counterintuitive, online influencer hold significant power. Thus, engaging influencers may aid practitioners in shaping the online conversation.

Ewing and Lambert (2019) offer the following ideas for online engagement:

1. Build goodwill in advance
2. Inspire advocacy
3. Correct false information
4. Be responsive and transparent
5. Integrate media relations and social media strategies

Their findings also suggest that listening to stakeholders is a key factor in preparing for a fake news crises. Taking a proactive approach, practitioners should listen for potential issues, to identify influencers, and to include diverse perspectives.

Discussion Questions

1. Compare and contrast the different types fake news.
2. Reflect on your own experiences and encounters with fake news stories. Think of an instance for each level of fake news and analyze their individual public relations approach.
3. Of all the Page Principles, which do you think is the most important ethical value for public relation professionals to uphold and why?
4. With future technological developments, do you anticipate that fake news will become more or less of a problem?
5. How can a client avoid being the focus of fake news?
6. How can public relations professionals manage fake news crises?

Discussion

The spread of satire, parody, manipulation, fabrication, and propaganda is likely inevitable in modern society. Indeed, social media plays a large part in its imminent spread.

News is no longer simply reported by journalists or distributed by public relation professionals. The audience is also an active participant in creating and sharing news. Unfortunately, fake news stories gain power as misinformation and disinformation are spread. Practitioners need to be aware of the potential for fake news coverage and should consider ways to manage and combat fake news.

During a fake news crisis, practitioners should keep in mind the Page Principles to guide their ethical reasoning and strategic recommendations. 

Case Study – Fake News Dissemination: Pizzagate (continued)

Pizzagate Case Background

Just before the Presidential Election in 2016, a man walked into a pizza parlor and fired gunshots. While no one was injured, this incident happened because of false information being shared online.

A conspiracy theory circulated on social networking sites which claimed the Comet Ping Pong restaurant, located in Washington D.C., was hiding a child prostitution ring run by Hillary Clinton and her campaign manager. This case study will examine fake news dissemination through an article published by The New York Times, written by Aisch, Huang and Kang (2016). The authors developed a step-by-step timeline briefly explaining how the fake news spreads.

Consequences

In many cases, when people ignore fake news, it spreads. However, this case study proves that fake news can still result in tangible actions. (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018). Thus, fake news can have consequences. The spread of this particular disinformation threatened much more than just a brands reputation, it put lives at risk.

James Alefantis, Comet Ping Pong’s owner, blamed the unfortunate event on the individuals who took part in spreading false information. He said in a statement to The New York Times, “I hope that those involved in fanning these flames will take a moment to contemplate what happened here today and stop promoting these falsehoods right away” (Aisch, Huang & Kang, 2016).

Discussion Questions

1. Who should be blamed for the spread of fake news?
2. After reflecting about the extreme consequences from the spread of fake news exhibited by the Pizzagate scandal, do you think that the accusations of disinformation went too far?
3. At what point, if any, should the spread of false information be stopped?
4. How would you recommend that Comet Ping Pong respond to guard their reputation?
5. What should the Democratic Party have done to respond to the false allegations?

Case Study – Fake News Dissemination: Pizzagate

Dissemination

A convergence of factors in today’s digital society has resulted in a range of challenges involving the origin, dissemination, veracity and effects of many types of messaging including news, “fake” news, sponsored blog posts and native advertising, to name a few. 

Contributing to these challenges are the relative ease of individual self-publishing online, the re-dissemination of messages by both individuals and organizations, the speed at which information is circulated and the blurring of age-old lines between advertising and editorial staffs – historically, “church and state” (Conill, 2016). These factors can compound the difficulty of determining the source, intent, and accuracy of much of what is consumed on the Internet and in social media.

If “fake news” is false, or only partly true, how does it spread? As simple as it sounds, sometimes people don’t realize what is real or what is fake. In fact, a Pew Research Center survey found that 23 percent of Americans say they have shared fake news whether that be knowingly or not (Mitchell, Holcomb, & Barthel, 2016).

Yet the spread of fake news stories, despite anyone’s underlying intentions, are contributing to a growing dissemination of falsehoods. Therefore, it is no wonder that 64 percent of U.S. adults blame fake news stories for confusion surrounding basic facts about politics or events in the country (Mitchell, Holcomb, & Barthel, 2016).

Social media networking sites have completely changed how fake news is spread. The leading networking site, Facebook, with well over 1 billion users, now is said to contribute to providing news to 44 percent of the population (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018). While the platform is enjoyed for its instantaneous connections and free flowing information, unfortunately, many users have participated in the spread of fake news stories.

In fact, a BuzzFeed News analysis found that Facebook trended more top news stories, before the 2016 presidential election, even over its major news counterparts including The New York Times, Washington Post, Huffington Post, NBC News, and others (Silverman, 2016). Unfortunately, one of those high-profile stories was Pizzagate.

Propaganda

Finally, the last type of fake news is propaganda. Scholars define this kind of disinformation as “news stories which are created by a political entity to influence public perceptions” (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018, p. 146). It’s important to highlight the fact that propaganda often may have some plausible truth to it; however, the information is paired with strong political bias intended to persuade those who read and, or, see the presented information. (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018).

While propaganda is not commonly seen throughout the United States due to our freedoms and democratic run government, it is still a type of fake news that communicators should be able to recognize.

For example, the world has been upended by the global pandemic caused by the COVID-19 virus in 2020. Yet, the concern surrounding the virus turned from being just a medical issue to a political one.

The New York Times reported that the Chinese government had created several thousands of fake Twitter accounts in order to spread disinformation online about the coronavirus and where it initially began. Many of the social media stories claimed that the virus originated in the United States. The propaganda filled messages gained lots of traction online and resulted in a large number of retweets and likes.

In response to the widespread disinformation, Twitter took down roughly 150,000 fake accounts purposely trying to “amplify China’s leading envoys and state-run news outlets” claimed The New York Time’s article (Conger, 2020).

As time went on, government entities, news organizations, and the public became more aware of how the virus actually came to spread. As a result, the false Twitter accounts shifted their messaging in March of 2020 and began comparing the response initiatives between the United States and China. Specifically, China was referred to as the “responsible big country” in comparison to the United States who was called on to “put aside political bias,” according to The New York Times (Conger, 2020).

In response to the fake Twitter accounts, a statement was issued from the director of the International Cyber Policy Center, Fergus Hanson, who directly worked alongside the social media company to put an end to the propaganda. “Persistent, covert and deceptive influence operations like this one demonstrate the extent to which the party-state will target external threats to its political power,” Hanson said (Conger, 2020).

Manipulated Content-False Connection

While fabrication is 100 percent false, the next type of fake news actually has some truth to it. Manipulation can be described as news stories that use “real images or videos to create a false narrative” according to the scholars Tandoc, Lim & Ling (2018, p. 144). Despite there being some truth, using an adaption of imagery to sensationalize a story still misleads consumers by developing a false connection.

 

One example of manipulated content was an incident that widely become known as “kids in cages.” Photos taken by The Associated Press in 2014 were published with an article discussing Trump’s immigration story claiming that the administration had “lost track of nearly 1,500 immigrant children” according to the AP. The story trended on social media and grabbed the attention of many due to its particularly compelling images of kids confined behind what looks like a fence. One tweet, by Antonio Villaraigosa, the LA mayor, wrote “Speechless. This is not who we are as a nation” (Flaherty & Woodward, 2018).

The compelling photo was in fact real and Trump’s immigration policies were reported accurately; however, the photo placed next to the news story manipulated the content to indicate differently. In response to these allegations, President Donald Trump himself tweeted, “Democrats mistakenly tweet 2014 pictures from Obama’s term showing children from the border in steel cages. They thought it was recent pictures in order to make us look bad, but backfires” (Flaherty & Woodward, 2018).

While there may be some truth to manipulated content, the falsehoods overshadow otherwise important facts or information. Given that Trump popularized the term “fake news” in the wake of the presidential election, incidents that question the credibility of otherwise trusted sources continue to contribute to the lack of believability from consumers. If something is only somewhat true, then it is still fake news.

Fabricated Content/Imposter Content (continued)

It is important to realize that it is not just the public who can be misled by entirely false information. Unfortunately, sometimes credible news outlets are fooled and often they may not realize it until it is too late.

One instance, referred to as Rathergate, demonstrates just how strong fabricated messages can be. In 2004, Dan Rather, a journalist for CBS, presented six documents during an episode of the broadcast TV show, “60 Minutes.” The files being discussed, known as the Killian documents, contained information about President Bush’s service in the Texas Air National Guard (Rutenberg and Zernike, 2004). The news was believed until only two months before the presidential election happened. Breaking news reported that CBS failed to factcheck the documents before broadcasting it to the public.

It was later learned that the Killian documents were not written on a typewriter in 1973, but instead created on Microsoft Word (Rutenberg and Zernike, 2004). The experts suggest it would have been impossible to develop such a document that many years before.

In response to the allegations, Andrew Heyward, the CBS President said, “We should not have used them. That was a mistake, which we deeply regret," according to an article written by The New York Times by Rutenberg and Zernike.

Additionally, Rather, the CBS reporter, also gave a personal statement regarding the fake news story that got him fired. He writes, "I want to say personally and directly I'm sorry" (Rutenberg & Zernike, 2004). This is just an example of how powerfully persuasive messaging can be. Often, timing is a key factor to the spread of political fake news stories. One might only image how the courses of history would have changed if the files were not declared as yet another believable “fake news” story.

Fabricated Content/Imposter Content

While satire and parody play on humorous attacks, this first level of “fake news” does not require immediate attention due to its widely acknowledged entertainment value. However, this next level of fake news, fabrication, requires a different response due to its lack of facticity and intent to deceive.

This type of information has no factual basis; however, the stories are presented or “published in the style of news articles to create legitimacy,” and often are believed to be a trustworthy source because partisan organizations often present information with some neutrality (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018, p. 143).

According to the scholars, Tandoc, Lim and Ling (2018) research acknowledges that this type of information is often spread for the purpose of financial gain or now, more frequently, by artificial intelligence online sources.

On May 1, 2019, newspapers, appearing identical to The Washington Post, were distributed on the streets in Washington D.C. The headline, “Unpresidented,” appeared in large bold letters alongside a story which claims President Trump resigned from office. According to one of The Washington Post reports, the purpose of the newspaper was to show “the future and how we got there — like a road map for activists,” said Jacques Servin, a leader of the initiative  (Heil & Farhi, 2019). The article also points out that the collection of fabricated materials cost nearly $40,000 to print and distribute which signifies the level of planned intention and commitment of spreading disinformation (Heil & Farhi, 2019).

In response to the distribution of look-alike newspapers, The Washington Post took immediate action by issuing a disclaimer warning that the paper was not legitimate on their Twitter account, “Washington Post PR.”

This was an important effort by public relations professionals because they shined light on the spread of disinformation as quickly as possible before releasing an official response. Later on, a spokeswoman Kris Coratti, responded by writing, “We will not tolerate others misrepresenting themselves as The Washington Post, and we are deeply concerned about the confusion it causes among readers. We are seeking to halt further improper use of our trademarks” (Heil & Farhi, 2019). While communication professionals may not have the ability to stop fake news stories from happening, implementing an instant response, by utilizing social media, can quickly stop false information, as fast as it is being shared.

Satire and Parody (continued)

It is important to note that studies include satire and parody under the category of fake news because of their formatting. Unlike other types of misinformation, satire and parody have no intention to cause harm which significantly separates the two from other types of fake news. Because of this, there is some controversy surrounding the spread of this type of information. On one hand, scholars like Tandoc, Lim and Ling (2018) claim humorous articles and trendy social media headlines can help people become aware of cultural events.

Yet, at the same time, research also proves that satire and parody sites can have a strong influence on a person’s belief system and may be more persuasive than people might think (Tandoc, Lim and Ling, 2018). When criticized for encouraging “fake” satirical sites, like The Babylon Bee, by mainstreamed journalists, The Babylon Bee’s Editor in Chief, Kyle Mann, responds to his critics, ironically, through satire (Andros, 2020).

Satire and Parody

Content that typically makes fun of news programs and uses humor to engage with their audience members can be classified as news satire (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018). Often, the overall intent of spreading this type of information is to provide entertainment by suggesting humorous critiques of political or pop cultural events.

For example, Saturday Night Live’s “Weekend Update” is an example of a highly appraised fictitious news program that uses satire to poke fun at current events. While still categorized as “fake news,” satirical information does not come from journalists, but rather comedians or entertainers (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018).

While similar to satire, parody is another type of fake news. The difference between the two is simply a function of how the humor is used. “Instead of providing direct commentary on current affairs through humor, parody plays on the ludicrousness of issues and highlights them by making up entirely fictitious news stories,” according to the scholars, Tandoc, Lim and Ling (2018). Specifically, political parody outlets capitalize on the “vague plausibility of the news item” (p. 142). The Babylon Bee is a leading parody site where they claim the motto, “totally inerrant in all its truth claims.”

Types of Fake News

Lesson 1 provided an in-depth look at one of the most pervasive types of fake news: native advertising. With native advertising, the persuasive message content is generated by the client. Thus, native advertising and other sponsored content allows strategic communicators the opportunity to shape the media content.

Lesson 2 focuses on the remaining types of fake news: satire, news parody, fabrication, manipulation and propaganda (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018). With these types of fake news, the organization does not create the editorial content. Instead, it is often the target of the messages created by a third-party source.

Therefore, public relations professionals must understand the types of “fake news” that could potentially threaten their clients or stakeholders.

From a public relations perspective, it is important to consider fake news types focusing on both facticity and level of deception.

By examining fake news stories, as well as strategic responses, PR professionals can understand how to successfully and ethically respond to fake news stories.

While the ultimate goal of news coverage may differ for journalists and public relational practitioners, both professions operate under the same ethical principle of telling the truth.

However, truth, itself, is now at odds with a cultural shift where people often associate news with the word “fake.” Despite the lack of an agreement upon definition and the various types of fake news, the phenomenon has critical implications for the functioning of a democratic society, press freedom, individual citizens and professional communicators.

Fake News Content

A convergence of factors in today’s digital society has resulted in a range of challenges involving the origin, dissemination, veracity, and effects of many types of messaging. Contributing to these challenges are the relative ease of self-publishing online, the re-dissemination of messages by both individuals and organizations, the speed at which information is circulated, and the blurring of lines between advertising and editorial content (Conill, 2016).

These factors often compound the difficulty of determining the source, the intent, and the accuracy of information consumed. While the ultimate goal of news coverage may differ for journalists and public relational practitioners, both professions operate under the same ethical principle of telling the truth. However, truth, itself, is now at odds with a cultural shift where people often associate news with the word “fake.”

With truth called into question, the definitions of fake news vary. Legal analysts confine the definition to “online publication of intentionally or knowingly false statements of fact” (Klein & Wueller, 2017, p. 2), while other scholars include political “spin,” propaganda, and native advertising (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018). 

Fullerton, McKinnon and Kendrick (2020) conclude that “fake news” includes content that may be misleading, sensationalized or deliberately false.

 

Indeed, “fake news” is a very broad term. To develop a typology, Tandoc, Lim, and Ling (2018), reviewed 34 academic articles focusing on “fake news” that includes six categories: news satire, news parody, fabrication, manipulation, advertising, and propaganda.

Often the contributing factor to understanding fake news is the content’s motivation. While it may seem obvious to distinguish credible news from “fake news” stories, it is not. Results from a 2016 Buzzfeed survey found that “fake news headlines fool American adults about 75% of the time” (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018, p. 137). Fake news stories may be more obvious to the audience, such as humorous stories trending on social media.

However, fake news also may be advertising that is strategically crafted to look like editorial content while promoting a more meaningful agenda (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018). Despite the lack of agreement upon  “fake news” definitions and categorization, the phenomenon has critical implications for the functioning of a democratic society, press freedom, professional communicators and individual citizens.

Lesson 2: Fake News Content

President Donald Trump popularized the term “fake news,” using it to describe negative news coverage during the campaign and after his 2016 election.  After Trump’s inauguration ceremony, media disputed whether the audience size was accurately reflected in his description of the enormous crowd. Responding to the inauguration coverage, Press Secretary Kellyanne Conway coined the term “alternative facts” (Fandos, 2017). 

Since Trump took office, his accusations of “fake news” coverage have increased and his description of what is “fake” has expanded. According to Keith (2018), Trump’s tweets about news that he deems “fake,” “phoney,” or “fake news” has increased both in scope and frequency. These tweets reference “fake books,” “fake dossier,” “Fake CNN,” and “fudged news reports.” An NPR Analysis of Trump’s tweets found that he included the words “fake news” in 389 posts (Keith, 2018). Not only has media content been called into question, but trusted news organizations have been labeled as “fake news” providers.

Lesson 1 Assessment

Case Study (continued): Authenticity

Authenticity refers to the persuader's use and honest belief in the product. While the Instagram ad does depict Kardashian West with the lollipop in her mouth there is no indication that it is a product she uses on a regular basis.

An anonymous staffer from Flat Tummy who helped direct influencers on their Instagram photos alluded that they did not expect influencers to actually use the product they were promoting (Wong, 2018). It can be argued that by not being a genuine user of the product, Kardashian West is not showing due respect to her followers.

Regarding equity, there was an imbalance between knowledge presented in the ad when compared with knowledge the buyer would need to make an informed decision about purchasing the product.

Social responsibility can also be questioned in this ad. Critics of the ad pointed out that the timing of the ad being posted during Mental Health Awareness Week was especially troubling (Mahdawi, 2018). An estimated 20 million women and 10 million men in America have struggled with an eating disorder according to the National Eating Disorders Association (2019). Ads such as those for Flat Tummy lollipops perpetuate an unhealthy and irresponsible view of body expectations (Wong, 2018).

In this case, it also is important to consider the difference between law and ethics. The post followed FTC disclosure guidelines and was therefore legal. Instagram does have policies in place to lessen the inclusion of ads that may show a negative self-image (specifically warns against before/after photos and zoomed body parts) in order to sell health, fitness, or weight loss products. However, the policies apply only to paid Instagram advertisements.

The policies do not apply to the Kardashian West post and to other posts from paid endorsers (Wong, 2018). Today, the Instagram “flattummyco” has 1.7 million followers. In its rise to success, it has focused the majority of its marketing efforts on social media (Wong, 2018). Although Kardashian West, suffered backlash from the initial Flat Tummy lollipop post, she and her sisters have since endorsed other Flat Tummy products, including Flat Tummy shakes and Flat Tummy tea. With the subsequent posts, online backlash also has followed (Nzengung, 2019; Zollner, 2020). It is the questioned unethical actions, not legal infringement, that has caused backlash for the Kardashians as Flat Tummy endorsements. Although the sponsored posts are legal, the application of the TARES test may indicate they are not necessarily ethical.

Discussion Questions

1. If Kardashian West put her decision to post about the Flat Tummy lollipop through the TARES test, would she have realized the ethical questionability of the company?
2. Would she have decided to promote the product?
3. Would she have experienced the backlash and harm to her public image?
4. What would you have advised Kardashian West to do in this case?

Case Study: Flat Tummy

One of most successful forms of native advertising is the use of social media influencers to promote products on social media sites. An influencer is defined as an individual with a large social media following who uses that clout to persuade people to purchase products or services (Kirwan, 2018).

