Public Relations and Legal Foundations Lecture Notes

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering legal, ethical, and global public relations concepts based on the provided lecture transcript.

Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)

A federal law that gives the public the right to request access to government records and information from federal agencies.

Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

A U.S. government agency that regulates food, drugs, medical devices, cosmetics, and advertising claims related to health and safety.

Appropriation of likeness or identity

Using someone’s name, image, voice, or identity without permission for commercial or promotional purposes.

Intellectual property

Creations of the mind (ideas, inventions, writing, logos, art, etc.) that are legally protected from unauthorized use.

Privacy rights

A person’s legal right to keep personal information from being publicly shared without consent.

Free speech

The constitutional right under the First Amendment to express ideas and opinions without government censorship.

Clear and present danger doctrine

A legal principle stating speech is not protected if it creates an immediate danger or threat to society.

Slander

False spoken statements that damage a person’s reputation.

Standard of libel for public figures v. private citizens

Public figures must prove actual malice in libel cases, while private citizens only need to prove negligence or harm.

Actual malice

Publishing false information while knowing it is false or showing reckless disregard for the truth.

Copyright

Legal protection giving creators exclusive rights to use and distribute their original creative works.

Patents

Government protection giving inventors exclusive rights to make or sell an invention for a set period of time.

Plagiarism

Using another person’s words, ideas, or work without proper credit.

Publication guidelines on social media

Rules organizations use to guide employee social media behavior, professionalism, accuracy, confidentiality, and ethics.

Sunshine laws

Laws requiring government meetings and records to be open and accessible to the public.

Federal Trade Commission (FTC)

A federal agency that protects consumers and regulates advertising to prevent deceptive or unfair business practices.

Insider trading

Buying or selling stocks using confidential, nonpublic information.

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

The federal agency that regulates the stock market and protects investors.

Self-inflicted crises

Crises caused by an organization’s own actions, mistakes, unethical behavior, or negligence.

Accident crisis

Unintentional events like equipment failures.

Preventable crisis

Caused by human error or misconduct.

Victim crisis

Organization is also a victim, such as natural disasters or rumors.

Diversion strategies

Crisis response strategies that shift attention away from the crisis or reduce focus on the organization’s responsibility.

Rebuild strategies

Crisis communication strategies focused on repairing reputation through apologies, compensation, or corrective action.

Bolstering

A crisis strategy where an organization reminds people of its past good works or positive qualities to improve public perception.

DKNY case study

A PR ethics case involving DKNY using images of Humans of New York subjects in a campaign without proper permission, causing backlash about consent and exploitation.

Contingency theory of advocacy/accommodation

A theory explaining that PR professionals move along a spectrum between fully advocating for their organization and fully accommodating publics depending on the situation.

Little Italy Restaurant case study

A crisis communication example involving customer complaints and social media backlash, showing the importance of fast responses and reputation management online.

Issue

A developing concern that could become a problem in the future.

Crisis

A sudden event that threatens reputation, operations, or public trust.

Issues management process

Identifying, monitoring, analyzing, prioritizing, responding to, and evaluating issues before they become crises.

Life-cycle of an issue

The stages an issue goes through: emerging, developing, current/active, crisis stage, and resolution/decline.

Globalization

The increasing connection and interaction between countries, economies, cultures, and communication systems worldwide.

Self-efficacy

A person’s belief in their ability to successfully complete tasks or influence outcomes.

Total market approach

A marketing and PR strategy that targets all consumer groups while recognizing cultural differences within audiences.

Ethnocentrism

Believing one’s own culture is superior to others and judging other cultures by one’s own standards.

Digital divide

The gap between people who have access to technology/internet and those who do not.

Intercultural public relations

PR practices focused on communicating effectively with people from different cultural backgrounds.

High-context communication

Communication relies heavily on relationships, nonverbal cues, and implied meaning.

Low-context communication

Communication is direct, explicit, and relies mainly on spoken or written words.

Vick’s case study

A global PR example where Vick’s had to adapt branding and communication strategies for different cultures and international markets.

Cultural intelligence

The ability to understand, adapt to, and work effectively with people from different cultures.

Peace Corps definition of culture

Culture is a shared system of beliefs, values, customs, behaviors, and communication learned and passed between generations.

MasterCard’s World Cup case study

A global PR campaign using international sports sponsorship to connect emotionally with audiences and strengthen brand reputation worldwide.

Public diplomacy

Communication efforts by governments to influence foreign publics and improve relationships with other countries.

Dialogic communication

Two-way communication focused on mutual understanding, relationship building, and ongoing interaction between organizations and publics.