On The PRowl For Important Leadership Lessons

Graduation is one week away, marking the end of my college and PRowl Public Relations career. The past four years have taught me a lot, but no single experience has affected my college career as much as being a staff member, account executive and director of finance of PRowl. During my time in the organization, and specifically during my time in leadership positions, I have learned three incredibly important lessons that are important for all budding leaders:

·         Accountability is Crucial: Personal and interpersonal accountability is very important for leaders and organizations. It is imperative to hold members of your organization or company responsible for their work and their actions. However, good leaders must always lead by example and hold themselves accountable. During my time as a leader in PRowl, I’ve been had to hold myself accountable to my fellow staff members, account members and superiors.

·         Build Relationships: Teams function best when they are bonded together by more than just work. A focus on interpersonal relationships produces a better social climate and increases motivation, which positively effects group output. Rewarding organization members with a treat and occasional opportunities for social interaction builds relationships between members and ultimately produces a more involved, happier team.

·         Servant Leadership: The purpose of leadership in a student organization is to serve members. This includes teaching important skills and lessons in practical and helpful way. Deadlines should be strict, but a leader should be understanding and flexible. I made it a point to never yell at my account members and to help them succeed both personally and professionally.

With that said, I want to take the opportunity to thank all the wonderful members of PRowl Public Relations and Temple PRSSA that helped teach me these important lessons. Thank you all for helping me grow both personally and professionally during these last few years and best of luck in all your future endeavors!

PRowl's Seniors

PRowl is so PRoud of our seniors!

Doug Bennett (Account Executive &

Director of Finance)

Doug is currently interviewing for corporate communications positions and is now an intern at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. During the summer, Doug will begin studying for the LSATs and then apply to law schools.

Emily Ascani (Assistant Firm Director)

Emily will be continuing to intern full time this summer as a Public & Media Relations intern at Morgan Lewis, a law firm in Center City. She is looking for an entry-level public relations position in the Philadelphia area, concentrating in hospitality, tourism & corporate or agency public relations. She is interested in utilizing her skills in social media, editing, writing and blogging.

Steve Jacobs (Staff Member)



Steven Jacobs will graduate this May with a bachelor of the arts degree in strategic communication, public relations concentration. He is currently in the interviewing stages of his job search, while finishing up his internship at Philadelphia Parks & Recreation. He hopes to stay in Philadelphia and land a job doing public relations for the City.

Kurie Fitzgerald (Staff Member)

After graduation Kurie will have a paid internship/PR coordinator training position with Van Eperen & Company in Rockville, Md. VE&Co's mainly focus is strategic communications consulting. Kurie plans on visiting Chicago the week after graduation and Canada during the summer. 



Frank Kunkle (Staff Member)

Frank will be continuing his internship at University of the Sciences while looking for a career in higher education. Whether corporate or nonprofit, Frank envisions working in a PR/marketing role. He would like to stay in Philadelphia for at least a few more years before thinking about moving to another city. 

Alex Crispino (Account Executive)

Alex Crispino will be graduating Magna Cum Laude and staying in the Philadelphia area. She is hoping to start her career at a Philadelphia agency and plans to eventually return to graduate school. Feel free to reach Alex on Twitter: @alexcharli.

Niki Ianni (Firm Director)

Niki Ianni is proud to be a May 2012 Temple Graduate with a degree in Strategic Communication and a concentration in Public Relations. With her sights set on nonprofit public relations, she is packing up her bags and moving to Washington, D.C., to pursue exciting career opportunities. With a passion for animal welfare and advocacy and a love for her two cats, Niki hopes to work in an organization that makes large strides and impacts in the animal world. She is incredibly excited about the adventures to come living in the nation's capitol.

We wish you all the best!

Senate Vote Spurs Communications Storm

Last Monday, April 16, Republicans in the United States Senate blocked a Democratic effort to open the floor for debate on President Obama’s Buffet Rule causing both parties to ramp up strategic communications efforts.

The measure to block the Republican cloture failed 51-to-45, with the Democrats needing at least 60 votes to introduce open debate on the measure. One Republican and one Democrat crossed party lines and four Senators did not vote.

The bill would have opened the debate, and likely passage, of the so-called Buffet Rule, which raises the tax rate on the superrich to at least 30 percent. The bill, made famous by billionaire investor Warren Buffet, was proposed by President Obama last September.

