COM 358 Crisis Communication #COM358
School of Communication
Illinois State University
Spring2015, Section 001
Tuesday & Thursday, 3:35-4:50pm
SCH 0244
Professor: Rebecca Hayes (Becky), Ph.D.
Office: 424 Fell Hall
Office Phone: (309) 438-8869
E-mail:
Note: E-mail is my preferred mode of communication, but I will give you my mobile number in class for calls or texts related to assignments, exams, class, or things that need to be talked through.
Office Hours:Wednesdays, 1:30-3:00pm; Thursdays, 11:00am-noon.
Graduate Teaching Assistant:Sarah Jamie
E-mail:
Office Hours:Sarah will be available for office hours after class once we have started the crisis communication plan assignment. She is always available via e-mail for questions about readings, classes, and assignments.
Catalog Course Description
An advanced examination of the use of communication in planning, managing and responding to organization crises.
Course Objectives
This course is designed to thoroughly investigate the predictable and unpredictable in crises and how to both prepare for them and prevent them from the perspective of the professional communicator. The course will focus on issues vs. crises, risk identification and management, crisis planning, preparation, and evaluation.
Upon completion of this course, students should be able to:
- Understand the stages of a crisis
- Understand the types of crises an organization might face
- Identify risks and vulnerabilities an organization might be exposed to
- Understand the role of communication in an organizational crisis
- Create a crisis communication plan
- Analyze cases of crisis management and communication
Continued Enrollment
Your enrollment in this class constitutes agreement with all aspects of this syllabus and any additions or alterations that may be made to it during the course of the semester. Additions and alterations include announcements I post for the class in ReggieNet or make in class, and additions and alternations include e-mail sent to class members. Such additions and alterations include information about the course, assignments, and so on. These announcements and e-mail are equally important when it comes to evaluating your work, because announcements may contain clarifications or other help that fit within assignments’ requirements.
Texts & Readings
- Ongoing Crisis Communication by W. Timothy Coombs. 4th edition, Sage Publishers
- Readings available through the course page on ReggieNet. Each week will have its own readings folder under “Resources and Materials.”There will be more industry readings than are listed here so check ReggieNet regularly.
Additional Resource: The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL). Great tips on APA and AP style:
Note: Everything for this class is to be completed in APA style, with in-text citations and a reference page.
Outside Preparation
Plan on spending between six (6) and nine (9) hours each week outside of class on your work for this course. You will need this time to complete assigned readings, write papers, develop team projects, and study for the exams.
Assignments & Exams
Crisis caseassignment: A team-based analysis of a real crisis. Each group will be responsible for a 10-minute presentation to the class and a paper turned in to me on the crisis and its background, its resolution, and the communication issues within it. These will happen throughout the semester with varying due dates, and there will be an extra credit competition for engaging presentations!
Exams: There are two exams, one in the middle of the semester, and one at the end during our scheduled final exam time.These exams will be online and open-note, but it will not be open-person (as in you must complete it on your own).Please note that ReggieNet can detect similar sessions and those collaborating on the exams will be significantly penalized or will fail. Exams missed cannot be made up.
COM Week assignment: You will be attending a COM Week presentation or panel and writing a reflection on it. Note: If you have me for COM 377, you cannot “double-dip” and turn in the same paper for both classes.
West Wing and Apollo 13 assignments: These are short reflection assignments where you apply class concepts to content viewed in class. Can be done in pairs.
In-class assignments:There will be four or five in-class/take-home assignments throughout the semester that will require close attention to the assigned readings. Please note that we will be having a three weeks where only half the class shows up on Tuesday, and then the other half on Thursday (by last name). This is to allow better small group interaction and discussion between the instructor and students. You will be expected to be super-prepared for these days as we will be packing two days of content into one. Note, on these days, if you show up for the “wrong” day (not your alphabetically assigned day) without prior permission, you will only receive half credit for your work. Work on these days can only be made up with an excused absence and cannot be turned in late otherwise.
Crisis communication plan: In teams, a crisis communication plan will be produced.
Graduate Students
In addition to the assignments listed in the “Assignments” section, graduate students will develop a research project relevant to the content of this course and suitable for submission to an academic convention. I must approve topics. Details will be given separately, and the basic assignment includes three parts: a written proposal (2-3 pages), literature review (6-7 pages) and final paper (17-19 pages), which are due at different points in the semester (i.e., each third of the semester; arrange due dates with the professor).
Graduate Assignments
/ AvailablePoints /
Earned
Points
Proposal / 50Intro & Lit Review / 100
Final Complete Paper/Project / 200
TOTAL / 350
Course Grading Policy
Final grades are assigned on the basis of accumulation of points. I do not curve; you get the grade you earned. I evaluate the end products of your work, not effort.
