so this is mass communication?

Everytime you get PR people + communication technology people together – the conversation likely turns to the social media (press) release.

I’ll admit – I ask everyone I run into what they think about it & I read about the debate.

Some think it is the next big thing. Some don’t. Some aren’t happy when you don’t do it exactly the way the template was outlined. Some think the whole point is to be flexible and try.

I think the real scorecard lies in whether the people we send it to like it. Yes, the point is to encourage bloggers & other social media mavens to “re-mix” our content – but we still serve journalists.

And some don’t get it. Or like it.

At the ATL social media day, hosted by the PRSA Georgia chapter, a real-live journalist sat on the panel at the pre-lunch session talking about how to use social media tools.

So I asked him what he wanted. SM or traditional?

Much to my surprise, he was ambivalent about it.

But he did say that he appreciated the links to non-traditional coverage and others’ interest in an issue. He said if you’re pitching an item, & can prove that other people are already interested (meaning it is a legitimate story), then that will get more attention. He encouraged practitioners to include links to bloggers’ coverage in a pitch.

So who knows. I guess we have to keep working on it, because as a practitioner I don’t care if it is the traditional or the social media press release – I just want that message in that release to get to my publics (we’re not supposed to call them audiences anymore) and to engage them.

Check out this inspirational message from some of UGA’s finest … and yes, I do recognize some faces in there … you know who you are.

Life … as a musical

I’m a little behind the curve when it comes to podcasting.

Don’t get me wrong. I think it is great.

But hearing my voice? Ummm. No. Not so great.

Well, that was before I was asked to teach this awesome social media class for fall.  And before I had a student athlete e-mail me about a time conflict regarding practice & the class. And before I thought: “wouldn’t it be totally awesome to podcast my social media class?”

Yes. I actually thought both totally & awesome.

So. I’m committed.

I’ll do it.

But I’m totally nervous about it.

Beyond my granny-esque sounding recorded voice, and the extra work I’ll likely be adding to my plate trying to figure this whole thing out & do it twice a week … I’m nervous about having my class sessions actually recorded then on the Internet for the world to hear.

Anyone who has ever heard about some of the crazy things I’ve said to my classes is probably nervous too. For legal reasons, of course.

Even with these struggles – I’m jumping in, head first.

Any advice is greatly appreciated. You know, from software choices to avoiding the sure firing of my little un-tenured self.

I consider myself pretty techy.

I have a special work instant messenger handle I use at least 5 times a week outside of normal office hours for students to IM me questions. Yes, I get IMs right before midnight on the eve of an assignment being due, but I don’t mind – if I’m online I’ve made myself available to them.

I’m on Facebook – though I don’t push it with my students.

I incorporate social media case stories into every course – from writing to research methods.

This semester I’ve skype’d in guest lecturers from around the world & even taught the class myself through the vid conf software when I was on military duty in Middle East after spring break.

With teaching being an integral part of my job (just as important as research, they say), I am on the lookout for ways to improve the classroom experience and increase real learning (you know, when you remember concepts or even lectures long after the class is done).

I was just named a Lilly Fellow at UGA, and so for the next 2 years I’ll be focusing on pedagody. But I’m not going wait for the Lilly program to school me up. I’m looking for ideas today!

So when I saw the recent post from the MIT & Stanford Tomorrow’s Profesosr blog about improving teaching by taking tech out, it caught my eye.

There are a lot of things in here that make sense & even though we only have a few weeks left in the semester I will start to implement these changes.

Highlights & new strategies for me from the post / responding comments are:

1. Skip class announcements. Eats valuable time. E-mail instead.
2. Give pre- and post-lecture quizzes outside of class through WebCT.
3. Open IM during class – when students have questions or need clarification they can IM it & it will pop on the screen (this is done a lot at tech industry conferences).

The whole concept here is teaching naked. Don’t worry – I’ll still have my clothes on. Instead, the focus moves from mere lectures & exams to using class time to involve the student in the learning process.

I’m all for it.

But I’m skeptical at the same time.

I feel like if required, yes, students will indeed do the pre-class prep needed to get to that day’s naked in-class experience. But I’ve attempted (with poor results) to take out the classroom recitation of definitions etc to make time for the REAL stuff (case studies, clarifying difficult concepts).

It just didn’t work.

Students may read, but if it wasn’t covered in class then it wasn’t valued for the most part. It didn’t matter how many times I said, “All info – lecture, readings, guest lectures, multimedia – are fair game for the test” – the great students always seem to take heart & those just checking a box don’t.

What do you think? Can naked work at public institutions?

I’m teaching a class on social media in the fall at UGA in Grady:

Social Media and Communication Networks (ADPR 5990)

Social media, described as the online tools used for connecting people to share opinions or information, is becoming a more important communication platform for people and organizations. This course will examine the historical context and impact social media and communication networks has on society and the communication industry by exploring theory and case studies relating to blogs, podcasts, wikis, social bookmarking, viral video, social network tools (FaceBook, MySpace) and social media press release among other social media. With an emphasis on the building relationships with publics, this class will discuss industry trends and how to integrate such tools into organizational communication. As a part of this class, students will write a comprehensive proposal for integrating a social media tool into an organization’s overall communication strategy and detailed plan for measuring the effect (metrics) of the proposed tool.

I plan to do lots of class discussion. Lots of skype’ing in experts for guest lectures. And lots of learning about social media myself … looking at it all from my students’ perspective.

I was thrilled to find out that next Wednesday is (what I’m unofficially calling) social media day for the Georgia chapter of PRSA.

The day begins with a pre-luncheon seminar April 11 in Atlanta, where a top-notch panel promises to answer:

• What are the rules about what you can and can’t say when you’re blogging on behalf of your organization?

• Does the fact that consumers are becoming media online keep you up at night?

• What should and shouldn’t PR practitioners include on their MySpace page? And, by the way, does my company need one, too?

Then it is time for the main show:

Richard Edelman will discuss his experience as the first CEO to have a blog and what he’s learned since the inception of 6 A.M. He also will focus on the importance of blogs and other conversational mediums and the reasons why they should be a part of any company’s public relations plan.

Our UGA PR students are heavily encouraged to skip class (well, it is gorgeous spring weather here now) & drive down to Atlanta to participate. Those going should give me a heads up though – it could save you money!

It goes without saying (so for fun, I’ll say it!): I’ll blog this.