bTp

From the estrogen-filled drama of The Real Housewives series to the dreams-really-do-come-true American Idol and obsessive shoppers in Extreme Couponing, reality TV shows have really captured the ladies’ attention. But why? What about these notoriously “trashy” TV shows makes us tune in time after time?

Let’s back up a little bit. Did you know reality TV can be rooted back to the beginning of game shows in the 1940’s? Think about it: people compete against each other for a certain goal or prize; the same basic premise of today’s popular shows. Add in a dash of drama and a pinch of production tweaks and you’ve got the modern reality TV show.

Today, reality TV shows take all sorts of different forms: they document lives, offer makeovers, make love connections, search for talent, and the list goes on. Networks are offering more reality TV programming than ever before, (remember when MTV used to actually play music?) but why? Because something about them keeps us tuning in, talking, and tweeting until we’re totally hooked. But to be more specific, here are eight common reasons why we—especially as women—love them:

It’s mindless entertainment: sometimes there’s just nothing else on besides old reality show reruns as you flip through channels on a weekday afternoon. It’s not your first choice, but it does the job and distracts you from your own stressful reality.

For a drama fix: maybe there is a part of you that loves the tears and triumphs of reality TV. You’re happy your own life isn’t so dramatic, but it sure is entertaining to watch it ravage the lives of others.

To escape from our world: sometimes it’s nice to just sit back and let your mind wander for 30-60 minutes in a world that’s not your own, no matter how fake or ridiculous it may appear.

To connect with their world: maybe you’ve always wondered what it would be like to be a Kardashian or an Osbourne. Reality TV gives you a bird-eye-view into a different lifestyle that you wouldn’t see otherwise. It makes you feel “in the know” about your favorite celebrities personal lives.

It’s relatable, sort of: deep down, there is a part of you that identifies with the reality TV star that everyone loves to hate. Maybe it’s the “The Unapologetic Beyotch”, “The Innocent Goody-Goody” or “The Unrestricted Bad Girl”.

It’s unscripted: it seems we may never know just how “real” reality TV is. But that’s so easy to ignore. You still want to believe what you are watching is documenting real life, real time. And oh, the suspense of what will happen next is just so enticing. Secretly wish it was you: you don’t just relate to the reality TV stars, maybe you secretly wish you were one of them. Fame through reality TV seems so easy to attain, there is always a little bit of hope that you will someday make your own debut.

It offers interesting psychological insight: why does it seem that some people on TV are so driven to maintain fame? Analyzing the actions of others on screen is just fascinating. 

One of the great things about practicing public relations is the diversity of work you can go into. Not to mention public relations can be matched with just about any other interest. As I sit here researching the plethora of spring internships out there, I’ve been wondering which is better: in-house public relations or agency public relations?  So I took it upon myself to do a little investigative research and I found a general list of pros and cons to consider:

In-House

You are able to get to know your company and brand very well and give it your full attention.

You are able to focus on overall strategy of your company, instead of just dabbling in parts of different campaigns.

 It can often be repetitive.

Agency

You work with a variety of clients, implementing different public relations tactics and campaign strategies.

 Since you are likely working on multiple campaigns at once, you don’t know the ins and outs of a client as well as the in-house practitioner.

You need to have successful time management, because the pace of work tends to be quicker in agencies.

Many practitioners get entry-level positions at agencies and then later get hired by in-house departments.

Both in-house public relations departments and public relations agencies offer great professional experience and opportunity for advancement. Personally, I would be happy to work for either as long as I am passionate about the company or about the industry that the agency represents. For example, I would love to work for a cosmetics company’s public relations department but I would also be interested in working for an agency that represents a variety of health and wellness clients.

        Today on PRDaily.com I read an interesting article titled “Do We Apologize Too Much?” The article discussed a so-called “apology mania” trend in public relations. It’s in the news all the time: a company makes even the slightest politically incorrect statement that happens to offend the most niche small interest groups. For example, the article talked about a recent apology made by McDonald’s because one of their radio advertisements implied petting a pit bull is “risky”. A pit bull advocacy group didn’t like it, so McDonald’s made a public statement apologizing for being insensitive and pulled the advertisement. Other examples included Nike (apologized for shoe nickname) and Oprah (apologized for tweeting that Nielsen box homes should watch OWN).

        It made me think about the shift of public relations tactics as a result of social media. Social media has empowered even the smallest groups and individuals to speak their minds, and their messages can go viral and damage a company’s reputation in a second. Companies must pay attention to the needs and interests of the public and must be responsible for their actions. Years ago when the public was not able to speak their mind so easily because they didn’t have the resources to do so, McDonald’s probably didn’t have to deal with small interest groups nor have to apologize for comments most people wouldn’t have thought twice about.

        But do companies still apologize too much despite this justification? Since social media is still a relatively new development and many individuals and small groups are just beginning to take advantage of the power it gives them, public relations still hasn’t fully developed effective alternative strategies to counteract any negative press from the public. Right now, the go-to plan is an apology because it is the quickest way to quiet a storm and solve the problem as fast as possible. Hopefully in the near future we will see more creative public relations solutions to crises that work with social media and the public rather than just the company dropping to its knees and begging for forgiveness.

            Travel and tourism is a huge business, and there are many public relations practitioners and firms that specialize in the industry. Since I am personally interested in this field I decided to do a bit of research on the subject. Here is what I found out:

            Everyone has the need to escape into a world of fun, relaxation, and comfort whether that means traveling across the world to an exotic resort or across town to a state park. The travel industry must capture that desire to escape and turn it into tickets or travel package purchases. It is the public relations counselor’s job to build the brand and gain positive press internationally so tourists will travel to these unusual destinations. Public relations in the tourism industry operates as a distribution system of sellers and buyers of travel products. It has three basic audiences: sellers, consumers, and the tourism press. Travel suppliers include hotels, resorts, and transportation conveyors such as cruise lines and ships, airlines, trains, restaurants, etc. On the other end of the buying-selling continuum are the ultimate buyers and consumers of these travel products, that is, the public. Tourism press includes magazines, newspapers and blogs that report on the industry.

