Academy Blog
Post-election analysis of the value of posters and political party affiliation
We conducted research last month, with Opinions.ie, to take the pulse of the nation about posters and the importance of political party affiliation, in advance of the local and European elections in Ireland. We asked three key questions and got some surprising answers. Does the communications value of election posters justify the visual disruption? It […]
The Ellen Gunning/Microsoft Blogs
Our director, Ellen Gunning, was invited by Microsoft to create a monthly guest blog from January to December 2017. Each month, she gave an insight into a different area of promotion which is relevant to SME businesses. Each blog is packed with practical hints and tips that small and medium sized enterprises can apply. All […]
Irish Prime Minister visits all-male St. Mary’s Monastery in Ethiopia. Our research shows support for his actions.
Our most recent piece of research at Academy Opinions asked communications specialists if it was right for the Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar to enter the all-male St Mary’s Monastery in Axum, Ethiopia, on a recent official visit. The overwhelming response from the survey was YES (51.9%). The NO response amounted to just 17.3%, leaving a […]
Enterprising Spirit in Lesotho
I met Tiisetso Ivy Sefatsane in Lesotho recently when she was introduced to me by the Irish Consul Mrs. Mannete Ramaili. Tiisetso was born in the village of Ramohapi in Botha-Bothe district of Makhoakhoeng in Lesotho. She lived on the outskirts of the village in Abia with her mother and two sisters. Her father separated […]
PR support for Press Freedom
I had the privilege of writing a blog for the Public Relations Society of America recently, about Freedom of the Press. It arose from my radio interview with Tony d’Angelo, Chairperson of the PRSA. My argument is that, effectively, PR professionals are keen supporters of a free press, but the press often lack the same […]
Notorious Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Have you seen the documentary about Ruth Bader Ginsburg (#Notorious RBG), the Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States of America? Check out the trailer here – Honestly – you don’t want to miss this. I saw this 98 minute documentary and it is spellbindingly good. I knew a little about RBG […]
Pope Francis’ visit to Ireland – what the PR professionals think.
Our recent Academy Opinions survey asked communications professionals to give us their opinion about how successfully Pope Francis communicated during his recent visit to Ireland. We deliberately left the question quite ‘open’ so that people could comment on communications with all of his audiences. Statistically the results were surprising. In response to the question “Did […]
Chairing Dublin City fm Radio Station.
I’ve just had the honour and pleasure of being elected Chairperson of 103.2 Dublin City fm for the third year (Nov. 2018). This is the station which broadcasts to our capital city and has a listenership of 125,000 people each day. It is a community station staffed, mainly, by volunteers, with a volunteer board and […]
Leadership, Peace and the Media in Colombia – meeting President Juan Manuel Santos.
I had the pleasure of attending a screening recently in Trinity College about Colombia, which was followed by a Q&A with Juan Manual Santos, former President of Colombia and Nobel Peace Prize Winner. What an incredible man! The man himself is very affable, very ‘normal’ (no airs and graces), very dedicated to peace in his […]
Checking the pulse of PR & Comms Industry: Survey Results
Maybe it’s because we train and teach PR and communications skills, but we’re always fascinated by surveys – who takes them, what they reveal and the gaps that they highlight. We recently completed our first Academy Opinions Survey, a joint venture between the Irish Academy and Opinions.ie to take the pulse of the PR industry […]
Microsoft Irelands Small and Medium Business Blog
Our director, Ellen Gunning, was invited by Microsoft to create a monthly guest blog from January to December 2017. Each month, she gave an insight into a different area of promotion which is relevant to SME businesses. Each blog is packed with practical hints and tips that small and medium sized enterprises can apply. All […]
The World of Advertising
What is advertising? In the world of advertising, someone may think that all it takes is a catchy phrase to get someone’s attention. However, the real art of advertising is not how many people see it, but if they like what they see. Meaning a consumer sees an ad and will think of the product […]
Social Media in Science Promotions
Wouldn’t it be grand to have your own creative, digital space? An opportunity to showcase your latest scientific findings, without peer-review rejection? While the answer is usually Yes!, scientists and researchers are reluctant to use the wide range of online tools to discuss their science. Places of social media platforms like blogs, personalized websites, Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn […]
Ellen Gunning Opens Up About Charity
How and when did you first discover the charity world? From a young age, I was in contact with this world through my father who was involved in community work. He was a volunteer for the local society of St. Vincent de Paul. Besides, my mother was also a committed charity worker. Therefore, my siblings […]
Legal constraints on Journalism
Note: Dail Eireann is the lower house of the Irish parliament. Mary Lou McDonald is an elected TD (Teachta Dala, member of parliament). Did you follow the debate a few years ago about parliamentary privilege? It involved Mary Lou McDonald TD. At the time she was deputy-leader of Sinn Fein. She is now the […]
Help! – Event Management for charity
Help! – Not a day goes by without you seeing someone in a fluorescent tabard emblazoned with the logo of a charity. They stand outside shops collecting money, selling key rings, pin-badges or other trinkets. While it can sometimes be a nuisance, have you ever wondered what goes into putting together such a campaign? That is […]
Social Media Tools for Marketing
Are you a wiz at maximising social media tools? Can you flash up an info-graphic or shoot a quick piece of footage on the fly? Brilliant. But can you say how it has an impact on your business? Can you track engagement and sales? If not – one of your colleagues (who is possibly less […]
Don’t Be Afraid To Fail
Most of us have been watching keenly as the UEFA football teams have prepared, won, fought, lost and entertained us as they tried to become UEFA Champions for 2016. I’ve heard so many people, (who do not even like football), excitedly share their favourite reasons why various teams have inspired them so much. One such […]
Ellen Gunning opened up to Sarah Dascotte about her passion for charities
How and when did you first discover the charities’ world? From a young age, I was in contact with this world through my father who was involved in community work, since he was a volunteer for the local society of St. Vincent de Paul. Besides, my mother was also a committed charity worker, so my […]
Social Media As A Promotional Tool For Science
Wouldn’t it be grand to have your own creative, digital space? An opportunity to showcase your latest scientific findings, without peer-review rejection? While the answer is intuitively Yes! scientists and researchers are reluctant to use the wide array of digital promotional tools to discuss their science. (Those promotional tools are social media platforms, i.e., blogs, […]
Strategic Communications Unit – what’s going on?
