Civilizing the New Century: Managing Conflict Across Cultures

1. Civilizing the New Century: Managing Conflict Across Cultures Glen T. Cameron, Ph.D. Gregory Chair in Journalism Research Missouri School of Journalism

2. A Modest Proposal • Strategic communication can play a significant role in civilizing the new century by: • managing conflict to AVOID crisis or • ethically and effectively contending tin the marketplace of ideas to resolve conflict

3. To Do This, We Need a Paradigm Shift • We need to define public relations as strategic conflict management and then work to make the profession a force for good in all aspects of society • We need to be realistic about the intractable or moral conflicts that relflect irreconcilable worldviews

4. Nationalistic Claims

5. Faith-Based Clashes

6. Moral Conflict • Catholic Conference states Stem Cell Research is black and white issue

7. Civilizing Public Conflict • Accepting the essential nature of news • Allowing contending voices to be heard • Embracing the wrangle in the marketplace of ideas

9. BP: Environmental Darling or Felon? •  2001 Advertising Activity • BP sponsored three television ads in 2001 that ran a total of 45 times in Washington, D.C. The ads were similar to the 2002 print advertising campaign as each featured one or two people casually discussing energy related issues, such as alternative fuels and clean air. One ad asked the question, "What do you think an oil company should be doing?" A second asked, "If you could say something right now to . . . a big oil company, what would you say?" A third asked, "Would you rather have your car or a cleaner environment?" The ads suggested that bettering the environment and reducing dependence on foreign oil are important issues to BP.

10. Media Provide a Place! • Wrangle in the marketplace of ideas • Do not shoot your television • The wrangle is among people who take genuine, heartfelt stands on issues • Equally principled people oppose them

11. Muscular Public Relations!

12. Natalie Coughlin • What does this world class swimmer have in common with each of you? • Well trained • Competitive • Fair but unapologetic • Not brutal and not chauvinistic • But We ARE IN THE BUSINESS TO WIN!

13. She symbolizes MUSCULAR PUBLIC RELATIONS • My Definition of Public Relations is Muscular • PR is strategic management of competition and conflict in the interests of one’s own organization • AND WHEN POSSIBLE, in the interests of key publics for the organization

14. A Second Attribute • Complexity

16. Reason, Emotion, Nuance, Judgment! • Role of Emotion • Emotional laden contingency model presented on a multidimensional plane

18. COMPLEXITY HAPPENS! • PR PRACTICE IS COMPLEX • PRACTITIONERS MAKE SUBTLE JUDGMENTS • WHY SHOULD THEORY BE SIMPLE WHEN PRACTICE IS COMPLEX? • WHY NOT 87 FACTORS? • IT’S REALITY – DEAL WITH IT !

19. Future • Embrace Complexity! • Occam’s Razor – Yes – But Let’s not be Simplistic and Even Stupid! • A Challenge: Emulate Professions such as Engineering and Medicine

20. Put Simply: • Muscular Approach that • Embraces Complexity

21. Now Let’s Add Integrated Communication • I GRRIT • G Global/Multicultural • R Relational • R Research-based • I Internet/New Media-driven • T Toolbox

22. The Vision • Muscular Approach to Conflict Management That • Embraces Complexity • Integrates Ad, PR, Web, etc • Earns Influence • Offers Precedent

23. Two Conflict Management Examples • Escalating Conflict for Global Good – SARS • Public Nudity on Cell Phones in Korea

24. Managing Conflict Strategically: Escalating Media Pressure for Global Health Interests

25. Contingency Theory • Public relations as strategic conflict management • Stance moves on continuum from pure accommodation to pure advocacy • Welter of factors shift stance • Stance informs strategy

26. Method • Case Study • Media Coverage of SARS • Essential Question:how does social conflict emerge, evolve, and settle in a public health crisis?

27. Timeline

28. Active/ Informed Public Investigative Media Party A: WHO Party B: Chinese government A: Self B: Others Others Self A: Contending / Advocacy B: Yielding / Accommodation Dynamics of Case

29. Implications • Strategic Conflict Management can achieve positive outcomes • Ethical imperatives to advocacy • In addition to typical public information, more strategic approach is recommended • Multiple tactics followe

30. Public Nudity on Cell Phones • Semi-nude images popular on Korean cellphones • Netian company shot provocative photos of famous model depicting Comfort Women • Comfort women were Korean women captured by the Japanese in WWII for use as sex slaves • Terrible, persistent wound on Korean psyche

33. In the beginning: * The company: - Strongly advocated its stance - Insisted on continuing the project (Denial, Justification) * The publics: - Sought legal action - Demanded an official apology - Angry Netizens - Public polls: Citizens opposed

34. * The company softened its stance : - We were not trying to make money out of the pictures. Rather, we were trying to raise the social consciousness and to protest against Japan. * The publics: • Sought further legal action • Organized the protest • Netizens’ protest and action became concrete

35. In the middle & end of the crisis: * The company announced: - Suspend any further production and apologized. * The publics: - Refused to accept the apology and demanded public incineration of all pictures. • On the seventh day of conflict: * The company: - Proposed an open press screening of all the photographs already taken and asked an unbiased judgment from the media and civic groups. (AccommodationAdvocacy)

36. * The publics: - Ardently censured the company, calling them “liars.” * Finally… on the eighth day: - The company totally accommodated its publics’ demand by destroying all photos.

38. Inspiration from Health Comm • The strategic, integrated approach is widely used in health communication. • Conflict is crucial to success • And health communication works! • 40 years ago nearly 50% of adults smoked in U.S. • Today the rate hovers around 22% • We have cut in half the prevalence of the single largest cause of preventable early death in U.S.

39. Current Health Projects • NCI-Funded Project • Ozioma!(Good news!)http://oziomanews.missouri.edu/index.html • Conflict based health comm • Mobilizing information • NIH-Funded Project • TICIPS • Science Communication • Issues and Crisis Management

40. Ozioma! • Tailored News Releases • Disparity as Conflict Frame – Dosage? • Good News – Mobilizing information • Increased news pick-up • Increased news enhances cancer knowledge

41. Original NCI source How does Ozioma work? Translating NCI releases into local, race-specific stories

42. Original NCI source Ozioma release How does Ozioma work? Translating NCI releases into local, race-specific stories

43. Original NCI source Ozioma release Newspaper story How does Ozioma work? Translating NCI releases into local, race-specific stories

44. Black newspapers Avidly Use the Ozioma News Service • 17 releases sent to date • 9 of 12 newspapers have used the releases • 47* total stories printed in newspapers • Potential audience of 340,000 readers *As of May 9, 2006

45. Ozioma Implications • Conflict can serve as a strategic tool to increase cancer awareness and likelihood of mobilization • Black newspapers provide avenue to utilize conflict factors in cancer news stories to motivate community change

46. Larger Implications of My Work • Conflict is the crux of what matters to people • Conflict research is complex and nuanced • Conflict Escalation can serve both the best and the worst of human inclinations • As professionals, WE SHOULD convey a vision to our students!

47. The Vision • Muscular Approach to Conflict Management That • Embraces Complexity • Integrates Ad, PR, Web, etc • Earns Influence • Offers Precedent

48. Strategic Conflict management for greater good! Let’s Discuss: