New Media Critique

8/18/2019 New Media Critique

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-media-critique 1/20

New Media Critique: The City of College Park

Amanda Chesser

Comm353 0101

Timothy Penn



Table of Contents

1. Title Page2. Table of Contents3. Recommendations/Critiqe of !rgani"ational #e$ %edia &se

a. '(ecti)e *mmaryb. Crrent *trategic #e$ %edia +andsca,ec. Recommendations

i. PR -nctionsii. Pblicsiii. %essagesi). Platforms/Tools). %easrement

d. Conclsion. A,,endi( A #e$ %edia Commnication Adit5. A,,endi( log %onitoring Re,ort

. ors Cited





Crrently7 College Par tili"es many traditional commnication

channels to disseminate information. This incldes e6orts lie ,rint

deli)erables7 blletin boards and large ,blic dis,lay signs. hile these

channels may be e6ecti)e at sending a message to the ,eo,le of

College Par7 they are not e6ecti)e at engaging them in a t$o;$ay

con)ersation7 or allo$ing the city to absorb constrcti)e feedbac7

$hich may be creating a barrier disabling the citys e(ection.

ecase of recent gro$th in social media and the se of mobile

smart,hones7 it is becoming more im,ortant for organi"ations to

de)elo, a ,resence online. =o$e)er7 it is es,ecially im,ortant that

organi"ations7 inclding the City of College Par7 no$ $hich channels

to se to reach certain ,blics. This is im,ortant to ensre that

messages are crafted and cstomi"ed to be rele)ant and interesting to

the ,blics $ho se those channels7 $hich $ill im,ro)e the o)erall

e6ecti)eness of the commnication.

According to Pe$ Research7 > ,ercent of all adlt 4nternet sers

se at least one social net$oring site7 $hich is a 1 ,ercent increase

since 2010 9Pe$ Research7 2015:. !)er the ,ast ten years7 ,eo,le of all

age gro,s are sing social media more7 ho$e)er yong adlts7 ages

1? to 2@7 are the most liely of all ages to se social media. 4t is also

note$orthy to ,oint ot that since 20107 the sage of social media

among those 5 and older has more than tri,led 9Pe$ Research7 2015:.

ased on these trends7 it is liely that social media sage $ill contine



to gro$7 and therefore add increasingly im,ortant bsiness )ale to

organi"ations. y establishing a strong brand and ,resence on social

media no$7 the city of College Par $ill sa)e time and money later7

and better ,osition itself to ada,t to technology de)elo,ments do$n

the road.

These statistics are im,ortant to consider $hen e(amining the

city of College Par7 %arylands demogra,hics. According data from the

2012 &.*. Censs rea7 most ,eo,le residing in College Par fall

bet$een the ages of 15;2. <i)en that the city encom,asses the

&ni)ersity of %aryland7 and many of its yong stdents7 this is not

sr,rising. =o$e)er7 to sccessflly engage this large demogra,hic7

the city needs to ,roacti)ely distribte messaging online7 becase

according to the data7 that is $here this ey ,blic consmes media.

Recommendations

The follo$ing are recommendations that $ill enhance the citys

ability to e6ecti)ely commnicate $ith commnity members and

staeholders.

PR Functions

#e$ media can hel, College Par im,ro)e its community

relations by increasing the commnitys a$areness throgh ,roacti)e

messaging. 4t can be sed to inform commnity members abot



,coming e)ents7 edcate them on commnity isses7 and sho$case

achie)ements or ne$ de)elo,ments. 4t can also be a constrcti)e

form for commnity members to gi)e feedbac to the city of College

Par. 4n addition7 ne$ media can hel, im,ro)e the o)erall re,tation of

College Par7 and mae it more a,,ealing to residential and ni)ersity

,ros,ects.

Consumer relations can also be im,ro)ed by ado,ting ne$

media. sinesses7 es,ecially those that are ne$7 can se ,latforms

lie <ro,on and +i)ing*ocial to o6er deals or disconts7 $hich $ill

hel, gro$ a cstomer base and loyalty. 4t may also hel, alle)iate

miscommnication bet$een local bsinesses $ith each other and $ith

city go)ernance.