Influencers are generally considered to have an expertise in a field in which their followers share an interest such as fashion or food (Hall, 2016). This perceived expertise gives the influencer a greater effect in persuading their followers.

Instagram, the photo sharing social media application created in 2010, has grown its user base to include a recorded 37 percent of Americans in 2019 with 67 percent of those users being between the ages of 18-29 years, according to a Pew Research survey (2019).

Advertisers have successfully moved into this space by utilizing influencers. Ninety-four percent of marketers found influencer ads to be successful, providing 11 times the rate of investment when compared to traditional advertisements (Ahmed, 2018). In 2016, 40 percent of Twitter users reported that they had purchased something based off an influencer’s tweet (Karp, 2016).

One aspect making influencer marketing so successful is that influencer ads are considered to be more authentic than traditionally branded ads (Talavera, 2015). Furthermore, Swant (2016) found that people rate influencer opinion equal to that of their friends.

Credibility is an important factor for influencers as it directly impacts their ability to persuade their followers (Hall, 2016). Lou and Yuan (2019) found that influencers' trustworthiness or credibility resulted in more positive thoughts toward the brands the influencers were promoting. To enhance credibility, many brands pay celebrity endorsers to advertise their product.

According to Wong (2018), the Kardashians are reported to collect six-figure payments for their sponsored Instagram posts.

Social Responsibility and Ethical Decision Making

Baker (1999) explained that a communicator must consider their responsibility to the community over that of their raw self-interest. Self-interest in this context includes profits and career success.  The common good in social responsibility signifies that, as persuaders are members of the community, the overall benefit to the community should be examined when creating persuasive messages (Baker & Martinson, 2001). Moyers (1999) argues that persuaders are a privileged voice in society and as such share a responsibility to improve and not hinder the communal well-begin. Persuaders should consider social responsibility on both the macro and micro levels. They must consider how each message will affect an individual and group and balance that information in order to create a message that positively impacts society (Baker & Martinson, 2001).

To measure the social responsibility of a message ask yourself the following questions:

Does this message help or hinder public trust? (Bok, 1989)

Does this message allow for consideration of opposing views? (Moyers, 1999)

Does this message create the opportunity for public dialogues? (Cunningham, 2000)

Will having, or not having, this information lead to harm for individuals or groups? (Fitzpatrick & Gauthier, 2000)

Have the messages’ potential negative impacts been taken into account (Baker & Martinson, 2001)

Does this message unfairly depict groups, individuals, ideas or behaviors? (Baker & Martinson, 2001)

 

Balancing the Elements of the TARES Test

It is important to note that at times the elements within the TARES test may conflict with one another. This conflict results in an ethical dilemma. Kidder (2009) defined an ethical dilemma as a ‘right-versus-right’ decision. With any ethical decision-making situation, there is not always a clear correct answer. For instance, when being truthful can negatively impact the public, an ethical dilemma occurs, calling for the need to question the social responsibility of the piece.

In ethical decision making there is not always a clear answer. The TARES test is designed to start a conversation in order to make the messenger consider the ethical implications of the message. Each element should be compared and weighed against the overall good versus the overall evil of the message and the potential ramifications of the message.

Respect and Equity

Respect for the Persuadee

Respecting the persuadee means the persuader does not see the persuadee simply as a means to the end of selling their product or idea, but rather that the persuader considers the ramifications of any messaging on the persuadee and the public at large (Baker & Martinson, 2001). The well-being of the persuadee must be called into question and considered in any form of messaging so that the persuadee may make a well-informed, uncoerced choice. This concept goes back to the idea that the results of the action are equally important as the action itself.

Asking yourself the following questions will aid you in insuring you are treating the intended persuadees with respect as consumers and individuals:

Does this message allow persuadee to act with free-will and consent? (Cunningham, 2000)

Does this message pander to or exploit its audience? (Baker & Martinson, 2001)

Have I taken the rights, and well-being of others into consideration with the creation of this message?  (Baker & Martinson, 2001)

Will the audience benefit if they engage in the action the message portrays? (Baker & Martinson, 2001)

Does the information adequately inform the audience? (Cunningham, 2000)

Is the message unfair or to the detriment of the audience?  (Baker & Martinson, 2001)

 

Equity of the Persuasive Appeal

In the TARES test, the terms equity and fairness are used interchangeably. Equity refers to the balance of treating each persuadee with the same level of respect and concern. Persuasive appeals must not unjustly target a demographic without the ability to comprehend the message or exploit vulnerable populations. Exploitation refers both to the message itself and the motivations of the persuader. The TARES test specifically tasks communicators to examine their messaging, not only from their own perspective, but also to consider the intended audience to determine if the message is equitable (Baker & Martinson, 2001).

Asking yourself the following questions will help to determine if the message is equitable to all involved and to those targeted:

Will the audience understand they are being persuaded not informed? (Baker & Martinson, 2001)

Have I unfairly targeted a specific or vulnerable population? (Patterson & Wilkins, 2014)

Would I feel this message was equitable if presented to me or someone I love? (Baker & Martinson, 2001)

Does this message exploit a power differential? (Gauthier, 2000)

Does the message take into account the special needs or interests of the target population? (Cooper & Kelleher, 2000)

How can I make this message more equitable?

Truthfulness and Authenticiy

Truthfulness of the Message

Trust is essential in the field of public relations and presenting misleading information or misrepresenting information breaks that trust. In order to maintain trust, it is important that public relations professionals be truthful in their messages. Truth in this context does not mean only literal truth, but also conceptual, complete, unobstructed truth (Baker & Martinson, 2001).

To determine if a message is expressing the full complete truth, ask yourself the following questions about the message you are crafting:

Has the message deemphasized important information? (Baker & Martinson, 2001)

Does the message represent the whole, complete truth? Was information left out in order to misdirect the persuadee? (Deaver, 1990)

Would I feel the message were complete if given to me in the provided context? (Baker & Martinson, 2001)

Does the message lead people to believe what I myself do not believe? (Bok, 1989)

Is the information withheld critical in allowing the persuadee to make an informed decision? (Fitzpatrick & Gauthier, 2000)

Does the message deceive people either explicitly or implicitly? (Bok, 1989)

 

Authenticity of the Persuader

The TARES test focuses on the responsibility the communicator carries in developing messaging. As such the authenticity of the persuader must be called into question. When crafting messaging, you must evaluate your own motivations, loyalties, and attitudes regarding the message (Baker & Martinson, 2001).  In order for the persuader to be authentic in their actions, they must believe in the product or idea they are communicating to the public

To explore your own authenticity on a matter ask yourself the following questions:

Do I personally believe in this product? (Baker & Martinson, 2001)

Do I personally believe the persuadee will benefit? (Baker & Martinson, 2001)

By putting out this message am I perpetuating corruption? (Martinson, 1999)

Is this cause or product something I would personally advocate for? (Baker & Martinson, 2001)

In participating in this action is my integrity being called into question? (Baker & Martinson, 2001)

Am I happy to take responsibility for this message? (Waltz, 1999)

The TARES Test

An important part of ethical decision making is the ability to defend your choices. To aid in this process, we will examine the TARES test as a guide for making and defending ethical choices. The TARES test was developed by Baker and Martinson (2001) to focus on five principles for ethical persuasion. This framework functions under the theory of utilitarianism, which maintains that the results of an action are equally important to the action itself when evaluating its ethicality (Patterson, Wilkins, & Painter, 2019).

TARES is an acronym for truthfulness (of the message), authenticity (of the persuader), respect (for the persuadee), equity (of the persuasive appeal), and social responsibility (for the common good). These attributes are echoed throughout varies codes of ethics in the communication field including that of the Public Relations Society of America.

 

Disclosure

Wojdynski and Evans (2016) pinpoint two distinct factors that are required for successful disclosure of sponsored content. First, consumers must notice the disclosure itself. Second, consumers must comprehend what that disclosure means in reference to the content they engaged with.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) mandates every paid post be disclosed with language such as “#ad,” “sponsored content,” and “paid content.”  It further demands that disclosures be:

• In clear and unambiguous language
• As close as possible to the native ads to which they relate
• In a font and color that’s easy to read
• In a shade that stands out against the background

*for more information regarding FTC native advertising disclosure go here

However, it is important to note that law and ethics are not the same. Law stresses what you must do, while ethics considers what you ought to do. 

Disclosure language can impact an individual’s ability to correctly identify the content as advertising. With a variety of disclosure language utilized, consumer confusion and their inability to correctly identify native advertising may occur even when disclosure is present. Disclosure language that has been tested to have the greatest correct identification include: “paid ad,” “paid content,” “this content was paid for by,” “paid post,” and “ad” (Hyman et al., 2017). While other terms such as “brand voice” have been used by online publishers such as Forbes, they are not as readily identified as native advertising (Moore, 2014).  Disclosure language, size and placement is important in signaling to the reader what they are viewing is an advertisement.

Trust

Persuasive communicators should consider ethical issues on both the macro and micro levels. Without considering the ethical impact, the overall distrust of communicators may increase. Baker and Martinson (2001) explain that the public exhibits distrust in communicators “because they fear those in the field do not respect them as individuals and are interested only in achieving immediate and narrowly defined self-interest goals or objectives” (p. 165). 

To build trust with the community and to get the most out of persuasive messaging is of high importance to communicators. It is to the benefit of public relations professionals, the organizations they represent, and society as a whole to consider ethical issues when crafting native advertisements.

Lesson 1: Native Advertising

Native advertising is defined as “any paid advertising that takes the specific form and appearance of editorial content from the publisher itself,” (Wojdynski & Evens, 2016, p. 157). In essence, native advertising is the use of advertisements which are disguised as authentic content. Fullerton, McKinnon, and Kendrick (2020) define fake news as content that is intentionally misleading, sensationalized, or deliberately false.

Native advertising mimics the look and feel of authentic content and falls under the umbrella of fake news.

One of the most common forms of native advertising is that of sponsored content. Ikonen, Luoma-aho, and Bowen (2016) describe sponsored content as a hybrid between advertising and journalism. Companies pay content providers to create articles which paint their product, service or idea in a positive light and then place those sponsored articles within the context of the independently written editorial medium. “It is about creating content that is so appealing that the potential customer wants to enjoy it, unlike advertising which is generally just disliked and skipped” (Lehto & Moisala, 2018, p. 3).

For sponsored content to be successful, the articles must look real. However, because the advertisements look like real articles, the audience may be deceived into thinking it is a credible editorial, not an advertisement (Schauster, Ferrucci, & Neill, 2016).

Making the Business Case for Diversity

Some researchers point out that while improving diversity is the right thing to do from a moral or ethical perspective, it also is essential from a business perspective. Diversity in the public relations workplace can help stakeholders such as employees, shareholders, and customers.

But the bottom line is this: The more diverse a company is, the more money it is likely to earn.
A 2018 McKinsey&Company study involving over 1,000 companies in 12 countries found the following regarding profitability and economic profit margins:

• Companies ranking in the top quarter for gender diversity at the executive level were 21 percent more likely to outperform their peers on profitability, and 27 percent more likely to have excellent economic profit margins.
• Companies with the same ranking for having ethnically and culturally diverse executive teams were 33 percent more likely to lead their industry on profitability. The report further suggested that including other diverse people, such as people with international experience, individuals from different ages, and members of the LGBTQ+ community, could enhance the company’s bottom line.

Regarding LGBTQ+, research shows that companies are embracing diversity among that population. For the first time, 686 of the nation's leading companies and law firms earned a perfect score of 100 for their LGBTQ policies and practices, according to the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2020 Corporate Equality Index (CEI), which measures inclusion in the workplace. Those organizations had an estimated $12 trillion in revenue, with 12.4 million workers in the United States and 11.9 million around the world, according to the CEI.

Multicultural buying power

Another way to make the business case for diversity is to research and understand the economic impact that people of color -- Hispanics, Blacks, Asians, and Native Americans -- make on society through their buying power. In the Multicultural Economy (2018), Jeffrey M. Humphreys of the Selig Center for Economic Growth defines buying power as after-tax personal income for all spending, excluding money borrowed or previously saved. The combined buying power of these racial and ethnic groups was projected to grow faster than the white market.

Humphreys suggested that “as the U.S. consumer market becomes more diverse, advertising, products, and media must be tailored to each market segment” (p. 4).

• Hispanic buying power is projected to be $1.9 trillion by 2023. Mexicans are the largest subgroup and represent over half of the buying power, followed by Puerto Ricans, Central Americans, South Americans, and Cubans.
• Black buying power is estimated to be $1.5 trillion by 2023. Part of that has to do with more Blacks becoming more educated, which could result in higher-paying occupations, according to Humphreys. Because they are much younger, Black consumers increasingly are seen as trendsetters for teens and young adults.
• Asian buying power is forecasted to be $1.3 trillion by 2023, Chinese (except Taiwanese) are the largest subgroup but are second to Asian Indians in buying power, followed by Filipino, Korean, and Vietnamese people. Chinese are the largest subgroup of Asians, who are younger and better educated than the average American.
• Native American buying power is predicted to be $136 billion by 2023.

In summary, Hispanics’ buying power will account for 11.2 percent of the U.S. total, while the combined buying power of Blacks, Asians, and Native Americans is expected to account for 17.5 percent.

Starbucks and Black Lives Matter

Angela Chitkara (2019) noted that millennials and Y and Z generations want to work for diverse, inclusive companies that make meaningful contributions to society. In the age of activism and cancel culture, where reputation is no longer a non-financial asset, a brand’s actions must align with its values, Chitkra explained.

Amid protests in summer 2020 demanding justice after the murders of George Floyd, Breanna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and others, many brands began posting Black Lives Matter statements on social media and donating money to social justice organizations such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

Starbucks is an example of a brand where its actions and values came into question during this period of unrest. The coffee chain tweeted, “Black lives matter. We are committed to being a part of change.” Shortly thereafter, Starbucks faced backlash because it would not allow employees to wear Black Lives Matter attire or accessories, fearing the political message could be misunderstood, the New York Times reported. Starbucks lists “acting with courage, challenging the status quo and finding new ways to grow our company and each other” as one of its four values.

Employees and customers quickly pointed out that Starbucks handed out LGBTQ pins and T-shirts during Pride Month. Then a #BoycottStarbucks hashtag emerged, MarketWatch reported. Starbucks soon backpedaled and partnered with its Black Partner Network and Black Starbucks leaders to make available a quarter of a million Starbucks-branded Black Lives Matter T-shirts.

It also donated $1 million in neighborhood grants to promote racial equity and inclusion. Other initiatives include a To Be Welcoming online curriculum that addresses bias.

“Starbucks stands in solidarity with our Black partners, community and customers, and understand the desire to express themselves. This is just one step in our journey to make our company and our communities more inclusive,” according to a company statement.

This was not the first time Starbucks has faced flak for race-related issues. In 2015, the coffee chain came under fire for asking its baristas to write “Race Together” on cups and engage in conversation with customers about race. The initiative arose after the murders of Michael Brown and Eric Garner and resulting unrest. The effort flopped because Starbucks didn’t spend enough time "discussing how it would look for a white billionaire to front a national dialogue on race," a Black woman who is a Starbucks board member told Fast Company.

Chitkara concluded that “the lack of strategic integration of Diversity and Inclusion efforts poses significant business and reputation risks to an organization, as social issues become a greater focus for investors, partners, customers and employees” (p. 40).

Discussion Questions

1. Are brands such as Starbucks supporting Black Lives Matter because it aligns with its values or because it could help improve their profits? Explain.
2. How well did Starbucks’ stated value align with its actions in 2015 and 2020?

Retaining Diverse UK Public Relations Practitioners

Public relations practitioners of color in the United Kingdom experience similar workplace issues as their counterparts in the United States.

For example, the CIPR Race in PR report (2020) found these key themes: Racism and microaggressions. A microaggression is “a statement, action, or incident regarded as an instance of indirect, subtle, or unintentional discrimination against members of a marginalized group such as a racial or ethnic minority” (p. 14). One of the 17 BAME practitioners interviewed stated:

“I once mentioned to a white colleague that I went to a private school and his response was, how did your parents afford that? That’s an example of a microaggression, people assuming that because you are black that you come from a deprived background” (p.15).

Inflexible and noninclusive culture. This includes pressure to conform, moving in the right social circles, and cultural rigidity. Another public relations professional noted the following:

“It’s such a polished world in comms in London. You need to say the right things and speak the right way. I’m not posh at all, it has been years of tailoring my voice, the way I sound and act …. My dad is from Southeast Asia and my mum has a strong UK regional accent, so I didn’t sound or act like the people in this industry. I had to really work on it” (p. 16).

Lack of equal opportunities and progression. Next, this BAME practitioner echoed what many African American parents tell their children:

“My dad had always said to me ‘Son, you’ll have to work twice as hard to get what the white man has got’. He wasn’t wrong! It certainly has felt like that in PR” (p. 18).

Unconscious bias. Finally, this BAME professional mentioned a pejorative used to describe some African American women:

“As I’ve progressed I’ve come to realise that some, a minority, question my ability based on the colour of my skin. I also have a general sense, and some experience, of some people labelling Black women as aggressive when they are simply being assertive” (p. 20).

CIPR noted that although it did not discuss disability, sexuality, age, gender and social mobility, reported experiences mirror Race in PR report findings.

Diversity in the UK and PR Workplace

Public relations is practiced globally, but this section will focus solely on diversity in the United Kingdom (UK) because of a 2020 report titled “Race  in PR: BAME lived experiences in the UK PR industry.” The UK consists of England, Wales, and two other countries. The UK uses the acronym BAME -- Blacks, Asian, and Minority Ethnic -- to classify ethnic groups who are not white.

In England and Wales, the white ethnic group is 86 percent, while the BAME population stands at 14 percent, according to the 2011 UK Census, the latest available updated in 2019. In London, however, BAMEs made up 40.2 percent of the population.

The London, England-based Chartered Institute of Public Relations, the largest group for public relations practitioners in the UK and overseas, acknowledges that the profession has a diversity problem.

In its Race in PR report (2020), CIPR found that the number of BAMEs has declined from 11 percent in 2015 to 8 percent in 2019. Similarly, CIPRs State of the Profession Report 2019 found that the public relations industry is becoming less diverse in terms of ethnicity and sexuality. Also, women still lag in leadership roles and pay.

Regarding ethnicity, 92 percent identified as white, an increase of over 86% in 2018, and 90% in 2017, CIPR explained. With sexuality, 89 percent identified as heterosexual, an increase of 4% from the previous year.

Furthermore, women made up 67 percent of the profession, but men held 44 percent of executive roles, the CIPR report states. However, the report found that the gender pay gap decreased from the previous two years.

Finally, in listing the top challenges facing the public relations industry, “lack of diversity amongst PR professionals” ranked No. 9 out of 11, according to CIPR.

“The PR industry agrees that diversity is important in attracting the best talent, to bring fresh thinking, creativity and insights, but our actions speak louder than our words,” Avril Lee MCIPR, CIPR Chair of the Diversity and Inclusion Network, writes in the 2019 report. “Without those inside changing the status quo, those outside will remain locked out and our profession will be poorer for it.”

Defining Gender

In addition to race and ethnicity, gender is one of “the big three” often discussed regarding diversity in the female-dominated public relations profession.