Assignments
/ AvailablePoints /
Earned
Points
Crisis case assignment / 100In-class assignments / 100
West Wing assignment / 25
Apollo 13 assignment / 25 / No longer planned
COM Week reflection / 25
Exam 1 / 100
Exam 2 / 100
Crisis communication plan / 200
Total / 675
Assignment grades will be posted on ReggieNet’s gradebook, please keep track of them there. If it is clear that I have mis-graded something, please see me during office hours within one week after I have returned your work. I will not discuss grades at any other time.
Rounding
I do not "round up" or "round down" points toward final course grades, except in cases for fractions of points, and at that rate I use conventional rounding procedures, e.g. 71.75% would be rounded to a C, and those rounding procedures are actually reflected in the grading scale below. No exceptions.
Undergraduate Students:
A=92%-100%B=82%-91.5%C=72%-81.5%D=60%-71.5%F=0-60%
Incompletes will be granted only when a documented emergency prevents you from completing the class, you contacted the Dean of Students Office, and you have completed at leastapproximately two-thirds (66%)of the course.
Special Needs
Any student needing to arrange a reasonable accommodation for a documenteddisability should contact Disability Concerns, Fell 350, 438-5853 (voice), 438-8620 (TDD).
Course Schedule(Subject to change)Please note the discussion days where only half the class attends. These days are in-class assignment days and the reading absolutely must be completed prior to class.
Date
/ Topic & Assignments / Reading/Assignment DueNote: The readings are expected to be completed BEFORE class on the day they are listed. Additional readings will be added as interesting industry publications, news articles, and blogs show up, so please just reference the ReggieNet folder for that week.
1/13
/ Course overview. What’s crisis com? / Syllabus1/15 / Continued overview of crisis com; Types of crises. Introducing Crisis Case Assignment / Chapter 1
1/20 / Issue, incident, or crisis? In-class assignment and discussion day; Last names A-L show up. / Smudde (2001), Hayes & Smudde (2014), and Pearson & Sommer (2011) on ReggieNet
1/22 / Issue, incident, or crisis? In-class assignment and discussion day; Last names M-Z show up. / Smudde (2001), Hayes & Smudde (2014), and Pearson & Sommer (2011) on ReggieNet
1/27 / Proactive management & riskForming groups and choosing topics for Crisis Case Assignment– terrible day to miss / Chapter 3
1/29 / Corporate social responsibility, reputation management, CRM / Carroll (2013), Griffin (2014), additional readings in folder
2/3 / Issues management – Sarah teaching / Chapter 3, Griffin (2014)
2/5 / The crisis prevention process / Chapter 4
2/10 / Crisis prevention continued / Chapter 4, continued
2/12 / How social media and the web have changed crisis management – Sarah teaching / Chapter 2, PRSA The Strategist & Wigley & Fontenot (2011), online readings, see folder
2/17 / Blackfish, Part 1 / Readings in folder
2/19 / Blackfish, Part 2 and in-class deconstruction and assignment
2/24 / Managing risk and vulnerability / Braud (2012 ), Zak (2011), industry risk examples in folder
2/26 / Personal social media management , Guest Lecturer: Dr. Carr / Readings in folder
3/3 / Social media exercise In-class assignment and discussion day; Last names A-L show up except for assigned Crisis Case presentation members / PRSAY blog, other readings in folder and review Chapter 2
Exam 1 online 3/4 to 3/6
3/5 / Social media exercise In-class assignment and discussion day; Last names M-Z show up except for assigned Crisis Case presentation members / PRSAY blog, other readings in folder and review Chapter 2
Exam 1 online 3/4 to 3/6
3/10 / Spring Break
3/12 / Spring Break
3/17 / It’s gonna happen, let’s prepare / Chapter 5
3/19 / Crisis management plans and crisis communication plans Crisis Communication Plan assigned and groups formed / Chapter 6, see folder
3/24 / Whoops, we’ve got a crisis / Chapter 7
3/26
/ West Wing Day – Preparing a spokesperson, in-class discussion and assignmentWest Wing Assignment assigned / Wetherhead (2012), review Chapter 5
3/31 / Crisis Response / Chapter 8
4/2 / Guest lecturer: Dr. Peter Smudde, The Crisis of the GM C/K Pickup / West Wing Assignment due in class
4/7
/ Com Week! Crisis Com session in our room.
COM Week Assignment on ReggieNet.
4/9 / In-class work day on crisis communication plans
4/14 / Guest lecturer: Joe Strupek, VP of Public Affairs, State Farm Insurance /
COM Week Assignment due
4/16 / TBA
4/21 / Best practices in crisis response in class exercise In-class assignment and discussion day; Last names A-L show up except for assigned Crisis Case presentation members / Seeger (2006), Veil (2012), other readings in folder
4/23 / Best practices in crisis response in class exercise In-class assignment and discussion day; Last names M-Z show up except for assigned Crisis Case presentation members / Seeger (2006), Veil (2012), other readings in folder
4/28 / Work day on crisis communication plans
4/30 / Post-crisis concerns, rebuilding reputations / Chapter 9, Crisis communication plans due
May 5 / Final Exam / Exam will be online 8am- 11:59pm (midnight, essentially)the day of our assigned final exam time – Tuesday, May 5
NOTE: We may alter this course schedule and other aspects of this syllabus as the course progresses. You are responsible for noting any such changes, which will be announced in class and/or posted on ReggieNet.
Course Policies
Cell Phones, Voice Recorders, iPods, MP3 Players, Text Messaging, Laptops, etc.
Please turn off electronic devices while attending class. If your phone goes off in class, or if you are there is a good chance I will answer it and talk to your mom or roommate about how adorable you are. I’ll overlook a single occurrence, but if I see you consistently texting in class, or using your computer/phone for distracting stuff like Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Imgur, Yik Yak, Twitter, etc. (all which I love dearly), I reserve the right to deduct points for a technical device violation. The exception to this is tweeting about class stuff. I love that. #COM358
Attendance and Late Policy
I will not be taking attendance in this class. Attendance is optional, but so is passing. Many things we discuss in class are not in the book or readings and may be on exams or be assessed in your assignments. In-class assignments cannot be made up without documented proof of an acceptable reason for missing that class (doctor’s note, obituary, hospital admittance form, etc.).
Lateness is hugely distracting and pretty rude. If I notice you arriving consistently late, we will have words. If you have a reason to be late, just please let me know and we’ll be cool.
Class Format
This class will be both lecture and discussion based. You are expected to have completed the readings before class starts. There will be days where only half the class attends in order to facilitate small group discussions. Please pay attention to the syllabus and announcements for these days.
Class Meetings
The following are policies about specific matters for class meetings.
- Late Start to Class — I am rarely late (thought I do frequently run prompt, so don’t get your hopes up), but if I am not in class promptly at the official starting time (or early), I am coming unless I (or a surrogate) e-mail or text otherwise.
- Class Cancellation — Only two conditions are likely to exist when classes are cancelled: (1) the university is closed, or (2) I am super sick. Either way, if class is cancelled, you will receive an official notice by e-mail. If I must cancel class, a notice will be posted in the classroom and/or on the doorway.
Online Course Material
I use ReggieNet extensively to organize the material for this course, administer exams, and make announcements about our class. If you have problems with ReggieNet, let me know and call the Help Desk at 309-438-HELP.
The ReggieNet site for this class contains required reading material for this course. This material used in connection with the course may be subject to copyright protection. Your viewing of the material posted on ReggieNet does not imply any right to reproduce, to retransmit or to redisplay it other than for your own personal or educational use. Links to other sites are provided for the convenience of the site user (staff or student) or visitor and do not imply any affiliation or endorsement of the other site owner nor a guarantee of the quality or veracity of information contained on the linked site.
Academic Dishonesty
Plagiarism and any other form of academic dishonesty will not be tolerated. Plagiarism (presenting someone else’s work as your own or without proper acknowledgment) or any other type of academic dishonesty will be considered justification for failure for that particular assignment or the entire course, depending on severity. Although you may discuss with each other any assignment and course material, bounce ideas off each other, and share the university's resources available to you (e.g., media guides), you cannot share actual work you do with others. All work must be that of the student (or students involved in a group assignment) and developed during the current semester for this course. Sources must receive credit using APA style. For information regarding academic integrity and procedures for academic misconduct, see ISU’s Code of Student Conduct, Section V.B.1, page 8:
DO NOT REPURPOSE (i.e., copy and paste) other’s words as your own! Doing so will result in failure of the assignment, and maybe the class, depending on severity. When in doubt, quote per APA style (totally cool as long as there isn’t too much of it), reword and cite per APA style, or ask me, I’m always happy to help!
Anytime you use someone else’s exact words, without APA quote style, is plagiarism. Really the only reason to use exact words is when the person’s words/phrasing have significant impact, or there really is no way to effectively reword.
Assignment Expectations
All assignments are due no later than the official starting time for class.Assignments received after the official starting time of class but before it is dismissed, will be considered late and will be penalized 30 percent of the earned points, and 30 percent each 24 hours late after that. Electronic copies of your completed assignments may be accepted through e-mail by the class’ official starting time (as indicated by the e-mail’s time stamp) ONLY if you will miss class or if you believe you will be late to class. You may choose to turn in work in advance (by e-mail, please) of the due date—especially if you are going to be absent the day something is due.
Good writing is both strong in content and technically correct in its presentation (i.e., grammar, style, layout, and printing). All written work must fulfill the content requirements given in the assignments, conform to American Psychological Association (APA) and be free of grammar, spelling, style and English usage errors. One point will be deducted from your final score for each error. Yes, it is that important.
Assignments will be posted on ReggieNet and discussed in class, with paper copies rarely distributed. See the course schedule for details about all coursework, but if a due date varies slightly from what’s on the schedule, go by what is on the assignment. Please email or visit with me or Sarah if you have any questions about any assignment or if you’d like one of us to give you some feedback about your work in progress. I’d much rather answer questions in advance than have to mark you down for something you didn’t understand!