President Obama and the Democrats are trying to use this bill, along with others, to control the message of the economic debate, usually a Republican stronghold. With effective media relations and constituent relations, Democratic politicians can use the Buffet Rule to gain the support of the lower and middle classes of America. Democratic organizations have already began attacking vulnerable Senate Republicans and Mitt Romney over the tax rate.

Republicans are also attempting to control the message by pushing their platform that raising tax rates on the superrich would cut jobs in a volatile economic environment. However, more targeted messaging needs to be used in Massachusetts and Nevada, where Republican Senators are most in danger. Mitt Romney, the foregone Republican presidential nominee, also needs to communicate reasons why he is against Buffet Rule in order to win votes in November.

Finally, the public relations implications for the voters may be the most important. They will either positively or negatively associate the Buffet Rule with Democrats since it is the voters’ friends and family who will be affected by the tax.

How Does Your Writing Stack Up?

As an account executive of PRowl Public Relations, Temple University’s only student-run public relations firm, the most common question I get is, “how do I improve my writing?” Now, I don’t claim to be an expert writer, but I have been writing in a journalistic and public relations styles for over five years so I’ve encountered a lot of good and bad writing. Here are a few of the best tips I can offer to beginners looking to improve their writing:

• Think about your audience. This is arguable the most important piece of advice I can give you. Who are you writing to? What are their attitudes, values, beliefs, lifestyles and cultural backgrounds? Your audience will affect the tone of voice and the words you use in your copy.
• Aim for the goal. Just like in soccer. Are you a journalist telling a story or are you a public relations professional communicating a message? Are you relating your writing back to the business goals of your company? Your goal is crucial to the finished product, don’t neglect it!
• Follow the inverted pyramid. Remember what the inverted pyramid is? Think back to your first PR or journalism class. Inverted pyramid style is putting the most important, newsworthy information first to draw your reader into your writing.
• Learn AP Style. This is essential for both public relations and journalistic writing. You need to know the proper way to write. If you don’t, your editors and audience won’t take you seriously.
• Good writing is re-writing. Your first draft should never be your last. Always review and rewrite your copy several times. Your finished product should be perfect in your eyes before you let it leave your hands.

Do you have any other essential tips for budding writers? Let us know in thecomment section.

Do Crises Have Long-Term Effects on Companies?

It depends on the company you’re talking about.

In some cases, like the case of former energy giant Enron, a crisis can destroy a reputation in a heartbeat. However, in other cases the effects do not seem as long-lasting.

Take Chiquita, harvester of bananas, avocados and all types
of delicious fruits and vegetables. In 2007, Chiquita admitted in federal court
to funding Colombian paramilitary organizations for a period of approximately
seven years. These paramilitary organizations were labeled as terrorist
organizations by the U.S. government.

So, why was Chiquita funding these Colombian terrorist
organizations? These organizations were used to squash unions and intimidate
union leaders, keeping the price of Chiquita products down in the U.S. The groups’ preferred methods? Massacres and targeted killings.

Chiquita was accused of wide-spread human rights violations and was sued in domestic courts under the Alien Tort Statute. If there was ever a crisis, this was it.

Fast-forward to 2012. Chiquita still controls over 40% of the U.S. banana market. It is still a major fruit company and makes billions of dollars every year.

We vilify companies such as Enron and Solyndra for financial and investment crimes, yet companies who do far worse are not held to the same standard. Companies are all affected by crises; however, the extent of the effect can vary significantly.

Is Standing Up to Senate on Transportation Bill Good PR?

The United States Senate passeda 2-year transportation bill last week. The bill passed the upper house by avote of 74 to 22 in a bi-partisan effort that President Obama and the Democratsin Congress have celebrated as another boost to the nation’s economy. Unfortunately for the Democrats, Republicans in the US House of Representatives rejected the Senate’s bill last night with a procedural vote. Now the question remains, is standingup to a bi-partisan Senate good PR in an election year?

The transportation bill would have extended federal highway trust fund spending for another two years, allowing federally financed infrastructure improvement programs to continue. It consolidates 196 federal transportation programs into about a dozen but it also keeps the projects intact and properly funded. The bill would have given stability to construction firms, which could then start purchasing equipment and hiring new workers at a crucial point when the US is recovering from a recession.

Senate Democrats and President Obama would have touted the bill as another pre-election victory, pointing to the anticipated boost in employment numbers to support their platform. This would be especially crucial for the Democrats in a presidential election year, where down-ticket races are sure to be affected by presidential choice and administration policy.

Republicans in the House could have pointed to the bill as an example of compromise and effective lawmaking, helping them to fend off challengers in primary and general elections this year. This can no longer be used to their advantage.