As race and ethnicity sometimes are used as synonyms, gender and sex also are confused. The Associated Press Stylebook notes that they are not the same.

“Gender refers to a person’s social identity, while sex refers to biological characteristics,” the AP stylebook points out, noting that everyone does not fall under these categories.

For example, a person’s sex can be male at birth, but their gender identity can be a woman.

Defining Race & Ethnicity

The number of people of color of various races and ethnicities is increasing in the United States, but not in the public relations profession. Let’s define race and ethnicity before exploring those figures. The words race and ethnicity sometimes are used interchangeably, but they are different.

Regarding race, Webster’s New World Collegiate Dictionary (WNWCD) notes that it refers to groups of people different from others “because of supposed physical or genetic traits.”

Race also can refer to groups of people united based on “common history, nationality, or geographic distribution,” WNWCD states. However, the dictionary points out that some scientists say that classifying race as biological is invalid.

Many scholars have asserted that race is a social construct, not a biological one. Sonya Nieto and Patty Bode (2018) wrote that differences are rooted in sociology, not biology because they are based on experiences within a cultural group.

“There is really only one race—the human race,” Nieto and Bode suggested. “Historically, the concept of race has been used to oppress entire groups of people for their supposed differences” (p. 36).

The U.S. Census Bureau’s definitions of race and ethnicity are based on how people identify themselves. A person can self-identify as two or more races. Race falls into five categories on the 2020 Census:

1. White
2. Black or African American
3. American Indian or Alaska Native
4. Asian
5. Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander.

“The race categories generally reflect social definitions in the U.S. and are not an attempt to define race biologically, anthropologically, or genetically,” according to the Census Bureau. “We recognize that the race categories include racial and national origins and sociocultural groups.”

Regarding ethnicity, WNWCD defines it as a person’s “cultural background or where they came from.” The Census Bureau states that ethnicity refers to whether a person is Hispanic, Latino, or not. It added that Hispanics and Latinos could be of any race.

Finally, Damion Waymer (2012) argues that ethnicity “typically refers to some mixture of race, religion, language, and/or ancestry”(p. 8).

Riva Brown

Lesson 2 Assessment

Lesson 1 Assessment

Case Study: Kendall Jenner & Pepsi

Background

PepsiCo faced criticism in April 2017 with a short-film commercial starring then 21-year-old Kendall Jenner, a white model and reality TV star featured on “Keeping Up with the Kardashians.” The nearly 3-minute commercial was titled “Live for Now” and featured the song "Lions" by Skip Marley. The commercial aired on April 4, 2017, the 49th anniversary of the assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Pepsi notes that consumers enjoy its products “more than one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world,” according to pepsico.com. Pepsi points outs that “supporting diversity and engagement is not only the right thing to do, it is the right thing to do for our business.” The corporation also notes that it “embraces the full spectrum of humanity” by “building a more diverse, more inclusive workplace, and promoting what we call courageous engagement in our company and the communities we serve.”

The controversial commercial first depicts Jenner in a blonde wig, silver dress, and dark lipstick posing for photos while smiling people from diverse racial, ethnic and cultural backgrounds peacefully protest with signs reading “Join the Conversation” and “Love.” After a young man nods for Jenner to join in, she rips off her wig, wipes off her dark lipstick, and makes way through the crowd, now clad in a blue-jean outfit. In a pivotal moment, a smiling Jenner grabs a can of Pepsi and hands it to a police officer lined up in front of the protesters. The crowd cheers and the police officer smiles. The screen reads: "Live bolder. Live louder. Live for now.”

Dilemma

Many social media users accused Pepsi of being tone-deaf and trivializing the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement for financial gain. The Rev Dr. Bernice King, the youngest daughter of the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., tweeted, “If only Daddy would have known about the power of #Pepsi.” Civil rights activist and podcaster DeRay Mckesson, tweeted, “If I had carried Pepsi I guess I never would've gotten arrested. Who knew?”

BLM  was founded in July 2013 after George Zimmerman, a white-Latino neighborhood watch captain, was found not guilty of fatally shooting Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old Black male, in Sanford, Florida, in February 2012. Since then, BLM has grown to 16 chapters, including 14 in the United States and the rest in Canada and the United Kingdom, according to blacklivesmatter.com.

The commercial debuted roughly nine months after over 100 BLM protests erupted after the July 2017 deaths of two Black men: Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on July 5 and Philando Castlle in St. Anthony, Minnesota, a day later. Police shot and killed both men.

Many people compared the image of Jenner handing the police officer a Pepsi to the real image of Ieshia Evans, a Black woman who stood silently in front of police during a protest in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on July 9. Police later arrested her.

The clip resurfaced in summer 2020 after protests erupted nationwide after the death of another Black man in Minnesota, George Floyd, who died May 25 after a police officer held his knee on his neck for nearly nine minutes.

The commercial was a “blatant example of white privilege,” senior style editor Kelsey Stiegman wrote in Seventeen magazine June 2020.  “Kendall, a white, millionaire supermodel, may be able to safely engage with a police officer, but for a Black person, this harmless act could be a death sentence.”

Course of Action

A day after the commercial was released, Pepsi pulled the ad and issued the following statement:

“Pepsi was trying to project a global message of unity, peace and understanding. Clearly we missed the mark, and we apologize. We did not intend to make light of any serious issue. We are removing the content and halting any further rollout. We also apologize for putting Kendall Jenner in this position."

Five months later, Indra Nooyi, who was PepsiCo’s CEO at the time, told Fortune that when she saw that people were upset, she pulled the ad because she didn’t want to offend.

"This has pained me a lot because this company is known for diversity, and the fact that everybody who produced the commercial and approved the commercial did not link it to Black Lives Matter made me scratch my head," Nooyi told Fortune. "I had not seen that scene. And I take everything personally."

Jenner never publicly responded to the backlash. Instead, she spoke out about the matter six months later in the October 2017 season 14 premiere of “Keeping Up With the Kardashians.” Jenner said, “I would never purposely hurt someone ever. And I would, obviously, if I knew this was gonna be the outcome, like, I would have never done something like this. But you don’t know when you’re in the moment. I just felt so f—ing stupid.”

Consequences

According to BrandWatch, PepsiCo’s social media sentiment was 53.3 percent negative on the day the commercial appeared and 58.6 percent negative the next day. Additionally, MarketWatch reported that in 2016, PepsiCo’s brand value dropped by 4 percent. Researchers say the ad could have cost between $2 million and $5 million.

Moral of the Story

PepsiCo’s in-house team created the commercial, which suggests that the team needed more diverse perspectives. Hearing different sides could have been achieved by seeking input from or hiring an outside firm to develop the commercial. Others have suggested that the beverage-maker needed more planning and research with its consumers, or needed to get an external perspective, particularly from protesters and activist groups. In summary, sometimes trying to save money on the front end is not worth the cost to an organization’s reputation on the back end.

Organizations must choose the right spokespersons who have authenticity and integrity. They also must seek outside opinions.

Discussion Questions

1. How does this case connect back to what you have learned about the principle of requisite variety?
2. Other than issuing an apology, what other course of action could PepsiCo have taken?
3. How well did Pepsi live up to its diversity and engagement statement?

Works Cited

About the company. (n.d.). PepsiCo, Inc. Official Website. https://www.pepsico.com/about/about-the-company

CBS This Morning. (2016, July 15). Woman in iconic Baton Rouge standoff photo breaks silence [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFC6l0DjDF0

Cady Lang. (2017, October 2). Kendall Jenner cried while addressing Pepsi ad backlash. Time. https://time.com/4965293/kendall-jenner-cries-addresses-pepsi-ad-backlash/

Carlos. (2017, April 5). Kendall Jenner for Pepsi Commercial [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9x15lR9VIg

Diversity and engagement. (n.d.). PepsiCo, Inc. Official Website. https://www.pepsico.com/about/diversity-and-engagement

Hobbs, T. (2019, July 26). Pepsi’s ad failure shows the importance of diversity and market research. Marketing Week. https://www.marketingweek.com/pepsi-scandal-prove-lack-diversity-house-work-flawed/?nocache=true&login_errors%5B0%5D=empty_username&login_errors%5B1%5D=empty_password&_lsnonce=e170cca5a5&rememberme=1

Joyce, G. (2017, April 7). Data on the extent of the backlash to the Kendall Jenner Pepsi ad. Brandwatch. https://www.brandwatch.com/blog/react-kendall-jenner-pepsi-ad/#:~:text=Within%20the%20most%20common%20reactions,social%20movements%20for%20commercial%20gain

Pepsi statement re: Pepsi moments content. (2017, April 7). PepsiCo, Inc. Official Website. https://www.pepsico.com/news/press-release/pepsi-statement-re--pepsi-moments-content04052017

Victor, D. (2017, April 5). Pepsi pulls ad accused of trivializing Black Lives Matter. The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/05/business/kendall-jenner-pepsi-ad.html

Wright, I. (2017, April 10). 3 lessons brands should learn from Pepsi's Kendall Jenner ad disaster. PRNEWS. https://www.prnewsonline.com/pepsi-ad-kendall

Pepsi statement re: Pepsi moments content. (2017, April 5). PepsiCo, Inc. Official Website. https://www.pepsico.com/news/press-release/pepsi-statement-re--pepsi-moments-content04052017

Stiegman, K. (2020, June 1). Fans slam Kendall Jenner for not addressing police brutality after clips from Pepsi commercial resurface. Seventeen. https://www.seventeen.com/celebrity/a32729598/fans-slam-kendall-jenner-for-not-addressing-police-brutality-after-pepsi-commercial-clips-resurface/

Taylor, K. (2017, September 21). Pepsi CEO reveals her surprising response to controversial Kendall Jenner ad. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/pepsi-ceo-defends-kendall-jenner-ad-2017-9

International and Global Public Relations

International public relations refers to the practice of public relations that occurs across 

international boundaries and cultures. This type of public relations occurs when an organization and its publics are in different countries.

International public relations takes a local approach by focusing on differences among publics and audiences, while global public relations takes a global approach that focuses on similarities (Alaimo, 2017).

First, with international public relations, PR practitioners “implement distinctive programs in multiple markets, with each program tailored to meet the often acute distinctions of the individual geographic market” (Anderson, 1989, p. 413). This relates to the local approach, which states that “different countries and cultures are so different that they require strategies that are specifically designed to respond to local opportunities and challenges” (Alaimo, 2017, pp. 3-4).

Second, global public relations “superimposes an overall perspective on a program executed in two or more national markets, recognizing the similarities among audiences while necessarily adapting to regional differences” (Anderson, 1989, p. 13). This relates to the global approach, where practitioners "believe that there are certain best practices and messages that are generally successful across countries and cultures” (Alaimo, 2017, pp. 3-4).

An example of the local vs. global approach occurred in 2012 when IKEA, a Swedish furniture company, decided to airbrush a woman out of a catalog it would use in Saudi Arabia because women had to cover their faces and bodies to appear in public (Alaimo, 2017). IKEA apologized after the trade minister of Sweden, a country that advocates for women, complained. The company faced a conundrum in deciding whether to develop content specific to the Saudi culture or project a shared global identity.

Discussion questions

1. One public relations scholar, Krishnamurthy Srimamesh (2009) has argued that there is no need to separate the term global public relations from international publications “because even ‘domestic’ publics are becoming multinational and multicultural due to globalization." What is your position on this topic?
2. Rather than airbrushing the woman out of the catalog, what else could IKEA have done that would have been cost-effective? How does your suggestion relate to the global or local approach?

Multicultural and Global Public Relations

In 1995, Stephen Banks defined multicultural public relations as “the successful negotiation of multiple meanings that result in positive outcomes in any communication activity” (p. 42). Five years later, the author improved his definition to take diversity into consideration.

Banks (2000) wrote: “Multicultural public relations can be defined as the management of formal communication between organizations and their relevant publics to create and maintain communities of interest and action that favor the organization, taking full account of the normal human variation in the systems of meaning by which groups understand and enact their everyday lives."

Multicultural public relations helps the profession see diversity as part of its daily practice that connects with an organization’s values, according to Dean Mundy (2016). The multicultural perspective also removes the “western-centric, corporate-centric lens” and helps an organization forge meaningful relationships with diverse stakeholders.

While some public relations scholars have separate definitions for each approach to public relations, Juan-Carlos Molleda and Sarab Kochhar (2019) combined the definition of global and multicultural public relations:

“A strategic and dynamic process that cultivates shared understanding, relationships, and goodwill among organizations and a combination of their culturally heterogeneous home, host, and transnational stakeholders, with the aim of achieving and maintaining a consistent reputation and established legitimation.”

Molleda and Kochhar note that all types of organizations practice global and multicultural public relations, including government and nongovernmental organizations and agencies. The authors also note that public relations programs become more complex when organizations operate across borders.

Approaches to Worldwide Public Relations Practice

Public relations practitioners can use different approaches to reach diverse stakeholders across the globe. Some of these approaches include multicultural public relations, global public relations, and international public relations. These approaches differ from domestic public relations because they must take cultural differences and dimensions into consideration.

Cultural Dimensions Theory

Geert Hofstede (2001), a Dutch social psychologist, developed six cultural dimensions based on his research with IBM in 40 countries.

Hofstede defines culture as “the programming of the human mind by which one group of people distinguishes itself from another group.”

The six dimensions are:

• Power distance
• Individualism/collectivism
• Masculinity/femininity
• Uncertainty avoidance
• Short-term/long‐term orientation
• Indulgence/restraint

The initial version of the cultural dimensions theory included only the first four dimensions (Hofstede, 1984).

Hofstede’s cultural dimensions theory is used in global public relations to understand cultural nuances to craft, strategies, tactics, and messages that resonate with target publics, according to Juan-Carlos Molleda and Sarab Kochhar (2019). The authors cautioned that the following characteristics of the six cultural dimensions “can vary within a country where the urban meets the rural, and where the dominant culture meets a variety of subcultures.”

First, high power distance cultures, such Russia and China, value hierarchy; respect is given, rules are followed, and status symbols are valued, according to Kara Alaimo (2017). Low power distance cultures, such as Sweden, where fashion retailer H&M is based, is more egalitarian, and it is acceptable to question your boss, Alaimo notes.

Second, in individualistic cultures, such as the United States, people see themselves as distinct from others and put the interests of themselves and their immediate family first. The majority of the world’s cultures are collectivistic; China is an example of a society that values relationships and will put their extended families and organizations first.

Third, in masculine cultures, such as Japan, men are expected to be assertive, competitive, and driven by salary, status, and success. Women are expected to be caring, unassuming, and focused on quality of life. In feminine cultures such as Norway, both men and women are supposed to embody the “emotional gender roles” associated with women in masculine cultures.

Fourth, uncertainty avoidance refers to the level of comfort people in this culture feel when matters are ambiguous, unknown, or unclear. Low uncertainty avoidance cultures such as the United States internalize stress and emotions and are OK with few rules. High uncertainty avoidance cultures, such as Greece, worry more and must have formalized, precise instructions.

Fifth, cultures with long-term orientation, such as parts of Asia, focus on future rewards and respect thrift and tradition. In contrast, cultures with short-term orientation, such as Australia, are more focused on the past and present and expect to see immediate rewards and results from their efforts.

Sixth, in high indulgence cultures, such as Mexico, people are healthier, happier, and hopeful about the future. On the other hand, low indulgence cultures, such as Pakistan, are pessimistic and less optimistic.

 

Queer Theory

Queer theory challenges the perspective that heterosexuality is the norm and argues against stereotypes, categorizing sexuality, and labeling someone’s identity. Queer theory originated in 1990 with Italian feminist Teresa de Lauretis.

Natalie T.J. Tindall and Richard Waters (2012) applied queer theory by interviewing gay male public relations practitioners. The study marked the first time the approach had been used in a real-world setting beyond textual and literary analysis, which helped substantiate some of queer theory’s claims.

Tindall and Waters point out that queer theory adds value to research about avowed and ascribed identities, disavows stereotypes, and acknowledges differences. They argue that applying queer theory to public relations can help achieve excellence theory’s concept of diversity and requisite variety. It also can help with recruitment and retention; help an organization accept the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community; and improve the organization’s bottom line.

Intersectionality

Intersectionality maintains that people have multifaceted social identities rather than one isolated identity that makes their lived experiences unique. Kimberlé Crenshaw, a law professor and Black feminist, coined the term intersectionality in 1989. The author wrote about how systems of power oppress Black women at work and in their everyday lives.

Jennifer Vardeman-Winter and Natalie T.J. Tindall (2010) argue for a theory of intersectionality in public relations for two reasons:

1) simply explaining diversity and difference through the concept of requisite variety lacked complexity; and 2) as responsible advocates for their clients, public relations practitioners cannot simply reduce publics to psychographics and demographics.

Vardeman-Winter and Tindall (2010) further argue that intersectionality in public relations can be analyzed on nine levels: intra-industrial, organization-publics, publics and community, representational, media, multinational/global, theoretical, and pedagogical.

Finally, the scholars further note that intersectionality operates on various levels that can oppress some groups for the privilege of others.

“For example, research suggests that a lesbian of color working in public relations may be relegated to communicating only with publics from her same race, may not receive the same salary as her heterosexual, white female or male counterparts, and as a public of certain campaigns, may not be communicated with about diseases for which she is at higher risk than are white, female, heterosexual publics” (p. 232).

Case Study: H&M’s Coolest Monkey in the Jungle

Background

H&M faced backlash across the globe in January 2018, when it advertised an image of Liam Mango, a 5-year-old Black male, modeling a green hoodie sweatshirt emblazoned with the words “coolest monkey in the jungle” in white capital letters. The term monkey is considered a degrading stereotype of people of African descent. Liam is the son of Kenyan immigrants.

H&M, a fashion retailer based in Sweden, has 51 markets with online shopping and 5,000 stores in 74 markets across the globe, according to its website. At the time, H&M owned stores in 69 countries on six continents. The clothing brand states that diversity strengthens the company and that it values “diversity in people and ideas, as much as in personal style.”

H&M also notes the following in its inclusion and diversity statement: “In an inclusive and diverse environment, everyone can contribute to optimising decision-making and team performance by reflecting, respecting and relating to our employees, customers and communities.”

Dilemma

Social media users, activists, and consumers across the globe condemned the ad as racist for using the word monkey, which is considered a racial slur.

Equating Black people to apes dates back to the 16th and 17th century in Europe and America and was used to sanction slavery, segregation, and second-class status, historian Arica L. Coleman explained. Whites viewed Black males as subhuman beasts and brutes who lusted after white women. This image was reinforced in the 1930s movie King Kong, according to Wulf D. Hund. The movie was under production at the same time as the rape trial of the Scottsboro Boys, nine Black male teens on trial for allegedly raping two white women.

“The racist ideology of the ape trope is no joke,” Coleman asserted. “It has had devastating effects on Black people globally.”

On social media, Kate Osamor, a Black UK Labour Party member, tweeted, “I was totally shocked, dismayed to say the very least to find this online imagine [sic]. @hm do you think this imagery is an appropriate representation of a young Black boy?”

The Weeknd, a Canadian artist of Ethiopian descent, tweeted, “woke up this morning shocked and embarrassed by this photo. i’m deeply offended and will not be working with @hm anymore…” The Weeknd had been appearing in H&M ad campaigns since 2017.

Course of Action

H&M apologized on January 8, 2018, for offending others, but not for posting the ad, and said it removed the ad from its online stores. However, media outlets found the sweatshirt ad running without the model the same morning, on European sites later that day, and in Spanish countries the next day.

When the media and public criticized the apology, H&M issued a more detailed statement the following day. The brand stated that it stopped selling the sweatshirt and recycled it. Part of the updated apology posted on the H&M website reads:

“We agree with all the criticism that this has generated – we have got this wrong and we agree that, even if unintentional, passive or casual racism needs to be eradicated wherever it exists. We appreciate the support of those who have seen that our product and promotion were not intended to cause offence but, as a global brand, we have a responsibility to be aware of and attuned to all racial and cultural sensitivities – and we have not lived up to this responsibility this time.”

Over two months after the ad ran, H&M named Annie Wu, a Taiwanese immigrant raised in Queens, New York, as the global leader for diversity and inclusiveness. Wu, who had worked with H&M since 2012, said she planned to meet with supporters and critics in the United States and South Africa.

Here are some other H&M initiatives that occurred after Wu took the helm, according to Annie Wang, who spent time at H&M headquarters in Sweden:

• Hired a Nigerian-American as the North America head of inclusion and diversity
• Created a seven-step processing system for all new clothing before they are for sale
• Created a system where at least 12 people in the studio will see a photo after it is uploaded
• Created a system to flag clothing at every stage and make notes about sensitivities
• Increased from one to five the number of people doing final-round quality checks
• Pledged that by 2025, 100 percent of employees would feel they have the same opportunity as anyone else and see visible diversity in leadership positions.

Consequences

The company faced boycotts and protests, which forced it to temporarily close some stores in South Africa.

Members of the South African Economic Freedom Fighters demonstrated, marched through malls, and destroyed some H&M store property. Their protests were held in locations including Cape Town, Pretoria, and Johannesburg.

Additionally, Terry Mango, Liam’s mother, faced backlash for defending H&M and the ad. She was called a traitor to her race, and H&M stepped in to relocate her when journalists showed up at her home.

H&M’s finances took a hit in the aftermath of the sweatshirt fiasco, but the company also was dealing with other issues that contributed to the decline. In the first quarter of 2018, H&M had $4.3 billion in unsold clothes, a pile that had grown 7 percent in the past year, The New York Times reported. Additionally, the company said operating profit dropped 62 percent between December 2017 and February 2018, which forced the shares to their lowest closing price in 2005.

Critics questioned whether H&M lacked diversity, but “each office was close to a real reflection of the ethnic demographics within the cities they were in,” Wang wrote, detailing the story behind the sweatshirt. Compiling ethnic data is against the law in Sweden and voluntary in the United States.

Wang’s report revealed that the strong H&M culture led to employees rejecting outside opinions, an idea revealed in an unconscious bias workshop.

Moral of the Story

 

Get your apology right the first time.

Employing people from diverse ethnic backgrounds is not enough to combat racism.
”If we’re honest, we must admit that there is some truth in the fact that we have maybe been too centralized and that we need to challenge ourselves in an open and constructive way to get everyone, everywhere to be more culturally sensitive, racially aware, and more critical of how the outside world might see what we do,” Wu said in an interview.

Application

About two-and-a-half years after the incident, in June 2020, H&M pledged to donate $500,000 to the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, Color of Change, and the American Civil Liberties Union. The move came after the world erupted in protests following the death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, in Minnesota.

“We also acknowledge our past mistakes and they have made us acutely aware of how much we still need to learn. As a company, we are growing, but we can and must do better,” stated Helena Helmersson, CEO H&M Group. "We re-commit to taking tangible steps to challenge racism and support our colleagues, customers and communities. Symbolic support is not enough – we will take action.”

Discussion Questions

1. Reflecting on H&M’s actions over two years after the sweatshirt fiasco, what is your opinion of the organizations that the company chose to donate to and its reasons for donating?
2. What recommendations do you have for a company that already has a diverse workforce but still is accused of being racist?

Work Cited

Coleman, A. (2018, May 31). Here’s why Roseanne’s tweet was a racist slur, not a botched joke. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/made-by-history/wp/2018/05/31/heres-why-roseannes-tweet-was-a-racist-slur-not-a-botched-joke/

Fortin, J. (2018, January 13). H&M closes stores in South Africa amid protests over ‘Monkey’ shirt. The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/13/world/africa/hm-south-africa-protest.html

Helmersson, H. (2020, June 1). We stand with and support the Black community – today, everyday and everywhere. H&M Group. https://hmgroup.com/media/news/general-news-2020/we-stand-with-and-support-the-black-community---today--everyday-.html

H&M issues unequivocal apology for poorly judged product and image. (2018, September). H&M Press site. https://about.hm.com/zh_cn/news/general-news-2018/h-m-issues-unequivocal-apology-for-poorly-judged-product-and-ima.html

Hund, W. D. (2016, February 28). Comparing Black people to monkeys has a long, dark simian history. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/comparing-black-people-to-monkeys-has-a-long-dark-simian-history-55102

Interview with Annie WU. (2018, March 29). H&M Group. https://hmgroup.com/media/news/general-news-2018/interview-with-annie-wu.html

Paton, E. (2018, March 27). H&M, a fashion giant, has a problem: $4.3 billion in unsold clothes. The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/27/business/hm-clothes-stock-sales.html

People are boycotting H&M over ‘racist’ hoodie. (2018, January 13). The Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/fashion/hm-hoodie-racist-boycott-advertising-people-h-m-a8149246.html

Picchi, A. (2018, January 8). H&M monkey hoodie sparks outrage for "racist" image. CBS News - Breaking news, 24/7 live streaming news & top stories. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/h-m-the-weeknd-coolest-monkey-in-the-jungle-racist-hoodie/

Stack, L. (2018, January 8). H&M apologizes for ‘Monkey’ image featuring Black child. The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/08/business/hm-monkey.html

Stump, S. (2018, January 9). H&M apologizes following outrage over 'monkey' hoodie ad seen as racist. TODAY.com. https://www.today.com/style/h-m-apologizes-following-outrage-over-monkey-sweatshirt-ad-seen-t120979

[@theweeknd].Twitter. (2018, January 8). Welcome to Twitter. https://twitter.com/theweeknd/status/950447182829699072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E950447182829699072&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2018%2F01%2F08%2Fbusiness%2Fhm-monkey.html

Tan, E. (2018, January 9). H&M apologizes and removes 'racist' sweatshirt from stores. US Home. https://www.prweek.com/article/1454063/h-m-apologizes-removes-racist-sweatshirt-stores

Wang, C. (2019, July 23). The real story behind H&M's racist monkey sweatshirt. Refinery29. https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2019/07/237347/h-m-racist-hoodie-controversy-diversity-problem

Reaching Diverse Audiences

Public relations practitioners can reach diverse publics by researching their culture and dimensions of diversity.

Dean Mundy (2016) found examples of using strategic communication to reach diverse publics, based on his review of research on diversity in public relations over a 15-year period. Some of his findings included understanding the diverse needs of individuals, understanding the power of telling individual stories, using new tools and technologies to reach the under-represented and marginalized, and reaching and mobilizing diverse publics while giving priority to them.
The following recent examples show how public relations practitioners used these four strategies.

Understanding the diverse needs of individuals

First, Cafe’ Bustelo, a 90-year-old coffee brand, wanted to reach its Latino target audience and expand its reach to a mass audience, “culturally open millennials,” according to a Public Relations Society of America 2019 case study. During a time when immigration was a hot-button issue, the cafe unified these two diverse groups through Latin music, food, and art to forge “authentic, cross-culture connections” (p. 1). The coffee brand showed that it understood the needs of millennials who, according to research, valued diversity regardless of their background or ethnicity.

Understanding the power of telling individual stories

Then, HP, a technology company, wanted to raise awareness of unconscious bias and stereotyping in hiring practices. As part of its Reinvest Mindsets campaign, the company used some verbatim comments from focus groups with employees and diverse community leaders to create a series of short films, according to a Public Relations Society of America 2019 case study. One of the films, titled “Proud Portraits,” shows lesbian and gay parents of various ages, races, and ethnicities enjoying life and placing their family photos on their desks. “We all know what family means, but what it looks like is unique to each of us …. and no matter what  … we should all be able to proudly show who they are whether at home or at the office.” These are examples of understanding the power of telling stories that reach diverse stakeholders while educating others.

Also, P&G, which sells personal care and home cleaning products, wanted to address racial bias in the United States. As part of its “My Black is Beautiful” campaign, P&G created a video titled “The Talk,” which features conversations Black parents have with their children. Some of the talks included a mother explaining that being told you’re “pretty for a Black girl,” is not a compliment. Other mothers ensured that their male and female teenagers carried IDs while hanging out or being pulled over while driving. This is another example of understanding the power of telling stories that reach a target audience but also raises awareness among other publics

Watch Videos
Proud Portraits
The Talk

Discussion Questions

1. What other examples of tools and technology can you provide that show how public relations has been used to reach certain diverse audiences?
2. What other examples of campaigns can you provide that told individual stories to reach its target audience?

Using new tools and technologies to reach the under-represented and marginalized

Next, the Los Angeles LGBT Center wanted to reach gay/bisexual men of color and transgender women to increase the number taking PrEP, a once-a-day HIV prevention pill, according to a 2018 Public Relations Society of America case study. PrEP stands for Pre-exposure prophylaxis. The center considered intersectionality by targeting men of color. As part of the campaign, “F*ck w/out Fear, PrEP Here,” the center ran an ad on major gay dating apps such as Grindr, Scruff, Hornet, and Jack’d with original, intimate photos of men and transgender women of color. Additionally, Fearless F*cker was used as a Grindr persona. This is an example of using new tools and technologies to reach under-represented and marginalized communities.

Reaching and mobilizing diverse publics while giving them priority

Finally, Color of Change (CoC) is an example of an organization that mobilized diverse publics by using technology such as cell phones. The online racial justice organization was founded in 2005 in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina to “move decision-makers in corporations and government to create a more human and less hostile world for Black people in America.” CoC uses texts and emails to mobilize members to call, write, or petition people in power.

Also, CoC gives its publics priority over the organization by providing them with tools and technologies to tackle injustices in their communities. CoC’s digital platform, Organize For (https://organizefor.org/), trains grassroots activists on how to create digital campaigns and petitions. For example, a Black mental health advocate at a youth center used Organize For to create a #nonewSFjail petition that stopped a facility from being built in her San Francisco community, according to CoC. As a result, her petition kept Black people from being unfairly incarcerated for profit, CoC suggested.

CoC experienced a major victory in 2011 when it forced major corporations to leave the American Legislative Exchange Council, an organization accused of suppressing the Black vote. Those corporations included Walmart, Coca-Cola, and AT&T, according to the Associated Press.

Today, amid worldwide protests demanding racial justice, CoC is using its platform to mobile its members to fight for unarmed Black victims murdered by police. For example, CoC partnered with Black Lives Matter Louisville (Kentucky) to launch a campaign, #justiceforBre, on behalf of Breonna Taylor, 26, an emergency medical technician who was fatally shot March 13, 2020, more than eight times in her home while she slept in her bed.

Three officers with the Louisville Metro Police Department had executed a no-knock warrant, did not have a search warrant, and were at the wrong house, according to CoC. At the end of June 2020, the petition to get the officers fired and charged had reached 97% of its goal to secure 1.3 million signatures. On Juneteenth, June 19, 2020, one of the officers was fired. Eight days earlier, city officials voted to ban no-knock warrants.

Lesson 2: Exploring PR Diversity in Demographics, Academia and Workplaces

Lesson 2 begins by comparing key U.S. demographics on race, ethnicity, gender, and salary with the public relations profession. It also offers an international perspective by examining similar demographics in the United Kingdom, another region of the world with a majority white population.

It also provides definitions of key concepts such as culture, inclusion, unconscious bias, microaggressions, stereotypes, prejudice, and ethnocentrism.

This lesson also discusses the top three knowledge areas for future public relations practitioners, recruiting diverse public relations students, retaining diverse public relations practitioners, reaching diverse audiences, and making the business case for diversity.

This lesson ends with an example and discussion of a case involving Starbucks and recent Black Lives Matter protests. It also includes a case study on the controversial H&M ad featuring a Black boy wearing a “coolest monkey in the jungle” hoodie sweatshirt.

Theoretical Perspectives

 

Some theories related to diversity have been applied to public relations.

They include:

• Feminist theory
• Critical race theory
• Intersectionality
• Queer theory
• Cultural dimensions theory

Diversity & Ethics

From an ethical standpoint, organizations do the right thing when they value internal diversity to communicate with diverse publics effectively. As Larissa Grunig and Elizabeth Toth (2006) point out, “ethical public relations can equate with effective public relations.”

 

The authors also note that organizations adapting a deontological diversity concept “see their publics as more than means of attaining their ends.” Deontology refers to following the rules, or a code of ethics. These organizations also “seek to minimize the power differences that too often have put women, young people, old people, those from minority races and cultures, the so-called under classes, those who are too plain or too good-looking, and the physically challenged in a one-down position based on their supposed reference group” (p. 52).

L. Grunig and Toth (2006) point out that public relations societies often specifically mention diversity and cultural differences in their Code of Ethics.

For example, the Code of Ethics for the International Association of Business Communicators notes the following as No. 6 out of 11 principles:

“I am sensitive to others cultural values and beliefs.”

Additionally, the Global Principles of Ethics for the Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management notes the following as No. 2 out of 16 guiding principles: “Obeying laws and respect diversity and local customs.”

Furthermore, the Code of Conduct for the International Public Relations Association notes dialogue as No. 3 of its 18 principles:

“Dialogue: Seek to establish the moral, cultural and intellectual conditions for dialogue, and recognise the rights of all parties involved to state their case and express their views.”

However, the Public Relations Society of America, which describes itself as the nation’s leading professional organization serving the communications community,” lists fairness in its professional values statement: “We respect all opinions and support the right of free expression.”

Feminist Theory

In the 1980s, researchers began studying gender issues in public relations, such as the feminization of the profession, salary inequities, roles, and organizational power. The International Association of Business Communicators studied these inequities in two projects:

"The Velvet Ghetto: The Impact of the Increasing Percentage of Women in Public Relations and Business Communication" in 1986 and "Beyond the Velvet Ghetto" in 1989. Velvet ghetto refers to the disproportionate amount of women in public relations compared to the other professions.

Some findings revealed that women were more likely to see themselves as technicians rather than managers; women were paid less than men; and status and salaries diminished when more women entered the public relations profession, note Linda Childers Hon, Larissa Grunig, and David Dozier (1992).

Hon (1995) argued for a feminist theory of public relations with a “practical, activist goal” (p. 29). The author wanted women to be seen as effective communicators and managers who are treated as individuals.

Feminist theory generally falls into three areas:

• Liberal
• Socialist/Marxist
• Radical

Liberal feminists seek equality and assimilation, whereas socialists/Marxists focus on class and capitalization, and radicals seek to dismantle male-dominated systems. Most public relations scholarship at the time had a liberal feminist framework, according to Hon, L. Grunig, and Dozier (1992).

More on Feminist Theory

Hon’s feminist theory of public relations fuses several liberal feminist tactics with radical feminism and falls into four categories: women, public relations, organizations, and society.

The women category includes five areas:

1. Monitoring behavior
2. Creating a “persona” for promotability
3. Joining professional organizations,
4. Helping other women
5. Becoming the boss

The public relations category includes three areas:

1. Addressing the marginalization of the function and devising specific strategies for overcoming the problem
2. Reassessing the mission of undergraduate education
3. Incorporating women’s perspectives into the curriculum

The organization category includes four areas:

1. Establishing family-friendly policies
2. Rethinking the masculine ethic in organizations
3. Valuing the feminine
4. Making recruiting, hiring, and promotion criteria more objective

The society category contains seven areas:

1. Raising levels of awareness about sexism
2. Electing women to high government posts
3. Passing federal legislation that supports working parents
4. Outlawing sexual harassment
5. Recouping affirmative action losses
6. Mandating equal representation for women in government and organizations supported by government
7. Breaking down gender stereotypes.

Critical Race Theory

Critical race theory (CRT) maintains that race is not biological; instead, it is a social construction used to protect the social, economic, and legal interests of whites so they can maintain their power.

Developed by legal scholars, CRT emerged in the mid-1970s and gained attention in the 1980s partly to examine race and racism. Scholars point out that CRT is used to reveal covert discrimination; combat affirmative action backlash; and question objectivity, neutrality, colorblindness, and meritocracy.

Donnalyn Pompper (2005) introduced CRT to public relations after her research revealed that public relations scholars rarely addressed differences in race, ethnicity, and culture. In addition, her research showed that scholarly works addressing differences were money-driven and lacked theoretical foundation.

“Tragically unprepared to address remarkable demographic shifts in the United States and economic globalization trends, we are handicapped to do excellent public relations (p. 155),” Pompper wrote. “We must responsibly personalize our work, improve methods used, and affect smooth transition to CRT perspectives.”

Pompper suggested adopting a CRT perspective in public relations by first increasing awareness of race. Doing so would help build respect and relationships with research participants and adapt research methods.

Nneka Logan (2011) used CRT in her critical analysis of the white leader prototype, which also traced the beginnings of public relations to race. She noted how Blacks were legally excluded from the profession when it emerged in the early 1900s.

She cited Madame C.J. Walker, an activist and the first woman self-made millionaire, as one of several examples of how Blacks successfully used public relations strategies.

“However, this knowledge developed outside the mainstream and remained primarily in African American communities. Thus, for the most part, as public relations developed, the field missed opportunities to capitalize on a wealth of relevant knowledge able to diversify theory and refine practice” (p. 449).

Logan (2016) notes that applying CRT to public relations practice could generate racial discussions and support social justice initiatives. She applied the four principles of CRT to the Starbucks Race Together public relations campaign.

“They include (1) placing race at the center of analysis, (2) acknowledging dominant groups often have trouble recognizing the discriminatory role race plays in society, (3) valuing the voices and lived experiences of racial minorities, and (4) maintaining a commitment to human liberation and racial equality” (p. 98).

Logan’s application of CRT principles coincides with how Lee Edwards (2012) extended Pompper’s arguments by discussing the role of public relations in five areas.

Those areas include:

1. Contributing to the social construction of race
2. Normalizing race
3. Engaging with other social systems and with what racializing effect
4. Contributing to the “othering” of marginalized groups
5. Countering racism and racialization.

Edwards (2012) also notes that race intersects with and cannot be understood without considering other identities such as gender, class, and religion.

Defining Diversity

Public relations scholars and practitioners have offered several definitions of diversity. They also have broken diversity down into dimensions and identities.

Damion Waymer (2012) defines diversity as “the means of celebrating, appreciating and synergistically incorporating different subcultures into a larger organizational framework for the purposes of individual, subcultural, and organizational advancement” (p. 3).

Waymer describes diversity as a subsidiary of culture, which is learned and passed on through generations.

Elizabeth Toth (2009) offers a sampling of six definitions that include those provided by Sha and Ford (2007). Those authors note that diversity falls into two categories: Primary dimensions that cannot be altered and secondary dimensions that can be altered. Sha and Ford base this premise on the 1991 work of Marilyn Loden and Judy Rosener.

