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Journalists’ opinions and attitudes about dialogic components of corporate websites
Public Relations Review 37 (2011) 422–424
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Public Relations Review
Short communication
Journalists’ opinions and attitudes about dialogic components of corporate websites Justin E. Pettigrew ∗ , Bryan H. Reber 1 The University of Georgia, Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, 120 Hooper Street, Athens, GA 30602-3018, United States
a r t i c l e
i n f o
Article history: Received 11 February 2011 Received in revised form 10 June 2011 Accepted 18 July 2011 Keywords: Public relations Media relations Journalism Dialogic theory Mediated communications Corporate press rooms Dialogic tools
a b s t r a c t This study examines the opinions of print journalists regarding the use of dialogic components by Fortune 500 company web pages designed specifically for use by the press. Results showed that journalists recognize and appreciate the growing presence of dialogic components of corporate websites, but that a level of distrust and sense of manipulations still exists. This study also suggests the addition of a tenet to existing dialogic communications typologies, one of “relationship building and enhancement”. © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
1. Overview The relationship between journalists and public relations professionals is at the core of media relations. How much of an effect the Internet is having on relationships between journalists and public relations professionals is still unclear. Research has been conducted examining different components of online press rooms and how PR practitioners view the web. Studies have also examined effective website functionalities. However, little has been done to examine what opinions journalists hold about websites explicitly for their use, and the impact of those websites on the interaction between journalists and PR staffers. Through the lens of dialogic theory (Kent & Taylor, 1988, 2002) this study focused on the attitudes of journalists toward Fortune 500 company website press rooms and how those sites foster (or don’t) dialogue and the building and maintenance of ongoing relationships. 2. Method A series of in-depth interviews was conducted among the business press to inquire about their use of interactive website elements for the companies they cover. Interviews were limited to a purposive sample of business reporters at top 100 circulation U.S. newspapers and major news services (i.e., Reuters, Bloomberg, and Associated Press) who cover a range of U.S. industries. Ten interviews were completed, each lasting about 30 min. The journalists’ ages ranged from 22 to 61, with a mean of 38.8 years. Seven were male. They had worked as journalists for five to 39 years. All regularly covered at least one Fortune
∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 678 488 9668; fax: +1 706 548 9579. E-mail address: [email protected] (J.E. Pettigrew). 1 Tel.: +706 542 3178. 0363-8111/$ – see front matter © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.pubrev.2011.07.001
J.E. Pettigrew, B.H. Reber / Public Relations Review 37 (2011) 422–424
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500 company. Newspaper circulation for their publications ranged from 90,000 to 410,000. At 10 interviews, redundancy was reached. The interview instrument consisted of 18 openended questions. 3. Findings Eight of the writers indicated they visited a corporate website daily, and a ninth indicated that he visited corporate websites once or twice every two weeks. The remaining interviewee said that he visited corporate sites only six to eight times annually. 3.1. How journalists use corporate websites All of the journalists said they primarily use corporate sites to brief themselves in preparation for direct contact with the public relations staff at a company. All 10 interviewees said they go to corporate press rooms to look for PR contact information. Several respondents said they would most likely begin at a corporation’s website and supplement what they found there with prior news coverage about the company. Usually, consulting a corporation’s website was accompanied by a search on a subscription news aggregator, such as Bloomberg, to find articles about the company. 3.2. What they look for These journalists consistently mentioned five things they look for on corporate websites: specific PR contact information; company background information; financial information, including SEC documents and PowerPoint presentations from shareholders’ meetings; discovering what the company had to say about an issue compared to a major news archive or other reports; journalists also said they used corporate sites to keep from having to interact with PR staff. Journalists most frequently look for financial documents. Seven of the 10 cited SEC filings or earnings information as specific things they look for on corporate websites. Nine mentioned using the corporate site to “confirm information” or to “get general information about a company.” Only one journalist indicated she used corporate press sites for story ideas. Journalists were mixed in their attitudes about quoting material directly from a corporation’s press site. Six said they did so regularly. Many of the journalists seemed skeptical of information on the sites, either because of “hype” or timeliness issues. Four of the six who regularly quoted from websites said they always cross-referenced financial information reported on the site or in a press release with SEC documents. One journalist said even when he did quote information on a corporate press site, he would still make a follow-up phone call because “even for the basic information, [I] don’t necessarily trust it enough.” Three indicated a higher comfort level with the credibility of companies they interacted with more regularly. Many journalists expressed a desire for more specific content on the websites they visit, but they were complimentary of sites that provide company histories and backgrounds, executive biographies, press release search engines, and other valuable data. Considering principles of dialogic communication on the web, it would appear that company websites are providing more of the kinds of information that journalists desire than past studies suggest. 