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A comparative analysis of the advertising and public relations disciplines in an era of digitally fueled audience control

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A comparative analysis of the advertising and public relations disciplines in an era of digitally fueled audience control

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Content A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE ADVERTISING AND PUBLIC RELATIONS DISCIPLINES IN AN ERA OF DIGITALLY FUELED AUDIENCE CONTROL by Andrew William Webster A Thesis Presented to the FACULTY OF THE USC GRADUATE SCHOOL UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree MASTER OF ARTS STRATEGIC PUBLIC RELATIONS May 2011 Copyright 2011 Andrew William Webster ii Epigraph Where the hell are we? What are we doing? It‟s almost like psychological warfare, and, as a matter of fact, it is psychological warfare. I think that the people who lead communication efforts are going to have to be more informed and current, and be very good tacticians in figuring out ways of reaching audiences. Dr. Jonathan Slater iii Acknowledgements I would like to take this opportunity to personally thank all the people who have helped me with the creation of this document. I would like to thank my thesis committee: Jerry Swerling (Chairman), Jenn Floto and Joseph Kessler. Thank you for the guidance. I would also like to thank all the people who took time out of their schedules to allow me to interview them: Kim Getty, Brenda Lynch, Rick Bursky, Liana Miller, Kimberly Capwell and Dr. Jonathan Slater. I know how busy all of you are, thank you for all the collective insight. Thank you to Sean Gajewski, Marc Eisenstein Celena Castillo and Adam Bonefeste. At some point or another you have all helped me with the (much needed) editing process. Celena, thank you for also helping me transcribe my interviews. I would like to especially thank Jerry Swerling. You have steered me throughout the entire process. Thank you for your editing, suggestions and most of all your patience. Moving forward, I will concentrate on becoming a more technically sound writer. Finally, I would like to thank my family, Victor, Marian and Alex Webster. They have been behind me one hundred percent, and always fostered the idea of education. I love you iv Table of Contents Epigraph ii Acknowledgements iii List of Tables v List of Figures vi Abstract vii Chapter One: Introduction 1 Chapter Two: Thesis Statement 4 Chapter Three: History of Advertising 6 Chapter Four: How Audience Media Management Affects Advertising 13 Chapter Five: Advances in Technology and Media that are presently Impacting Advertising 20 Chapter Six: History of Public Relations 35 Chapter Seven: How Audience Media Management Affects Public Relations 41 Chapter Eight: Advances in Technology and Media that are presently Impacting Public Relations 46 Chapter Nine: Looking Forward to the Future of Advertising and Public Relations (Conclusion) 50 Bibliography 56 Appendix: Primary Research 58 v List of Tables Table 1: Regular Online News Consumers 14 Table 2: National Papers Succeeding Online 15 Table 3: Where Young People Turn for News 26 vi List of Figures Figure 1: Advertising Expenditure in US by Media 12 Figure 2: US Consumers Who Own a Smartphone 31 Figure 3: Use of Internet on a Mobile Device 32 Figure 4: Use of PR Agencies, Public and Private Companies by Revenue Category 42 Figure 5: Level of Trust in Advertising 44 vii Abstract Advances in technology occur with increasing rapidity, allowing consumers to control or manage their media consumption. This, in turn, has had a significant effect on the public relations and advertising industries. Navigating this increasingly complex, user-controlled media culture presents new challenges that professionals in these industries need to overcome. The thesis is separated into three main subsections. The first section will primarily cover advertising. Important topics covered in this section will include the history of advertising, how audiences manage their media and how it affects advertising, and advances in technology and media that are presently impacting advertising. The section subsection will cover public relations. Like the advertising section, the public relations section will discuss similar topics and how they affect the field. The history of public relations, how audiences manage their media and how it affects public relations, and advances in technology and media that are presently impacting public relations will all be covered. The third and final segment of the thesis will combine advertising and public relations, comparing and contrasting these related but distinct functions. Research findings will be incorporated to analyze these two fields and hypothesize the direction in which these industries are headed. The final conclusion of the thesis will answer the following question: “What will the viii functions and strategies employed by the head of communication in an organization look like in five years?” 1 Chapter One: Introduction In a world where media once controlled the message, the consumer is gaining power by the minute. Advances in technology occur with increasing rapidity, allowing consumers to control or manage their media consumption. This, in turn, has had a significant effect on the public relations and advertising industries. Navigating this increasingly complex, user-controlled media culture presents new challenges that professionals in these industries need to overcome. The first segment of the paper will be a thorough analysis of the advertising discipline. In this section, the first subsection will be the history of advertising, including such key events as the birth of advertising as a recognized function, the first advertising agency and the creation of radio and television networks. It will touch upon historical achievements, such as the first magazine, radio and television ads. The next subsection will cover media consumption, specifically exploring why and how consumers manage their media. Here, the paper will discuss consumer resistance and why consumers have developed ad-avoidance strategies. This will serve as a transition into the discussion of advertising avoidance and how methods such as zapping, multitasking, physical zapping and zipping are employed by consumers to shift attention away from advertising. 2 The last subsection will cover advances in technology and how new technologies are impacting the advertising function. Throughout the history of television (TV) and TV advertising, developments in technology, such as the remote control and more recently the digital video recorder (DVR), have provided consumers with more options for advertising avoidance. This section will also include the Internet and its role in changing the media landscape. The internet offers an infinite amount of information and makes available new types of media like blogs, web TV and social media. It is important to also acknowledge the methods consumers use to access the internet. Computers are still the primary source of access, but developments in technology, such as netbooks, tablet devices (e.g. iPad) and smart phones, are becoming increasingly popular and more convenient. The second segment of the paper will be a thoughtful examination of the public relations discipline. Like advertising, public relations has a rich history that has been affected by advances in technology. The first subsection of the public relations segment will cover the history of public relations. It is important to take a look at figures, such as Edward Bernays and Ivy Lee, who have helped develop the industry. It will also address World War I and how the Committee on Public Information, and its success, led to the development of this function. The next subsection will contain media management and how it is affecting public relations. Like advertising, media management is also affected by consumers‟ inherent desire to control their content. It is important to discuss 3 the role public relations plays as a third-party influencer. With the discussion of this strategy, as well as a more in-depth look at social media, validation from additional sources has become more important for quality consumer engagement. Another subsection in the public relations segment will cover advances in technology that are presently impacting the practice. Obviously, as technology has advanced, so have methods of communication. Since the 1800s, PR practitioners have used coded messages through devices, such as the telegraph, to communicate. Now, they are rapidly adopting more complex, digital platforms. This section will discuss the evolution of these messages and tools, the development of social media, and how public relations professionals use such tactics to foster relationships and build long-term brand advocacy. The third and final segment of the thesis will combine advertising and public relations, comparing and contrasting these related but distinct functions. Research findings will be incorporated to analyze these two fields and hypothesize the direction in which these industries are headed. The final conclusion of the thesis will answer the following question: “What will the functions and strategies employed by the head of communication in an organization look like in five years?” 4 Chapter Two: Thesis Statement Obviously, the future is yet to be seen. Some forms of advertising have stood the test of time, including newspaper advertisements, radio spots and billboards. The public relations discipline has also utilized strategies and tactics, such as publicity and special events, that are timeless. With the introduction of more advanced technologies, new tools are created to take advantage of them – tools that change both messaging strategy and the methods by which those messages are delivered. In a world where consumers want to manage the media to which they are exposed, technology plays a crucial role. Recent developments, such as the prominence of online and social media as well as inventions such as the Digital Video Recorder, have given consumers the capabilities to choose the media to which they want to be exposed. The shift of power toward the consumer is having, and will continue to have a colossal impact on the advertising and public relations industries. It may only be a matter of time before the advertising and public relations practices integrate to become one complete function. Technology, along with other influences such as economic trends, is forcing advertisers to employ public relations tactics, and vice-versa. It is becoming increasingly important to engage consumers through multiple media platforms and disciplines. 5 Public relations professionals have done a good job harnessing online and social media practices. Advertising is beginning to shift towards digital media in search of more interactive engagement. As the digital realm continues to grow, driven by the development of mobile media and other forces, advertisers are going to increasingly have to rely on what have traditionally been considered public relations strategies and tactics. 6 Chapter Three: History of Advertising While advertising is generally considered to be a modern discipline, some forms of advertising, used for religious and political purposes, date back to ancient Egypt, Pompeii, Greece and Rome. In the middle ages, town criers were utilized to read announcements and advertisements, because the population was largely illiterate. However, this paper will deal solely with the modern history of the field, solely in America. Advertising in America can trace its roots back to 1704. (adage.com) The first major technological invention that impacted the field was the printing press, invented in 1440 by Johannes Gutenberg. The development of the printing press facilitated increases in literacy through rapid production of books and periodicals. The subsequent progression of the newspaper industry fostered the birth of print advertising. The first newspaper advertisement published in America sought a homebuyer for an Oyster Bay, Long Island estate in 1704. (adage.com) Many printers across America started including advertisements in newspapers. Benjamin Franklin was an early pioneer of the discipline, publishing advertisements in The Pennsylvania Gazette in 1729. In fact, Franklin‟s General Magazine printed the first American magazine advertisements in 1742. (adage.com) As the late 18 th century progressed into the early 19th, newspapers began daily production, and 7 their circulation increased dramatically. Advertising had become central to the newspaper publishing industry and was becoming a part of the daily lives of American citizens. The introduction of new non-media technologies during this time period fueled the demand for advertising. “In the 1880s, industries ranging from soap to canned food to cigarettes introduced new production techniques, created standardized products in unheard-of quantities, and sought to find and persuade buyers.” (gmu.edu) Before this time period, publishers relegated advertising to the back pages of newspapers; however, the rapid increases in the availability of products triggered increased demand for advertising to support them, which in turn increased and improved the spaces in which publishers ran them. In short, as product availability grew, so did the demand for, and prominence of advertising. With advertising becoming increasingly prominent and lucrative, it was only a matter of time before it was professionalized. In 1843, Volney Palmer opened the first advertising agency in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. From this point forward, advertising took on a life of its own, apart from the publishing industry. According to Advertising Age, in 1868, the creation of advertising first emerged as a specialized industry: “With $250, Francis Wayland Ayer opens N.W. Ayer & Son in Philadelphia and implements the first commission system based on „open contracts.‟ His clients include Montgomery Ward, John Wanamaker Department 8 Stores, Singer Sewing Machines and Pond's Beauty Cream.” (adage.com) By 1873, the first convention for advertising agents was held in New York, New York. From 1873 to the end of the century, the field gained momentum and became more developed and disciplined. Professionalized organizational structures were created, the first copywriters were hired, and companies like Proctor and Gamble started allocating significant advertising budgets ($11,000). (adage.com) In 1893, the advertising industry began to alter its business model. “Frank Munsey drops the price of Munsey's Magazine to 10¢ and the cost of subscriptions to $1, marking the first attempt at keeping a magazine afloat by advertising revenue rather than newsstand sales.” (adage.com) For publishers, advertising sales started to become more profitable than newsstand sales. In the early twentieth century, advertisers formed professional associations and clubs. Some of the earliest clubs included the Associated Advertising Clubs of America, American Association of Advertising Agents, and the Association of New York Agents. (adage.com) These organizations allowed advertisers to meet regularly and discuss industry practices. Advertisers were beginning to grow in number and became increasingly powerful. As the industry‟s influence increased, government agencies became involved in the regulation of advertising. The Federal Trade Commission Act, 9 passed in 1914, gave that agency the right to issue cease-and-desist orders against dishonest advertising. (adage.com) With the invention and development of the radio, the advertising industry found itself again on the precipice of a technological transformation. In 1922, the Queensboro Corp., a Long Island real estate firm, bought 10 minutes of airtime for $100 on AT&T‟s station in New York, WEAF. (adage.com) Suddenly the radio gave companies the opportunity to reach consumers on an entirely new and different communication platform. The very next year, advertisements became a regular part of radio programs and sponsorships. In 1926, radio advertising was taken to a new level with the development of radio networks. WNBC, the first radio network, had 19 syndicated stations throughout the country. (adage.com) This was highly influential for radio advertising, as announcements purchased for dissemination through a network could efficiently reach mass audiences in different cities throughout the United States. Soon after advertisers mastered message delivery via the radio, television was invented, in the 1920s. Having learned the importance of rapid change in the radio era, the industry quickly adapted: “With 7,500 TV sets in New York City, NBC's WNBT begins telecasting July 1, 1941. The first TV spots, featuring a Bulova watch that ticks for 60 seconds, air as open- and close-time signals for the day‟s schedule.” (adage.com) 10 The introduction of the television nonetheless created significant challenges for advertisers. The