Primary Dimensions

Primary, unalterable identities are age, race, sexual orientation, gender, ethnicity, and physical abilities/qualities.

Secondary Dimensions

Secondary, alterable dimensions are class, language, income, marital status, parental status, hobbies, interests, geography, values, religion, military experience, and living arrangements related to types of families (p. 386).

Additional Dimensions

Additional dimensions of diversity include two cultural identities, avowed and ascribed, Sha and Ford (2007) point out. Avowed identities refer to how we see ourselves, while ascribed identities refer to how others perceive us. The authors note that these two cultural identities could help communicate with publics to avoid ascribing identities that they would not avow to themselves.

“For example, a chemical factory located in a primarily Hispanic neighborhood might try to communicate with local residents in Spanish; yet, this effort would backfire if residents are in fact second- or third-generation Hispanics with both a strong command of the English language and a sore spot for being perceived as Spanish-only speakers” (p. 386).

The Public Relations Society of America Diversity and Inclusion Committee expounded on the concept of diversity by noting the importance of "diverse skill sets, mindsets and cultures.” The committee also noted that the definition of diversity could relate to “professional life and length of experience, type of job, and job classification” (p. 4).

Furthermore, the committee listed diversity of thought as a best practice and defined it as “the significance of differences in perspective and approach rooted in diverse identity and experience” (p. 12).

Gender and Salary in the U.S. and PR Workplace

Unlike with people of color in public relations, women are over-represented; like people of color, regardless of gender, they are underpaid and under-represented in executive roles.

The public relations industry traditionally has been made up of whites — predominantly white women — from affluent backgrounds, Angela Chitkara (2018) states.

Women, who are 50.8 percent of the U.S. population, make up 70 percent of the public relations workforce but only 30 percent of executives.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that women comprise 63.6 percent of public relations specialists and 71.4 percent public relations/fundraising managers in 2019.

Similar to the findings above, the 2017 Global Women in PR Survey “revealed that although women represent two-thirds of the global PR industry, 78 percent of the CEOs in the top 30 PR agencies worldwide are men and that they also occupy 62 percent of seats at the PR boardroom table.”

Although most gender issues focus on women’s low salaries and lack of leadership positions in the public relations profession, Donnalyn Pompper and Taejin Jung (2013) studied men working in the female-dominated profession. The men “report negative effects of gender-minority status at entry-and mid-levels and worry about a future when women will replace them at public relations’ highest management levels” (p. 1).

The gender balance is improving among executives in the 10 largest public relations firms in the U.S., PR Week reported in 2020. Women run 43.2 percent of those offices across the globe, and three of the 10 have more than 50 percent female leadership. Additionally, the PRWeek/PR Talent 2020 Salary Survey points out that 39 percent of respondents saw more women hired in the corporate-suite levels of their organizations.

Despite these gains, men still hold more executive roles in public relations and earn more than women. White males earned $6,072 more per year than white females and $15,374 more than non-white females, with Latinas/Hispanic women faring the worst, PRovoke Media reported in 2017. Although men still outearn women in the field, the PRWeek/PR Talent 2020 Salary Survey reported that pay for women overall increased by $8,000 between 2019 and 2020. 

Equal pay continues to be an issue nationwide and in the public relations industry.

2020 U.S. Census Bureau figures show that women earn 81.6 cents to every $1 that a man makes. Figures based on Census data further show a wider gender gap for some women of color who hold full-time, year-round jobs. Black women earn 62 cents, while Native American women make 57 cents and Latinas 54 cents for every dollar paid to white men.

To address these gender salary issues, the PR Council, which consists of over 110 of the top communications firms in the U.S., approved a pay equity statement in 2018. In the statement, the Council encourages its members to “adopt policies that ensure fair pay for all PR professionals and to utilize consistent criteria when determining initial and subsequent compensation decisions.”

Recruiting Diverse Public Relations Students

Some organizations have noted that they do not have public relations practitioners from diverse backgrounds because of issues recruiting and retaining top talent.

Angela Chitkara (2018) found that the issue is because potential hires may not be aware of the profession, the pay isn’t competitive compared to fields, and, if hired, they may not have the training/mentoring they need to advance from entry-level positions.

Culture could contribute to why some Asians, Hispanics, and Latinos do not enter the public relations profession. Jing Qiu and Nancy Muturi (2016) note that some Asians may view public relations as “self-promotion” and “face-saving,” which are discouraged in their culture built on strong community and family ties.

Henry Cervera Nique (2016), a public relations professional from Peru, noted that Hispanic and Latino families have similar expectations of career choices for their children. “Our academic and career goals may be in conflict with the cultural expectations of our families and cultural surroundings,” Nique noted when discussing the criticism he faced for choosing to study public relations.

Qui, Muturi, and Nique point out that Asian, Hispanic and Latino parents teach their children more about becoming leaders in fields, such as science, engineering, medicine, and law and less about the arts and humanities.

Qiu and Muturi suggest that because Asian families have a major influence on career choice, parents and community members must be educated about public relations. They also must be told about the difference between technician and managerial roles for those interested in leadership positions and the scientific nature of research in the public relations profession.

Other public relations scholars and practitioners have explored why there are not more minority public relations practitioners and how to recruit and retain them. Kenon A. Brown, Candace White, and Damion Waymer (2011) suggest that the first step is getting students of color interested in majoring in public relations, helping them have a successful college experience while studying the field, and providing the support they need to succeed when they enter the profession.

Their recommendations include visiting high schools, recruiting students of color to recruit others, recruiting minority students to serve in leadership roles with student organizations such as the Public Relations Student Society of America, inviting minority speakers, and hiring minority adjunct professors.

Brown, Waymer, and Ziyuan Zhou (2019) surveyed nearly 300 public relations students who were white, Black, Hispanic or Latinx to see if they had different educational experiences based on their racial background or gender. Their findings show that race and gender played significant roles.

They reported similar recommendations but other suggestions include more professional networking and mentoring opportunities, getting male students and others from underrepresented backgrounds to interact with other students, and discussing public relations diversity issues in the classroom.

Educating about Diversity in Public Relations

Diversity in public relations is as essential to public relations professionals as it is to your professors.

In rating the 12 knowledge areas that entry-level public relations practitioners should have, practitioners and educators ranked diversity and inclusion second and cultural perspective third, with ethics being No. 1, according to the Commission on Public Relations Education (CPRE).

Lesson 1 provided several definitions of diversity and references culture. Inclusion is related to both diversity and culture but has a different meaning. For example, diversity refers to differences that make people unique.

Culture includes behaviors, thinking, beliefs, values, communications styles, and language expressions, according to CPRE. Culture can refer to an individual, organization, or society.

Inclusion, however, refers to treating people equally with fairness and respect so they can feel valued and welcomed. In public relations, inclusion can refer to the workplace, in research such as focus groups, and during special events.

Diversity without inclusion means nothing, stated Judith Harrison, senior vice president of diversity and inclusion at Weber Shandwick, at a 2019 Global PR Summit. “Diversity is being invited to the party. Inclusion is being invited to dance. And belonging is dancing like no one is watching.”

In addition to learning about diversity and inclusion and cultural perspectives, CPRE also stresses avoiding stereotypes, prejudice, and ethnocentrism in research, planning, implementing, and evaluating public relations campaigns. Unconscious bias occurs when people unknowingly associate stereotypes with others based on factors such as race or gender in a manner that influences how they are seen.
 

Stereotypes

Stereotypes are “judgments about an individual based on that person’s membership in a particular classification,” according to CPRE. Stereotypes can be negative or positive and can lead to prejudice. For example, the media portrays some Black males as hypersexualized, unemployed, violent criminals. However, they also are portrayed as successful athletes, musicians, and entertainers.

Prejudice

Prejudice “is an irrational dislike, suspicion or hatred of a certain demographic group” and “is often manifested as racism, sexism and homophobia, creating negative actions, policies, words and beliefs based on race, gender or sexual orientation,” according to CPRE. An example is using the word “urban” as a code word for the Black community to take advantage of racial tensions and cut social services.

Ethnocentrism

Ethnocentrism is defined as “the negative judgment of other cultures based on the belief that a particular cultural perspective is better than others,” CPRE states. For example, people in North America may believe that their culture is superior to the cultures of people on the African and South American continents.

Retaining Diverse Public Relations Practitioners

Some public relations practitioners of color are experiencing the same issues today that researchers documented in the 1980s. These issues may cause them to leave the public relations profession or become owners of public relations firms.

In 1989, Marilyn Kern-Foxworth found that some minority public relations practitioners experienced issues related to racism and prejudice, such as being pigeon-holed to work solely on race-related projects.

Kern-Foxworth also mentioned companies hiring people of color to fill minority quotas.

In 2018, nearly 30 years later, some Black public relations practitioners echoed similar sentiments in a PR Week Black History Month video titled “What it’s like to be black in PR.”

Regarding being pigeon-holed, a female interviewee reported that some Blacks try to shy away from working on multicultural projects and brands. However, doing so is a core competency because they also are capable of working on general projects, she noted.

Regarding quotas, a female interviewee suggested that she would not like to have quotas, but if hiring Black people is not happening organically, quotas could help Blacks get a seat at the table.

In addition to race, socioeconomic status came into play.

Socioeconomic status refers to factors such as education, income, and occupation. For example, some Blacks and Latinos may not fit in because they do not come from affluent backgrounds, did not attend private schools, or did not earn a master’s degree.

The 2018 PR Week video also noted that diversity and inclusion initiatives work for entry-level or middle managers, but not in the leadership ranks. One Black male interviewee discussed being the first and the only Black person in the room.

His experience mirrored the findings in a National Black Public Relations Society (NBPRS) 2015 report. The organization found that 37 percent had no Black female communicators in leadership roles and 14 percent had no Black female employees. Also, 62 percent had no Black men communicators in leadership roles and 47 percent did not employ any Black males.

Recent figures from PR Week for Blacks and other people of color show that the situation has not improved much. 2019 numbers from PR Week show that 55 percent of U.S. firms had no people of color on boards or in the C-suites, Thomas Moore reported in 2020. Also, 39 percent of the top 25 agencies in the country had no Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) in those spaces.

In conclusion, some Blacks and other people of color do not want to continue to work in places where their work is limited, they are hired to meet a quota, they do not fit in, and they do not see reflections of themselves.

WATCH THE VIDEO

Discussion questions

1. Regarding pigeon-holing, would you prefer to work on a general project or brand, or one specifically related to one of your specific avowed identities? Why or why not?
2. Do you think quotas are necessary in the public relations profession? Why or why not? How do you think implementing quotas relates to the definition of inclusion?

Race and Ethnicity in the U.S. and PR Workplace

More Black, Asian, and Hispanic or Latino families are giving birth to children, which is shifting the race and ethnicity of the U.S. population. Most children born in 2020 are expected to be a race other than white, U.S. Census Bureau figures show. Less than a quarter of a century later, the United States is predicted to become a multicultural majority nation.

“While the non-Hispanic White alone population will still be the largest, no race or ethnic group is projected to have greater than a 50 percent share of the nation’s total,” according to the Census Bureau. “Shifts in the racial and ethnic composition of the future population are projected to occur primarily within the native population, which will become majority-minority by 2044” (p. 1).

By 2060, people of two or more races are expected to be the fastest-growing population, followed by Asians and Hispanics, the Census Bureau reports. The number of multiracial people is forecasted to triple in size; in contrast, Asians are forecasted to more than double, and Hispanics are predicted to represent nearly 30 percent of the population, according to the bureau. Additionally, the number of people born in another country is expected to grow from 14 percent to 17 percent, or by 25 million people.

Compared to U.S. demographics, people of color are under-represented in the public relations profession. Whites make up 76.5 percent of the population, 2019 Census data show, but 83.6 percent of public relations specialists, reported the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in the same year.

Regarding people of color, the latest Census figures show Latinos at 15.9 percent, blacks at 13.4 percent, and Asians at 5.9 percent. However, for public relations specialists, the numbers show 13.6 percent Hispanics or Latinos, 9.9 percent blacks, and 5.8 percent Asians, according to BLS.

The issue of under-representation of people of color has permeated the public relations profession since its inception, and it has become increasingly relevant as the U.S. population shifts.

Origins of Diversity in Public Relations

An early mention of diversity in public relations occurred in 1992 in the book "Excellence in Public Relations and Communication Management." Excellence theory linked diversity in public relations to requisite variety, a term Karl Weick coined in 1979. Requisite variety refers to how an organization must be diverse internally to build effective strategic relationships externally.

In making this connection, Larissa Grunig, James Grunig, and William Ehling note that if all of the public relations practitioners are white, they may not realize that their organizations can impact, or be impacted, by people of color, some who may see the organizations as illegitimate.

This observation led the Grunigs and Ehling to conclude that diversity in public relations may enhance the effectiveness of an organization and the careers of communicators of color.

Communicators from culturally diverse backgrounds can serve as go-betweens to translate for organizations and their diverse publics, according to David Dozier, Larissa A. Grunig, and James E. Grunig in the 1995 book "Manager's Guide to Excellence in Public Relations and Communication Management." The authors also note that these communicators “cannot provide needed requisite variety” if they are not a part of, or do not have access to, senior management.

“Employees from diverse backgrounds provide organizations with the requisite variety to construct pictures of reality inside the organization that more closely match the reality as others outside the organization understand it,” Dozier and the Grunigs wrote.

Regarding those diverse backgrounds, James Grunig notes that initial excellence theory research emphasized gender, particularly the roles of women in a female-dominated industry. Doing so eventually led to adding race and ethnicity to the theory to be applicable outside the United States “in diverse cultural, political, and economic contexts.”

Larissa Grunig and Elizabeth Toth (2006) argue that requisite variety does not guarantee effectiveness in public relations. The concept also does not mean that the percentage of minorities in the workplace should mirror the percentage in the environment. The authors suggest that “providing opportunities for women and

Lesson 1: Understanding Diversity in Public Relations

Introduction

Lesson 1 begins by explaining that diversity has been considered an essential aspect of effective public relations since its inclusion in the excellence theory.

Then it defines diversity and explores its link to ethics in public relations.

This lesson also explores some key theories and approaches that can be used to reach diverse stakeholders domestically and globally.

This lesson ends with an example and discussion of a case involving Swedish furniture-maker IKEA. It also includes a case study on the Pepsi commercial featuring model and reality TV star Kendall Jenner.

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Applying the PRSA Code of Ethics

Professionals who find themselves in an ethical dilemma can look to the PRSA Code of Ethics for guidance as to how they should act in their situation. As mentioned in Lesson 1, codes dictate the appropriate actions for professionals in a field, based on the field’s values and ideals. Although not always enforced via punishment – as are other codified structures based on values and ideas, such as laws – codes provide a member of the profession with a good idea of what is considered ethical behavior in the practice.

Professionals with an ethical dilemma can look first to the examples of improper conduct to see if they can find a parallel to their current situation. A situation that matches or resembles very strongly one of these explicitly mentioned scenarios is likely unethical, and the professional should act accordingly. Checking the situation against the stated intent of the code provision and/or the core principle of each code might also provide some insight into the situation’s ethical standing.

Lacking a clear parallel to one of the sample scenarios or the code provisions, a professional can assess his or her ethical dilemma by considering the stated values of the profession. While these values are also reflected in the remainder of the code, they can stand alone as drivers of ethical practice by public relations professionals.

Features of the PRSA Code of Ethics

The current PRSA Code of Ethics consists of three parts:

 

1. A preamble that sets out the goals and role of the document
2. A statement of professional values, which identifies and describes six values of the public relations profession
3. A list of six “code provisions of conduct,” each of which is elaborated with a core principle and examples of the provision in practice.

At the end, a pledge to uphold these values and promote the reputation of the profession – as well as to accept any appropriate sanctions for aberrant behavior – can be signed.

Reflecting the code’s aspirational nature, the preamble to the Code of Ethics describes the ethical orientation of the PRSA and the desire for ethical behavior on the part of its members. It clearly states that, while no formal system of enforcement is in place, the PRSA may restrict association membership to those who violate the code.

Six professional values are listed, described as “the fundamental beliefs that guide our behaviors and decision-making process”: advocacy, honesty, expertise, independence, loyalty, and fairness. These values serve a number of purposes for the field of public relations. They seek to improve the reputation of the industry (expertise, fairness, honesty) while also emphasizing the value of its services to clients (advocacy, loyalty, independence). More detailed descriptions of these values can be found in the graphic below.

The next section gives six code provisions of conduct. For each code provision, a guiding statement (identified by the code as a core principle) and 1-2 statements explaining the provision’s intent are followed by specific guidelines for behavior by public relations professionals. For each provision of conduct, 2-4 related examples of improper conduct are provided.

For example, the provision titled “competition” outlines the equitable and appropriate competition between professionals in the public relations industry. Its core principle, “promoting healthy and fair competition among professionals preserves an ethical climate while fostering a robust business environment,” is followed by the stated intent “To promote respect and fair competition among public relations professionals” and “To serve the public interest by providing the widest choice of practitioner options.” It gives the following guidelines:

A member shall:

• Follow ethical hiring practices designed to respect free and open competition without deliberately undermining a competitor.
• Preserve intellectual property rights in the marketplace.

It then provides the following examples of improper conduct under this provision:

• A member employed by a “client organization” shares helpful information with a counseling firm that is competing with others for the organization's business.
• A member spreads malicious and unfounded rumors about a competitor in order to alienate the competitor's clients and employees in a ploy to recruit people and business.

All in all, 14 potential examples of improper conduct are covered among the six provisions of conduct. Clearly, this list does not exhaustively cover all potential ethical crises that might face public relations practitioners. However, it does provide some concrete examples for comparative use by professionals who find themselves in a questionable ethical situation.

Developing PRSA’s 2000 (current) Code of Ethics

The two-year process to develop the current PRSA code of ethics was undertaken strategically with a number of goals in mind. The 2000 Code differs significantly from its predecessors on three levels:

 

1. It assumes the professionalization of public relations and those who practice in the field.
2. It promotes the role of public relations professionals as advocates for their clients.
3. It does not include any enforcement component.

PRSA designed its new code to be aspirational in order to “[reflect] the Society’s desire to position PRSA as the ethics brand leader in the industry and to raise the ethical performance of public relations professionals.”

The focus of previous codes on enforcement and punishment had led to an overly litigious approach to ethics in public relations, and those accused of ethical violations often brought in lawyers to contest the charges against them. However, the group tasked with revising the code felt that a code rooted in the ideals and values of the profession would serve the profession better by setting a high standard for professionals to hold themselves to. PRSA leaders involved with the process felt that high expectations for members’ ethical behavior – and a Code that reflected that high standard – would help the profession’s credibility.

After an initial meeting to discuss the need for the Code revision and what the new code should entail, research to support the new code actively engaged PRSA’s members in contributing their thoughts on public relations ethics. A nonprofit engaged by the PRSA to assist in the effort, the Ethics Resource Center (ERC), solicited feedback from local PRSA leaders and later conducted focus groups among PRSA members. Finally, the ERC developed and conducted a survey of all PRSA members based on the knowledge gained in the previous research efforts. This 79-item survey was sent to more than 20,000 PRSA members in January 2000; just over 10% of members completed the survey.