            Public relations in the tourism industry typically involves three steps: 1) Stimulating the public’s desire to travel to a place, 2) Making travel arrangements for the tourists, and 3) Making sure the tourists are well taken care of while traveling. Brochures, newsletters, websites, social media, and promotional giveaways are common communication tools that public relations practitioners use to achieve these steps. The last two steps seem to overlap with being a travel agent but my understanding is that the public relations practitioners are involved to the extent that tourists are pleased so that they write and say positive things about the client.

            What is beauty? Time, money, only skin deep? Well, if you travel back in time and ask the famous Leonardo da Vinci himself he might say this: it’s mathematical. Say what? Yes. Beauty is actually a ratio, the Golden Ratio.

Golden Ratio = 1.618

            As you may know from reading this blog, my name is Barbara. Therefore, one of my many nicknames is inevitably Barbie. So I felt it appropriate to discuss Mattel’s recent unveiling of Barbie Photo Fashion Doll, a digital camera doll that actually uses Barbie’s t-shirt as a canvas to combine “fashion and photos with a simple click” (Mattel-See Link Below). Wow, toys and technology sure have changed since I was a kid in the 90’s. That’s when Barbie’s dream house used to be the hot commodity.

            What I found especially interesting when researching this topic was how The New York Times covered this news event. Mattel’s press release highlighted multiple new toys with advanced technology under the tagline: “Technology: It IS child’s play”. Mattel is obviously promoting these technological improvements as positive, using spin words such as “innovative play” and “meaningful content” (genius branding). Well, The New York Times saw right through them and their sneaky marketing tactics, declaring:

            “[These] souped-up classics reflect the growing reality that children, like their parents, are loath to spend time without their devices” (Mattel).

            The New York Times, recognizing that their primary audience is educated adults, focused more on the toy industry’s changing landscape and the effects these changes could have on kids. From reading their press release, this is probably not the exact coverage Mattel wanted. But it was still good because it wasn’t really negative and it increased their brand recognition and product awareness. This news event is a great example of a topic that can be covered multiple ways by various media outlets depending on target audience.

            The bottom line for Mattel? Children aren’t reading The New York Times, nor do they care about emerging sociological effects of children becoming increasingly dependent on technology. So Mattel will probably do just fine with Barbie Photo Fashion Doll sales.

Mattel Press Release

            Every time I get makeup in the mail, it’s like Christmas only 10 times better. Come on, who doesn’t like new pretty things that make you happy? Other beauty junkies would rip off the packaging and immediately buff the product all over their faces. But that’s not my style. I have it sitting pretty right on my desk so that it can stay perfect for just a little bit longer. Crazy? Absolutely! But I want to work in the beauty industry, if I didn’t like to look and analyze products I would have to rethink my career goals. So as I look at this product, bareMinerals matte mineral foundation, I wonder what made me want to try it and ultimately buy it?

            It’s all about the branding. bareMinerals was the first leader in mineral makeup. Not only did they start a trend that brands like L’Oreal Paris and Maybelline New York followed, but they maintained an image of being the highest quality mineral makeup that was healthy for your skin. One way bareMinerals did this was by maintaining sales through selective retail outlets (like Ulta and Sephora). So if a brand wants to appear high quality, they also have to appear selective. This also serves double duty because they can increase prices without appearing to be more expensive than direct competitors at these outlets. 

My Favorite Ad of the Week

Hi Everyone!

            My name is Barbara Prendergast and welcome to my blog! Where all things "BABS" (my nickname) worthy come together. My passion is beauty, but I also hope to write about public relations, TV shows, movies, books, fashion, history or anything I find interesting.

            I am a junior at Syracuse University-S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications majoring in Public Relations and minoring in Sociology with a concentration in Fashion & Beauty Communications. I am also the Look editor for L7 Women's Magazine and just recently completed a summer internship with Marie Claire magazine. Check out the "My Resume" or my LinkedIn profile for a complete listing of my present and past credentials. I am originally from Reno, Nevada and I plan to move to California after my December 2013 graduation. Last but not least: I love dogs! Shout out to Snowball (Golden Retriever) and Dooley (Westie) at home in Reno!

            Ever since I was in middle school I wanted to work for magazines or in corporate cosmetics. The Newhouse School seemed to be the perfect fit for these ambitions. However, I quickly realized that being a magazine journalism major did not utilize all my skills and interests in communications. Public relations, on the other hand, was like the cool kid on the block. It incorporated so much more than just writing: strategic management, promotions, reputation management, etc. I felt like there were infinite possibilities with becoming a public relations practitioner, and more job opportunities in the future.

            Although so many sectors of public relations (travel & tourism, education, lifestyle, publicity) interest me, beauty is my business. I would love to one day work for a public relations firm that represents beauty brands or work in-house for a public relations or marketing department of a brand. Through my training at Newhouse and fantastic internships, I am establishing a great foundation of industry knowledge and contacts to jump start my career.

            My passion for everything beauty is almost indescribable, I’m not even sure why it exists. When I walk down the cosmetics aisle at CVS, something just draws me into the pure variety and intrigue of the products. I’m no makeup artist, but the branding of beauty products fascinates me. I mean why does one product or brand appeal to me more than another? I’m hoping that I can continue to study and practice beauty so that it will ultimately become my specialization and I will be able to expertly answer that question one day. 

             So stick around, because you're sure to learn something about me :)