radio only produces sound, which is purely one dimensional. The television adds another dynamic: moving images. This additional element forced advertisers to take creative new approaches in their messaging strategy. As advertisers became more familiar with the new technology, they employed ever more effective strategies. “Advertising agencies determined that the most effective way to reach consumers with a strong message would be by creating shows that featured a single product or a line of products from a single company.” (ezinearticles.com) They believed visual stimulation would be a very engaging influence. At the same time, the industry developed and adopted more modern and effective business practices. Clients hired advertising agencies to create a series of ads (campaigns) to be placed in media. Clients would then pay television networks for a bundle of time slots in which their commercials would run. This process was extremely effective, but it changed slightly as cable television was introduced. “As the television gained more popularity and there were more people watching it, the television networks were raising the costs of doing business.” (ezinearticles.com) The television advertisement was having a significant impact on American culture; for the better part of the 20th century, it became the primary advertising platform. Once again, increasing demand put a 11 squeeze on supply, leading to higher costs. And once again the emergence a new media platform was about to transform the advertising field. The combination of the computer, the Internet, and the World Wide Web marked a historical turning point. In 1993, over five million users worldwide were active on the internet. (adage.com) Today that number is estimated to be almost two billion. (internetworldstats.com) As a result of that astonishing growth the advertising industry finds itself at a transitional point, where traditional methods remain prevalent but online advertising is growing exponentially. According to ZenithOptimedia data, U.S. Internet advertising expenditures are expected to increase from $23.4 billion to $26.9 billion between 2010 and 2011, while television will increase from $51.4 billion to $52.7 billion. (see Figure 1, page 12) In the internet-driven information age, technology has allowed people to access vast amounts of material more rapidly. Nonetheless, radio, print and television advertising are still utilized and remain effective. Although this is not a complete history of the discipline, it includes most of the major advances in the industry. It is obvious that as technology has developed and advanced, so have advertising strategies and tactics. The field has adapted well, using new approaches to novel technologies. Television, internet and other modern communication media will be thoroughly discussed in section V. Advances in Technology & Media that are Presently Impacting Advertising. 12 Figure 1: Advertising Expenditure in the US 13 Chapter Four: How Audience Media Management Affects Advertising Why do consumers feel the need to control or manage the content of which they are the targets? There are a number of factors at work. As with any other product or service, cost is a major factor. “Consumer attitudes and media consumption habits are shifting dramatically because of economic uncertainty.” (Clark, 2) Why would consumers pay extra for a service they can do without, find for a cheaper price, or even get for free? Also, in this digital age, information is being received through numerous platforms and outlets, which can be overwhelming. This is why consumers resort to creating systems to control their personal media exposure. Now, more than ever, consumers are taking their spending habits into consideration. With information access shifting from television and print to online, more consumers are going without premium services. “Media is not immune when it comes to decisions on spending priorities - especially in recent times, when more and more domestically consumed media is „paid-for‟, such as digital TV services.” (Lucas, 58) According to a study conducted by the PEW CENTER FOR RESEARCH, two percent of people read the New York Times in print, while 18% read it on the web. (see Table 1, page 14). 14 Table 1: National Papers Succeeding Online Pew Research Center, 2006 15 As consumers cancel their paid cable, newspaper and magazine subscriptions, internet services appear to be taking their place. “Access to broadband is now seen by most consumers as an essential service; only three percent of respondents would consider giving up their internet. Meanwhile 25 percent would consider giving up their daily newspaper subscription and 39 percent of magazine subscribers would do the same (study conducted by Brand Strategy, London). (Lucas, 58) People cancel these services because they can access much of the same information on the internet for free. For example, according to a September 2010 PEW RESEARCH CENTER study, 46% of the general public and 56% of internet users get news online at least three days a week. (see Table 2, below) Table 2: Regular Online News Consumers 16 Although economics may serve as a primary issue, there are other factors that play into personal media consumption and control, including the availability of massive amounts of information from a vast number of sources. “In this age of digital everything and gluttonous amounts of information, we have more choices than ever.” (Hernandez, 44) With the technology available in 2011, people can access the internet through cell phones, PDAs, tablets and computers to access the same information read in the newspaper and watched on television. People can literally retrieve all the information they want through their fingertips. However, with so many different platforms and so many different news sources; choosing filters can be overwhelming. A third reason is people are inherently different from one another. Our unique, individual attributes and personal preferences play major roles in our information selection process. “Different people are going to use different methods to create a personalized media system that suits them.” (Hernandez, 45) Generally, viewpoints are reflected and reinforced through an individual‟s chosen source of media. For example, depending on political preferences, one may wish to receive their news from FOX rather than MSNBC, or vice-versa. The fourth reason is self selection based on self interests. The overload in information, in effect, captivates both one‟s conscious and subconscious attention. It is human nature to immediately disregard information that does not appeal to one‟s wants and needs. This type of information is sometimes referred 17 to as “clutter.” This type of consumer resistance causes serious problems for advertisers; in a world awash in information it has become extremely difficult to “break through the clutter.” Information critical to consumers is skewed by perspectives of sundry media outlets. Joseph D. Rumbo describes advertising and consumer culture as being related to a “postmodern condition.” “Marked by increased speed, fragmentation and „decentering‟ of the subject; the postmodern condition often prompts the consumer to develop ad-avoidance strategies that protect his/her psychic space.” (Rumbo, 127) This is why information in which we are uninterested falls by the wayside. “The struggle for these cultural spaces resembles a war of position between the ideology of consumerism and its opponents.” (Rumbo, 127) With the landscape of today‟s media, consumers have to fight through numerous platforms and outlets to find what they are looking for. How are advertisers supposed to make impressions on consumers when they are already navigating through so much clutter? “Consequently, in order to avoid being oversaturated by advertising messages, today‟s postmodern consumer is often forced to employ „ad avoidance‟ strategies that can help maintain some measure of sovereignty over his/her psychic space.” (Rumbo, 127) The advances in technology are only more 18 conducive to ad avoidance. Highly developed gadgets, like the DVR, allow users to employ more ad avoidance tactics that were previously unavailable. As long as there has been advertising, people have found ways to avoid it. People have many reasons for avoiding advertisements: the message does not apply; it has been seen too many times before; or there is simply something more interesting going on in the room, on a different channel, or via a different type of media altogether. Kenneth C. Wilbur outlines the different types of advertising avoidance. The first method Wilbur discusses is “zapping,” which is “changing channels with remote controls.” (Wilbur, 144) Before the remote control was invented, people could not conveniently employ this technique. They would physically have to get up and change the channel manually. The effects of the remote control will be further discussed in section V. Advances in Technology & Media that are Presently Impacting Advertising. The next ad avoidance technique mentioned is “multitasking.” Multitasking is when viewers “divert their attention to companions or other media.” (Wilbur, 144) During commercial breaks it is not uncommon for audiences to carry on conversation, pick up a periodical, or check their email. These are activities that “viewers perceive to be more engaging than the available advertising.” (Wilbur, 144) 19 “Physical zapping, or leaving the room,” is the next method Wilbur describes. (Wilbur, 144) People watch television when they are engaged in activities such as cooking, cleaning and other chores. Commercials give viewers the opportunity to catch up on their other tasks. We all have to take bathroom breaks at some point, right? The final ad avoidance strategy Wilbur discusses is relatively new. “Zipping; muting or turning off the television, or fast-forwarding through commercials in recorded programming.” (Wilbur, 144) People have always been able to mute or turn off the television, but the invention of recording devices has generated additional methods of ad avoidance. The effects of technology like the DVR will be further discussed in section V. Advances in Technology & Media that are Presently Impacting Advertising. These ad avoidance tactics have motivated advertisers to become more creative in their message strategy. “Television advertisers have resorted to more captivating and deceptive „anti-clutter, anti-zapping strategies,‟ including the use of „camouflaged ads‟ and „the creation of all-advertising television channels‟.” (Rumbo, 130) To reiterate, “ad avoidance strategies lend themselves particularly well to more technology advanced media.” (Rumbo, 130) While the creation of more information and media platforms creates more clutter, it also creates more methods of media management. 20 Chapter Five: Advances in Technology & Media that are presently Impacting Advertising As technology advances, so do our communication methods. With so many different types of media available, advertisers have to adapt to the ever-changing culture. Because of this constantly-evolving landscape it is difficult to maintain a status quo, if one can even be said to exist. This presents challenges to advertisers on many levels, but some experts believe these new media trends will help them in the long run. Putting aside the radio, television was the first modern technological development that had a significant effect on the advertising industry. Televisions started entering American homes in the mid 1920s, and one of the first television spots (for Bulova Watches) was broadcast in 1941. Television advertising quickly became the primary medium for advertising campaigns because it was a very effective way to reach a mass audience. Today, television still dominates many companies‟ advertising allocations, but trends are beginning to shift toward the internet and other methods of advertising. This is partially because advances in television technology have become more conducive to ad avoidance strategies. 21 TELEVISION/REMOTE CONTROL/DVR Among the technological advances that significantly impacted the television advertising function was the remote control. Television viewing was revolutionized in the late 1970s by this item because it made television watching far more convenient. No longer did viewers have to physically get up to switch channels. The remote control also allows viewers switch channels at a more rapid rate, permitting them to browse numerous programs simultaneously. Obviously this was bad news for the advertising industry, because the remote gives viewers more control over the content they wish to consume. “Up to that point advertisers were in control. After that (the widespread adoption of the remote control) the proliferation of cable channels and the advent of „channel surfing‟ meant advertisers had to work harder to entice and entertain viewers.” (Blackwell, B9) Now all television function capabilities were at viewers‟ fingertips. They had faster access to different channels, and more rapid channel- switching rates. If a program went to commercial break viewers could surf other channels, bypassing the advertisement. This added the ad avoidance method of “zapping” into the mix, and it quickly became common practice. The advent of the remote control had a profound effect on the shaping of the future of advertising, because from the 1970s forward advertisers had to employ more creative strategies, tactics and messages to hold viewers‟ interest. 22 However, by the turn of the century, a new form of technology was ready to have an arguably even more profound effect: the Digital Video Recorder. The Digital Video Recorder (DVR) was developed and began entering American homes in the late 1990s. This technology was truly novel. It allowed users to record live television shows and store them for later watching, an act that is often referred to as “time-shifting.” The DVR had advertisers worried during its initial development. As this technology became more advanced it rapidly became more prominent. “As of March 2009, 30.6 percent of households in Nielsen‟s National People Meter Panel have a DVR, up significantly from just 12.3 percent in January 2007.” (nielson.com) As a result, “Almost 60% of advertisers say they will spend less on conventional TV advertising; of those, 24% will cut their TV budgets by at least 25%.” (Maddox, 16) Time-shifting allows viewers to record live television and watch programming at a later date or time. “Programs recorded between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. were played back within the same day more than those airing at 10 p.m., which could impact live viewership of programs airing at 10 p.m. and later.” (nielson.com) This is one example of how DVR can affect TV ratings, which can affect advertising rates. The DVR also adversely affects advertisers by facilitating another aspect of advertising avoidance, zipping, i.e. the process through which the user can 23 pause, rewind and fast-forward through any part of the recorded program, including commercials. Even though DVR may not directly affect ratings, there is no guarantee the viewer will watch the commercials, or the recorded programming at all. Kenneth Wilbur presents a very interesting counter viewpoint: he does not believe the DVR will have as great an adverse impact as has been speculated, and actually argues that it can help advertisers in the long run. “DVR usage should decrease reliance on older ad-avoidance strategies and improve ad- avoidance measurements.” (Wilbur, 143) Wilbur‟s view is that zipping drowns out other avoidance strategies, making it less likely that viewers will multitask, zap and physically zap during recorded programs. The DVR also adds an interesting alternative for users. “Viewers can stop zipping through a [previously recorded program] to view an interesting ad, or rewind to view it multiple times.” (Wilbur, 143) While zipping through ads, users watch the television with a heightened sense of awareness in order not to miss the program. “Fifteen percent of DVR users „always,‟ and an additional 52% „sometimes,‟ notice television ads while zipping.” (Wilbur, 143) Wilbur believes zipping can be beneficial to advertisers by indicating viewers‟ lack of interest in specific, underperforming television commercials. “DVR- equipped viewers effectively „vote‟ with their remote control on every part of the ad.” (Wilbur, 143) “To address wear-out, advertisers can observe how zipping 24 rates change over time and with repeated exposures to each ad in the campaign.” (Wilbur, 143) “To address lack of interest in the advertised product, advertisers can compare zipping rates across products, programs and time periods.” (Wilbur, 143) If advertisers can use information and statistics like this, it can help them create more specific and engaging messages. Dr. Peter Sealy, Chief Executive Officer of Los Altos Group Inc., has an extensive background in media and communication. He worked for Coca-Cola for over