PRSA tasked a nine-member team with turning the survey results into an operable code of ethics. Driven by the research, this team developed a two-part code of ethics built upon the PRSA mission that elaborates the core values of the profession. The new code of ethics, which describes six professional values and six code provisions based on core principles of the practice, was approved at the 2000 PRSA Assembly Meeting.

The decision to eliminate enforcement from the 2000 Code was not without controversy. Although both leaders and members of the PRSA supported a means of enforcing the code, all were reluctant to actively engage in the enforcement process by turning people in or testifying as a witness. This took the teeth out of the enforcement process, as cases were often dropped before they were seen through to their resolution.

Some have criticized the lack of enforcement of the current code, arguing that such an element is necessary to the achievement of professionalization of the profession. Ultimately, the PRSA leaders engaged in the process of building the 2000 Code decided to focus on education about an aspirational code, rather than enforcement of a punitive one, as the best way to promote ethics in public relations.

History of the PRSA Code of Ethics

In the United States, the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) has guided the work of professionals in the field since 1948. In 1950, the organization adopted its first code of ethics in order to provide guidance for its members about ethical behavior in the field. Although general in nature, this first code both “laid the groundwork for future codes and established the direction of its successors.”

The 1950 code did not emerge from a vacuum. While the society intended for the code to legitimize the field of public relations as a profession, those who perceived misdoings among the members of the field also advocated strongly for such a guide. Many members hoped that the existence of such a code would eradicate this behavior moving forward.

Enforcement mechanisms in the bylaws of the PRSA were added when the PRSA revised the code in 1954. The rewritten code in 1954, more straightforward than the previous one, used action-based principle statements (e.g., “We will safeguard the confidence…”) to describe and define ethically appropriate behavior by public relations professionals.

When the PRSA revised the Code of Ethics once more in 1959, enforcement language was added to the text of the code. Bylaw revisions at this time established six regional boards to adjudicate ethical violations by PRSA members. In 1962, the society established a board to actively seek out ethical violators, a responsibility that had previously been assigned to PRSA members.

The 1960s saw further revision of the code to clarify guidelines on conflict of interest and the rising problem of so-called front groups. Additional revision during this time brought the PRSA together with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to adapt code sections to the growing area of financial public relations. During this time, guidance was also provided via revisions to the code about the use of public relations for political campaigns.

The PRSA once again interacted with the federal government when an FTC (Federal Trade Commission) review of the organization’s code of ethics, undertaken as part of a larger project, raised some red flags regarding the code’s ban on contingency fees and its provisions preventing professionals from poaching each other’s clients. A 1977 revision of the Code aligned with other PRSA revisions that year, including a new Declaration of Principles that referenced the importance of human rights. 1977 also saw the deletion of a previous provision that prevented public relations professionals from making derogatory statements about other products.

In 1988, the PRSA adopted a three-part code of ethics with a declaration of principles, a pledge of professional conduct, and a 17-item list detailing appropriate behavior on the part of public relations professionals. Two years later, the organization provided specific interpretations of these guidelines, where appropriate, for certain fields such as financial public relations and politics. This 1998 code and its 1990 interpretations remained in place until the revision that produced the 2000 PRSA Code of Ethics, still in use today.

Lesson 2 Assessment

Case Study: Smoke and Mirrors: RJ Reynolds Creates Front Group

Background

The tobacco industry has not had the cleanest track record with respect to honest and ethical communication with consumers and the public. Public relations pioneer Edward Bernays famously sold the pro-smoking “Torches of Freedom” march as a women’s rights effort. The industry was silent, and in fact even denied, for years that the use of its products had health implications for smokers.

The tobacco industry in particular has been known for the use of third parties and coalitions of organizations to promote its interests indirectly. As tobacco products and their negative effects on smokers became more well known, the industry and its corporations tried to mask their efforts to fight regulation of tobacco products. This case study looks at one particular effort to use a so-called “front group” – funded by a tobacco corporation but not publicly affiliated with it – and its ethical implications with respect to the PRSA Code of Ethics.

The Issue

In the mid 1990s, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) proposed policy changes that would influence the way that tobacco was regulated by the government. Specifically, the regulations would consider alcohol a drug and eliminate smoking in the workplace. Concerned that the regulations would lower their profits, the tobacco companies decided to take action.

However, the companies themselves had become so unpopular that they could not advocate directly to the public and to lawmakers in hopes of halting the changes. Instead, they created an opaque effort to stop regulations aimed at smoking by taking aim at the regulations themselves.

Course of Action

Launched in 1994, the “Get Government Off Our Backs” campaign was led by a public relations firm employed by tobacco giant RJ Reynolds. However, there was no mention of the tobacco company’s involvement in public materials about the campaign. The messaging of the campaign portrayed so-called “average Americans” complaining about the increasing role of government in their lives.

Of course, there were no “average Americans” involved in this campaign. As the campaign grew, it amassed a coalition of lobbying organizations in and outside of the tobacco industry. In fact, the group became so powerful – and its origins so nebulous – that organizations began proactively seeking to attach to the group in hopes of taking part in its share of media attention.

Consequences

The PRSA Code of Ethics was revised in the 1960s specifically to address the problem of front groups such as Get Government Off Our Backs. Such groups, while often effective, are fundamentally dishonest in the way they represent their funding and intent. This violates the PRSA Code’s provision emphasizing the free flow of information and the professional value of honesty.

In addition, a public relations firm that undertakes an effort like this one runs the risk of harming the reputation of the public relations industry overall. Such underhanded efforts perpetuate the notion that public relations is an unethical, win-at-all-costs profession that cares only about achieving its clients’ results. This violates the code provision about enhancing the profession, which states that ethical behavior by public relations practitioners should benefit the overall reputation of the field.

Moral of the Story

Ultimately, the efforts of the Get Government Off Our Backs front group were successful, at least for the RJ Reynolds tobacco company: The FDA did not regulate tobacco as a drug, and OSHA did not act to outlaw smoking in workplaces. However, the stated success of the group’s efforts should not be obscured by the serious ethical considerations presented by the use of front groups and other opaque efforts that deny consumers the ability to make educated decisions based on available, truthful information.

Lesson 2: The PRSA Code of Ethics

A code of ethics symbolizes the professionalization of a field or practice. In order to be accepted as a professional endeavor, public relations needed to have a code of ethics.

In a 2013 study, Yang and Taylor examined 36 countries and found that all but one had professional codes of ethics for the public relations field. Further, 36% of these countries had codes of ethics that affected accreditation and/or licensure of professionals in the industry. Based on their wide-ranging research, Yang and Taylor confirmed that robust codes of ethics, along with other factors, can help the public relations industry contribute positively to the development of democracy.

The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) created its first code of ethics in 1950, about fifty years after the practice started to be professionalized with the Publicity Bureau. Over the years, the code has changed considerably, often influenced by the context of modern culture and particular trends within the field.

For Discussion

Discussion Questions

1. What makes one person more or less ethical than another? Where does that component of an individual’s character come from?
2. What does it mean for an organization to be ethical? What is the difference between an unethical and an illegal act?
3. What does it mean for an organization to be conscious?
4. What is the difference between an ethical company and a conscious company?

Ethics & the Public Relations Models: Two-Way Asymmetrical Model

The third model of public relations, the two-way asymmetrical model, advocates two-way persuasive communication. This model utilizes persuasive communication to influence the attitudes and actions of key stakeholders. Its two-way design supports a feedback loop to allow public relations practitioners to monitor the effectiveness of the persuasive communication. While the model includes an outward focus, the central concern is the organization and its interests. Like the press agentry model, the two-way asymmetrical model adheres to teleological ethical reasoning. As a result, the outcome is typically in the best interest of the organization. However, the feedback loop allows professionals to assess the associated benefits and costs to those external to the organization and make necessary ethical adjustments.

The two-way asymmetrical model highlights the conflict of loyalty common in public relations practice. Professionals are often divided in their loyalty to their organization and their loyalty to key stakeholders. The Golden Rule maxim offers a good guide for practitioners to balance this conflict of loyalties. This rule instructs professionals to act in a manner that they would expect from others. Public relations professionals can also use the “test of sincerity” when creating persuasive messages. The test of sincerity, much like the Golden Rule, says that professionals should use only persuasive methods and arguments that, if directed toward themselves, would seem legitimate.

Although resembling the press agentry model, the two-way asymmetrical model offers important ethical advantages. The model builds on the professional virtues found in the public information model and incorporates a feedback loop in the creation of its persuasive messages. The two-way communication provides a consideration for those beyond the organization that is absent from the press agentry model. Further, the model suggests that public relations professionals should consider the implications of their persuasive messages on others. Such a broadened focus illustrates the ethical development of public relations from a self-interest approach to one that incorporates a concern for others in its actions.

Self-Check Questions

Lesson 2 Self-Check Questions

1. Explain how the press agentry model exemplifies a teleological approach. What are the ethical advantages/ disadvantages of this practice of public relations?
2. How does the application of the PRSA code of ethics represent a deontological approach in the public information model of public relations?
3. How does the two-way asymmetrical public relations model offer an “other” perspective absent from the two lesser models? Why is this perspective important to ethical development?
4. How does Habermas’ theory of ethical discourse support the ethical practice of two-way symmetrical public relations?
5. How might the pillars of ethical public relations guide the ethical behavior of public relations professionals?

Self-Check Questions

Self-Check Questions for Lesson 1

1. How do personal values guide ethical behavior?
2. The axiology ethical orientation believes values are habitual and consistent. How might this approach impact public relations practice?
3. Using the deontology ethical orientation, explain the importance of intention to ethical action.
4. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of utilitarianism in public relations practice.
5. How might the prevalence of subjectivism impact the perception of public relations as an ethical profession?
6. Why might ethical literacy be important to a public relations professional?

Case Study: Wonder Woman: An Honorary Ambassador or a Mascot?

Background

Gender equality is a fundamental human right, but not one that woman and girls enjoy worldwide. In recognition of this need, the United Nations (U.N.) named gender equality as the fifth of their 17 goals to transform the world. Their goal is to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. A first step toward this goal was to name an official honorary ambassador for the U.N. The effort, while notable, drew ire from many. Why? Because the honorary ambassador was . . . not real.

On October 21, 2016, the United Nations announced Wonder Woman, the classic DC Comics super-heroine, as the official honorary ambassador for the United Nation’s year-long campaign to “Stand Up for the Empowerment of Women and Girls Everywhere." The iconic comic-book character was chosen for her commitment to justice and her portrayal of strength.

Wonder Woman’s appointment was part of goal five in the 2015 U.N.’s 17 sustainable development goals that aspire to leave no one behind by 2030. Wonder Woman’s appointment was designed to highlight women and girls who are wonder women in their own right, to illustrate what can be achieved if women and girls are empowered, and to bring about positive change in the home, workplace, community, country and the world.

“Wonder Woman's character is the most iconic and well known female comic book superhero in the world, known for her strength, fairness and compassion, and her commitment to justice, peace and equality," Maher Nasser, outreach director of the United Nations' Department of Public Information, said. The appointment corresponded with the 75th anniversary of Wonder Woman’s debut and with the upcoming Wonder Woman movie, featuring Israeli actress Gal Gadot.

Dilemma

The appointment lasted a mere two months amid a firestorm of protests, comprised predominately of U.N. staff. Staff protested on the grounds that Wonder Woman is “culturally insensitive, overly sexualized, and not real.” Within 48 hours of the announcement, concerned U.N. staff posted an online petition to encourage U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to reconsider Wonder Woman as the honorary ambassador for the empowerment of women and girls. Their petition stated, “Although Wonder Woman was originally created to represent a strong and independent ‘warrior woman’ with a feminist message, she instead, in her current iteration, is a large-breasted, white woman of impossible proportions scantily clad in shimmery, thigh-baring body suit with an American flag motif and knee-high boots – the epitome of a ‘pin-up’ girl.”

The ceremony announcing Wonder Woman’s appointment featured several prominent entertainment figures, including Lynda Carter, who played Wonder Woman in the 1970s hit television show, Gal Gadot, the actress portraying Wonder Woman in the upcoming Wonder Woman movie, and Diane Nelson, president of DC Entertainment. The ceremony also announced a joint U.N. and DC Comics social media campaign to promote women’s rights.

During the ceremony, concerned U.N. staff stood in silent protest by turning their back, raising a fist in the air, and leaving halfway through the ceremony. In addition, nearly 100 staff members held signs in the U.N. lobby that read, “I am not a mascot,” and “Let’s get real.”

Course of Action

The U.N. addressed concerns of Wonder Woman’s appearance by “toning down” her image. At the announcement ceremony, a life-size image of Wonder Woman depicted her from the waist up with a cape around her shoulders, covering her chest. In subsequent photos, Wonder Woman is consistently shown from the waist up, omitting the patriotic aspect of her costume, and with a darker skin tone.

Two days following the announcement, the U.N. held a press conference to address the concerned U.N. staff and petition supporters. Cristina Gallach, a senior U.N. spokeswoman, dismissed the idea that the U.N. does not represent “real” women as role models for gender equality. “To these views, I would like to say that the United Nations has many real-life women and men fighting for gender equality and the empowerment of women every day,” she said.

Former Wonder Woman actress Lynda Carter also dismissed U.N. staff’s concerns. Describing the petition supporters as “nitpicking” and to “get over it.”

Online petition supporters disagreed. On their petition site, one supporter stated, “The bottom line appears to be that the United Nations was unable to find a real-life woman that would be able to champion the rights of ALL women on the issue of gender equality and the fight for their empowerment . . . this role is too important to be championed by a ‘mascot.’”

Consequences

After only two months, Wonder Woman’s role of honorary ambassador ended. U.N. Spokesman Jeffrey Brez said that the U.N.’s decision to end Wonder Woman’s role was made soon after the launch. He emphasized that the decision was not due to the online protest, despite the nearly 45,000 signatures collected at the time of his announcement.

“The objective was to reach out to Wonder Woman fans to raise awareness of U.N. Sustainable Development Goal 5,” Brez said. “We did that. We are happy.”

DC Comics spokeswoman Courtney Simmons echoed their pleasure with the brief campaign. “[We] are extremely pleased with the awareness that this partnership brought to United Nations Sustainable Development Goal #5, as well as elevating the global conversation around the empowerment of women and girls,” she said. “Wonder Woman stands for peace, justice and equality, and for 75 years she has been a motivating force for many and will continue to be long after the conclusion of her UN Honorary Ambassadorship."

Moral of the Story

Wonder Woman is not the first fictional character to be chosen as a U.N. ambassador. Winnie the Pooh served as an honorary ambassador for the International Day of Friendship and Red, one of the characters from the Angry Birds mobile game, was chosen as an honorary ambassador for the International Day of Happiness. Yet, U.N. staff note that neither of these fictional characters represented humans. Not everyone, however, agrees with the U.N.’s latest decision. At the time of this writing, a new online petition is requesting the reinstatement of Wonder Woman as the honorary ambassador for the empowerment of women and girls. The U.N. has not provided additional comment.

Discussion Questions

1. Which model of public relations do you believe is most prevalent in the United Nations’ decision to appoint Wonder Woman as honorary ambassador? How well did the U.N. assess the ethical implications of this model?
2. The U.N. staff described Wonder Woman as a “mascot.” What public relations model did they perceive in the announcement? Explain their ethical concern in this use of this public relations model.
3. Wonder Woman’s appointment was part of a larger societal cause to impact positive change for women and girls globally. How well did the United Nations maintain their moral obligation to society, as described by Bivins? Do you perceive other obligations in the U.N.’s ethical decisions?
4. Using Parsons’ five guiding questions, how well does the United Nations uphold the ethical pillars of public relations? Explain your answer.

Additional Resources

ABC News. (2016, October 21). Wonder Woman named honorary UN ambassador, staffers
protest ‘sexualised cartoon character.’ Retrieved from http://www.abc.net.au

Alexander, E. (2016, October 21). Wonder Woman named UN ambassador in controversial
move. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com

Concerned United Nations Staff Members. (n.d.). Reconsider the choice of Wonder Woman as
the UN’s honorary ambassador for the empowerment of women and girls. Retrieved from http://www.thepetitionsite.com/741/288/432/reconsider-the-choice-of-honorary-ambassador-for-the-empowerment-of-women-and-girls/

Goal 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/gender-equality/

Hersher, R. (2016, October 13). Wonder Woman named honorary U.N. ambassador for gender
equality. Retrieved from https://knpr.org

Roberts, E. (2016, December 13). UN drops Wonder Woman as honorary ambassador.
Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/

Williams, A. (2016, December 22). Lynda Carter deflects critics of Wonder Woman. Retrieved
from http://www.nytimes.com

Case Study: Responding to a Pandemic: WHO and CDC’s Response to the Zika Virus

Background

Brazilian maternity wards were in chaos. Nurses had never seen so many newborns with microcephaly-like symptoms. Babies were being born with enlarged heads that resembled a wizened old man rather than a newborn. Some babies were unable to move their arms or legs; others cried inconsolably. Some were deaf; others were blind. All were born to mothers who had contracted doenca misteriosa, or mystery disease, months earlier.

Today, the mystery disease known as the Zika virus derived its name from the Zika forest of Uganda where it was first discovered in 1947. The disease migrated to the Yap Islands in the Pacific before disappearing. Zika reappeared in the French Polynesia Islands and then arrived in Brazil, brought to the country by the FIFA Confederation Cup soccer games. From there, the Zika virus reached a pandemic state that led the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to declare a world health emergency. This case study details the emergence of the Zika pandemic crisis and the response of the world’s health organizations to the crisis.

For most, Zika is a benign virus. When the mystery disease was first identified as the Zika virus, doctors breathed a sigh of relief. For most adults, Zika is not serious. The virus includes a rash, headache, and fever, leaving many adults to believe they have a cold rather than the virus. Zika does carry the possibility of serious health risk, such as Guillain-Barre. This syndrome is a slow-moving paralysis of the body and can be fatal if not treated immediately. Those cases are rare, and 99 percent of Zika cases for adults are classified as mild.

The Zika virus, however, is a serious threat for unborn babies, attacking the neurological functions of a fetus at any point during the pregnancy. Babies who appear perfectly healthy on the ultrasound can suddenly become unresponsive in the womb. The virus can cause serious malformation and even death. The attack stems from the virus’ presence in the mother’s body that is passed to the fetus. From there, the virus attacks the fetus’ neurological system, severely debilitating its development or prohibiting its development at all. 

Like most viruses, the Zika virus was originally assumed to spread through a bite from an infected Aedes aegypti mosquito. Later medical studies revealed that the Zika virus can also be transmitted sexually, the first mosquito-borne virus to do so.

Dilemma

Initially, the WHO and the CDC were slow to respond. Unwilling to disrupt tourism and the upcoming 2016 Olympic games in Brazil, the organizations offered little information about the Zika virus beyond the standard advice to avoid mosquito bites. Travelers were cautioned to wear mosquito repellent, especially those who were pregnant or who may become pregnant. No information was issued for residents of Zika-infected areas, and Zika’s connection to microcephaly was not mentioned.

Despite the preliminary precautions, the Zika virus continued to spread, leading the WHO to make another announcement. On February 1, 2016, the WHO declared a world health emergency, but they were reluctant to establish a link between Zika and microcephaly. Rumors and misinformation circulated on the “true” cause of the Brazilian microcephaly outbreak, further minimizing the connection between the Zika virus and micro cephalic newborns. As a result, the dangers of Zika to pregnant women were unclear.

