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58
questions and stupid people. They hate journalists and they are always trying to
spin a story to portray their clients in a positive light.
Similarly, Respondent C also stated that female publicists are shown with this masculine
attitude:
Workingwomen on screen are portrayed as being complete polar opposites –
either overly commanding and dominant, or extremely sensitive and ditzy. There
has sadly never been a modest figure portrayed on screen.
Like the content analysis suggested, female entertainment publicists are shown in one of
two stereotypes, the masculine bitch figure or the ditzy feminine figure first realized by
Miller (1999). These negative perceptions are also believed by the respondents to have a
negative impact on public relations and how people view them. Respondent B said, “I
think they [reality television shows] have done a disservice to PR. They have furthered
the assumption that everything is ‘spin.’ Respondents C and D also feel that these
negative images will affect how others will perceive them. Respondent C stated,
“Unfortunately, I do think people will perceive my career in a different light because of
how publicists are portrayed on television. For example, I feel friends who have an
“office job” unrelated to the media, feel their careers are far more difficult. This is a false
perception.” Respondent D agreed with this, but also pointed out that portrayals of the
entertainment publicist also affect those currently in other areas of public relations. Here,
she cites a problem encountered with public relations professionals who are her teachers:
I have had a number of teachers/professors scoff at the stereotypes of PR
practitioners on television. It seems like the professors that I have had place
entertainment in a completely different category. They don't see any value in it,
and they never discuss the profession seriously. Sure, there are a number of well-known
clients that they work for, but some professors say that publicists are just
glorified baby sitters. Ouch.
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 58 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Full text | 58 questions and stupid people. They hate journalists and they are always trying to spin a story to portray their clients in a positive light. Similarly, Respondent C also stated that female publicists are shown with this masculine attitude: Workingwomen on screen are portrayed as being complete polar opposites – either overly commanding and dominant, or extremely sensitive and ditzy. There has sadly never been a modest figure portrayed on screen. Like the content analysis suggested, female entertainment publicists are shown in one of two stereotypes, the masculine bitch figure or the ditzy feminine figure first realized by Miller (1999). These negative perceptions are also believed by the respondents to have a negative impact on public relations and how people view them. Respondent B said, “I think they [reality television shows] have done a disservice to PR. They have furthered the assumption that everything is ‘spin.’ Respondents C and D also feel that these negative images will affect how others will perceive them. Respondent C stated, “Unfortunately, I do think people will perceive my career in a different light because of how publicists are portrayed on television. For example, I feel friends who have an “office job” unrelated to the media, feel their careers are far more difficult. This is a false perception.” Respondent D agreed with this, but also pointed out that portrayals of the entertainment publicist also affect those currently in other areas of public relations. Here, she cites a problem encountered with public relations professionals who are her teachers: I have had a number of teachers/professors scoff at the stereotypes of PR practitioners on television. It seems like the professors that I have had place entertainment in a completely different category. They don't see any value in it, and they never discuss the profession seriously. Sure, there are a number of well-known clients that they work for, but some professors say that publicists are just glorified baby sitters. Ouch. |