twenty years in various senior marketing positions; served as chief strategy officer for MaxworldWide Inc.; and was president and chief operating officer of Interactive Network, Inc., a subscription based media company, in the 1990s. (businessweek.com) According to Sealy, “a new system is being developed by the Association of National Advertisers that will create a unique identifying code for each piece of advertising, in television, print, radio or other media.” (Blackwell, B9) This will be used in combination with another bar code system that will track retail goods and help advertisers target individual viewers. “Gathering data from bar codes at retail checkouts, and combining them with information from the advertising database, will let advertisers target toothpaste ads to a specific individual, for example.” (Blackwell, B9) As the DVR advances and spreads it will, “eventually be as common as remote controls.” (Blackwell, B9) Despite the benefits that some foresee, this will 25 undoubtedly force advertisers to pursue other methods of advertising. “This will ultimately lead to more strategic campaigns, introduction of new tactics and utilization of other platforms.” (Wilbur, 143) Strategies like program sponsorship and product placement should become more prevalent. Internet and social media advertising has emerged and it is quickly gaining momentum. With more people shifting their attention toward cyberspace, the advertising industry has the opportunity to conquer yet another frontier. PERSONAL COMPUTERS, THE INTERNET, AND SOCIAL MEDIA When the personal computer was developed in the 1970s, few people anticipated the scope of its potential impact. In the 1980s and „90s, advances in hardware and software changed the world, and the personal computer became a staple in many American homes. Now, it is almost a necessity in the day-to-day lifestyles of many people, largely because of the development of the World Wide Web in the late 1980s. “By 1993, the Internet has become a reality with over 5 million users worldwide.” (adage.com) The internet has revolutionized the way we access information. Before its development, we got our news through other forms of media: television, radio and newspaper. Now, we use the internet as a vehicle to access up-to-the minute information, we especially see this trend in younger generations. According to Pew Research Center, “48% of people ages 18-29 regularly get 26 their news online, compared to 29% who watch cable news and 23% who read a daily newspaper.” (see Table 3, below) Table 3: Where Young People Turn for News 27 The web provides us with access to a seemingly limitless amount of information. Almost every media outlet, governing body, company, university, sports franchise, etc. has developed an online identity. We look to these resources for information that is pertinent to our lives. Through the internet, we have a direct line of access not only to the news story, but often to the source. The freedom to choose is another important aspect of the internet. Instead of turning on the evening news or flipping through the newspaper, the web gives us the opportunity to access information on our own terms. We can receive news through ever more personalized filters, with the viewpoints and perspectives we value and favor. This can be beneficial to advertisers in that the internet offers them with new metrics and information-collecting capabilities. The sites you access can be traced back to your IP address. Information like this is passed on to advertisers, through media measurement services like Quantcast, to help them target their audience more specifically. With information like this becoming more available, Internet privacy is becoming a growing concern. An example of this is job seekers who do not wish for their Facebook page to be viewed by potential employers. Internet users are often unaware of the extent to which information they provide to such sites is public. 28 The United States does not have any laws in place for internet privacy, but there are bills currently under consideration. [Shaun] Dakin, founder of Privacy Camp, a global series of privacy conferences, says that when you join a free social network such as Facebook, Twitter or Foursquare, you give up a certain level of control of your personal data to get the benefits of that social network. (Van Den Hurk, 1) Part of the problem is that average internet users have a hard time understanding the intricate policies of websites. The internet has created many opportunities for the creation and dissemination of multimedia and interactive content. “A recent study for cable giant Comcast found that 62% of respondents reported using DVRs, online sites like Hulu.” (Szalai, 4) The development of Web TV and online sites like Hulu and OVGuide, allow consumers to watch episodes of television shows online. Media companies have been coping with the shift to the digital world for some time, but are now starting to embrace it. Another reason the internet has thrived is because it gives users an additional forum to voice their opinions. The web allows us to become part of the story. It presents a platform where users can voice their opinions and interests. We see this happening before our eyes through the proliferation of blogs and social media. Advertisers are beginning to notice this, and dollars are being reallocated to more interactive environments. One of the advertising industry‟s largest contributors, the film industry, is leading the way: “Time-shifting is one reason 29 why film-marketing dollars have increasingly flown to the Internet in search of real „engagement‟ in a fragmented media world.” (Szalai, 4) All of the technological advances that have been discussed thus far have had significant impact on advertising and its shift towards the digital era, but social media is the ultimate game changer. “Social media is the biggest technological innovation to hit the communications and marketing world since television reshaped the advertising world 60 years ago.” (Retailing Today, 13) It gives advertisers the opportunity to communicate with brand advocates, opinion leaders and trendsetters on a personal basis. Advertisers have always understood the importance of reaching key influencers, but it was always difficult to determine who those people were. Now, we can clearly identify who those people are, measure what their influence is and then have a one-on-one conversation without having an advertising agency in the middle. (Retailing Today, 13) Social media offers a level of engagement marketers have never experienced before. Developments in the social media world are happening quickly. Communication and marketing experts are jumping in headfirst. “Social media space has a bit of a Wild West feel to it, with companies pursuing massive amounts of experimentation to understand what works and what doesn‟t.” (Retailing Today, 13) This is new, unchartered territory and we are still learning how to operate in it. In the long run, these companies believe the benefits will 30 outweigh the cost of making mistakes. “[Marketers] are doing this to build long term brand advocacy and loyalty.” (Retailing Today, 13) Some of the mistakes marketers are making result from difficulty adjusting from the traditional advertising campaign format. “It requires shifting your head out of the campaign mentality, because we like campaigns. They can be planned, have a beginning and an end, and they can be measured.” (Retailing Today, 13) Advertisers need to wrap their head around the fact that social media is a different beast and they have to employ different tactics. “Loyalty is not based on a campaign. It is based on a long-term relationship.” (Retailing Today, 13) GOING MOBILE: SMART PHONES, PDAs and TABLETS It is important to discuss another form of technology that is prevalent in today‟s media universe: mobile technology. In the early 2000s smartphones, PDAs and tablets provide another point of access to the internet. Organizations like Blackberry, Apple and HTC created devices that flood today‟s market. According to ChangeWave Research, since 2006 smartphone penetration has risen every year, up to 42% of U.S. Consumers. (see Figure 2, page 31) Advertisers are increasingly engaging these mobile users by creating applications and messages specifically targeting them. 31 Figure 2: US Consumers Who Own a Smartphone 32 In the world of information and technology, convenience is everything. The reason these devices were created was to give consumers ready access, virtually everywhere. According to the Pew Research Center internet use on mobile devices by American adults has increased from 24% in 2007 to 32% in 2009. (see Figure 3, below) Previously, you had to sit at a computer to get information but this technology allows you to get up and go about your day and retrieve the same information by means of a mobile device with a high-speed connection to the internet. Figure 3: Use of Internet on a Mobile Device 33 These devices also have multi-functionality beyond internet access, including GPS programming, data storage, and cameras. With the inherent need to have access to information at all times it is no wonder these devices are becoming so prolific. The technological revolution we are currently experiencing will have more of an impact on advertising than have any past technologies. Trends show the development of mobile technology is promoting more wide-spread internet usage. Many industry experts, including John Andrews (managing partner, Collective Bias), have compared it to the 1950s when television was becoming prominent. (Retailing Today, 13) The television was a gigantic technological breakthrough, but digital media has the potential to be even bigger. The combination of the prominence of the DVR and shifting of consumers to the internet will have a profound impact on the future of advertising. Although it is unlikely that television advertising will completely disappear any time soon, more marketing dollars are being allocated to non-TV strategies, through non-TV platforms. The trends are certainly heading away from television. This is evidenced by Figure 1. (page 12) Television still owns most of advertisings expenditures, but online advertising has been growing at a rapid rate. (see Figure 1, page 12) Although we are in the midst of this massive transformation, it will not necessarily have a negative impact on the advertising function at the overall, 34 macro level. Throughout its history, the industry has successfully adapted to multiple new technologies and media platforms, and there is no reason to believe this will not continue to be the case. 35 Chapter Six: History of Public Relations Before delving into the history of public relations it is appropriate to identify and define key concepts of the field. “Public relations helps an organization and its publics adapt mutually to each other.” (prsa.org) That is the simple definition given by the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) in 1982. Many practitioners think of it as a mutually-beneficial function for its organization and publics. As culture, media and technology have advanced, so has the definition of public relations. “Public relations has been defined in many different ways, the definition often evolving alongside public relations‟ changing roles and technological advances.” (prsa.org) Depending on the context, the definition of this field is somewhat liquid; the job functions of a public relations practitioner are evolving to adapt to the way we communicate. “What people fail to understand is that public relations is a process involving many subtle and far-reaching aspects. It includes research and analysis, policy formation, programming, [advocacy] communication, and feedback from numerous publics.” (Cameron & Wilcox, 3) The field of public relations, as an identifiable profession, is relatively new compared to advertising. Over time, public relations has developed to the field we know it as today. The foundation of the discipline can be traced back to a few key influencers. 36 Ivy Ledbetter Lee was an important contributor to the foundation of public relations. After working as a business journalist for the New York Times he began working as a publicist, i.e. a person whose job it is to handle publicity - usually for high-profile figures - acting as a middleman between the client and media. (princetonreview.com) Lee later expanded his role, becoming the first public relations counsel, or provider of public relations services. (Cameron & Wilcox, 48) In 1905, Lee opened up a public relations firm, Parker and Lee, and worked with many clients, including John D. Rockefeller and the Pennsylvania Railroad. Lee employed a “public information model,” which was comprised of the following elements; (1) advancing the concept that business and industry should align themselves with the public interest, (2) dealing with top executives and carrying out no program unless it had the active support of management, (3) maintaining open communication with the news media, and (4) emphasizing the necessity humanizing business and bringing its public relations down to the community level of employees, customers and neighbors. (Cameron & Wilcox, 50) Many of these concepts are still employed by public relations practitioners regardless of the vast transformations the field has experienced. Often referred to as the “father of modern public relations,” Edward Bernays contributed greatly to the function throughout his lifetime. He “introduces the concept of public relations as a two-way mediated interaction between 37 organizations and their publics.” (PR News, 1) This is still a common definition of the function in the industry today. Bernays‟ legacy on public relations is highly regarded, even to non- practitioners. “Outside of the PR community, he probably is the most widely honored PR practitioner.” (PR News, 1) In the 1970s and „80s, as the profession grew dramatically, so did Bernays‟ reputation as a pioneer. (PR News, 1) The man was ahead of his time; his insight in the early part of the century would later become common practice. Bernays, who was the nephew of Sigmund Freud, preached the importance of psychology and the understanding of the human mind as a powerful tool to help influence and persuade publics. Another contribution he made was the relevance of “opinion research, an approach he began when many counselors and publicists were „flying by the seat of their pants.‟” (PR News, 1) The First World War fueled the development of public relations. In 1917, the Committee on Public Information (CPI) was assembled. The CPI was a groundbreaking organization that later stimulated the industry. “During WWI, Bernays began work for the Committee on Public Information, the vast propaganda machine commissioned by Woodrow Wilson to sway the American public towards war.” (NNDB.com) After the success of the Committee on Public Information, Bernays decided to take his experience and expertise to the private sector. He went on to work for 38 such companies as Proctor & Gamble, wrote books including “Crystallizing Public Opinion,” and remained involved in politics. “Bernays conceptualized a new model of public relations that emphasized the application of social science research and behavioral psychology to formulate campaigns and messages that could change people‟s perceptions and encourage certain behaviors.” (Cameron & Wilcox, 52) This was different from Ivy Lee‟s public information model in that Bernay‟s model employed more a psychological approach. Other pioneers in the field built on the work of Lee and Bernays. “Arthur W. Page, Vice President of AT&T, is credited with establishing the concept that public relations should have an active voice in higher management.” (Cameron & Wilcox, 52) Benjamin Sonnenberg proposed Texaco should sponsor national radio performances of the Metropolitan Opera in 1940. (Cameron & Wilcox, 55) The publicist Jim Moran gained notoriety for media „stunts.