Have you been following all the broo-ha-ha about the Governments Strategic Communications Unit (SCU)? Have you been as baffled – and annoyed – as I’ve been at the level of explanation, hand-wringing and buck passing that’s been going on? Fear not – you are not alone. I just had to write this blog to put […]
The Role Of Communication In Fighting Disease
The frequency of pandemics around the globe is on the increase. Therefore, there is a dire need for the role of communications in curbing the spread of these diseases. On 1 September 1976, a man at the Yambuku Mission Hospital in a remote area of northern Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo) showed symptoms of […]
Radio Presenting and Social Media?
So you want to work in radio? It’s a crowded landscape – but I can highly recommend it. I just love presenting my own radio show. So how do you get into the business? Obviously, you need radio presenting skills – our one day radio presenter course will take care of that – but you […]
New research on Taoiseach Leo Varadkar highlights positive and negative public perception
We always try to keep our fingers on the pulse of the nation. In late November (2017), we conducted some research through Academy Opinions (a joint initiative of Irish Academy of Public Relations and Opinions.ie) which looked at Taoiseach Leo Varakdar and his image. The results were really interesting. We wanted to find out […]
3 Challenges Facing Every Charity
Did you know there are 12,500 registered charities in Ireland and they employ 100,000 people? With 50,000 volunteers assisting them. The sector is worth €5.7 billion annually. Charity is big business! However, recent scandals have highlighted three key areas charities need to concentrate and focus their attention. 1. Trust for Charity Organisations Charities operate in […]
Event Manager? Be Red Carpet Ready!
Every event manager has to face the dilemma of matching an ideal checklist with a given budget and time constraint. It’s been a long time since 25 March 1965, when one of the most iconic figures in 20th Century American history took part in a civil rights march from Selma, Alabama to the state capital […]
Need a Press Style guide?
Is it just me? Or does anyone else get stressed when there are inconsistencies in reporting? Can we, the media, not agree on terms of reference and create a style guide to use communally and consistently? I was almost driven mad by the visit to Ireland of Britain’s Prince Charles and his wife, the Duchess […]
Reputation
If you think about some of the sayings we heard as children, you will immediately realize how important reputation is. “Give a dog a bad name…” is a favourite of mine. If you have bad reputation it doesn’t matter how much good you do – people will think negatively of you. “Get the name of […]
Building Community Online
On the radio recently, Ellen Gunning spoke about building community online with Katie Moloney (MD of Maximum Media). Katie manages a team of 54 people who create content for four websites. Two of the websites – joe.ie and her.ie – broadly target men and women in the over 20 to under 45 age-bracket while the […]
Career Opportunities in the Esports Industry
Every so often, unique opportunities come by that are just waiting to be snatched up. The Esports industry continues to present lucrative and exciting career opportunities across all fields. Although the industry revolves around competitive video games that are played online and streamed live to viewers worldwide, career possibilities in the Esports industry are by […]
Journalism Ethics in View
Going by Journalism ethics, practitioners know that we, the public, want to know what’s happening particularly in high-profile court cases. In fact, we follow the news assiduously to learn about the latest developments. Journalists report these cases, but they have a responsibility to do so in an Accurate, Balanced and Complete way. This is the […]
Van Morrison’s Use of PR.
Have you been following one of the most interesting PR Consultant/client disagreements of modern times? I’m referring, of course, to John Saunders of Fleishman Hillard and Van Morrison. Saunders initiated legal action against Van Morrison. That was after he found that information he had given to media (and repeated in an interview on RTE News) […]
Media Landscape? Be Informed!
With access to news media twenty-four hours a day, from a variety of different sources, both online and in print, you would be hard-pressed to avoid keeping up to date nowadays. I can’t remember when my obsession with following the news began. I know social media definitely played a part, and in particular Twitter. It […]
Reach Out Through PR
On a recent city break to Glasgow, I paid a visit to the Gallery of Modern Art. I must confess that while I respect the creativity and imagination that went into the pieces on display, I suffer from a general ignorance of understanding exactly how the artists were trying to reach out. After a brief […]
Nowadays It’s All About Social Media
Are you confused by the range of social media? Not sure which one is right for your business? Anxious that you’re a little out of your depth when colleagues start chatting about social media? In this day and age, you need the ability to handle your social media, advertising, and PR all in one place. […]
“If I was down to my last dollar, I’d spend it on public relations”
Does Bill Gates know something that you don’t? If he thinks public relations is so important, isn’t it worth looking at it for your own business? Competition for people’s attention is intense – and will become even more difficult in 2017 and beyond. We are all time-poor but information hungry. Public Relations requires to […]