3.3. Online dialogic tools used by journalists While streaming video, the ability for real-time video, and RSS feeds all seem to be a growing part of corporate websites, they are not necessarily primary things that journalists look for or use to engage in dialogue with a corporation. While blogs are considered nice features for a corporate website, the journalists who mentioned them seemed to regard them not as a personal expression of the CEO, but as yet another “filtered” communication mechanism from the PR department. While the majority of journalists interviewed were open to newer forms of communication to interact with the corporations they cover regularly, only two had actually used a capability on a company’s website (instant messaging) to communicate with the PR staff. By far the majority of journalists favored the more traditional methods of telephone and e-mail when contacting PR staff. Six preferred telephone, two preferred e-mail and two said they would use either, with a preference for direct phone contact. Comments included, “My preferred method of contact is phone, only because it’s more spontaneous and there are more [unspoken] clues. . .there’s a whole other level of information there that’s not in written communication.” There seemed to be a greater level of reluctance to visit a corporate website if there was an existing relationship between the journalist and the PR staff. “Well, if I have a relationship with them I’m not sure why I would go to the website,” one quipped. When a relationship did not exist between a journalist and a company, there seemed to be more willingness to go to the company’s website. All 10 journalists said they would be likely to visit a site before attempting direct contact with the PR staff. 3.4. Other tools journalists use While many of the journalists expressed frustration when searching for contact information, seven of the interviewees said they did use e-mail addresses available on sites, either for specific individuals or a generic address specifically for the
424
J.E. Pettigrew, B.H. Reber / Public Relations Review 37 (2011) 422–424
media. One reporter even said she uses one major manufacturer’s website as her “rolodex” for specific contacts in different areas of the company. All of the interviewees said they had used financial presentations posted to a website, and eight of them indicated they regularly “listen in” via webcasts of quarterly earnings updates or year-end reports. One writer indicated he used online chat functions and blogging when he was covering a specific industry. The journalists were also asked about components of corporate websites, specifically company blogs, RSS feeds, streaming video, podcasts, photographs, and downloadable documents, such as fact sheets, and whether they would actually link to those components in a story for their online edition or reference them in print. One of the participants said he would never link to corporate sites because of standing policies of his news organization, and that linking was a “topic that’s a current debate with online journalists.” Three of them indicated that they would link to certain elements of a corporate website, but, according to one “it’s got to be something useful for the readers that they’re going to have trouble getting somewhere else.” Regarding the importance of tactics such as blogs, podcasts, RSS feeds and downloadable documents, all but two of the journalists agreed that they were an important component of press rooms, whether or not they were actually being used. Six of the journalists interviewed said real-time chat was a medium they would use if it were easily available. At the same time, several journalists mentioned the ease with which elements of the communication exchange in real-time chat could be misconstrued, possibly indicating that this newer medium will require more time for its use as a tool for interaction to gain appeal. 4. Introducing a sixth principle of dialogic communication This research suggests that, in addition to the five existing principles developed by Kent and Taylor (1998) (i.e., ease of interface, usefulness of information, conservation of visitors, return visits, creating a dialogic loop), a sixth category should be considered and explored: “Relationship Initiation and Enhancement.” This new principle is different from the existing ones because it suggests an avenue for initiating a relationship. While the existing principles argue for usefulness and ease of interface, for example, initiation and enhancement characteristics remain undefined. Journalists in this study provided a rationale for this new principle when they said they would be particularly likely to visit a website first if they were unfamiliar with a company. The addition of this sixth principle would also further define and provide a more accurate and realistic application of dialogic communication as it occurs between journalists and PR practitioners on a company or organization’s website. References Kent, M. L., & Taylor, M. (1998). Building dialogic relationships through the World Wide Web. Public Relations Review, 24(3), 321–334. Kent, M. L., & Taylor, M. (2002). Toward a dialogic theory of public relations. Public Relations Review, 28(1), 21–37.