‟ “In the mid-1930s, Henry Rogers, with Warren Cowan, established a highly successful public relations firm in Hollywood to serve the movie industry.” (Cameron & Wilcox, 56) In the mid 20‟th century the field continued to take shape and gain momentum. “The booming economy after World War II produced rapid growth in all areas of public relations.” (Cameron & Wilcox, 57) In 1947, the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) was formed. The PRSA is “the world‟s largest and foremost organization of public relations professionals.” (PRSA.com) Public relations would continue on course for significant growth during this time period. In 1956, the Institute for Public Relations was formed to serve as 39 the foundation for public relations research and education. (instituteforpr.org) It was at this time that the field first became recognized as an academic discipline. More important developments in the field soon followed. In 1961, the first annual distinguished lecture was held to explore public relations history and professional issues. (instituteforpr.org) Also in 1961, Cornell received a grant supporting a new Communication, Public Opinion and Management Course. (instituteforpr.org) This was the beginning of the study of public relations at the university level. In 1975, the first curricular guidelines by the Commission on Public Relations Education were released. (instituteforpr.org) As time progressed into the digital era, the public relations function continued looking forward. “By the 1980s, the concept that public relations was a management function was in full bloom.” (Cameron & Wilcox, 58) In the 1980s and 1990s, public relations had progressed into a respected discipline. The Arthur W. Page Society, “a select membership organization for senior public relations and corporate communications executives who seek to enrich and strengthen their profession,” was chartered in 1983. (awpagesociety.com) In the 1990s, highly developed public relations curricula became increasingly common at universities around the world. By 2000, public relations became known among some practitioners as „relationship management,‟ “the basic idea being that public relations 40 practitioners are in the business of building and fostering relationships with an organization‟s various publics.” (Cameron & Wilcox, 59) The idea of relationship management has allowed professionals to take on a more interactive role with stakeholders and a more active role within organizations. 41 Chapter Seven: How Audience Media Management Affects Public Relations As with advertising, public relations is affected by the “postmodern condition.” An increase in traditional advertising and other message communication has led to enormous clutter, which is only getting worse: “The average American consumer was exposed to an estimated 3600 selling messages per day in 1996, compared to 1500 in 1984.” (Rumbo, 127) But unlike advertising, the public relations function has generally thrived and gained momentum during this period. One indicator of this growth is that, according to the University of Southern California‟s Generally Accepted Practices Study (GAP VI), in 2002 88.9% of public companies that had revenues between $10B and $19.99B used public relations agencies. (see Figure 4, page 42) As discussed earlier, the postmodern condition prompts consumers to develop and employ ad-avoidance tactics. This makes it challenging for advertisers to connect with their target audiences. However, the public relations industry has used this as a growth opportunity. Throughout its history, one of the keys to public relations‟ success has been validation from third parties. An example of this is companies seeking product reviews from newspapers or magazines. In today‟s media landscape public relations is increasingly becoming involved in direct two-way communication. Although communicators still seek 42 third party validation, they are beginning to communicate directly to consumers through social media, blogs, and other techniques. Figure 4: Use of PR Agencies, Public and Private Companies by Revenue Category Use of PR Agencies, Public and Private Companies, by Revenue Category University of Southern California Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism SIXTH COMMUNICATION AND PUBLIC RELATIONS GENERALLY ACCEPTED PRACTICES (GAP) STUDY (Q4 2009 DATA) GAP VI; Report 4, Page 9 43 Marketing and public relations are interrelated fields that often support each other. Public relations can play an important role in marketing strategy. While marketing and public relations tactics sometimes overlap (advertisers promote the usage of social media in commercials), it is important to note the fundamental differences. “Public relations is concerned with building relationships and generating good will for the organization; marketing is concerned with customers and selling products and services.” (Cameron & Wilcox, 19) Marketers utilize advertising campaigns and advertisements in which they have complete control of the messaging, which can cause these messages to seem less credible to consumers. Ads are created to sell products and services to customers, and customers know it. Their messages highlight only the positive features of these products or services. This can lead consumers to ask such questions as, “What‟s the catch?” or “Where‟s the fine print?” Public relations serves a more informational purpose. As advertisements aim to catch your attention with creative, entertaining techniques, public relations communication strategies often seek to provide consumers with more subtle, informational, and/or educational messages. According to a study done by planetfeedback.com, people trust recommendations from consumers over any other form of advertising. (see Figure 5, page 44) Public relations‟ ability to reach such influential consumers enables the industry to reach and affect consumers in a more credible (than advertising) way. 44 Figure 5: Level of Trust in Advertising In today‟s information-laden, highly interactive media environment, customers are looking to third-party reviews to validate the purchase of goods and services. The recent surge of websites such as Yelp and FourSquare are evidence of this. These sites offer reviews and tips to customers that validate service and quality. Creating and fostering positive relationships can help generate positive customer reviews and hopefully build loyalty. Third-party validation of this sort is becoming increasingly important in many sectors of today‟s market economy, well beyond restaurants, movies, etc. With 45 the emergence of mobile media, customers have access to more information pertaining to goods and services. It can be extremely effective to engage consumers through their own mobile, personalized information feeds. For example, hair salons may include coupons on mobile applications such as Foursquare. Not only is it important to reach them through the right media, it is vital to communicate through the right medium. This adds to the struggle between advertising and public relations. Having the endorsement (implied or otherwise) of a respected news outlet, or other customers, gives more credibility to the product or service. Social media promises to forever alter the way brands interact with consumers. (Retailing Today, 13) This type of media is more engaging than television, radio and print. It offers consumers the opportunity to respond. Such feedback is vital in the realm of social media. Through social media, professionals have the opportunity to communicate with their publics directly. Consumer feedback allows them to make adjustments to their communication strategies on the fly. This type of engagement is revolutionary. It provides value to both the consumer and the professional. Social media and blogs give consumers forums to express their opinions. It gives professionals opportunities to have conversations with key constituents. If professionals listen and respond, it can help them build long-term brand advocacy and loyalty among consumers. 46 Chapter Eight: Advances in Technology & Media that are presently Impacting Public Relations As discussed in section V. Advances in Technology & Media that are Presently Impacting Advertising, the fast-changing media landscape has had a profound effect on the communication industry. “Advances in technology are changing the way that most people communicate. Electronic communications can be traced back to Samuel Morse, his famous code, and the telegraph.” (Browne, 17) The telegraph, then, was the first example of communication through technology. TELEVISION/DVR Television habits are continuing to evolve; as of 2009 the DVR has infiltrated 30.6 % of American homes. (Nielsen.com) This relatively new technology allows for time-shifting as well as additional ad avoidance strategies like zipping. This has caused advertisers to explore new ways to effectively engage consumers. Does the long term success of public relations depend on how advertising reacts to such changes, or is it independent of what happens to advertising? Some in the communication industry believe that advances in technology that have a negative impact on the advertising function are generally beneficial to public relations. Some believe that, as advertising becomes less effective because of its lack of active engagement, the third party validation that is at the 47 heart of many PR strategies will only become more important. While there may be some merit in this argument, the success of public relations should not be credited solely to advertising‟s challenges. Although these advances in technology may indeed provide more opportunities to public relations professionals than advertisers, it presents challenges for both industries. Before the digital era, journalists, programmers and advertisers had control of information content. Today, they still remain the gatekeepers, but developments in digital media give public relations professionals more opportunities for direct interaction. In other words, it is increasingly easy to go around the gates, and the gatekeepers. . THE COMPUTER, THE INTERNET & SOCIAL MEDIA Television and the Digital Video Recorder have certainly influenced the public relations industry, but no technology has had as much of an impact on the field as the internet. Over the past 10 years, advertising and public relations experienced major changes, adapting to and implementing new message strategies. “It was a simple coded message that started an industry and it is now more complex coded messages - in the form of digital data- that are driving communication technologies worldwide.” (Browne, 17) HTML coded messages are the primary language of computer technology. According to John Andrews, advertisers prefer campaigns. While public relations practitioners have also utilized the campaign approach, it has not been 48 as integral a part of their profession, because campaigns do not necessarily foster ongoing relationships. “Loyalty is not based on a campaign. It‟s based on a long-term relationship.” (Retailing Today, 13) Although it is important not to disregard other media, the internet and social media are changing the game, in large part due to their relationship-building abilities, which should, over the long term, enhance the role of public relations. Developments have happened so quickly in the social media world. It is a testament for the potential companies see in the ability to identify and engage key influencers in ways never before possible in such a targeted, cost-effective manner. (Retailing Today, 13) Social media campaigns are not only highly effective when executed correctly, they are very inexpensive. This allows smaller companies and organizations to have the same type of influence as larger corporations. Nonetheless, the social media surge has brought with it a wave of uncertainty for public relations. It affects the industry not only from a strategic and tactical standpoint, but also from an economic perspective. The ambiguity of the situation has caused companies to hire social media experts, creating more job opportunities for qualified public relations professionals. Liana Miller, Founder and CEO of Engaged Communication, takes this thought a step further. I think probably the most important change was in the early 2000s. Consumers now had tools and could bypass traditional media channels. They could blog. They could more easily capture images and video (and share them). They could create and tell their own stories. They could 49 complain. I remember thinking that, for PR, this was more than just a technological change for us. This was going to be a huge shift. MOBILE TECHNOLOGY AND THE 24-7-Anywhere NEWS CYCLE Today‟s mobile society fosters the development of ever more convenient media technologies. Mobile media devices such as laptops, smartphones and tablets are becoming primary sources of information and media content. The thirst for more data and faster data rates is driven by the „instant- information-any-time‟ mentality fostered by almost always available high speed internet access. What started as access from stationary, home based personal computers has quickly migrated to mobile devices. (Browne, 17) This means that professionals in the communication industry have to be aware that it allows users to access information at a very rapid rate. Not surprisingly, 24-7-anywhere access has led to a 24-7-anywhere news cycle. This can provide challenges to the public relations function. Professionals now have very little time to formulate a response in the event of a crisis; decision- making, too, must be 24-7-anywhere. A potential benefit of the 24-7 news cycle to PR practitioners is that when negative information appears in the media, it may (or may not) cycle out faster because of the sheer volume of information funneling through the news apparatus. But, to counter that, positive news stories may last only a very short time, reinforcing the need for public relations professionals to build long term relationships rather than generate media exposure on a short term basis. 50 Chapter Nine: Looking Forward to the Future of Advertising and Public Relations (Conclusion) Public relations and advertising have coexisted as sometimes overlapping and/or integrated functions within the communication community for decades. As technology has progressed, it has presented both challenges and opportunities to both industries. Other internal and external factors have also impacted them, including shifts in culture, industry practices, and the economy. Historically, advertising worked as a simple process. Companies purchased media space to promote a product or service with the hope that the advertisement generated sales. In so doing, advertisers focused on short-term, sales-oriented goals. Conversely, public relations often seeks to build longer term relationships with the target audience. Dr. Jonathan Slater, Associate Professor of Communication at The State University of New York College at Plattsburgh, agrees, “public relations wasn‟t about selling product; it was about selling ideas or selling identities or selling some of these sort of intangible elements--reputation, for example.” Unlike advertising, public relations strategy has centered on building long-term consumer loyalty, often built on perceptions relating to reputation and other intangibles. 51 Consequently, the relationship between the two functions is sometimes tense and/or competitive. According to Brenda Lynch, a Senior Vice President at The Rogers Group, “Advertising and PR have worked in separate silos and competed for marketing dollars.” Advertising and public relations have been separated primarily by its use of different tactics. For example, when trying to promote a company‟s new product, advertisers purchase space in a newspaper, while public relations professionals reach out to reporters, hoping that they will write a review on that same product. Although different strategies and tactics are employed by each discipline, they both strive to achieve the same result: to engage the public. That goal makes both advertising and public relations similar disciplines, despite the different approaches employed. In order to engage the public, both disciplines have taken advantage of various communication techniques, which convey messages that are designed to target specific audiences. Over time, external influences, such as technology, have influenced the approaches used to target specific audiences. Thus, the new media landscape (e.g. the Internet) has presented advertising and public relations with a large playing field to more effectively reach audiences. As the media landscape transforms and grows, the relationship between these two fields is rapidly morphing. According to Dr. Slater, 52 advertising has come to the realization in the last several years that they too are in the business of relationship building. In order to build relationships, visual advertising doesn‟t work anymore. Advertisers have to rely on the techniques of public relations. At the same time, public relations is called upon by the advertising industry to help promote goods and services in ways that public relations hasn‟t felt comfortable with prior perhaps to the 1990s. As these tactics become universal, the lines drawn between advertising, public relations, and marketing as a whole become finer. In an age of digital media, tactics that have traditionally been attributed to either public relations or advertising are beginning to blend. Advertisers are starting to utilize and promote the usage of social media campaigns. Public relations professionals are beginning to post product demonstrations and similar tactics on company websites and blogs. In this new media landscape, the two functions are beginning to depend more on each other‟s tools. It‟s difficult to determine if these technological advances impact one field more than the other. Kim Capwell, CEO of Capwell Communications, thinks it is too soon to tell how technology will make an impact. I think that the wrestling match is going to continue, and maybe there will be a winner in five years. I‟m not so sure that there will be, but it‟s going to be the one that owns the online space from a strategy, messaging or positioning standpoint. I think we‟ll be surprised to see five years from now PR playing a bigger role than we do today. 