Now the Democrats will point to the House’s inability to pass the bill as another example of the polarized politics-as-usual approach to lawmaking that has permeated Washington for too long. This might hurt the Republicans in the upcoming election, especially if the Republican primary leads to a brokered convention. The rejection of the Senate’s transportation bill will likely backfire on Republicans as Democrats will use it as ammo to paint the right as weak on job creation. Good PR? I think not.

Goldman Sachs Chief Resigns in NYT, Controversy Ignites

Greg Smith was an executive director and the head of the Goldman
Sachs equity derivatives business in Europe, the Middle East and Africa until
yesterday, when he publically
resigned in the New York Times.

Smith cited a shift in organizational culture from the consumers to the money primary reason for the resignation. Goldman
Sachs, from his experience, is never afraid to rip off a client to make a profit.

He meant it as a wake-up call to the company, but will it
work?

It’s sure managed to drive a lot of media coverage and put
Goldman Sachs back on the front page, for the moment at least. Only time will
tell if this produces the intended change. If I had to guess, I’d put my money
on no.

A Right To Know? Gov’s Food Stamp Asset Test May Be Hypocritical

Governor Tom Corbett (R – PA) wants to asset test food stamp beneficiaries, but should he be asset tested as well? After all, public funds do support his dining habits.

Corbett announced his plan to asset test Pennsylvania’s 1.8 million food stamp beneficiaries in January. The idea is the commonwealth could save money by eliminating food stamps for individuals and families with more than $2,000 in savings or net worth.

His plan is causing quite the PR firestorm. It has graced the Op-Ed pages of the Philadelphia Inquirer and other local papers several times since it was announced. Even former Gov. Ed Rendell warned Corbett in an open letter that the test would be expensive and hurt Pennsylvania’s economy.

In a bit of investigative blogging, I’ve decided to file a Right To Know request on Gov. Corbett’s dining expenditures. I’m sure the former attorney general has more than $2,000 in assets. Why should public funds pay for his food?

Compromise Ahead of Elections? What's the catch?

The United States House of Representatives and Senate passed a year-long extension of the payroll tax cut last Friday, Feb. 17, marking another legislative victory for President Obama ahead of the 2012 elections. Want to know the best part? The bill was passed through with bipartisan support and a hefty helping of compromise. Crazy, huh?

The payroll tax cut, which was temporarily extended last fall, was packaged with an extension of federal unemployment benefits. The $143 billion economic package will reach over 160 million workers. A big reason the bill garnered bipartisan support in both houses was because of two conservative-leaning provisions: one reducing the time that individuals can stay on unemployment and another helping to support doctors who treat patients on Medicare. Both Democrats and Republicans hope that it will help sustain the country’s economic recovery.

But if Obama supported the bill, why did it pass? It turns out, voting yes (or in some cases, voting no) to a bill before an election can give candidates great PR ammunition.

Obama is likely to tout this bill as his latest effort to boost the economy, a subject that will dominate the upcoming presidential election. He will use this bill, along with the American Recovery and Investment Act and the recent drop in the unemployment rate, to take credit for moving the economy forward post-recession. If this is properly communicated to target audiences (think American’s unemployed, underemployed and the middle class) it could result in a big boost in public opinion for Obama.

Democrats are likely to piggyback on Obama’s economic messages, a strategy that worked well for them in 2008. They can add this to the list of legislation that they voted for to help the economic recovery. This makes them look like strong advocates for the middle class, a powerful position in the wake of the Occupy movement.

Finally, Republicans who voted for the bill might choose to promote their bipartisanship in the promotion of economic growth. This could work well if Obama has a high approval rating in their states. Republicans who voted against the bill can position themselves as strong advocates of the conservative, top-down approach to macroeconomic policy. However, the corresponding messaging might appear insensitive to unemployed or underemployed individuals.

Whichever way you want to look at it, the payroll tax extension was a strategic vote. Only time will tell if it pays off, and for whom.

Santorum to Receive the Thrash Metal Vote?

“You take a mortal man

And put him in control

Watch him become a god

Watch peoples’ heads a ‘roll”

Those are the lyrics of Megadeth’s front man Dave Mustaine, who also happens to be Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum’s latest fan.

Mustaine wants to put Santorum in control.

The Megadeth front man endorsed Santorum to MusicRadar.com a little over a week ago. Social and traditional media has finally picked up on Mustaine’s endorsement and has been having a field day, another case study of the PR ramifications of a questionable endorsement.