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Public Relations Review
Short communication
Journalists’ opinions and attitudes about dialogic components of corporate websites Justin E. Pettigrew ∗ , Bryan H. Reber 1 The University of Georgia, Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, 120 Hooper Street, Athens, GA 30602-3018, United States
a r t i c l e
i n f o
Article history: Received 11 February 2011 Received in revised form 10 June 2011 Accepted 18 July 2011 Keywords: Public relations Media relations Journalism Dialogic theory Mediated communications Corporate press rooms Dialogic tools
a b s t r a c t This study examines the opinions of print journalists regarding the use of dialogic components by Fortune 500 company web pages designed specifically for use by the press. Results showed that journalists recognize and appreciate the growing presence of dialogic components of corporate websites, but that a level of distrust and sense of manipulations still exists. This study also suggests the addition of a tenet to existing dialogic communications typologies, one of “relationship building and enhancement”. © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
1. Overview The relationship between journalists and public relations professionals is at the core of media relations. How much of an effect the Internet is having on relationships between journalists and public relations professionals is still unclear. Research has been conducted examining different components of online press rooms and how PR practitioners view the web. Studies have also examined effective website functionalities. However, little has been done to examine what opinions journalists hold about websites explicitly for their use, and the impact of those websites on the interaction between journalists and PR staffers. Through the lens of dialogic theory (Kent & Taylor, 1988, 2002) this study focused on the attitudes of journalists toward Fortune 500 company website press rooms and how those sites foster (or don’t) dialogue and the building and maintenance of ongoing relationships. 2. Method A series of in-depth interviews was conducted among the business press to inquire about their use of interactive website elements for the companies they cover. Interviews were limited to a purposive sample of business reporters at top 100 circulation U.S. newspapers and major news services (i.e., Reuters, Bloomberg, and Associated Press) who cover a range of U.S. industries. Ten interviews were completed, each lasting about 30 min. The journalists’ ages ranged from 22 to 61, with a mean of 38.8 years. Seven were male. They had worked as journalists for five to 39 years. All regularly covered at least one Fortune
∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 678 488 9668; fax: +1 706 548 9579. E-mail address: [email protected] (J.E. Pettigrew). 1 Tel.: +706 542 3178. 0363-8111/$ – see front matter © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.pubrev.2011.07.001
J.E. Pettigrew, B.H. Reber / Public Relations Review 37 (2011) 422–424
423
500 company. Newspaper circulation for their publications ranged from 90,000 to 410,000. At 10 interviews, redundancy was reached. The interview instrument consisted of 18 openended questions. 3. Findings Eight of the writers indicated they visited a corporate website daily, and a ninth indicated that he visited corporate websites once or twice every two weeks. The remaining interviewee said that he visited corporate sites only six to eight times annually. 3.1. How journalists use corporate websites All of the journalists said they primarily use corporate sites to brief themselves in preparation for direct contact with the public relations staff at a company. All 10 interviewees said they go to corporate press rooms to look for PR contact information. Several respondents said they would most likely begin at a corporation’s website and supplement what they found there with prior news coverage about the company. Usually, consulting a corporation’s website was accompanied by a search on a subscription news aggregator, such as Bloomberg, to find articles about the company. 3.2. What they look for These journalists consistently mentioned five things they look for on corporate websites: specific PR contact information; company background information; financial information, including SEC documents and PowerPoint presentations from shareholders’ meetings; discovering what the company had to say about an issue compared to a major news archive or other reports; journalists also said they used corporate sites to keep from having to interact with PR staff. Journalists most frequently look for financial documents. Seven of the 10 cited SEC filings or earnings information as specific things they look for on corporate websites. Nine mentioned using the corporate site to “confirm information” or to “get general information about a company.” Only one journalist indicated she used corporate press sites for story ideas. Journalists were mixed in their attitudes about quoting material directly from a corporation’s press site. Six said they did so regularly. Many of the journalists seemed skeptical of information on the sites, either because of “hype” or timeliness issues. Four of the six who regularly quoted from websites said they always cross-referenced financial information reported on the site or in a press release with SEC documents. One journalist said even when he did quote information on a corporate press site, he would still make a follow-up phone call because “even for the basic information, [I] don’t necessarily trust it enough.” Three indicated a higher comfort level with the credibility of companies they interacted with more regularly. Many journalists expressed a desire for more specific content on the websites they visit, but they were complimentary of sites that provide company histories and backgrounds, executive biographies, press release search engines, and other valuable data. Considering principles of dialogic communication on the web, it would appear that company websites are providing more of the kinds of information that journalists desire than past studies suggest. 