53 As communication strategies continue to shift towards digitally-fueled media, public relations will continue to grow because of its current presence in the social media, blog, and related landscapes. These types of media give consumers a voice and allow public relations practitioners to interact with audiences and foster relationships on a more consistent basis. Although advertisers are given the same opportunity to utilize social media most of their resources are consumed by creating campaigns for television. (See Figure 1, page 12). However, the arrival of social media has allowed communications professionals to interact with their audiences directly. Websites like Twitter and Facebook have allowed organizations to send direct messages to constituents. Thus, a company does not have to worry about consumers not seeing their advertisements. Moreover, the prompt feedback from consumers through social media gives executives the opportunity to make changes to their product or service that will better suit their customers. In the digital era, communication platforms are constantly changing. Brenda Lynch and Kim Capwell agree that mobile technology is the next frontier. Mrs. Capwell recently said, “The next opportunity for PR is what‟s happening on the mobile phone. It‟s just been an increasing convergence of on-line line media into mobile platforms.” Similarly, in an interview with Mrs. Lynch she stated, “We will all be connected and mobile. We will want our information to be cross media 54 platforms and on-demand.” The industry is rapidly changing; as access becomes more convenient, control will continue to shift towards the consumer. After speaking with six experts in the communication industry, my research has led me to conclude that there will be a substantial shift towards the integration of the advertising and public relations functions. Employing tactics from both areas of practice may be more effective when engaging audiences. As seen throughout this thesis, both disciplines already over-lap in certain aspects. Thus, with the current advances in technology and consumer behavior, it is only a matter of time before the two practices are incorporated even further. From an organizational standpoint, it won‟t be long until advertising and public relations combine to form one complete function. The heads of communication within an organization will be responsible for engaging consumers, fostering relationships, and building long-term customer loyalty. While this may be their current goal, rather than delegating each task to a particular department, the executives in charge of communications will look to incorporate public relations and advertising to create a “full-service” campaign. Thus, the overall strategy employed by communication departments will drastically change. According to Rick Bursky, Associate Creative Director at Euro RSCG Edge, this is already beginning to happen. 55 I was working at an ad agency, and we were looking at public relations as part of our strategy. Fifteen years ago, we wouldn‟t have been looking at that [publicity stunt]. We would have left that to a public relations firm, but, now, we think holistically, and I have to believe that public relations firms are doing the same thing. Advertising and public relations under one roof will be the future. Mega- media companies like Omnicom, WPP, Interpublic and Publicis own many large advertising and public relations agencies. It will only be a matter of time before the industry becomes streamlined and the holding companies begin to better integrate their diverse operations. 56 Bibliography "The Advertising Age Timeline." Advertising Age - Ad & Marketing Industry News. Web. 24 Oct. 2010. <http://adage.com/century/timeline/index.html>. "Background & History." Arthur W. Page Society. Web. 18 Mar. 2011. <http://www.awpagesociety.com/site/about/background>. Blackwell, Richard. "DVRs Seen Imperiling TV Advertising;." The Globe and Mail [Toronto] 29 Oct. 2003, Report on Business sec.: B9. LexisNexis Academic. Web. 11 Oct. 2010. Browne, Jack. "Changes Affecting Communication." Microwaves&RF 44.3 (2005): 17. ProQuest. Web. 11 Oct. 2010. Cameron, Glen T., and Dennis L. Wilcox. Public Relations: Strategies and Tactics. Boston: Person/Allyn and Bacon, 2009. Print. "DVR Penetration | Nielsen Wire." Nielsen.com. 30 Apr. 2009. Web. 16 Mar. 2011. <http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/tag/dvr-penetration/>. 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Web. 16 Mar. 2011. <http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm>. 58 Appendix: Primary Research Interview Questions and Transcriptions Through the one-on-one interview methodology, it is my goal to gauge the overall state of the public relations and advertising industries and, more specifically, assess the relationship of these two functions in recent history through the present, and their respective roles moving forward. I chose this method over other options (i.e. surveys or focus groups) because I felt this subject matter needed more in-depth input from experienced and forward- thinking professionals than other methodologies would allow. Background Questions: 1. Name: 2. In which industry do you work (ad or PR)? 3. How long have you been practicing in your industry? 4. What positions and titles have you held over your career? 5. What is your present job title? 6. What are your primary responsibilities? Questions regarding the past and present of the industry: 1. Looking back over your career, what major changes and trends (internal and external, positive and negative) have affected your industry? 2. Looking at the present time, what major changes and trends (internal and external, positive and negative) are currently affecting the industry? 59 3. More specifically, how have technological advances such as the DVR, and new communication platforms such as blogs and social media, affected the industry? 4. Looking back over the last 4-5 years, how would you describe the relationship that has historically existed between the advertising and public relations functions? 5. Looking at the present time, how would you describe the current relationship between the advertising and public relations functions? 6. If you believe that relationship has changed substantially, what have been the driving forces behind those changes? Questions regarding the future of the industry: 1. Looking forward over the next five years, i.e. between now and the year 2015, what major changes and trends (internal and external, positive and negative) will affect your industry? 2. Again looking forward over the next five years, i.e. between now and the year 2015, what extensions of current technologies and platforms, or new technologies and platforms, will affect your industry? 3. Again looking forward over the next five years, what major changes do you expect to take place, if any, in the relationship between the advertising and public relations functions? 4. Do you believe that the advertising and PR functions in organizations will remain as they are now (i.e. largely separate), merge (i.e. become a single 60 discipline), or do something in between (i.e. remain organizationally separate, but integrate to a much greater degree)? 5. If you believe the ad/PR relationship will change substantially, what will be the driving forces behind those changes? 6. How will those changes affect the responsibilities of senior communication decision-makers, i.e. what will their responsibilities be? 7. How will those changes affect the skills required of senior communication decision-makers, i.e. what skills will they need? 61 Interview with Jonathan Slater AW: What industry do you work in? JS: I teach public relations. AW: In the public relations industry, how many years have you been practicing or teaching? JS: Well, I‟ve been practicing public relations on and off for over 30 years, and I‟ve been teaching PR now for 13 years. I‟ve taught public relations related courses prior to that for 13. AW: What positions and titles have you held over the course of your career? JS: My first public relations job was a publicist, that was my first title. I worked as a consultant in the public relations field. I‟ve also worked as an executive in the advertising industry. In television, I‟ve also held the title of Project Specialist in economic Development, and, of course now, I‟ve been an associates professor of public relations for about three years, and I was an assistant and visiting assistant professor of public relations. AW: Looking back over your career, what major changes and trends, whether they be internal or external, positive and negative, do you think affected the PR or advertising industry? 62 JS: Well, I think that the major change, of course, has been from a non- digital to a digital ecological environment that is an environment where, as a public relations practitioner, we want to rely on a lot of traditional technology, such as a typewriter and the printing press to a certain extent, and where now we rely on computing and digital communication in order to be in contact with media and with stakeholders. I think, ecologically, that‟s been the major change, and that‟s had an effect on the nature of communications and public relations [...] in the industry. AW: You spoke about a change from the traditional era to now what we call the digital era. More specifically, how do you think technological advances, such as the DVR, and new communication platforms, such as blogs and social media, has had an effect on the industry? JS: Well, what happens with any communication technology is that they change the way that we use older technology. The older technology doesn‟t necessarily disappear, but we change the way that we use them. We see that, for example, with email. Email is fairly new in terms of techniques, or communication techniques, but yet email is already becoming, for a certain demoappendix segment, it‟s becoming somewhat of an out voted means of conversation. So, what happens though is that when we use new technology, new forms of communication tend to emphasize and accelerate certain aspects of our society, economy, politics, whatever. So, one of the things that we‟re seeing is the cause of the easy access that we have to communication with each 63 other. For example, through social media, we‟re seeing types of relationships between people, between organizations, and [the difference] between organizations and the media that we didn‟t necessarily see in such concentration prior to digital media. AW: I think that, basically, things start shifting, but, at the same time, you don‟t necessarily leave the other communications there in the dust. People are still employing different techniques within technology that have been around for a while, but they‟re also trying to expand onto new platforms and things like that. JS: Let me give you a concrete example. For example, public relations by name has always been about relationships between organizations and their public, and that hasn‟t changed. But, what has changed, is that the way that the relationships are maintained in the pre digital era, the way that typically those relationships with media and various stakeholders was through a lot of interpersonal communication. That is communication between people in a physical sense. That is through actual meetings and conversations where people were present in those conversations, and also with correspondence that went by mail. Now what we see is that in a lot of instances the fact is that we don‟t use mail as much anymore, which means that we‟re not tied to the speed that mail is delivered. And the digital media allows us not only to do things instantly with our customers, our stakeholders, and the media, but they also break down any obstacles that distance put in our way so that we can access the conversation and build relationships in the same moment with people in organizations which, 64 are half a world away, and we don‟t have to get on a plane anymore and shake anybody‟s hand. AW: I‟m going to shift gears a little bit and look at the relationship between advertising and public relationship. Looking back over the past four to five years, how would you describe the relationship that has historically existed between the two functions? JS: Well, historically, the relationship between advertising and public relations has been a very clear one. I would say up until about maybe 20 years. Let‟s just pick that as an arbitrary figure. Up until about 20 years ago, if you wanted to advertise a product, and you wanted time and space in a medium you could create a message that could be delivered through those media and you targeted your message a best as possible based on more or less accurate research, and you sort of sat back as an advertiser or an advertising agency and waited for that message to be delivered through various media, through various audiences at various times and places, and then you kept your fingers crossed that somehow that would translate into increased sales. Of course, there‟s not necessarily a direct relationship between advertising and sales. The advertisers would like to believe that. The advertising agencies are not so sure of that. The public relations industry basically relied on the belief that public relations wasn‟t about selling product, it was about selling ideas or selling identities or selling some of these sort of intangible elements--reputation, for example. What we‟ve seen though is a very intense blurring of the distinction between advertising and 65 public relations. Advertising has come to the realization in the last several years that they too are in the business of relationship building. Advertisers are building relationships with their customers. In order to build relationships, visual advertising doesn‟t work anymore. You have to rely on the techniques of public relations. At the same time, public relations is called upon by the advertising industry to help promote goods and services in ways that public relations hasn‟t felt comfortable with prior perhaps to the 1990s. A lot of the support has been engendered by the new and very different communication platforms that are available to both industries but also the difficulty of the advertising industry in finding their customer at a given moment in a given place in the social landscape and be able to get a message to them precise enough in order to get their attention and to perhaps convince them to buy a product. Public relations is also utilizing more of the techniques of advertising. That is, we see, advertising has basically used controlled media. That is, you pay for media, and you put your message in a certain media, and you expect good results. Public relations has relied mostly on the notion of uncontrolled or out of control media where you send your message to this great oblivion of the media, and hopefully someone will pick up that message and publish it. Whereas what we‟re seeing now is more of a division, professional organizations that are [not] wanting to do so are using controlled media. They‟re paying for time to disseminate their public relations. 