THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY SCHREYER HONORS COLLEGE DEPARTMENT OFADVERTISING/PUBLIC RELATIONS FROM THE GOLDEN HOUR TO THE GOLDEN MINUTE: HOW SOCIAL MEDIA HAS CHANGED PUBLIC RELATIONS MEGHAN REINHARDT SPRING 2018 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a baccalaureate degree in Public Relations with honors in Public Relations Reviewed and approved* by the following: Steve Manuel Professor of Advertising/Public Relations Honors Advisor & Thesis Supervisor Alex Fattal Professor of Film-Video and Media Studies Secondary Reader * Signatures are on file in the Schreyer Honors College. i ABSTRACT People are constantly glued to the small screens they hold in their hands. Brains and thumbs are evolving to interact with these miniature devices to skillfully scroll, search, like, and post. Social media has become a force to be reckoned with in the 21st century. With millions of users across the globe, it is easier now more than ever to stay connected, and informed. For public relations practitioners, the use of social media is a blessing and a curse. While social media is a new tool utilized to spreading a company message, it has shortened the window of opportunity and response in a time of crisis. This paper looks into how social media has transformed the field of public relations, how practitioners can utilize social media to their advantage in times of crisis, and how the golden hour has become the golden minute. I hope that with this information, public relations practitioners can realize the benefits of social media especially in times of crisis, act ethically with this new tool, and see the importance of a crisis communication plan with a social media focus. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ......................................................................................... iv Chapter 1 From the Golden Hour to the Golden Minute ............................................. 1 Chapter 2 History of Public Relations ......................................................................... 3 Chapter 3 History of Social Media .............................................................................. 6 Facebook .......................................................................................................................... 7 Instagram .......................................................................................................................... 11 Snapchat ........................................................................................................................... 13 More Than a Social Platform ........................................................................................... 13 Chapter 4 Crisis Communication Defined ................................................................... 16 Chapter 5 The Role of Social Media Within Public Relations .................................... 18 Chapter 6 Case Studies ................................................................................................ 20 Case Study #1: Johnson & Johnson Handles Tylenol Recall ........................................... 20 Case Study #2: Penn State’s Navigation of the Sandusky Scandal .................................. 24 Case Study #3: The #MeToo Movement: How a Social Media Trend Started a Revolution 33 Chapter 7 Enacting a Crisis Communication Plan with a Social Media Focus ........... 40 Chapter 8 Conclusion ................................................................................................... 43 BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................................................................................ 44 iii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Organization Profile Page, Facebook 2018 .............................................................. 8 Figure 2. Twitter Profile, Meghan Reinhardt 2018 .................................................................. 10 Figure 3. Twitter News Feed, 2018.......................................................................................... 11 Figure 4. Instagram Profile, 2018 ............................................................................................ 12 Figure 5. Instagram Feed, 2018 ............................................................................................... 12 Figure 6. Hudson River Tweet, 2018 ....................................................................................... 14 Figure 7. Mandel Tweet (1/3), 2011 ........................................................................................ 27 Figure 8. Mandel Tweet (2/3), 2011 ........................................................................................ 28 Figure 9. Mandel Tweet (3/3), 2011 ........................................................................................ 29 Figure 10. Rabinowitz Tweet, 2011 ......................................................................................... 29 Figure 11. Penn State Tweet (1/3), 2011 ................................................................................. 30 Figure 12. Penn State Tweet (2/3), 2011 ................................................................................. 30 Figure 13. Penn State Tweet (3/3), 2011 ................................................................................. 31 Figure 14. Milano Tweet, 2017 ................................................................................................ 34 Figure 15. Ben Affleck Apology, 2017 .................................................................................... 36 Figure 16. Weber Shandwick #TimesUpAdvertising Announcement on Linkedin, 2018 ...... 38 Figure 17. KFC Crisis Graphic, 2018 ...................................................................................... 42 iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First, I would like to thank the Schreyer Honors College for the opportunities I was afforded the past four years. I look forward to carrying all that I learned and the relationships I have fostered with me after graduation. Secondly, thank you Steve Manuel for not only igniting my love of public relations in your COMM 370: Intro to Public Relations class, but for being both my honors and thesis advisor. This paper was inspired by the lessons I learned from you. Professor Alex Fattal, thank you so much for your feedback and edits even while you were in Colombia. You gave this paper a better sense of direction and purpose. One of my favorite classes throughout college was your International Mass Communications class and I am so glad you were one of the people overseeing this thesis! To my parents, thank you for your constant support and encouragement. You two are the reason I am where I am today and able to graduate from a university like Penn State with honors. Thank you for teaching me what hard work looks like. While I definitely do not thank you enough, know that everything you do for me is constantly appreciated. I love you! To my friends, especially The Barn, thank you for your support and listening to me talk about this project. I am sure at this point, you all could recite this thing back to me! Plus, you all are the reason these four years have flown by and why I never want to leave. Last, but certainly not least, thank you to Penn State. Throughout my four years here, I have been able to learn and grow in ways I never thought I would. I will forever cherish the experiences, friendships, and memories this university gave to me. We Are! 1 Chapter 1 From the Golden Hour to the Golden Minute The term “golden hour” comes from the medical world. Coined by R. Adams Cowley, the founder of the Shock Trauma Institute in Baltimore, “golden hour” is a term commonly used among trauma surgeons and emergency medical service (EMS) providers (Rogers, Rittenhouse, & Gross, 2015). Cowley stated in an article from 1975 that “the first hour after injury will largely determine a critically injured person’s chances for survival” (Rogers et al., 2015). Since there was no data or sources to support Cowley in this idea, it is believed that Cowley was attempting to garner support for a shock trauma hospital and a helicopter program that could fly a trauma patient to a hospital in Baltimore within 60 minutes, no matter where the patient was in the state of Maryland (Rogers, et al., 2015). In the medial world, the adage “suggests an injured patient has 60 min from time of injury to receive definitive care, after which morbidity and mortality significantly increase” (Rogers et al., 2015). This is mirrored in the public relations profession as if one were to switch out the word “patient” for “client” or “company,” “morbidity” for “backlash,” and “mortality” for “reputational damage,” the statement applies. “The golden hour” refers to the 60 minutes that a public relations professional has to react and respond when a crisis hits a company before severe backlash, or even chances of their client ‘dying,’ increases. Similar to how a hospital has certain plans, procedures, and surgeries for a variety of injuries, a company needs to have a crisis communication plan in order for there to be the best chance of survival. Due to the rise in social media and a 24/7 news cycle, this “golden hour” that an organization has to respond has shortened. In some cases, organizations are expected to have 2 a response almost immediately. Since social media opens up the opportunity for the public to not only listen, but also speak back instantaneously, a plan