@TheTweetOfGod, a popular spoof account, tweeted yesterday, “Dave Mustaine Endorses Rick Santorum. Pro-life, meet Megadeath.”

@HuffPostHill tweeted, “The Gwar endorsement is really going to tip the scales http://bit.ly/zvADSD”

Campaigns are no stranger to these negative endorsements. Opponents of the Obama campaign tried to associate him with some of the more radical teachings of his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, in 2008. Obama’s campaign was forced to go on the defensive and deny contemporary connections between him and Wright.

Mustaine’s endorsement of Santorum shouldn’t rise to the level of the Wright endorsement. If it does, Santorum’s staff should release a statement thanking Mustaine for his endorsement but making it very clear that Santorum does not share the same values as the Megadeth front man.

Whatever Santorum does, he probably shouldn’t publicly lay claim to the thrash metal vote. I’m not sure if that would go over well with his religious conservative base.

Santorum Attracts Media Spotlight, For Now

Rick Santorum received a huge PR boost this week after winning three state primaries out west. While Santorum is still unlikely to win the Republican Presidential Nomination, the hype generated from his recent victories will be enough to bring in some large donations and attract much-needed media coverage for his campaign.

Santorum, a former Pennsylvania Senator and avid sweater vest enthusiast, won the primaries of Missouri, Colorado and Minnesota on Tuesday. He’s already raised almost $1 million in donations since the three-way victory and has even begun to edge out Newt Gingrich as the Mitt Romney alternative.

Santorum’s recent victories have caught the media’s spotlight for the moment but his recent victories and the fast cash won’t be enough to win his party’s nomination. Romney and Restore Our Future, his extremely well-off Super PAC, have loads of cash and the majority of the delegates so far. Gingrich and Ron Paul would have to drop out immediately and endorse Santorum for him to even have chance.

Political Cannibalism

“Eating or defeating your own is a form of sophisticated cannibalism.”

Former Senator Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) famously said that in his farewell speech to Congress, originally referring to the surge of the Tea Party and the corresponding rise in partisanship and disparaging rhetoric directed towards traditional Republicans. Unfortunately for the candidates vying for the Republican presidential nomination, Specter’s words have not resonated throughout his former party as he intended.

Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich, the two leading candidates for the Republican presidential nomination, are on the verge of cannibalism.

The two Super PAC-backed foes are slamming each other with political attacks and negative campaign ads. Both candidates are pouring millions of dollars into TV commercials like this anti-Gingrich ad, which attempts to link Gingrich’s employment with Freddie Mac to the collapse of the housing market.

The Gingrich campaign has been actively attacking Romney for everything from his business ventures to his time as a governor. It even launched a series of robocalls accusing Romney of forcing Holocaust survivors to eat non-kosher food.

The two heavyweight campaigns are effectively cannibalizing each other with these vitriolic attacks. President Obama will be able to weave a familiar narrative with the thread of these attacks to use against whoever wins the primary. My advice to the republican candidates: play nice or get you’ll get booted out of the sandbox.

Virtual Protest, Real Results

Millions of people from across the internet came together in the last month to virtually protest the Protect I.P. and Stop Online Piracy Acts, two pieces of anti-piracy legislation under consideration by the United States Congress. Congressional leaders tabled the bills indefinitely last Friday, marking a huge PR victory for a number of websites and organizations.

Google, Facebook, Twitter, Wikipedia, Wordpress, and Reddit have all spoken out against the legislation. These websites, among many others, have joined with millions of internet users to stage online protests across the web, primary on social media websites. Anonymous, a large online hacktivist group, has also joined the fray. The group has publicly condemned the bills and have hacked a number of websites and social media accounts in response to their consideration.

The legislation was largely a bi-partisan effort to crack down on websites that help facilitate the illegal peer-to-peer file sharing. Proponents of the bill include the Recording Industry Association of American and the Motion Picture Association of America, which claim that these websites violate copyright and intellectual property laws. Many of the bills’ original backers switched their stances on the two pieces of legislation after public opinion turned against them.

Congress’s quick response to public pressure may temporarily paint representatives in a more positive light. However, representatives who switched their positions on the bills may appear to be weak in their convictions and might be easily labeled as “flip-floppers.”

The tabling of the two pieces of legislation is a PR win for many websites and the groups across the internet. This temporary victory has boosted traffic to many websites that have participated and shows that grassroots organizations can truly influence the government without tons of money. The move is a loss for the RIAA and MPAA, two groups already have low favorability ratings with many Americans. Such a public ordeal might make them appear weak and could be devastating to their future government relations efforts.