66 AW: The relationship has changed between these two functions from what you‟re saying. What do you think have been the driving forces behind these changes? Do you think its technology driven or do you think it‟s something else? JS: Obviously, the driving force is money. Advertisers need to generally show a profit and so by advertising they hope to sell more and so when traditional advertising no longer delivers the message in a satisfying way for the advertisers, they look for other outlets, and the other outlets are not traditional outlets in not just technology but in ways of gaining the attention of the consumer. The thing is that consumers are migrating away from traditional media like the newspaper because newspapers are disappearing, slowly but surely. Traditional television watching is changing where people aren‟t just sitting in front of their T.V. anymore and taking in television shows the way that they used to 20-30 years ago. So, I think that, in terms of our media attention happens, we‟re far more mobile both in the literal and the figurative sense. That is, we‟re using mobile technology, but we‟re also hard to find. We‟re on the move a lot. So, I think what‟s happening is that the shift, the sort of equation of public relations and advertising is due largely to the need of organizations to find their customers and their stakeholders and to talk to them in places where they are rather than where these organizations traditionally thought they were. AW: I think that there‟s a number of different forces that are basically changing the media landscape right now, and I think it‟s important to take all of them into account, no matter which ones are more prevalent than others. We‟re 67 still in the process of the change that‟s happening, and it‟s hard to figure everything out until we can look up because hindsight‟s 20-20. JS: I‟m not entirely sure that we‟ll be able to look back. I think we‟re in a fairly permanent state of imbalance, and I don‟t mean that negatively. I don‟t think that there‟s going to be anything that‟s going to resemble a static communication if there ever was one. For decades you could count on, until World War II, you could pretty much count on being communicated with by companies either through advertising through the newspaper or over the radio, and that was pretty much it. Then television changed things, but television sort of fell in, and seemed very familiar until maybe about 10 years ago. Now, what we‟re seeing is that companies have all sorts of ways of engaging us and trying to get our attention, and I think that technological shifts are so rapid that companies are physically leaping at every opportunity. We have an understanding of what those opportunities are and what the consequences of those opportunities are. Sort of like--I‟m trying to think of a metaphor. It‟s very much like an open air market, like in Turkish or Arabic, they call it a souq--this place where everybody‟s got something to sell, and you‟re walking among all of the stalls and all of the sellers, and they have different items and have different ways of selling it, and one person shouts louder than another, and there‟s all of the various sensory input that you‟re experiencing, and it seems a big muddle, a big confusion, but, nonetheless, it‟s still a marketplace. 68 AW: You see that with both of these functions. Everyone‟s just trying to break through the clutter. This brings us to an interesting point. As far as the future of the industry with the way that things are going right now, what do you think is going to happen over the next five years? What major changes and trends do you think are going to affect these two industries? JS: Well, I think that we‟re going to see several things that are going to take place. I think that the best way to understand what‟s going to happen in the future is to look what‟s gone on in the past and what‟s going on right now. I think that one of the major forces, at least in the next five to ten years, that‟s going to change things, is going to be the economy, especially in the Western world, where, like in the United States and in Europe, there have been significant downturns in the economy. You‟re talking about people doing a lot, needing to do a lot more with a lot fewer resources. Nonetheless, I think that people‟s ability to assume people‟s desire and organization‟s ability to work within a limited economic climate, I think will greatly affect marketplaces and what, in fact, organizations think they‟ll be able to do successfully. People will be able to afford a lot less of pretty much everything. It doesn‟t mean that they‟ll necessarily be poor. It‟s just that they‟ll probably be more frugal. That is populations in Western countries will not be able to accumulate and assume the types of personal debt that people have been accumulating and assuming for the past couple of decades, and I think that, merely out of necessity, not necessarily for the desire, people will need to do a lot more with a lot less, and I think that 69 organizations will have to adjust to that reality, and so that‟s going to affect the advertising industry, and it‟s going to affect the public relations industry, and, at the same time, while the economic resources will be at least temporarily diminished, the access to information will increase, and people will be much more discerning in their decision making process. For example, using social media and whatever comes after it, to help them make those decisions. AW: That‟s an interesting point. Before, you said that the lines between advertising and PR, their relationship is kind of blurring. In the future, do you think that they‟re going to either become more separated or merge or do something in between, like remain organizationally separate but to a much greater degree? How do you think that that relationship may change or if it will at all? JS: Well, I think that we saw that relationship changing as far back as the 1980s. Until about 1980, in promotional communications, under the P of promotional communication and the 4 P‟s of Marketing, you had advertising agencies, distinct advertising agencies, and you had distinct public relations agencies. Within organizations, you had sort of very distinct corporate communications functions and marketing functions, and they didn‟t really overlap that much. They overlapped but not that much. What we‟ve seen since 1980 was this massive consolidation, for example, with mass media which was mirrored in the massive consolidation of advertising and public relations and other promotional communications agencies under these pretty much like six 70 firms that owned the bulk advertising and public relations agencies in the world, and the fact that the six holding companies now control these functions in distinct, basically, of one another, that is, they‟re seeing public relations and advertising as sort of the same package. It‟s not like what we define of advertising agencies or public relations agencies. We see them very much as being complementary types of functions. Within the organization, I think that out of financial necessity, we‟re seeing in the industry itself, what it likes about itself is some of the public relations trades, magazines, and newspapers, and things like that, they don‟t even call it PR anymore. They call it comm functions. Comm function now is well seated within marketing and also, if you look at like text books for public relations, there are these text books on marketing PR that are emerging. So, it‟s sort of a very tentative relationship that existed in the past between public relations and marketing and advertising because of that marketing heading. This very tentative relationship is turning more and more into a one man, and, in large part, the wedding has already occurred. I don‟t think that the terms advertising and public relations have really much meaning anymore, and, whatever it is that companies do to communicate with their consumers and other constituents, I think that we can call it advertising, we can call it PR, we can call it marketing, but those terms are not necessarily significant in any way anymore. AW: That‟s a great point, and it transitions well to my final question. With the consolidation, or what seems to be the consolidation of these two functions, 71 how do you think it‟ll affect the responsibilities of senior decision makers? What will their responsibilities be and what skills will they need to be able to handle these tasks? JS: Well, I think that people in the communication function already realize, at least the smart ones, have already realized that. And, I think that the ones that aren‟t so smart are sort of trying to figure it out and maybe floundering in a certain way, but what I see and what I think is that, there used to be a time if you worked in advertising and you were a brand manager, that didn‟t really have a whole of responsibilities associated with it. It basically meant that you had to make sure that your brand was being advertised efficiently, that the money that you were spending on advertising was going towards media placement that was meeting the marketing objectives of the brand, you were able to reach your audience with the least amount of money possible with the most impressions, making the most impressions with your message, and making sure that sales were steady, if not climbing, in the face of competition. Today, no brand manager would think that that would be his or her job. Brand managers have far more complex responsibilities, and those responsibilities will get even more complex as times goes by. Brand managers, for example, now are in charge of this sort of very amorphous task of building relationships with customers, and how do you do that? You can‟t just send this message into the media void and hope that your audiences are going to be passively taking it all in. You now have to rely on a whole magic bag of techniques, including public relations in order to 72 get their attention. You have to win their hearts and minds. It‟s a whole new persuasive ball game, and organizations are trying to do this every way that they can. There‟s this whole new area of marketing called neuromarketing where companies are doing these experiments where they‟re exposing people to messages, and they watch their brain function, for example, on CAT Scans to see what areas of the brain light up with certain messages or certain words or certain imagery. I think that consumer organizations, consumer-based companies, are feeling very desperate because we‟re not sitting in front of the television anymore, we‟re not opening up the newspaper. Where the hell are we? What are we doing? If we can find those customers, how can we make an idea stick in their head? It‟s almost like psychological warfare, and, as a matter of fact, it is psychological warfare. I think that the people who lead communication efforts are going to have to be more informed and current and be very good tacticians in figuring out ways of reaching audiences, which are very targeted. 73 Interview with Rick Bursky RB: Rick Bursky. I‟m the Creative Director at Euro RSCG. AW: Looking back over your career, what major changes and trends, internal and external, positive and negative, do you think have affected the industry? RB: Well, I could talk to you about the advertising industry, not the public relations industry. Well, the industry has shrunk tremendously, and that was a trend that was coming either before the giant recession. The giant recession has just taken things a lot, and, basically, the industry fell off the cliff. One of the things that happened was giant media companies came along first it was Western Media and then there‟s companies like Carat, and they went to the client to give them their media budget. It‟s easier to make more money that way. Now, to fight back, we have to create our own media conglomerates, KGB has Co-op Media so they needed to make the same massive sized savings so agencies with media departments now went away. One of the things that happened over the past couple of years is the internet came along, and people started making blogs and things like that. You hear the term “social media” a lot. That has to do with public relations, but, in the past, where clients wanted magazines to write about them. They wanted editorials written about them. Basically, PR companies would do that. It was their responsibility to do that, and that‟s something to do with advertising. As time has gone by, agencies, now, are taking a lot of 74 assignments for social media. From my point of view, that‟s traditionally a public relations job. The only thing that‟s changed, instead of magazines and newspapers, is happening online, bloggers trying to get that going. I‟ve gotten a lot of assignments--it seems to me, in the advertising world, there were special agencies that would just do online advertising. I personally think that‟s going to change because clients are going to want integration. You hear that a lot. Anyway, so how integrated is your account really if you have one agency doing your online, one agency just doing your work in general, and one agency just doing your direct marketing? That‟s not very integrated. It‟s also harder for the CMO, the Chief Marketing Officer, because he has a dozen companies to talk to. And, while we all think we have our clients‟ best interests at heart, we have our own company‟s interests more at heart. So, we have to make decisions. It might be better if something was done online or direct or general, but if you‟re general, you‟re not going to recommend a client to take a few million dollars out of your budget and put into one of the others. So, I think clients will realize they get the best thinking and the most for their money if their account is truly integrated. So, I think we‟ll be seeing more of that. We‟ll be seeing online agencies trying to do traditional stuff. We‟re already seeing general, traditional agencies moving more into the online world. Several years ago, I was at the Cannes Festival, and the big winner for the online campaign, I‟m pretty sure was a traditional agency. It‟s interesting. It wasn‟t one of the big online agencies. It was a traditional agency. You started getting assignments. If you have a campaign to do, well you would 75 no longer just think, “Okay, we need three T.V. commercials, an outdoor board.” You would think more holistically. You would look for the online component. You would look for the social and ambient component. Agencies are starting to move into that. And, I think some of that significant to report, I‟m almost positive, is a public relations job. I‟m not sure how public relations firms are going to counter that. I would imagine they‟re going to come up with something, but agencies are definitely seeing so much money move in and are seeing that as integration that they are moving into that area. What you hear so many clients say, “Oh, we want to do a viral video, that‟s really really hard. Of course, you need to come up with something that is so fun, so interesting, that people are going to pass it around themselves. But, that again, I mean I think it‟s more a traditional public relations budget. AW: You got into it a little bit about the shifting into new platforms, such as blogs and social media. I‟m going to ask you to expand upon that. Just, basically, how have technological advances, such as the DVR and these new platforms that have arisen, how has that affected advertising from a strategic or tactical standpoint? RB: From a strategic point of view, clients are now including that as part of the media. Clients want to see that happening. So, when you say, “How have technological advances affected that?”--it has given clients new media options. And, basically, also, agencies are looking for newer technologies. They‟re trying to stay on the edge. I hate the cliché “the cutting edge,” but they‟re trying to find 76 new ways to use technology for their clients. I‟ll give you a small example of that. About 18 months ago, I was working on an account, a large account, and we discovered the 2D code. Have you heard of the 2D code? You click on a smartphone and take a picture of something. So, people are getting mail, getting something sent through general mail. So, we thought, “Wow, wouldn‟t it be great if we could just 2D code on a piece of mail so, as soon as someone got it, they could just click on their phone, and they could unplug it right away?” And, my art director manages to design the code into a little program, and we did that as a demonstration for our client. Our clients didn‟t want to do it, but I think it‟s a small taste where agencies are looking to demonstrate the new technology. It‟s not that this is our media function, but, now, agencies are strategically are looking how clients are looking to find new technology. Before we didn‟t use that much technology beyond TV commercials. But, now, we‟re realizing technology is an option? I was talking to an agency in Minneapolis, they actually had a whole programming group, not just to design web pages. They had people creating the software. Online agencies were creating new software because they were realizing that, to stay ahead of the curve, they didn‟t want to rely on people‟s abilities to track and serve clients. They were creating new technology and new software. Now, the big agencies--I don‟t know if they have gotten to that point, but they have their resources, the money. It‟s only a matter of time. AW: You covered some of the questions I was going to ask you. These answers are great. I‟m going to move forward now and talk about if you could 77 give me some speculation on the future of the industry. Looking forward, over the next five years, between now and 2015, what major changes and trends do you think are going to affect your industry? RB: I think there‟s going to be more integration. I‟ve had friends of mine who are working for online agencies. Online agencies, though, in the beginning, had a lot of technology people; they had “tech heads.” But, now, they‟re realizing they need to come up with creative solutions so they‟ve been bringing to the party, hiring a lot of general people. It‟s easier for copywriting to do that. You can hire through those agencies, plus you don‟t have the technical demand. I really believe you‟re going to see more online agencies recruiting more general people and vice versa. It‟s almost impossible to get hired into those general agencies without online capabilities, without some experience in that way. You see people now advertising jobs. In