Media freedom VS Public relations

Social media channels represent freedom as the right to be who you are, the right to express yourself as you see proper. With that right sometimes we forget that there comes responsibilities. I believe that we all representatives in our different spheres of life. Some of us are students, meaning you represent your University in all that you say, others are employees, and they represent their companies.

MEDIA FREEDOM

http://goo.gl/uL2rGJ

The Oscar trail live on TV and live-tweeted to the world is a sign that media freedom in South Africa is growing.

On Tuesday 25 February when Gauteng judge president Dustan Mlambo ruled in favour of an application by Mulitichoice and Eyewitness News to broadcast the trial, I knew that South African justice system is adapting with times. This has never happened in SA that a criminal trial will be aired live in court. (http://www.ewn.co.za/)

The broadcasting of the trail creates room for people that cannot go to court to be their own journalist at home, for them to be able to make up their mind based on what they see and hear in the court room.(http://oscarpistorius.com/)

 On the other hand people do not understand that with freedom comes responsibility, hence the judge could stop broadcasting and tweeting when they saw fit. Sometimes people get so carried away when they express themselves social media network that they tend to be so insensitive towards other people and how they will feel.

Media freedom in South Africa I could say that it is in a healthy state of mind and people have adapted to expressing themselves and sharing their thoughts about current issues and taking part in things that are beneficial to making a change. People have made it a point that they use media as it create a two-way communication and in it is direct.

PUBLIC RELATIONS

Public relations has adapted to the media world. They saw the gap that media freedom is growing and they also incorporated in their companies.  Public relations practitioners understand that social networks is the way to get in people minds. Therefore this works to the advantage of practitioners as they can use this to correct their mistakes and make people happy if they can.

Here is a video you can watch www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1p8UDumljk

Whats your take on media freedom and public relations in South Afica???

A Big impact made by you

I remember when I decided to study public relations; I knew that I wanted to make an impact in people’s lives. How I was going to do that was still a bit vague in my mind. I knew that PR deals with a lot of people, so I knew I was on the right track.

As the journey of my 1^st year started unfolding, I learnt a lot from the PR definition as it summarized what PR is about.

This is the definition that helped me understand what PR is about:

Adopted by the Public Relations Institute of South Africa ( PRISA) states that ‘public relations is the management, through communication, of perceptions and strategic relationships between an organization and its internal and external stakeholders.

From the definition I knew that in order to make an impact, you have to change people’s perceptions, how they view things.

Therefore ladies and gentlemen I present to you tips to consider when studying when studying PR:

1.    You have to get into the habit of reading and staying informed of current trends and issues. This will help develop critical thinking skills. You also need to look at different opinions regarding PR, ideas about where PR is going- Follow Bizcommunity.

2.    Do not be shy, share your ideas and opinions, ask questions and take part in conversations. Participate in social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Follow PR professionals so that you can learn from them. You can also get someone who is in the business to mentor you.

3.    Have good communication skills. Since PR is challenges your thinking, you need to believe in yourself. You need confidence in talking to a variety of people. You need to have the ability to add value in people’s thoughts. You need to believe that you can make a big impact in the industry. You also need to have good organization and planning skills. You must also have a flexible mind.

4.    Start a blog. In this way you get to showcase your knowledge and experience. So blogging is an investment in PR as you can reach large number of people.

5.    Network all the time. This means you need to build relationships with people. You should get to know people: learn their real names and remember details about them. This will leave a good impression on people.

Source: http://goo.gl/gPnz8V

Here is a link to a video, hope you do enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sSaPOZvERU