Page 8 |
Save page Remove page | Previous | 8 of 76 | Next |
|
small (250x250 max)
medium (500x500 max)
Large (1000x1000 max)
Extra Large
large ( > 500x500)
Full Resolution
All (PDF)
|
This page
All
|
8
relations is female dominated, primarily because women are thought to be more naturally
suited for the requirements of the job (pp. 229 & 232). In the United States alone,
approximately 65% of PR professionals are women, and the Public Relations Society of
America (PRSA) has a 90% female membership (Morris & Goldsworthy, 2008, p. 15).
Younger women are also finding interest in public relations; both university public
relations majors and entry-level candidates and employees are predominately women. At
the University of Westminster in London, the undergraduate courses in PR are 80%
female. Postgraduate courses are comprised of 90% female. These figures are similar at
Kent State University in Ohio (Morris & Goldsworthy, 2008, p. 15). At University of
Southern California, the 2010 class profile for incoming master’s students specializing in
public relations was 86% female and 14% male (“Fall 2010 Class Profile”).
This new awareness of the industry led to the appearance of public relations
characters in entertainment genres such as television and movies. Two major studies
examined the portrayal of fictional public relations professionals from 1930 – 2008
(Miller, 1999 & Ames, 2010). These studies analyzed various films and books,
concluding that in general, the stereotypes of the public relations professional were
negative (Miller, 1999 & Ames, 2010). Morris and Goldsworthy (2008) also found that
the overall perception of public relations was that it is a very glamorous job to have,
always on trend and fashionable, and somewhat superficial (pp. 6 – 7). One of the most
noted characters that exude all three of these perceptions is Samantha Jones of Sex and
the City.
Object Description
| Title | Power party girls, good looking crowds and one hellish boss: The portrayal of the female entertainment publicist on reality television |
| Author | Hashem, Camille Renée |
| Author email | chashem@usc.edu; chashem87@gmail.com |
| Degree | Master of Arts |
| Document type | Thesis |
| Degree program | Public Relations |
| School | Annenberg School for Communication |
| Date defended/completed | 2011-04-01 |
| Date submitted | 2011 |
| Restricted until | Unrestricted |
| Date published | 2011-05-03 |
| Advisor (committee chair) | Thorson, Kjerstin |
| Advisor (committee member) |
Floto, Jennifer Saltzman, Joseph |
| Abstract | This thesis is an examination of the portrayal of the female entertainment publicist shown in reality television. With the large success rate of Samantha Jones from Sex and the City in the 1990s, female interest in public relations has increased, and good or bad, Jones has served as one of the predominate images of the publicist in the entertainment industry. Those who have performed critical analysis of the image of the public relations practitioner have deemed these representations as showing negative characteristics of those in the profession. While there has been previous research on the image of public relations in media, analysis of the female entertainment publicist in reality television has been left untapped.; The project consisted of a content analysis as well as interviews with various women in entertainment public relations. Three reality television shows featuring female entertainment publicists were watched: MTV's PoweR Girls (2005), Bravo's Kell on Earth (2010) and E! Network's The Spin Crowd. After conducting this analysis, the author found that the female publicist is put in one of two gender categories, the masculine bitch or the overtly sexy "PR Bunny." Other findings inferred that the dominant images within each series suggested that public relations is overall an easy field to enter, with little or no experience or professionalism needed. Finally, although the three series had some subtle differences, public relations is still shown as a glamorous job.; Interviewee responses showed that the negative representations of entertainment publicists on reality television are not indicative of the real life job itself, but that media's representation of it has led others to believe false or skewed images of the profession. Since these three shows' target demographics include young women about make a career decision, the impact they may have on this demographic, and how it may affect the future of public relations and the expectations of those about the enter the industry, is also discussed. |
| Keyword | communication; entertainment; media; public relations; reality television |
| Geographic subject (country) | USA |
| Coverage date | 1990/2010 |
| Language | English |
| Part of collection | University of Southern California dissertations and theses |
| Publisher (of the original version) | University of Southern California |
| Place of publication (of the original version) | Los Angeles, California |
| Publisher (of the digital version) | University of Southern California. Libraries |
| Provenance | Electronically uploaded by the author |
| Type | texts |
| Legacy record ID | usctheses-m3875 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Rights | Hashem, Camille Renée |
| Repository name | Libraries, University of Southern California |
| Repository address | Los Angeles, California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Filename | etd-Hashem-4503 |
| Archival file | uscthesesreloadpub_Volume26/etd-Hashem-4503.pdf |
Description
| Title | Page 8 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Full text | 8 relations is female dominated, primarily because women are thought to be more naturally suited for the requirements of the job (pp. 229 & 232). In the United States alone, approximately 65% of PR professionals are women, and the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) has a 90% female membership (Morris & Goldsworthy, 2008, p. 15). Younger women are also finding interest in public relations; both university public relations majors and entry-level candidates and employees are predominately women. At the University of Westminster in London, the undergraduate courses in PR are 80% female. Postgraduate courses are comprised of 90% female. These figures are similar at Kent State University in Ohio (Morris & Goldsworthy, 2008, p. 15). At University of Southern California, the 2010 class profile for incoming master’s students specializing in public relations was 86% female and 14% male (“Fall 2010 Class Profile”). This new awareness of the industry led to the appearance of public relations characters in entertainment genres such as television and movies. Two major studies examined the portrayal of fictional public relations professionals from 1930 – 2008 (Miller, 1999 & Ames, 2010). These studies analyzed various films and books, concluding that in general, the stereotypes of the public relations professional were negative (Miller, 1999 & Ames, 2010). Morris and Goldsworthy (2008) also found that the overall perception of public relations was that it is a very glamorous job to have, always on trend and fashionable, and somewhat superficial (pp. 6 – 7). One of the most noted characters that exude all three of these perceptions is Samantha Jones of Sex and the City. |