Not everyone was silent about the dangers of Zika. New York Times science and health investigative reporter Donald McNeil, Jr. spent much of 2015 and 2016 describing the Zika virus and debunking the myths surrounding it. Previously, a rumor had circulated that Brazil had over-counted the cases of microcephaly, reducing the possible connection of Zika and micro cephalic newborns. McNeil proved differently. In December 2015, Brazil changed the definition of microcephaly, reducing the head measurements of newborns with microcephaly from less than 33 centimeters to less than 32 centimeters. Thus, McNeil reasoned, Brazil should have had far fewer microcephaly cases, not more.

Course of action

With the connection established, health ministers in the affected countries of Brazil, Columbia, Ecuador, Jamaica, El Salvador, and the Dominican Republic were convinced of the danger and asked women to consider delaying pregnancy if possible. Their request for universal delayed pregnancy was unprecedented, and the backlash against the request was immediate. Women’s reproductive rights groups protested, saying that the government cannot tell women what to do with their bodies. A spokesperson from Amnesty International said that such advice placed women, “in an impossible position by asking them to put the sole responsibility for public health on their shoulders by not getting pregnant when over half don’t have that choice.” A spokeswoman from the Center for Reproductive Rights in New York called the health ministers’ announcement “irresponsible,” noting that they “were not issuing any recommendation for the men to use condoms, which is very unfair.” The news media also protested with headlines such as "Zika Virus and the Hypocrisy of Telling Women to Delay Pregnancy." The WHO and the CDC agreed, stating that pregnancy was a personal issue not a health issue.

McNeil was also outraged, but at the reluctance of the health organizations to communicate the dangers of pregnancy in Zika-infected areas. He reasoned that the only true way to avoid Zika-induced microcephaly in babies was to avoid becoming pregnant. He argued that the issue had been “hijacked,” and the public’s response was a result of the health organizations’ “terrible job explaining why they were asking women to wait.”

McNeil further charged the WHO and the CDC with doing a disservice to women exposed to the Zika virus. McNeil expressed his frustration with the CDC’s response in an exchange with Dr. Denise Jamieson, the leader of the CDC’s women’s health and fertility branch.

“Why,” McNeil asks, “will the CDC not advise women to wait?”

“I think the government getting involved in highly personal decisions about when to have a baby is not likely to be very effective,” Jamieson explained.

“Suppose you were in your job in 1964,” McNeil said, “and you knew that huge rubella outbreak was starting. There was no vaccine. You knew the consequences. Babies would suffer. What would your advice have been then?”

“I’d say,” Jamieson answered, “‘This is an extraordinarily risky time to get pregnant.’”
“But you won’t give the same advice now?”

“This is different,” she said. “There was no vaccine then. Highly motivated women can avoid mosquito bites.”

“For nine months, 24 hours a day?” McNeil asked. “Is that realistic?”

Realistic – probably not – and as the communication lagged, Zika continued to spread.

Consequences

The Brazilian epidemic peaked at 8,000 new Zika cases a week. The virus then moved to Puerto Rico where it was predicted that 25 percent of the population would be infected. In late 2016, the Zika virus arrived on the mainland of the United States. Current estimates believe the virus will circulate in the U.S. for at least three years. In the wake of these predictions, the WHO issued an advisory in June 2016 asking women to consider delaying pregnancy. The CDC did not issue similar advice. Rather, they continued to urge women who are pregnant or trying to become pregnant to avoid Zika-infected areas, and for those in Zika-infected areas, to take proper mosquito precaution.

Moral of the Story

McNeil believes that the CDC’s lack of a response is the real disservice for women. ‘The debate had been hijacked,” said McNeil. “Millions of poor women were being denied life-saving advice because it has become politically incorrect.” Others disagree, believing that advocacy of a universal plan for pregnancy avoidance was equally unethical.

Discussion Questions

1. What values can you identify that guided McNeil’s response and the WHO and CDC’s response to the Zika virus? How do their values compare?
2. Which ethical orientation(s) best describes the health organizations’ response to the Zika virus?
3. Using the different ethical orientations (axiology, deontology teleology, situational ethics), how would you approach this situation? How would you counsel the WHO and the CDC in their response to the Zika pandemic?
4. Using three of your identified values from the Barrett personal values assessment, how would you respond to the Zika pandemic crisis? Explain how your values guide your response.

Additional Resources

Fox, M. (2016, February 1). WHO declares Zika a public health emergency. NBC News. Retrieved from https://www.nbcnews.com

Garrett, L. (2016, July 28). Review: ‘Zika” tracks the trajectory of an epidemic. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com

McNeil, D.G. (2016). Zika: The emerging epidemic. New York: W.W. Norton & Company.

McNeil, D.G. & Cobb, J.S. (2016, October 31). Columbia is hit hard by Zika but not by microcephaly. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com

Satel, S. (2016, July 24). Book review: Zika: The emerging epidemic. The Denver Post. Retrieved from http://www.denverpost.com

Zika virus: What we need to know. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/zika/prevention/index.html

The Pillars of Public Relations Ethics

In conclusion, the public relations profession has grown in its ethical practice, as evidenced in the public relations models. Yet, it is erroneous to assume that the application of the lower public relations models is unethical. Rather, ethical public relations literacy guides the professional in the ethical considerations in inherent to each model. By understanding the values and ethical orientations of each, public relations professionals can better assess appropriate ethical behavior.

Parsons offers a comprehensive ethical guide to help professionals in this assessment. Derived from the maxims of bioethics, she suggests five ethical pillars to summarize ethical literacy and support ethical decision making.

The five pillars are veracity (to tell the truth), non-maleficence (to do no harm), beneficence (to do good), confidentiality (to respect privacy), and fairness (to be fair and socially responsible). Parsons argues that the pillar to do no harm offers a starting point to avoid intentional and foreseeable harm. This pillar is balanced by the proactive pillar of “doing good.” Looking for opportunities to do good offers an “altruistic ethical intent,” that professionals should strive to uphold. The pillar of fairness is reminiscent of the ethical orientations that value and respect all individuals and balances the pillars of veracity and confidentiality. These pillars can be translated into five guiding questions to help professionals in ethical public relations practice:

1. Will anyone be harmed if we use this approach?
2. Are we taking advantage of an opportunity to contribute something good to society?
3. Is the message truthful? Could anyone be misled?
4. Does this respect the privacy of individuals and the organization?
5. Is this approach unfair to anyone including society?

Using these questions, public relations professionals can better assess the ethical implications of public relations practice and grow deeper in their ethical development.

TARES: Ethical Message Development

Message development is central to each of the public relations models. As such, professionals need to incorporate ethical literacy into their messaging. While the ethical orientations described earlier provide guidance, the TARES test developed by Baker and Martinson and Gower offer specific guidance in message development:

These questions offer professionals a means to incorporate ethical literacy throughout the message creation and dissemination process. By considering TARES, professionals can better balance the priority of the organization and society to ensure that their public relations practice reaches the ethical maturity found in the two-way symmetrical public relations model.

Public Relations Value Systems

The four models of public relations not only represent the development of ethical practice in public relations, but they also illustrate two value systems within public relations. Albert Sullivan identified these two value systems as a partisan value system and mutuality value system. The partisan value system is displayed in the first three models of public relations: press agentry, public information, and two-way asymmetrical. In these models, the organization is primary. The public relations professional uses the values of loyalty, commitment, and obedience to enhance the organization and its position in society. The second value system, mutuality, is displayed in the two-way symmetrical model of public relations and includes the interests and rights of others. Sullivan believed that the mutuality value system leads the truly ethical public relations professional. Using this value system, public relations professionals not only consider the interests of the organization, but also the basic rights of all stakeholders affected by the organization.

Sullivan identified three basic rights that the mutuality value system protects:

1. the basic rights of individuals to accurate and complete information regarding matters that affect them
2. the right to participate in decisions that affect them
3. the right to have their rights represented by others

Like the two-way symmetrical model, mutuality is societal focused. It is built on the ethical development of previous models. For example, the press agentry model introduces the importance of organizational interest in the practice of public relations. The public information model adds the importance of honest and accurate information when promoting the organization. The two-way asymmetrical model incorporates a feedback loop that allows professionals to expand their ethical focus to key organizational stakeholders. Finally, the mutuality value system or the two-way symmetrical model, encourages ethical professionals to develop a societal perspective that can guide the ethical practice of public relations.

Ethics & the Public Relations Models: Two-Way Symmetrical Model

Finally, the two-way symmetrical model of public relations is considered the most sophisticated and ethical practice of public relations. This model focuses on dialogue that creates and sustains mutually beneficial relationships between an organization and its key stakeholders. This model attempts to minimize the potential imbalance of power between organizations and stakeholders found in the asymmetrical model of public relations and embraces a broader social responsibility perspective. As a result, the organization is not considered the primary beneficiary of public relations activity. Rather, stakeholders and society are both important considerations.

Curtin and Boynton noted that Kant’s categorical imperatives of equality, justice, and fairness guide many of the ethical decisions within this model. Kant believed that there were certain universal laws that all reasonable people must meet. These principles help guide professionals in the development and sustenance of mutually beneficial relationships. Utilitarianism is another ethical reasoning common to the two-way symmetrical model of public relations. Utilitarianism reasons that the most ethical decision is one that brings the greatest good for the greatest number of people. From this standpoint, the organization is often subservient to societal needs as public relations professionals seek the greatest good.

Dialogue is a central component of the two-way symmetrical model. This model supports continuous two-way communication between an organization and its stakeholders. Ethical literacy, however, must guide the dialogue to ensure ethical communication. Habermas’ theory of ethical discourse offers guidance in this area. He believed that ethical discourse cannot be dominated by one party, but must represent a give-and-take form of communication. Ethical discourse occurs when individuals treat one another with openness and respect. Habermas identified four criteria necessary for ethical discourse: the communication must be comprehensive; it must be true; it must be appropriate for the audience; and it must be sincere. Pearson built on Habermas’ theory and offered four additional conditions necessary for ethical public relations symmetrical discourse:

• There must be the opportunity for beginning and ending communicative interaction
• There must be the opportunity for suggesting topics and initiating topic changes
• There must be the ability to provide a response and to have that response treated as such
• There must be the ability to select channels of communication

Using these guides, professionals can ensure ethical, two-way communication. Unlike the asymmetrical model, the symmetrical model includes a larger societal focus. Communication is designed to include a myriad of voices in order to ascertain the most ethical action.

Many researchers believe, however, that the two-way symmetrical model represents an idealized practice of public relations. Kohlberg would agree. He believed most adults would never reach a societal focused ethical maturity displayed in this model. Yet, this level of ethical development is important to the ethical practice of public relations.

Ethics & the Public Relations Models: Public Information Model

The public information model, the second level of public relations, is often described as the “journalist-in-residence” model. It utilizes media relation techniques to place public relations information into news stories. Championed by public relations pioneer Ivy Lee, this model focuses on truthful and accurate information in order to gain third-party endorsement.

Curtin and Boynton identify two ethical orientations for this model, axiology and deontology. Axiological ethical reasoning supports a focus on virtues. Aristotle, a leading axiological ethicist, believed virtues guide ethical behavior. A virtuous person has ethical habits that guide consistent ethical action. The public information model introduces the virtues of honesty and accuracy and encourages the consistent application of these virtues. Public relations professionals in this model provide honest and accurate information to news media. Unlike the press agentry model, the practitioners in this model adhere to virtues to ensure the ethical development and dissemination of information.

The identification of virtues in the public information model leads to the deontological ethical orientation through the systematic adoption of these virtues by professional organizations. Both the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Code of Ethics and the Society of Journalists Code of Ethics require professionals to adhere to honesty and the dissemination of accurate information. The adherence to a professional code of ethics follows a deontological ethical approach. Professionals follow a prescribed code of ethics that guide their behavior. For example, the PRSA Code of Ethics directs professionals to “adhere to the highest standards of accuracy and truth,” and to “advocate the free flow of accurate and truthful information,” when working with the media. Such a deontological perspective guides public relations practice within the public information model.

This model represents an ethical step forward in the development of public relations practice. While the press agentry model embraced a self-interest approach, this model highlights the needs of others in its ethical consideration, using the code of ethics as a guide. Public relations professionals can test the ethics of the public information model using the professional ethic principle. This principle guides professionals to only take action that would be considered appropriate by an objective panel of public relations professionals.

Ethics & the Public Relations Models: Press Agentry Model

The press agentry model is the lowest “level” of ethical public relations. This model focuses on publicity or press agentry to gain attention for the organization. Reminiscent of P.T. Barnum’s publicity stunts, this model focuses on self-interest or gaining attention, whether good or bad. As a result, this model can be used to exploit a situation for personal gain. For example, pharmaceutical CEO Martin Shkreli hiked the price of daraprim from $13.50 per pill to $750 per pill overnight, a 5,000 percent price increase. In response to the uproar, Shkreli replied that his responsibility was to the investors of his organization, not the affected patients. His actions thrust him and his organization into the media limelight and spurred many antagonistic Twitter exchanges. Some suggest that the price hike was a publicity stunt to bring daraprim to the forefront of a broader audience. If so, the maneuver was successful, as the drug currently enjoys high name recognition beyond the scope of its current patients. Examples such as this one highlight the often-seamy side of the press agentry model. Manipulation and/or deception can often be used to achieve short-term rewards.

Like the teleological approach, the press agentry model focuses on outcomes more than processes. It considers the outcome more important than the means to get to the outcome. As a result, an ethical outcome could be the result of an unethical process. Laczniak and Murphy offer a maxim to help ensure the ethical dimension of this model. They suggest that professionals use the “TV test,” by always asking if you would feel comfortable explaining the action on television. Granted, the “TV test” isn’t foolproof. Shkreli seems to have enjoyed, even acerbated, his villainous profile in media interviews and on social media. In one Twitter exchange, a user said, “you should be ashamed of yourself. You have given people their death sentences. A person’s life is not business,” to which Shkreli replied, “No, you are wrong.” It seems in his mind that the outcome of increased profits was the most important.

Ethics & the Public Relations Models

Public relations practice, as represented by the four public relations models, also represent ethical development in public relations. Grunig and Hunt identified four models of public relations that progress from an elementary method of public relations to a more sophisticated practice. The models from basic to sophisticated include press agentry/publicity, public information, two-way asymmetrical communication, and two-way symmetrical communication. Each model represents a specific ethical orientation that when considered collectively illustrates the ethical development of public relations.

Ethical Development

Everyone grows up. Our physical attributes, language skills, and reasoning capabilities develop as we get older. Ethical philosophers believe that we also “grow up” in our ethical development. Kohlberg believed that people develop from rudimentary understanding to a more advanced knowledge and practice of ethics. He developed three levels of development:

1. The first level represents an elementary understanding of ethical development that focuses on avoiding personal punishment and meeting personal needs. Kohlberg explains that a child will not avoid stealing because stealing is wrong, but will avoid stealing in order to avoid punishment.
2. At level two, an individual might do what is right, but will do so in order to maximize personal gain. Individuals begin to consider others in addition to themselves, but they often act ethically in order to appear as a good person or to fulfill professional obligations. For example, many professionals will act ethically because they have agreed to follow a professional code of conduct. Kohlberg believed that most adults reach this level and are heavily influenced by a desire to be perceived as a “good person.”
3. The final level is considered the highest level of ethical development, and according to Kohlberg, reached by few adults. At this level, professionals show a genuine interest in the welfare of others and have a deep sense of universal ethical principles that guide their behavior.

These stages of ethical development move professionals from a basic individual concern to a recognition of their behavior on others. Bivins conceptualized this development as moral obligations, identifying five specific moral obligations for public relations practitioners:

• To themselves -- to preserve their own integrity
• To clients -- to honor contracts, to use professional expertise in their behalf
• To organizations/employers -- to adhere to organizational goals and policies
• To the profession/colleagues -- to uphold the standards of the profession
• To society -- to consider societal needs and claims

Like Kohlberg’s levels, these obligations progress from an individual ethical orientation to an outward ethical orientation. Such a progression is inherent in a deeper understanding of ethical public relations literacy. As professionals become more ethically literate, they have an increased understanding of the concentric influence of their ethical behavior on others.

Ethical Orientations: Situational Ethics

The final ethical orientation considered here is situational ethics. Popularized by Joseph Fletcher in the late 1960s, this approach believes that ethical laws or rules are applied based on the context. As communities vary over time, so do the ethical laws that best direct human action. Situational ethics asserts that love, human welfare, and individual happiness should always be upheld; however, the orientation does not provide guidelines or absolutes for application.

Situational ethics is the most common ethical orientation used by public relations professionals. Wright found that professionals rely most often on situational ethics, but not the classical situational ethics orientation described above. Yes, professionals make consequence-based choices that vary based on the situation, but they do so using subjectivism, meaning that public relations professionals respond differently to the same ethical situation.

Such diversity of ethical approaches heightens the need for ethical literacy. Public relations professionals need to be able to assess a situation, identify the personal values at play, and consider the most appropriate ethical orientation. Further, a public relations professional must be ethically literate in order to understand the diverse behaviors and the ethical orientations that guide others. Only through ethical literacy can public relations professionals successfully “mind the ethical gap.”

Ethical Orientations: Teleology

In contrast to the deontological approach, the teleology ethical orientation emphasizes outcomes over the process. It is a results-oriented approach that defines ethical behavior by good or bad consequences. Ethical decisions are those that create the greatest good. The most common teleology approach is utilitarianism, which stresses the greatest good for the greatest number of individuals. Jeremy Bentham, an influential proponent of utilitarianism, believed a good or moral act would result in the “greatest happiness of the greatest number of people.”

In the 2002 Spiderman blockbuster film, Spiderman faces an utilitarian ethical quandary when the Green Goblin forces him to choose between saving a cable car full of young children or his girlfriend Mary Jane. The teleology ethicist believes Spiderman should save the children. After all, the tram car is full of children whose lives are in jeopardy. Unable to save both, the greater good of saving the children justifies the means of sacrificing Mary Jane. Of course, in Hollywood reality, Spiderman manages to save both, but public relations professionals rarely have “save both” as an option. In reality, it is often unclear which outcome will be good or bad prior to the action. Public relations practitioners are left to their best guess on the nature of the outcome.

Teleology’s focus on outcomes is further problematic as unethical behavior could be justified if the result is good. To offset utilitarianism’s shortcomings, John Stuart Mill suggested that both the quality of good and the long-term consequences of an outcome should be considered. He defined good as including “higher” and “lower” pleasures. Higher pleasures were positive and included intelligence, mental pleasure, and health while lower pleasures were negative and included ignorance, stupidity, selfishness, and physical pleasures. Later friendship, loyalty, and fairness were believed to have positive, intrinsic worth. Mill believed that a person must consider all potential consequences of a particular action. The risks and benefits of an action must be weighed in order to maximize benefit and minimize harm. In the opening example, the benefit of increased goodwill among patients, staff, news media, and fans would be a positive outcome that might outweigh the harm, or the means, of using children’s sickness and football stars’ notoriety as a platform for the activity.

Ethical Orientations: Deontology

Americans are familiar with the unalienable rights espoused in The Declaration of Independence. Through this document, America’s founding fathers established the basic rights of all humanity.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

The belief that all humans deserve respect because of their humanity is based on deontological thinking. Deontology respects the integrity of all humans and does not treat people as a means to an end. Rather, people are believed to be deserving of respect because of their humanity.

