MNG81001 - Media Relations: Corporate Communication Report SCU

This report provides an overview of media relations as a corporate communication function, focusing on its evolution, the growth of business coverage, and strategies for successful media relations programs. It examines the development of online media strategies, the importance of social media, and methods for handling negative news. The report emphasizes the need for businesses to adapt to the changing media landscape, build strong relationships with media outlets, and proactively manage their public image to foster brand awareness and credibility. The document includes references to support its arguments and provides a comprehensive guide to mastering media relations in the modern business environment. Desklib provides students with access to similar solved assignments and past papers.

SOUTHERN CROSS UNIVERSITY
ASSIGNMENT COVER SHEET
Student Name: PREETI TEHLAN
Student ID No.: 23184084
Unit Name: MANAGEMENT COMMUNICATION
Unit Code: MNG81001
Tutor’s name: Dr. CHRYS GUNASEKARA
Assignment No.: 4
Assignment Title: Report
Due date: MONDAY 03rd JUNE 2019 9:00am QLD
Date submitted: SUNDAY 02nd JUNE 2019
Declaration:
I have read and understood the Rules Relating to Awards (Rule 3
Section 18 – Academic Misconduct Including Plagiarism) as
contained in the SCU Policy Library. I understand the penalties
that apply for plagiarism and agree to be bound by these rules.
The work I am submitting electronically is entirely my own work.
Signed: PREETI TEHLAN

(please
type your
name)
Date: SUNDAY 02nd JUNE 2019

My assessment study plan
For Assessment- 4 (please indicate 1, 2, 3 or 4) I am going to focus
on the following three criteria (highlight the relevant boxes):
Criteria Key Issues
My Plan: What I need to do and
where I can find more information
Format,
Introduction, &
Conclusion
Elements of the
Introduction and
Conclusion.
1
Purpose &
Audience
Developing ideas,
planning and finding
sources.
2
Credibility
Incorporation and
documentation of
sources through
paraphrasing, direct
quoting, and
summarising (including
synthesising).
3
Referencing
SCU Harvard in-text and
end-of-text referencing .
Review
4
Readability Review paragraph 5

structure using the PEEL
model (Point, Evidence,
Explanation and My
Plan: ink).
Language
Review grammatical
structures and use of
punctuation.
6
Signed:
(please
type your
name)
PREETI TEHLAN
Date: SUNDAY 02nd JUNE 2019

To: The CEO, MnM Company
From: Preeti Tehlan, Southern Cross University
Date: 02nd June 2019
Subject: Corporate Communication Function- Media Relations
Introduction
Media Relations refers to the relationship with the company or the
organisation about the new policies, mission and achievements to inform public in a
credible and efficient manner with the help of journalists, editors and reporters. Thus,
Media Relation is an art of engagement. As requested, using secondary research, I
have completed a research on how and why managers master the corporate
communication function- Media Relations as it will help in the growth of business by
rising awareness and developments of brands and also media relations helps in
establishing reputation and broader the scope of the business. Therefore it is required
to have a good media relations for the workplace. This report examines firstly the
evolution of the news media as how media has changed and developed in recent years,
secondly growth of business coverage in the media, then focuses on better and
successful media relations program, it also focuses on developing an online media
strategy and finally assesses socialising media relations strategy and also about how to
handle negative news with certain specific evidences.
Evolution of the news media
News media is the form of communication that focuses on the delivery of the
news to the common public or a particular target public. They include print media

such as magazines and newspapers; broadcast media like television and radio, and
most recently, the internet or social media (Katz, Lazarsfeld and Roper 2017). The
evolution of the new media has influenced the lives of people significant. It is even
higher and more profound than most of the kinds of state indoctrination and sermons
by priests. Earlier, in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the Australians used to get news
from magazines and newspapers. However, in the past 50 years, electronic journalism,
more specifically Television journalism, has become the dominant player. But, in the
contemporary world of advanced science and technology, the difference that was
prevailing in between the broadcast media and print media are blurring. Internet and
social media have made the information available to the common public all around.
The things that are published in the magazines and newspapers or are there in the
television and radio are also possible online (Feezell 2018). This further is providing
the common man, access to every news and information right at their hands without
even giving a penny for buying newspapers and magazines or carrying radio and
television with themselves all around. They can access news through the internet
anywhere and at any time.
Growth of business coverage in the media
One of the significant challenges for the small scale business until today was the
issue of building their positive reputation in the market. They had to struggle a lot for
making their brand image so that customers are aware of their presence and can reach
them to satisfy their needs and demands. However, with the growth of news media
and its spread in the world of internet, it has become immensely relaxed for the
businesses to develop their business coverage through news media (Peifer 2018). The
customer feedbacks and the reviews, the publishing of the great content on social
media and websites are helping many businesses and customers today. When the
product and service of a company are seen on a particular network, it is likely that the