#e$ media7 es,ecially T$itter and -aceboo7 can hel, the city of

College Par $ith crisis and issue management. The city can

im,ro)e the commnitys sense of secrity and em,o$er its members

to ,re,are for ne(,ected 9or e(,ected: occrrences. This can be

achie)ed by t$eeting ot ,dates regarding trac7 crime7 natral

disasters and ni)ersity e)ents.

College Pars Goernment relations can be im,ro)ed throgh

the ado,tion of ne$ media by gi)ing the city concil a ,latform to

)oice ,dates and ne$s. This can inclde t$eeting7 ,osting on

-aceboo7 or sharing mltimedia content abot city concil initiati)es7

candidate ,latforms and ,coming elections. #e$ media can ser)e as



a ,lace for the concil to test rece,tion of ,ro,osed initiati)es and to

in)ol)e more ,eo,le in the ,olitical ,rocess $ho may not acti)ely see

oBine in)ol)ement.

Publics

#e$ media can hel, College Par reach !rimary !ublics7 $hich

inclde ni)ersity faclty and stdents7 local bsinesses and to$n

residents. 4t may also hel, ,ro)ide information to secondary !ublics

inclding7 schools and commnity organi"ations. The interening

!ublics rele)ant to any of College Pars ne$ media e6orts inclde

city concil members7 local acti)ists and ,rominent members of the

&ni)ersity of %aryland commnity.

A fe$ blogs crrently e(ist that the city of College Par cold

tae le)erage in its ne$ media e6orts. These inclde &%Right#o$7

*ho, College Par7 <reater <reater ashington7 '(,ress7 ReThin

College Par7 The College Par Patch and the iamondbac online.

&%Right#o$7 *ho, College Par and the iamondbac may be

es,ecially hel,fl to reach ,blics associated $ith the &ni)ersity of

%aryland7 $hile other ,latforms lie <reater <reater ashington and

'(,ress may be greater to sho$case the city as a $hole to the larger

region.

College Par shold es,ecially tili"e T$itter in its ne$ media

de)elo,ment to commnicate $ith ,blics7 becase its sers acti)ely

loo to it as a sorce for content and ha,,enings 9Dacson7 2015:. 4n



addition7 the city cold se 4nstagram to share ,ictres 9es,ecially to

yonger ,blics: and -aceboo to share mltimedia and interact $ith

sers. <ro,on and +i)ing*ocial are t$o ,latforms that local

bsinesses $ithin College Par can se to ,romote deals and garner

ne$ bsiness.

%easrement

There are a )ariety of $ays that the city can measre the

e6ecti)eness of its ne$ media ado,tion. !n social media otlets lie

T$itter and -aceboo7 the city can note any gro$th in its follo$er base.

4n addition7 the city can trac ,blic engagement throgh lies7 shares7

,osts7 mentions and fa)orites. %etric;based analytical soft$are7 sch

as Elot and =ootsite7 can also hel, the city trac its social media

,resence.

Another $ay the city can measre its ,rogress is throgh

,artici,ation at city;related e)ents. The city can trac attendance at

local e)ents lie the farmers maret and city concil meetings. City

ocials can also note any change in the amont of ,eo,le $ho )ote in

local elections.

Conclsion



The city of College Par can boost its ,resence and im,ro)e

commnity relations by setting , an ocial -aceboo and T$itter

accont7 and sing these acconts to ,ost ne$s abot the city. T$itter

$ill be es,ecially hel,fl gi)en the s,eed of its ,dates7 $hich $ill

allo$ sers to stay ,dated $ith local e)ents as they ha,,en. To gain a

follo$er base on these sites7 the to$n can integrate ,romotions for its

social media acconts on its e(isting $ebsite. '(am,les of this7 taen

from the similar college to$ns of Cha,el =ill7 #orth Carolina and

older7 Colorado7 are belo$.

a.



"!!endi# ":

College Park New Media "udit

The city of College Par crrently has a solid7 yet otdated7

centrali"ed $ebsite7 bt lacs a strong ne$ media ,resence. %ost of

College Pars commnication e6orts are not consistently streamlined7

and lac consistent branding7 $hich im,edes the e6ecti)eness of the

citys e6orts and maes its ey ,blics qestion the legitimacy of each

acti)e otreach. 4t a,,ears that the city has ,rioriti"ed traditional

commnication channels7 sch as ,rint deli)erables7 blletin boards

and billboard signs in the ,ast to share information $ith ,blics7 rather

than o,ting for digital otreach. The city can frther o,timi"e the

e6ecti)eness of its commnication by tili"ing one;$ay and t$o;$ay

ne$ media channels to engage a broader girth of ey ,blics to frther

its strategic initiati)es.