Deontology derives from the Greek word “deon,” meaning duty or obligation. This ethical orientation uses processes and rules to guide ethical decisions. These rules are considered absolute, meaning that the acts must be done regardless of the consequences. For example, notable deontologist Immanuel Kant proposed that truth must always be told, no matter the consequence. If someone must tell a lie in order to save a person’s life, Kant would categorize the lie as unethical because the lie violates the rule to always tell the truth. He believed that each person has a categorical imperative to tell the truth. Actions can be judged as ethical if they can be translated into an acceptable “universal law” that would apply to everyone faced with the same situation, creating an acceptable standard of human behavior.

Further, deontology believes that the intention of the action is as important as the action. If an individual performs an action that results in a good outcome, but does so with a negative intention, then the action is unethical. As a result, a good consequence does not guarantee that the action is ethical. In the opening example, the visit of the university football players resulted in a good outcome for the patients and hospital staff. However, if the action was performed with an intent to minimize negative press, a deontologist would consider the action unethical, despite its positive outcome.

Ethical Orientations: Axiology

Axiology is derived from the Greek to mean “value or worth,” and is primarily concerned with classifying things as good and how good they are.

Often called the theory of value, axiology is the philosophical study of goodness or the worth of something. This approach is often guided by the question, “if I were a “good” person, what would I do?” Key to this ethical orientation is the identification of ethical virtues. Aristotle, one of the earliest proponents of this orientation, identified justice, moderation, and eudemonia, or happiness, as key virtues. His ethical philosophy focused on personal character rather than on universal rules or consequences. Core virtues, such as courage, compassion, and loyalty guide ethical action and are instrumental in the art of living well. He further advocated that these virtues could only be developed through consistent practice.

Aristotle sought to identify virtue ethics through the Golden Mean. He believed every situation has two extremes of action, one extreme (vice) of defect and a vice of excess. The ethical action or the virtue ethic was the mean of the two extremes. For example, the vice defect of confidence would be cowardice, or too little confidence, while the vice excess of confidence would be rashness or too much confidence. The ethical virtue between the two would be courage, the mean between cowardice and rashness.

Aristotle further believed that the identification of the Golden Mean is based on a person’s character, or virtue, which is engrained by habitual action. For example, an honest person will not lie because telling the truth is a personal value and a personal habit. The key to virtue ethics is that the ethical action is based on the individual.

Thomas H. Bivins:
“A person of strong character developed through habitual right action will make the right decisions, most of the time. A person of weak character will not. It’s as simple as that.”

The Greeks also believed that virtue ethics were not only habitual, but consistent. A truly virtuous person would act the same publicly as in private. A person’s character and the associated values are constant and the consistency of the person’s action illuminates the person’s virtue. Based on this idea, in the opening scenario, the sports public relations director’s value of making a difference would be considered an ethical virtue if it was a personal habit and a consistent value that the director espoused in both public and private life.

Ethical Orientations: Guiding Ethical Literacy

Ethical literacy also requires a clear understanding of the ethical orientation commonly used to understand and guide ethical action. While several approaches exist, this lesson will consider four common orientations: axiology, deontology, teleology, and situational ethics.

Personal Values: The Foundation of Ethical Literacy

Personal values are the bedrock of ethics as they guide what a person considers good/bad or desirable/undesirable. Values create the foundation for personal and societal judgment and action.6 It is important then before discussing ethics to have a clear understanding of the personal values that guide us.

Personal values are what a person believes to be important. They help prioritize life’s demands and often serve as a compass or guide in decision making and behavior. Yet, many people are unable to verbalize the values that guide them. This omission does not suggest an absence of values. Rather values are often so ingrained in personal beliefs and worldview that they become “invisible.” People often do not recognize the value that is guiding their decision. Yet, to establish ethical literacy, public relations professionals need to be cognizant of the values that guide their judgments and behavior.

Parsons divides personal values into two types: terminal values and instrumental values. Terminal values are life-long personal goals and include freedom and salvation or inner harmony. Instrumental values are behaviors that help people achieve their lifelong goals and include independence, ambition, and obedience. There are several online tools available to help people identify and understand the values that guide them. The Barrett Values Centre offers a free, comprehensive personal values assessment that leads individuals through self-development exercises. This tool orders values into three categories: self-interest, transformation, and common good. Self-interest focuses on the personal needs for security, for love/belonging, and for self-esteem. Transformation establishes a sense of personal independence and an authenticity of who we are and how we choose to live. The final stage, common good, seeks to identify a meaning or purpose that leads to a recognition of others. According to the Barrett Values Centre, the key is to have a balanced values approach.9 Individuals with values rooted in personal interest are most focused on their own personal needs, but those who focus exclusively on the greater good may also lack the skills to meet their basic needs.

Foundational to ethical literacy is to know the values that are guiding ethical reasoning. Values can lead us to protect personal security or encourage us to make a positive difference. In the opening scenario, the sports public relations director may have been motivated to protect the organization’s image, the self-interest value of security, or the director may have been motivated by a belief that athletes should make a positive difference, a common good value. Ethical literacy does not seek to determine which value should have guided ethical reasoning. Rather, the operationalization of a value alerts us to a public relations ethical issue and the value that is guiding the ethical reasoning. By developing values awareness, public relations professionals not only identify a personal ethical viewpoint but can better understand the ethical viewpoint of others.

Public Relations Ethical Literacy

Ethical literacy is the ability to articulate a personal ethical viewpoint and to understand the ethical position of others. In psychology, the American Psychological Association (APA) defines ethical literacy as the ability to understand the codes of ethics/conduct relevant to psychology, to identify ethical issues, and to act ethically. Likewise, public relations ethical literacy allows professionals to:

• identify personal values as well as the values of others
• understand the ethical orientations that shape our perspectives
• critically analyze the appropriate ethical frameworks
• apply the ethical principles
• evaluate the ethical decision

This lesson considers the initial steps for ethical literacy: identifying ethical viewpoints and understanding the ethical orientations. Taken together, these beginning steps help public relations professionals “mind the gap.”

Mind the Gap

“Mind the Gap,” it’s a common phrase for those on the northbound platform at the Embankment underground station. The recorded voice reminds London travelers to carefully cross the space between the train and the passenger platform.  The message “mind the gap,” repeats as the train slows for passengers to embark or disembark at the station. No other words of wisdom follow. The message offers no advice on how to cross the gap. It simply alerts travelers to its presence, to “mind the gap.”

Public relations professionals are also being urged to “mind the gap” due to ethical organizational scandal. Practitioners have encouraged other professionals to reread PRSA’s code of ethics and consider its application, to create a chief ethics officer position in their organization, and to promote ethical behavior. In fact, “Mind the Gap” was the 2015 PRINZ conference theme that encouraged attendees to be aware of, eliminate, or minimize any gaps between clients and organizations in issues of transparency, trust and leadership. In her conference keynote address, Dr. Elspeth Tilley offered a similar message for public relations professionals, highlighting the need for ethics integration throughout the public relations process.

Each of these initiatives offer important advice and insight into the practice of ethics in public relations; however, they assume that public relations professionals recognize that an ethical gap exists. The London “mind the gap” message makes no assumption and neither should the public relations profession. Before practitioners can avoid the gap or close the gap, they must recognize the presence of an ethical gap. In an interview with the sports public relations director in the opening scenario, the sports public relations director did not consider the ethical dimension of his action. He did not “mind the gap,” because he did not recognize that a gap existed. He is not alone.

Many public relations professionals do not recognize an ethics gap in their personal practice; yet, they recognize the presence of an ethical gap in the behavior of others. According to a survey by Princeton Survey Research Associated International, 96 percent of Americans say it is important for companies to ensure employees behave ethically, but only 10 percent have confidence that major organizations will do what is right.  In fact, only 7 percent of Americans think top-ranking organizational leaders are highly ethical. Clearly, the public identifies an ethical gap in their expectation of ethical action and in their confidence that ethical action will occur. But before considering the ethical gap collectively, let us develop a personal ethical literacy by first “minding the gap” from an individual perspective.

Assessment 2

Case Study: US Airways Flight 1549

Background

On January 15, 2009, US Airways Flight 1549, an Airbus A320, took off from LaGuardia Airport with 150 passengers and 5 crew members, bound for Charlotte, NC. Three minutes into the flight, it struck a flock of Canada geese and lost power in both engines. Air controllers tried to divert the US Airways plane back to LaGuardia or a nearby airport in New Jersey. Captain Chesley "Sully'' Sullenberger decided he could not safely land the plane in either of the airports, instructed passengers to “brace for impact,” and glided the plane into the Hudson River.

As water got in the drifting plane, the passengers walked out of the doors to stand on the wings or the partially submerged slides. A few swam away from the plane fearing an explosion. The temperature was 21 degrees Fahrenheit. Soon New York Waterway commuter ferries, police boats, fireboats, tugboats and Coast Guard craft converged on the scene to join the rescue effort.

All passengers and crew members were picked up and sent for treatment in hospitals in Manhattan and New Jersey for exposure to the brutal cold. A few people suffered serious injuries.

As the dramatic event unfolded in the media hub of New York City, with many eyewitnesses, it instantly became the headline story of the day internationally. The media and officials used the phrase  “miracle on the Hudson” to describe the water landing and quick rescue. Gov. David Paterson said at a news conference in Manhattan: “This is a potential tragedy that may have become one of the most magnificent days in the history of New York City agencies.”

The Challenge

US Airways faced an immense amount of questions from the reporters and family members. Some of the passengers felt horrified by the shocking experience. Their family members, stunned by the news coverage, were worried about their well-being and eager to get in touch with them or reunite with them. Some passengers wanted to get to their planned destinations but worried about flight safety and preferred to travel by land. The passengers’ belongings, such as wallets, cell phones, computers, and luggage, were still in the partly submerged plane. Later a few passengers contacted law firms to consult about suing for emotional distress and other losses.

From the moment after the landing, survivors have been interviewed by the media, some immediately after being pulled from the wings of the floating plane. There was also an instant social media frenzy about the event. Meanwhile, National Transportation Safety Board started to conduct an investigation into the incident. Under these circumstances, any response action by the airline would be under close public scrutiny.

Course of PR Actions

US Airways immediately activated an emergency response plan and the staff was mobilized for on-site support in New York and Charlotte. The company kept providing the newest information through press releases and news interviews. It also stated that the company’s primary concern was those on board the airplane and their families. The communication team headed by James Olson learned from a call from the pilot that he walked up and down the aisle twice to make sure everyone was off the plane. But they still needed to have every person accounted for and confirmed to have survived, a process that took 24 hours. Company CEO Doug Parker made a statement before flying to New York from the company headquarter in Arizona, and appear in a joint news conference on January 16th with city officials to honor the crew and first responders.

US Airways activated a special 800 number for families to call and dispatched more than 100 employees as the Care Team on a Boeing 757 from headquarters. Scott Stewart, managing director for corporate finance, managed emergency funding for passengers and credit cards for employees to buy any medicines, toiletries, or personal items that passengers needed.

Passengers were provided dry clothes, warm meals, and prepaid cell phones, as well as flights for family members and daily calls from counselors. Staffers escorted each passenger to a new flight or a local New York hotel. They also arranged train tickets and rental cars for those who didn't want to fly. As some people lost their driver's licenses, US Airways reached out to high-level executives at Hertz and Amtrak to make sure they had no trouble getting a rental or a train ticket. The airline also retained locksmiths to help passengers who had lost their keys get back into their cars and homes.

US Airways sent $5,000 checks over the weekend to each of the 150 passengers to help compensate for items left behind, with a letter explaining that their luggage and other belongings might have to stay with investigators for months. The airline also reimbursed passengers for their ticket costs. Although some passengers and the National Air Disaster Alliance & Foundation considered the amount not high enough, US Airways indicated it employed claims adjusters to compensate passengers whose losses were higher than $5,000. The company didn't require passengers receiving the compensation to waive their legal rights, which was seen as an exception to the industry norm. The company also sent follow-up letters offering the service of the Customer Care Team and information on retrieval of their belongings.

The publicity events around Fight 1549 continued as time goes on. In the following months the entire crew made media appearances in programs such as 60 Minutes, CNN, and the David Letterman Show. Sullenberger’s return to work later that year and his retirement in March 2010 made headlines again. The passengers and crew still hold reunions at the anniversaries of the landing. In 2016 the film Sully, starring Tom Hanks and directed by Clint Eastwood, was produced based on Sullenberger’s autobiography. Meanwhile James Olson was appointed by United Airlines as senior vice president of Corporate Communications.

Moral of the story

A Bloomberg Businessweek article praised the airline's care of Flight 1549's passengers as a model for crisis management. Public relations practitioners should learn that in an emergency situation, even when the news media was friendly, being in the spotlight makes it all the more important to follow ethical guidelines of public relations and address various aspects of the public’s concerns dutifully and conscientiously.

Further Readings

Fearn-Banks, K. (2016). “Transportation Crises.” In Crisis communications: A casebook approach. Routledge. 281-302.

Foust, D. (2009, Feb 19) “US Airways: After the ‘Miracle on the Hudson.’” Bloomberg Businessweek. Retrieved from https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2009-02-18/us-airways-after-the-miracle-on-the-hudson

McFadden, R. (2009, Jan 15) “Pilot Is Hailed After Jetliner’s Icy Plunge.” New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/16/nyregion/16crash.html

Considerations of Public Disaster Literacy

Recently, scholars have suggested that clear and open communication cannot be considered only from the perspective of the party sending the message. Rather, careful consideration of the audience's ability to comprehend and act on the information is equally important.

Disaster literacy is defined here as an individual's ability to read, understand, and use information to make informed decisions and follow instructions in the context of mitigating, preparing, responding, and recovering from a disaster.

Although many government, nonprofit, and relief organizations have endeavored to educate and prepare the American public for disasters, it is found that adults with physical, mental, and educational disabilities remain among the most vulnerable and least prepared subgroups of the population. If there is a gap between the literacy demands of existing disaster preparedness and recovery materials and the literacy skills of many vulnerable subgroups, their ability to understand and effectively use potentially life-saving information would be hampered. There is a need for organizations to examine existing disaster preparedness or recovery materials based on the following criteria:

• readability levels
• understandability of content
• acceptability of format
• the ability of community-dwelling, vulnerable adults to act on the information presented

A Dialogic Approach In Addressing The Public’s Concerns

The public has the right to know what risks it faces, and ongoing efforts should be made to inform and educate the public using science-based risk assessments. At the same time, public concerns about risk should be accepted as legitimate. To achieve a standpoint of dialogue, an organization managing risks or experiencing a crisis needs to listen to the concerns of the public, take these concerns into account, and respond accordingly.

During a crisis, the public should be informed about what is happening, and organizations managing crises have a responsibility to share this information. This has specific implications for the timely and accurate communication of information to the public, and for the solicitation of concerns and questions from the public. Ideally, the public can serve as a resource, rather than a burden, in risk and crisis management. Thus, crisis communication best practices would emphasize a dialogic approach.

During times of crisis, handling media inquiries and taking proactive approaches to communicate with the public are crucial for effective and ethical crisis communication. For example, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the leading national public health institute of the United States, develops and delivers health messages for a variety of audiences, including the public, health care professionals, public health researchers and practitioners, and policy makers. News media outlets have been the major channels for disseminating messages to these audiences. Following the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the anthrax incidents that followed, CDC transformed its media monitoring system into a broader communication monitoring system, with both listening and telling functions, to support CDC's public health emergency response.  As public health agencies become more aware of the threat of chemical and biological weapons, and the risk posed to human populations, they have begun to assess and elevate their level of communication preparedness for all risk and crisis scenarios.

According to WHO experts, most measures for managing public health emergencies rely on public compliance for effectiveness. “Measures ranging from hand washing to quarantine require public acceptance of their efficacy, as well as acceptance of the ethical rational for cooperating with instructions that may limit individual liberty so as to protect the broader public from harm.”  This requires that the public trust not only the information they receive, but also the authorities who serve as the source of this information, and their decision-making processes. Maintaining information transparency is not only highly important for public trust during an emergency, but also in building risk communication capacity to support all phases of emergency management.

According to Covello, public health risk and crisis communication plans need to have a checklist that involves listening to people and accept and involve stakeholders as legitimate partners:

Ethics Of Withholding Information

In general, an organization that withholds pertinent crisis-related information by stonewalling, offering only selected disclosures, creating ambiguity, etc., is considered unethical.

However, there may be legitimate reasons to withhold information temporarily. For example, it’s ethical to withhold the names of dead victims until the families are notified.  Sometimes it is necessary to withhold strategic information because of concerns of national security, for instance, a case involving ongoing investigation of a terrorist plot. Or sometimes it is a good choice to temporarily withhold information that might unnecessarily panic the public.

According to O'Malley, the following types of information might justifiably affect how information about risk is communicated:

• information that jeopardizes national security or an ongoing police investigation
• information that unnecessarily violates the privacy and confidentiality rights of individuals
• information that might lead to undue stigmatization of individuals or groups within society, and
• information that, if released, might lead to behaviors that would result in increased spread of disease.

Eventually, the reasons for knowingly withholding information should be fully defensible and based on ethical considerations.

Acknowledge Uncertainty and Ambiguity

Crisis spokespersons often feel an urge to be overly certain and overly reassuring. This may be a result of a belief that the public cannot accept uncertain situations and needs certainty in the face of a crisis, even when information is not available yet. However, in an inherently uncertain and equivocal situation, overly reassuring statements may reduce a spokesperson’s credibility. 

In addition, over-reassuring statements that lack credibility may even create higher levels of alarm among the public, particularly when there is not a high level of trust between the organization and the victims affected. In the long run, admitting to the ambiguity of a situation does less damage to an organization’s credibility than pretending all is in hand.

For example, in a study of media portrayal of leadership during the Hurricane Katrina crisis in 2005, Littlefield and Quenette examined the news images of the military, the Department of Homeland Security, President Bush, the federal government, and the local government. The authors concluded, “It would be wise for authorities to acknowledge deficiencies in their crisis responses to avoid conflicting perspectives (mortification) that will emerge later."

A best practice of crisis communication is to acknowledge the uncertainty inherent in the situation with statements acknowledging that not all the facts are available, or the situation is still evolving. This form of strategic ambiguity allows the communicator to refine the message as more information becomes available and avoids statements that are likely to be shown as inaccurate as the situation becomes clearer.

Acknowledging uncertainty should not be used as a strategy, however, to avoid disclosing uncomfortable information or closing off further communication. Through the use of strategic ambiguity, organizations sometimes emphasize an interpretation where the organization is viewed favorably.

For example, Ulmer and Sellnow used the ethic of significant choice to evaluate the ethical implications of strategic ambiguity used by the tobacco industry. The industry leaders attempted to place responsibility on consumers, claiming that they simply manufacture the product and consumers make the choice to purchase.

Ulmer and Sellnow explained the argument’s flaws: “From a significant choice perspective, this claim is valid only when consumers have a complete and unbiased explanation of the potential risks and benefits associated with a product.”  The researchers concluded that because the ambiguity it produced was based on incomplete and biased information, the tobacco companies were not acting ethically.