customers will drive the other reviewers and systems for providing the coverage. Such
an increased coverage is ideal for branding and opening the doors for the personal
invitations and interviews for speaking, presenting and participating in the
conferences, professional presentations, podcasts and webinars. Using television,
online and other media exposure, businesses are becoming more linked and
recognisable to the industry, quality and authority innovation and leadership.
Successful media relations program
Successful media relations program and a plan are essential for generating the
right type of publicity for the business and the brand. Despite of whatever size, the
company is, be it big or small, the relationships that one cultivates with the news
media are among the most valuable and most profitable for the promotion of public
awareness and the increase in ROI. It is to note that an essential portion of an effective
media relations program revolves around publicity today (Humprecht and Esser
2018). Business can never get very far if the public and customers are unaware of it.
News media today is helping the companies to achieve this and making their brand
reputation. It is helping in boosting brand awareness and reinforcing professional
credibility and at the same time, providing an invaluable resource for successful crisis
management. Once a company or a business has established a clear direction for its
media relations plan or program, with the help of a reliable news base, it can start
cultivating its media relationships.
Development of online media strategy
Developing a strategy for online media is tough work. Having a strong online media
strategy can help in making a difference in the success of the campaigns. Today,
online news media and social media is all around, and companies are rapidly starting
to see the profit and value in adding it to their marketing mix (Banducci et al. 2018).

Notwithstanding this fact, many companies are unsure about where to begin and how
to create a strategy. It is a common challenge that many faces while creating a digital
marketing strategy (Richards 2018). Using making use of online media wrong way,
one can quickly get make its customers, target market and audience to get engaged in
new ways and being more personable and developing new connections. With the
same, businesses can also maintain and retain the customers that they already have.
Development of online media strategy is significant for creating and using the digital
marketing plan for supporting the growth of the company and the digital
transformation. Many useful online marketing tools and techniques can be used, and
they range from search, e-mail marketing, and social marketing for improving the
digital experience of the website.
Socialising media relations strategy
Social media is regarded to be an effective means for media relations programs in the
contemporary world. By means of socialising the media relations strategy, one can
become a part of the conversation among the people that have a life of their own. It is
also to note that socialising strategy is much more than a repeated communication.
The media relations strategy used by the business today is socialised in their online
platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. They are helping them to
make their online presence and so that even customers across the globe can find them
and take their service. It is helping in boosting brand awareness and reinforcing
professional credibility and at the same time, providing an invaluable resource for
successful crisis management (Jin et al. 2017). It is helping the businesses to achieve
this and making their brand reputation. According to Veilleux-Lepage (2016),
socialising the media relations strategy is a shift of emphasis, and at the same time, a
change in the way, people think of it. It demands that the businesses do something
more profound and more significant than just talking about it. With the growth of

news media and its spread in the world of internet, it has become immensely relaxed
for the businesses to develop their business coverage through news media.
Way to handle negative news
There are times when negative news and press are unavoidable, no matter how many
precautions a business might take. However, when it takes place, it is essential to
respond to them promptly and that too, with a positive and practical approach. For
responding to them, it is necessary to ensure that negative situations do not deteriorate
any more. The businesses must get their facts correct, and the convincing responses
are usually the ones that invoke the objective statistics and facts (Bednarek 2016).
Also, it is essential to be proactive and avoid overacting. Try to become proactive
instead of reactive. Businesses, in that case, can also seek objective advisors. If the
companies have gained some trusted customers and partners who are willing to
defend them by posting comments in their defence, companies must let them do so.
The essence of the reputation is what the others say regarding you in public. When
customers complain regarding the services and products on social media, businesses
should not let the comments faster. They will worsen the situation. Instead, they
should fix the problem and refund the money and then try to take the dialogue offline.
Also, businesses can make use of direct messages as well to get the conversation out
of the public space.
Conclusion

Reference
Katz, E., Lazarsfeld, P.F. and Roper, E., 2017. Personal influence: The part
played by people in the flow of mass communications. Routledge.
Feezell, J.T., 2018. Agenda setting through social media: The importance of
incidental news exposure and social filtering in the digital era. Political
Research Quarterly, 71(2), pp.482-494.
Humprecht, E. and Esser, F., 2018. Diversity in online news: On the
importance of ownership types and media system types. Journalism
Studies, 19(12), pp.1825-1847.
Peifer, J.T., 2018. Imitation as flattery: How TV news parody’s media criticism
can influence perceived news media importance and media trust. Journalism
& Mass Communication Quarterly, 95(3), pp.734-756.
Richards, B., 2018. News Media and the Emotional Public Sphere| The
Emotional Public Sphere and Its Importance: Freedom of Speech as a Case
Study—Commentary. International Journal of Communication, 12, p.12.
Banducci, S., Cioroianu, I., Coan, T., Katz, G. and Stevens, D., 2018.
Intermedia agenda setting in personalized campaigns: How news media
influence the importance of leaders. Electoral Studies, 54, pp.281-288.
Veilleux-Lepage, Y., 2016. Paradigmatic shifts in Jihadism in cyberspace: The
emerging role of unaffiliated sympathizers in Islamic State’s social media
strategy. Contemporary Voices: St Andrews Journal of International
Relations, 7(1).

Jin, Y., Lin, J.S., Gilbreath, B. and Lee, Y.I., 2017. Motivations, consumption
emotions, and temporal orientations in social media use: A strategic approach
to engaging stakeholders across platforms. International Journal of Strategic
Communication, 11(2), pp.115-132.
Bednarek, M., 2016. Voices and values in the news: News media talk, news
values and attribution. Discourse, Context & Media, 11, pp.27-37.