the old days, they‟d look for a copywriter, or they‟d want a direct response copywriter or general copywriter or an online copywriter, and, nowadays, they want an integrated copywriter. You‟re going to see big agencies doing more and more of that and you‟re going to see some of the online agencies trying to get more of the traditional work. I don‟t know how that‟s going to shake out. With online agencies, you have to realize that your client might have a general agency, but the general agency is going to be looking for your slice of the pie. The only way you protect yourself is to collaborate because I‟ve been in meetings with agencies, and we‟ve discussed how we can get more work from the other people so I have to believe that the other people 78 are having the same conversation about us. People have to be more integrated to have these agencies developing capabilities outside the core specialties at the start of their businesses. You‟re looking for what, by the way? You‟re looking online? I truly believe that is just another version of direct marketing. It used to be direct marketing was through the mail, but online is more direct because you get talk directly to consumers, and you can get them to respond to you to get a response, and I think that‟s what direct marketing wants. AW: It‟s funny the ways that people are trying to just achieve higher levels of engagement and grab your attention. I think a lot of these approaches that people are taking--sometimes it can be unclearly defined, whether it‟s considered public relations or an advertising tactic or strategy so I think that integration can only help. RB: It‟s not that integration can only help. Integration is the hub of business in the future. Apple Computer or Ford or GM. They‟ve become branded, but, basically, branding is a popularity contest. The brand with the most friends wins. And, how do you get friends? You need to get people to identify with you, your values, and your lifestyle. Branding is a popularity contest. The brand with the most friends wins. AW: Your answers are great. I have a whole list of questions I was going to ask you. You‟re answering all of them by elaborating very clearly on what I‟ve been asking you. I have one more question for you. In my paper, I go into a little 79 bit about the advertising side, a little bit about the public relations side, and then I combine and compare and contrast the two functions at the end of it. Basically, I think my hypothesis is that, with integration becoming the norm--I‟m trying to find out what skills and what responsibilities are senior communication decision makers--what are they going to need for the future? RB: Well, I have a hard time talking about your side, but I think it‟s not too different. I think you‟re going to see broader changes outside of your core specialty. I think PR people are going to have to think outside the traditional PR box, and advertising people are going to have to approach their clients more holistically. We were pitching a client. I don‟t want to say the name; it was a video game. And, one of the things that came up was, “What are you going to do on the day of the release to get attention the day of the release from the major markets?” Basically, they were asking us, I hate to use the term, they were asking for anti-advertising, they were looking for a PR activity. One of the things that it involved was a pirate theme. So, one of the things we propose is that in major cities: Los Angeles, there is a lake in MacArthur Park. We were going to sink pirate ships. Late at night, say you woke up in MacArthur Park in the big lake there was a sunken pirate ship. It wasn‟t that expensive as you think, because you only need a top of a ship sticking out of the water and we‟re going to do that in various cities to get attention to the press. Now, Andrew, doesn‟t that sound like public relations? 80 AW: Yeah, I mean, it‟s definitely creative. I think it‟s hard to draw the line what type of activity. Generally, I think most people would associate it with public relations, but far be it from me to say that it couldn‟t be an advertising tactic. I think the end game is kind of similar between the two industries. RB: I think your point is perfect. I think the end game is similar, but, now, we‟re not going to see it‟s just a matter of the end game, but what we‟re going to have is ad agencies and public relations firms are not going to want us to just say--it‟s not just the end, but it‟s the process to get it there. Everyone‟s going to want a piece of that pie. You could have given that assignment to a public relations firm or an ad agency, but I was working an ad agency, and we were looking at public relations as part of our strategy. 15 years ago, we wouldn‟t have been looking at that. We would have left that to a public relations firm, but, now, we think holistically, and I have to believe that public relations firms are doing the same thing. 81 Interview with Kimberly Capwell KC: My name is Kimberly Capwell, and I‟m CEO of Capwell Communications, a public relations and social media engagement firm. Although, I wouldn‟t say social media engagement. We don‟t really say that; we say PR firm. AW: The first couple of questions I‟m going to ask you are regarding the past and the present of the industry. Looking back over your career, what major changes and trends, whether they be internal or external, positive or negative, do you think have affected the PR industry the most? KC: Any new mode of communication affects communication so I would say it started with the fax machine. I mean I can remember when faxes were kind of an unusual thing, believe it or not. The internet and now social media. AW: More specifically, let‟s narrow it down to technological advances, such as the DVR, and new communication platforms, such as blogs and social media. How do you think that they have affected the industry? KC: I really think that, today, the advancement in technology has made public relations a more powerful practice because we have more channels to communicate. Now, it used to be, before the dawn of mass communication, if a company wanted to get your news out, they used to do it the old-fashioned way and actually messenger or deliver a hard copy of a press release to a reporter, and you would hope the reporter would publish it somewhere, and that‟s how you would get your news to your constituents. If you worked in a small town, maybe 82 you could go down to the local drinking hole or wherever the gathering place was and maybe tell a few people and word would spread that way, but, with regard to mass communication, it was primarily a media-driven channel that we have for public relations work. We had to use media as a conduit. So, what‟s happened with the new forms of communication is technology has advanced what we have today. In particular, with regard to social media, is I can now speak to my public, my constituents, be they key opinion leaders, customers, competitors even, employees. Every possible public base that you have, I can now communicate with them all at once. That‟s a big change. When public relations started, it was truly a function of relating to your public using some form of conduit. We had to, either through technology or through other broadcast powers, be they individual reporters or influencers, use a conduit to get your message out, and, today, we can use the direct route. AW: Okay, great. I‟m going to shift gears a little bit. I just want to ask you a question about the relationship that has existed between advertising and public relations. Over the past four to five years, can you describe your experiences with that relationship and how it has progressed until today? KC: Well, I think there‟s a couple key distinctions to make here, and that is that advertising is a controlled media. With advertising, all of the messaging, positioning, everything is focus grouped and controlled. They focus group not only headlines but body copy, and they run messages by audiences. They do audience participation studies, and everything is controlled. They buy the 83 placement. They buy the place that they want the ad to run. They focus group and test market every possible piece of it and then pay to have it placed and then they have no pen measurement tools to measure ROI. Well, with public relations, we don‟t have that luxury. We‟re a current media industry. And, so, the differences is that, one, the long term difference, of course, has been credibility. The message carried through a medium like public relations tends to have more credibility in that inherent third-party endorsements that advertising can‟t provide. They try to influence through controlled messaging. We communicate in a much more dynamic environment. Today, what happened once that got online with the majority of ad dollars--I‟m sure you have research on that showing how many ad dollars have shifted online ever since traditional media subsides. So, what‟s happened has been this big conversation and question, really, and clients are still trying to figure it out, is who manages the online space because, now, yes, the ad agencies were the first ones to kind of jump online and say, “Okay, we now how to do print media. We can take that and place banner ads and paper clip campaigns and do that kind of thing.” Again, all various controlled media. But, now, with social media and communications, it‟s a two-way thing. Communications is two-way, and public relations remains the only marketing discipline that‟s two-way. We‟re the only ones who have a back-and-forth conversation. We‟re the ones who write the FAQs. We‟re the ones at the podium, answering the Q & A. We‟re the ones in the holding rooms briefing executives and at the podium with the president. 84 Communications-public relations is a two-way discipline so that is a unique opportunity online when you‟ve got the advertising world still controlling messages with their paid placement. There‟s a bigger opportunity to actually influence, now, because of the two-way opportunities that social media brings the internet in general that public relations can play a big role in. AW: Okay, great. I just have a few more questions--it won‟t take too long-- just about the future of the industry. If you can give me some speculation on that, that‟d be great. Looking forward over the next five years, what major changes and trends do you think are going to affect the public relations industry. KC: Either the person, the place, or the company, or the technology innovator that figures out how we can deliver PR messages is the one who wins. It‟s all going mobile. So, that‟s the next phase, that‟s the next opportunity for PR is what‟s happening on the mobile phone. It‟s just been an increasing convergence of this medium into mobile. So, that‟s the next place that‟s at play. AW: Over the next five years, do you expect any major changes to take place between advertising and public relations? KC: I think that the wrestling match is going to continue, and maybe there will be a winner in five years. I‟m not so sure that there will be, but who is going to be the one that owns the online space from a strategy, messaging, positioning, or ending standpoint. I think we‟ll be surprised to see five years from now PR playing a bigger role in that than we automatically do today. 85 AW: My last question is that, basically, I‟m trying to bring my thesis to a point. The major underlying question is do you think that the responsibilities of senior communication decision makers are going to change over the next five years? And, if they do change, do you think they‟re going to need to have more tools in their skill set or anything like that? KC: Yes. They‟ll need a lot more tools. They‟ll tell you right now that most corporate professionals that hold a corporate communications job. So, most people that have a corp comm role today are not social media savvy in 2011. Maybe their kids are. Maybe they know they should be, but they don‟t understand it. They don‟t even know what social media is playing, and corporate America, as a whole, is very slow. I would say a majority of companies still have social media policies in place. They don‟t know what to do if one of their employees does something rogue online. There are policies in place that the majority of U.S. companies who manage that from a communications standpoint can‟t keep their head in the sand. Probably, it‟s moved so quickly, they‟ve just been slow to respond and do really kind of know how to so I think that what‟s going to happen is that they‟ll have to be well-versed, not only in the technology but also in the monitoring and measurement side of it, like how do they monitor this whole new conversation that‟s going up there? And, if you measure it, does all of that conversation matter to the brands? Does it matter? Is every blog post really meaningful and damaging? I don‟t know. Is everything a crisis communication scenario or isn‟t it? So, I think that‟s where the conversation in 86 the discipline is going to go to being where does all this new dialogue that‟s happening out there fall? Is it a corporate communications responsibility? Is it a branding responsibility? Is it advertising? Is it word-of-mouth? Does word-of- mouth become something and then how do you control it or manage it or direct it or channel it? 87 Brenda Lynch Interview (Questionnaire responses) Background Questions: 1. Name: Brenda Lynch 2. In which industry do you work (ad or PR)? Public Relations 3. How long have you been practicing in your industry? Over 20 years 4. What positions and titles have you held over your career? All titles from AE up to Senior Vice President/Managing Director 5. What is your present job title? Senior Vice President 6. What are your primary responsibilities? I oversee the Consumer Group at The Rogers Group Questions regarding the past and present of the industry: 1. Looking back over your career, what major changes and trends (internal and external, positive and negative) have affected your industry? * The introduction of computers, rise of the Internet, rise of bloggers 2. Looking at the present time, what major changes and trends (internal and external, positive and negative) are currently affecting the industry? * The Great Recession 88 3. More specifically, how have technological advances such as the DVR, and new communication platforms such as blogs and social media, affected the industry? * Technology has radically changed the world and the PR industry particularly. Now, you are connected 24/7 to the news cycle and the need to respond to reporters, bloggers and consumers 4. Looking back over the last 4-5 years, how would you describe the relationship that has historically existed between the advertising and public relations functions? * Advertising and PR have worked in separate silos and competed for marketing dollars. Then the big Advertising agencies started buying up the PR firms so they could collaborate and share in the revenue stream. 5. Looking at the present time, how would you describe the current relationship between the advertising and public relations functions? * Advertising agencies are less arrogant because they now are fighting the Interactive agencies as well as PR agencies for marketing dollars. Advertising is being seen as old school and not as effective since everyone can TIVO pass the ads 89 6. If you believe that relationship has changed substantially, what have been the driving forces behind those changes? * See above Questions regarding the future of the industry: 1. Looking forward over the next five years, i.e. between now and the year 2015, what major changes and trends (internal and external, positive and negative) will affect your industry? * We will all be connected and mobile. We will want our information to be cross media platforms and on-demand. We will buy one song/video and it will work on the computer, iphone, TV etc. 2. Again looking forward over the next five years, i.e. between now and the year 2015, what extensions of current technologies and platforms, or new technologies and platforms, will affect your industry? * Voice recognition will allow verbal computing and remove the need for typing. Visuals will replace words as we will want to see it not just read about it. 3. Again looking forward over the next five years, what major changes do you expect to take place, if any, in the relationship between the advertising and public relations functions? 90 * We will both become content providers for the various platforms. All marketing disciplines will merge into one. 4. Do you believe that the advertising and PR functions in organizations will remain as they are now (i.e. largely separate), merge(i.e. become a single discipline), or do something in between (i.e. remain organizationally separate, but integrate to a much greater degree)? * See above 5. If you believe the ad/PR relationship will change substantially, what will be the driving forces behind those changes? * See above 6. How will those changes affect the responsibilities of senior communication decision-makers, i.e. what will their responsibilities be? * Communicators will see their job as either a story teller or story starter not as a marketer. 