Introduction to Public Relations

[IMPORTANT NOTICE]
This course will close for new learner enrollment on Monday, September 3, 2018. Students who have already enrolled will continue to see the course on their Coursera Dashboard as long as they remain enrolled in the course.

For students who are interested in earning a Course Certificate for this course, please upgrade or apply for Financial Aid by Sunday, September 2, 2018, if you have not already done so. In order to earn a Course Certificate, students will need to complete all graded assignments, including peer reviews by March 2, 2019. After that point, no new assignment submissions will be accepted for Certificate credit.

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What is Public Relations? What does a Public Relations practitioner do and what is the role of Public Relations in a technologically-connected global landscape? What is the nature of the Public Relations process and how to develop Public Relations strategies and tactics?

In this course, you will learn what Public Relations is, what are some of the key growth areas in Public Relations, and the future of the practice. You will learn about the various theories of Public Relations and how to put these theories to use when carrying out Public Relations activities. The course will provide you a big picture of the Public Relations process, and the important roles of strategy and tactics in the process.

This is a foundation course for students wanting to pursue careers in public relations as well as a refresher for entry level PR practitioners wanting to brush up on their knowledge of the field. Throughout the course, I will converse with you about the ongoing trends in technology and culture and the ways in which these trends are shaping PR across the globe.

Come join me in this fun tour of Public Relations practice, PR theories, and the PR process.

We will learn together about the nature of PR in our technologically-powered networked societies and the ways in which PR careers are being transformed by global conversations.

Introduction to Public Relations in New Media Environment
Welcome! In this section, we are covering the nuts and bolts of the PR industry. We will learn what Public Relations is, what a PR job looks like, and what are the trends in the PR industry. We will describe the PR process and look at the different steps of the process. Finally, we will also learn about how technology and global culture are shaping the practice of Public Relations.

Public Relations Theory
Now that we have had an overview of the PR profession and industry trends, let’s explore some of the main theories of PR that will help us better understand the PR process and the underlying mechanisms of PR. We will also learn about theories of mass media and public opinion. You will see how practical many of these theories are! In this section, I encourage you to keep thinking about the practical relevance of the theories you are picking up.

Public Relations Strategy
An important part of the Public Relations process is strategy. In this section, we will learn about the key elements of PR strategy and the role of research in guiding effective strategy. We will study the steps of PR planning and how to create a PR plan.

Public Relations Tactics, Trends, and Skills for the Future
Now comes the real fun! Once we have learned about strategy, we can turn our attention to the creative part of the PR process. How can we develop innovative and impactful tactics that are aligned with our strategic plan? We will learn to implement strategy through tactics. We will also explore the directions in which the PR industry is moving and the PR skills of the future.