According to ne$ initiati)es a,,ro)ed by the city concil in

Agst of 20157 the city of College Par set the follo$ing strategic ,lan

goals for 2015;2020 to become a F,ros,eros to, 20 college to$nG

• !ne College Par

• 'n)ironmental *stainability

• =igh Hality e)elo,ment and Rein)estment

• Hality 4nfrastrctre

• '6ecti)e +eadershi,

• '(cellent *er)ices

The citys sccess of these goals is de,endent on its ability to reach

and facilitate ,ositi)e interactions among ey ,blics7 $hich inclde





Additional sorces of information regarding the city of College Par

$ere fond from $ebsites and blogs associated $ith cam,s life

$ritten from a third;,arty ,ers,ecti)e. These inclde the &ni)ersity of

%arylands inde,endently rn stdent ne$s,a,er7 The iamondbac7

=erCam,s7 &%Right#o$7 and occasional article ,lacements or

mentions in local media sch as the ashington Post or '(,ress. The

$ebsite/blog *ho,CollegePar.org o6ers the most information abot

local e)ents and changes7 ho$e)er it is diclt to tell if the site is

associated $ith the city ocially. %ost co)erage on these sites $as in

the form of commentary or ne$s regarding the to$n7 e)ents7 city

go)ernance7 or ne$ ,coming infrastrctral changes. There is also

RethinCollegePar.com7 $hich seemed ad)antageos to facilitate the

citys 2015;2020 goal7 bt the site has not been ,dated since

*e,tember of 2017 and only o6ers otdated information.

These fe$ channels a,,ear to ,rimarily target a yonger adience7

argably com,rised of stdents7 yong almni and millennials. The city

does a ,oor Iob of engaging older residents7 homeo$ners7 city acti)ists

and local bsinesses sing ne$ media7 and has yet to establish Fone

clear )oice.G These factors can all be sed to hel, inform and gide a

strategic ne$ media commnication ,lan to strengthen the city of

College Pars relationshi, $ith ey ,blics7 and aid in the achie)ement

of reaching its goals.





"!!endi# $:

$log Monitoring Re!ort

Pur!ose:

4t is necessary to monitor the online con)ersation srronding

the city of College Par to nderstand the content and fa)orability of

$hat ,eo,le are saying abot the to$n. y assessing and analy"ing the

discssion srronding College Par7 the city can ,in,oint areas for

im,ro)ement and de)ise the necessary ste,s and tae action to 8(

them. 4n addition7 the blog may highlight isses related to the to$n

that ,eo,le are concerned abot7 and hel, the to$n identify ey

inJencers $ho may also ,artae in the blogs discssion.

Methodology:

4n addition to monitoring the ocial College Par $ebsite7 my

research consisted of a qalitati)e content monitoring of 8)e blogs

91:&%Rightno$.com7 92: Rethincollege,ar.net/blog7 93: College Par

Patch7 9: &% iamondbac and 95: The ashington Post. 4 selected

these blogs after doing a ,reliminary <oogle search of the ne$s and

blogs related to College Par7 and then selected these ones becase

they are the most rele)ant. 4 determined credibility based on the

follo$ershi, of the blogs7 the o)erall ne$s$orthiness of the content7

and the contribting $riters.



Results:

After monitoring the sites7 4 deri)ed the follo$ing information abot

College Par

• <o)ernanceo The city of College Par annonces ,blic notices and

,ro)ides information abot to$n meetings and ,coming

)oting e)ents on its ocial $ebsite.

o The iamondbac often ,ro)ides ne$s;angled articles that

highlight ey taea$ays from ,blic meetings or ocial

statements. The iamondbac o6ers comment sections on

these articles $here stdents can ,ro)ide feedbac7

ho$e)er )ery fe$ stdents or city residents actally se

this form to discss their reactions to the ha,,enings of

College Par.o !n another note7 4 fond that of the fe$ articles that e(ist

abot College Par7 many focs on negati)e safety as,ects

of the to$n. This cold be highlighted for the city as a ,oint

for im,ro)ement7 $hich after being sccessflly recti8ed

cold be highlighted for recognition on College Pars social

media acconts.