7. How will those changes affect the skills required of senior communication decision-makers, i.e. what skills will they need? * See above 91 Liana Miller Interview (Questionnaire responses) Background Questions: 1. Name: Liana Miller 2. In which industry do you work (ad or PR)? PR 3. How long have you been practicing in your industry? 20+ years 4. What positions and titles have you held over your career? My career has been on the agency side; I‟ve held positions at small and large agencies. I founded my own agency 10+ years ago. 5. What is your present job title? Founder & CEO 6. What are your primary responsibilities? Establishing an agency for today‟s business environment. Questions regarding the past and present of the industry: 1. Looking back over your career, what major changes and trends (internal and external, positive and negative) have affected your industry? 92 Very early on, technology definitely impacted the PR industry. PR, an industry built on relationships (especially with media), began to see technology enhancing and enabling the ability to have more and faster relationships on one end but also blocking access to reporters. In the mid-90s, the Internet most definitely changed communications. Email came along (that was huge – you actually communicated with reporters any time of day or night). Websites emerged (obviously this was huge too). For PR, this was important as “news” began to move online. We began to see news aggregating around community and their passion areas. But, I think probably the most important change was in the early 2000s. Consumers now had tools and could bypass traditional media channels. They could blog. They could more easily capture images and video (and share them). They could create and tell their own stories. They could complain. I remember thinking that, for PR, this was more than just a technological change for us. This was going to be a huge shift – and I think for the first time in my career, I wondered if PR would become irrelevant. 2. Looking at the present time, what major changes and trends (internal and external, positive and negative) are currently affecting the industry? The biggest change: consumers are in control. They can fast forward and by- pass through any marketing message – not just a commercial; but also news. 93 Everything is real-time. Communications come in micro bursts. It is very much like a twitter feed: it‟s scrolling by and happening now. For marketers, consumers don‟t want to be talked to. Even with PR, they don‟t want to be “messaged.” They want authentic engagement. They want to be part of a conversation. They want to not only have a voice but have influence. And, they know that they can as we‟ve seen voices, which in the past could not be heard, now able to influence big companies. Consumers have the tools to do so (most are free or really, really cheap) and consumers are learning how to do so very quickly. This is huge for both PR and advertising. How do you now talk to an empowered, connected, always on consumer? 3. More specifically, how have technological advances such as the DVR, and new communication platforms such as blogs and social media, affected the industry? Tools are easy to learn and easy to access. Invest a little more time, and consumers then know how to do simple programming too. They can easily set up their communications channels and I think agencies have been slow to have that same adeptness. 94 Blogs, social media, mobile smart phones, etc. are creating real time influence. 1. Looking back over the last 4-5 years, how would you describe the relationship that has historically existed between the advertising and public relations functions? My experience with this relationship has been that they have been very siloed and somewhat competitive with each other. I would say this competitiveness heightened as buzz around social media marketing heated up. Very fine line – and some would say crossover – when it came to these tactics. 2. Looking at the present time, how would you describe the current relationship between the advertising and public relations functions? I have seen advertising agencies looking more to PR. They are interested in our skill set and need our skill set. I still see that traditional advertising agencies are trying to put the PR team in a bucket to define and separate their capabilities. I personally would like to see more open collaboration as I think it‟s needed and beneficial. 3. If you believe that relationship has changed substantially, what have been the driving forces behind those changes? There are multiple driving factors and dynamics. The bottom line is that the consumer has forever changed the dynamic. Consumers do not want to be 95 messaged and they don‟t want to be marketed to. They want authentic engagement. The other force is the client and their interest and savvy in authentic engagement with the consumer. The clients are turning to their marketing partners to figure this out. Some clients are more conservative; some are resistant; some are moving forward and not afraid to trial new tactics. Finally, I heard someone say we were becoming a “consultant economy” the other day. I think that is interesting. Lots of smart individuals out there offering their services. That will change and challenge traditional agency structures. I think we will see more integration of disciplines this year (I think that has to happen or the traditional agencies will miss the boat). I also think you will see a rise of new agencies with new agency models – they will integrate a variety of disciplines to meet client needs. 96 Interview with Kim Getty KG: My name is Kim Getty, and I work in advertising. AW: How long have you been practicing in the industry? KG: I have been in advertising over 20 years. AW: Okay, great. What positions and titles have you held over your career? KG: I‟ve always worked in the account management space and really just sort of grown up through those ranks so, you know, I could read every title to you, but, you know, sort of starting from the account coordinator role up to account executive, account supervisor, account director. I currently serve as the EVP Executive Director at Deutsch. AW: Okay, great. What are your primary responsibilities to date? KG: Really, my focus at Deutsch is around ensuring that the department here, who is responsible for driving the business strategy and thinking and the service of all the clients in the building, is really set up for success and we‟re delivering at the highest possible standard for our clients. AW: That‟s great. Do you have any specific clients that you work for or you just try to oversee all of the different accounts? KG: Yeah, I mean we have a number of different accounts in the building. Everything from Volkswagon, PlayStation, HTC which is a leading smartphone manufacturer, Dr. Pepper, Snapple, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Fresh 97 & Easy Neighborhood Market which is a major Tesco brand here in the U.S., and CiCi‟s Pizza. AW: Okay, great. Thank you. Okay, so, getting into questions that are regarding the past and present of the industry, looking back over your career, have there been any major changes and trends that you feel have affected your industry? KG: I mean, certainly, I think that as the communications landscape has evolved so has the responsibilities of the agencies that are capitalizing on it so I think that, in real terms, probably the biggest change is the volume of work that we need to create to be effective. If I look at a campaign from even five years ago, we might launch a car with three T.V. spots, three print ads and some banner executions, maybe out of home. Now, if we‟re going to launch a car, we literally will be creating hundreds of assets to be pushed out into the space in order to do a good job communicating against that vehicle. So, it‟s just the diffusion of media consumption has really required a similar diffusion of the creative tools that we use AW: Has that, in turn, given people who work in the industry more responsibility, or do you kind of separate the job functions and the job tasks to different team members or things of that nature? KG: Well, I think what it‟s done is it‟s forced everyone at every level to be more creative because it‟s not just about execution and sort of working against a relatively finite set of tools, but it‟s about application and really thinking through 98 all the touch points, what the best touch points are and innovative ways to capitalize on those touch points. So, I think the real result has been pushing more creativity into everyone‟s job function. AW: Okay, great. Now, more specifically, technologically speaking, advances, such as DVR, and new communication platforms, such as blogs and social media, I‟m sure that they‟ve had some sort of effect on the industry, can you maybe go into a little detail about that and maybe challenges that you‟re facing or benefits that they may provide? KG: Well, I think what it pushes all of us to do is to deliver better content because, now that consumers are in much more of an opt-in situation, they get to choose what they‟re going to spend their time with. So, going back to my earlier point about pushing more creativity into our thinking, if you want to create a TiVo- proof ad, then not only do you need to think through what are the different types of technology ways to enable that but really, from a content development standpoint, what can you do to make sure that you‟re putting something out there that someone‟s going to choose to watch just like they would choose to watch the T.V. program that they‟re engaging with. Similarly, with blogs and social media, those are opt-in properties. So, when you‟re working in that pull versus push environment, you need to have content that is not just engaging but particularly, in that environment, share-worthy because you‟re depending upon consumers to be your media to some degree. 99 AW: In looking back over the last four or five years, how would you describe the relationship that has historically existed between advertising and the public relations functions? KG: I would say, for the most part, and there are certainly exceptions to this, but, for the most part, they‟ve existed relatively independently. While certainly thoughtful brands and clients have forced alignment from a strategy standpoint, from an execution standpoint, I think they‟ve been completely different. AW: Okay, great. Do you think that these relationships have changed substantially over the years? I mean, I know that you said they operated independently from execution, but the alignment, as far as different campaigns are being brought about, do you think that they‟re more aligned through that but they‟re independently executed? Is that what you‟re saying? KG: For the most part, that‟s still what I‟m seeing is that independent execution. I think what‟s happening though is that some emerging technologies exist in a gray area between the two functions. So, you know, social media is a good example of that. If I look across our roster, in some cases, that‟s a function that‟s still being supported from a PR point of view, through the PR arm. In some cases that‟s a function that‟s being supported from an advertising point of view. In some functions or in some brands, it‟s shared. So, I think that emerging technologies have created an area that doesn‟t necessarily fall squarely into either camp, and what I haven‟t seen yet is a lot of collaboration. What I am 100 seeing is, you know, just one sort of organization or the other sort of jumping in and tackling that. I think what‟s going to happen is you‟re going to see more and more specialized groups emerging to sort of tackle those gray areas, and they might either come out of the advertising function. They might come out of the PR function, but they will be dedicated to tackling those needs as opposed to just a dimension of the existing practice. AW: Okay, great. The next group of questions that I have for you are just questions regarding the future of the industry, what you believe, what you think might happen in the future, and we‟ll get to what you talked about: maybe more specialization. Looking forward over the next five years, for example, between now and the year 2015, what major changes and trends do you think will affect the advertising industry? KG: I just think you‟re going to see an acceleration of what‟s already happening where you‟ve got a continued significant growth of smaller, specialized agencies that are focusing on one dimension of that communication tool set and really focusing exclusively there and delivering expertise. Then, you‟re going to see agencies that are expanding and changing to adapt to the new communication landscape, and then you‟re going to see agencies dying, and that‟s going to result in two groups of agencies probably at the end of the next five years. One group is going to be the set of dedicated boutiques that are still able to do a good job on more of a narrow basis for major brands, and then you‟re going to see powerhouse agencies emerge that are fully integrated in the 101 offering that they can provide to brands, that basically have all of that boutique capability under one roof. I think agencies that aren‟t able to do that, frankly, aren‟t going to exist anymore. AW: You‟re doing a great job of answering these questions. I think that some of these answers have taken into account some of my next questions so I‟m going to try to just look over my question sheet right here and figure out if there‟s any other things I can ask you. So, what you‟re saying with the more specialized agencies and things that are going to be developed, if we could take it a step further and maybe talk about in house communication positions. I‟m not sure if you have any direct experience with that, but do you think that if you‟re working for a specific company and you‟re going to be a senior level communication officer, what type of decision making abilities and skills, what do you think that will be required in their skill set? What do you think that they‟ll need? KG: Well, I think that the core of what makes someone good at those jobs is still going to be the same, which is having a vision for where a brand can go and an understanding of all the tools that can help you get there. That is never going to change. That‟s what this business has been about for the last couple hundred years, and brands are still going to be about stories, and that‟s what we care about as consumers. I think that what you‟re going to need to understand in the dimension of the job that‟s evolving is the capacity to really wrangle all the emerging tools in the toolbox. People that are successful are the ones that are 102 going to have a very good understanding of how to leverage those tools and really make them work hard for brands. So, being in a position where you‟re constantly growing and changing and expanding your understanding of what‟s happening in the communications space is going to be critical to success. AW: So, you think that with every brand trying to tell their story, it‟s going to be critical for them to figure out which way to tell their story, which method they use to tell their story will benefit them one way or another. KG: Method or methods, yeah, for sure. AW: Alright, well thank you very much. I think I got all that I need from you. You provided a lot of great insight, and I really thank you for it.

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Asset Metadata

Creator Webster, Andrew William (author)

Core Title A comparative analysis of the advertising and public relations disciplines in an era of digitally fueled audience control

School Annenberg School for Communication

Degree Master of Arts

Degree Program Strategic Public Relations

Publication Date 05/07/2011

Defense Date 03/28/2011

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag advertising,Communication,digital,dvr,media,Mobile,OAI-PMH Harvest,PR,Public Relations,social media,Technology

Place Name USA (countries)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Swerling, Gerald (committee chair), Floto, Jennifer (committee member), Kessler, Joe (committee member)

Creator Email awebster@usc.edu,webs2905@gmail.com

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-m3928

Unique identifier UC1446994

Identifier etd-Webster-4540 (filename),usctheses-m40 (legacy collection record id),usctheses-c127-470744 (legacy record id),usctheses-m3928 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier etd-Webster-4540.pdf

Dmrecord 470744

Document Type Thesis

Rights Webster, Andrew William

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Repository Name Libraries, University of Southern California

Repository Location Los Angeles, California

Repository Email cisadmin@lib.usc.edu