3.3. Online dialogic tools used by journalists While streaming video, the ability for real-time video, and RSS feeds all seem to be a growing part of corporate websites, they are not necessarily primary things that journalists look for or use to engage in dialogue with a corporation. While blogs are considered nice features for a corporate website, the journalists who mentioned them seemed to regard them not as a personal expression of the CEO, but as yet another “filtered” communication mechanism from the PR department. While the majority of journalists interviewed were open to newer forms of communication to interact with the corporations they cover regularly, only two had actually used a capability on a company’s website (instant messaging) to communicate with the PR staff. By far the majority of journalists favored the more traditional methods of telephone and e-mail when contacting PR staff. Six preferred telephone, two preferred e-mail and two said they would use either, with a preference for direct phone contact. Comments included, “My preferred method of contact is phone, only because it’s more spontaneous and there are more [unspoken] clues. . .there’s a whole other level of information there that’s not in written communication.” There seemed to be a greater level of reluctance to visit a corporate website if there was an existing relationship between the journalist and the PR staff. “Well, if I have a relationship with them I’m not sure why I would go to the website,” one quipped. When a relationship did not exist between a journalist and a company, there seemed to be more willingness to go to the company’s website. All 10 journalists said they would be likely to visit a site before attempting direct contact with the PR staff. 3.4. Other tools journalists use While many of the journalists expressed frustration when searching for contact information, seven of the interviewees said they did use e-mail addresses available on sites, either for specific individuals or a generic address specifically for the
424
J.E. Pettigrew, B.H. Reber / Public Relations Review 37 (2011) 422–424
media. One reporter even said she uses one major manufacturer’s website as her “rolodex” for specific contacts in different areas of the company. All of the interviewees said they had used financial presentations posted to a website, and eight of them indicated they regularly “listen in” via webcasts of quarterly earnings updates or year-end reports. One writer indicated he used online chat functions and blogging when he was covering a specific industry. The journalists were also asked about components of corporate websites, specifically company blogs, RSS feeds, streaming video, podcasts, photographs, and downloadable documents, such as fact sheets, and whether they would actually link to those components in a story for their online edition or reference them in print. One of the participants said he would never link to corporate sites because of standing policies of his news organization, and that linking was a “topic that’s a current debate with online journalists.” Three of them indicated that they would link to certain elements of a corporate website, but, according to one “it’s got to be something useful for the readers that they’re going to have trouble getting somewhere else.” Regarding the importance of tactics such as blogs, podcasts, RSS feeds and downloadable documents, all but two of the journalists agreed that they were an important component of press rooms, whether or not they were actually being used. Six of the journalists interviewed said real-time chat was a medium they would use if it were easily available. At the same time, several journalists mentioned the ease with which elements of the communication exchange in real-time chat could be misconstrued, possibly indicating that this newer medium will require more time for its use as a tool for interaction to gain appeal. 4. Introducing a sixth principle of dialogic communication This research suggests that, in addition to the five existing principles developed by Kent and Taylor (1998) (i.e., ease of interface, usefulness of information, conservation of visitors, return visits, creating a dialogic loop), a sixth category should be considered and explored: “Relationship Initiation and Enhancement.” This new principle is different from the existing ones because it suggests an avenue for initiating a relationship. While the existing principles argue for usefulness and ease of interface, for example, initiation and enhancement characteristics remain undefined. Journalists in this study provided a rationale for this new principle when they said they would be particularly likely to visit a website first if they were unfamiliar with a company. The addition of this sixth principle would also further define and provide a more accurate and realistic application of dialogic communication as it occurs between journalists and PR practitioners on a company or organization’s website. References Kent, M. L., & Taylor, M. (1998). Building dialogic relationships through the World Wide Web. Public Relations Review, 24(3), 321–334. Kent, M. L., & Taylor, M. (2002). Toward a dialogic theory of public relations. Public Relations Review, 28(1), 21–37.