• 'conomic/sinesso College Par is crrently in the transition of rede)elo,ment

and is ndergoing many e(citing infrastrctral changes.



This $as one of the hea)ily co)ered to,ics related to the

City of College Par7 garnered ,ositi)e media co)erage.

Positi)e co)erage $as featred on sites sch as The

iamondbac7 The ashington Post and &%Right#o$.

Rethin College Par has ,blished ,ositi)e ne$s co)erage

abot infrastrctral and bsiness de)elo,ment as $ell7

bt has not been ,dated since *e,tember 201.o The iamondbac es,ecially featred articles on ne$

eateries and hosing facilities in College Par7 and may be

sefl for the city to le)erage ,blic o,inion on social

media $hen debating ftre economic )entres.

• 'dcation 9&ni)ersity of %aryland:o The iamondbac and &%Right#o$ $ere the best

sorces of information abot e)ents and ongoing ne$s

related to the school.• Crrent ')ents

o College Par Patch and iamondbac $ere the most sefl

at highlighting e)ents or festi)als taing ,lace in the city.

Conclusion

hile all of these blogs are sefl in commnicating direct

information to the ,blic7 they are crrently being sed ,rimarily as a

one;$ay form of commnication. The sites do not engage the ey

,blics7 or ha)e a tili"ed ,latform for ,blics to )oice their thoghts

abot any ne$s related to College Par.



After monitoring these blogs7 4 recommend that the City of

College Par ta, into these informational sorces throgh engagement

on social media. y highlighting the citys ,ositi)e media co)erage7 it

can im,ro)e residential a$areness of e(citing changes and

conseqentially im,ro)e its o)erall ,blic ,erce,tion. 4n addition7 it

cold also aid local bsinesses and residents ser)ing as a

commnication bridge to reach the ,blic $ith information on things

lie ,romotions7 trac ,dates or e)ents. These blogs7 are crrently

ndertili"ed by the city7 and cold be le)eraged by the City to ,ro)ide

a mtal ad)antage for the city and its ey ,blics.

Althogh College Par does ha)e a solid $ebsite7 by ado,ting

ne$ media and establishing a strong brand ,resence online7 it can

im,ro)e relations $ith ey ,blics by initiating t$o;$ay con)ersations.



"!!endi#: Chart

log #ame Athor *orce credibility Comments 4m,act&%Rightno$.com

%lti,le • &ni)ersitys,onsored

ne$s ,age• -eatres

F&%'(,ertsGon to,icssch asbsinessand,olitics7scienceand

engineering7 etc.

4ncldesco)erage on

to,ics sch aslatest ne$s7inno)ationK&%7athletics7 andacademice(,erts

• Credible7ni)ersity

baced,blication

• %ain sorce fo&ni)ersityCommnicatio

Rethincollege,ar.net/blog

%lti,leLedited bya)idaddio

• The sitegarners ana)erage200readers ,erday

oesnt seemlie it has been,dated since201. The site mostlyco)ersde)elo,ment

,roIects

• 4t has beenmentioned in tashington Po Theiamondbacand The <a"ett

• 4f ,dated7 itcold hel,residents andstdentsnderstand thechangesoccrring in CPand $hat toe(,ect.

College ParPatch

%lti,le • #ot s,ercredible

becaseathorsha)e tosbmittheirstories fora,,ro)al

%any featrestories7 and

recent ne$se)ents

• !ne of the only,laces to see

ongoingcommnity ne$otside of &%C

&% %lti,le • 4nde,ende Prominently • +ocal bsinesse



iamondbac

nt stdent;rncam,sne$s,a,er

• =as a ,rint

circlationof @7000

• since 1@0@

recogni"ed in allof CP amongboth stdentsand residents.

can ad)ertise7,ro)ide s,eciaand gi)eco,ons.

• +ocal hosing

gide• +ocal bsinesse

can ha)efeatres food7msic7 mo)ies7stdent life

ashingtonPost

%lti,le • %aIornationalne$s otlet

!6ersregional7$orld7 andnationalne$s

• =as an e(,ress)ersion for themetro area

• '(,ress $old an e(cellent,lace toad)ertise or geco)erage abone$ additions tCP



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New Media Critique