In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, governments have implemented laws and policies to enforce measures such as isolation, social-distancing, lockdowns, and contact-tracing. The justification is that insufficient action will put millions of people at risk of serious illness or death. Yet, many critical scholars and doctors have argued that in order to implement these extreme restrictions, scare and intimidation tactics are being used, and have questioned the ethics and morality of such tactics. Some critics have pointed to deliberate biases and distortions of vital information, and misleading policy makers and the public. These critiques sharpens important question – who shapes our knowledge of diseases and medical treatments? In recent decades, PR professionals have become the driving force behind much of the news, including health news. Pharma PR practitioners play a central role in creating public opinion and shaping our health agendas. The course will focus on the intersection between three powerful industries – the pharma industry, public relations and the media, and will address the roles played by PR practitioners in shaping media coverage, as well as health policies and clinical practices. During the course, we will try to lift the screen behind the pharma PR work, in order to understand how these influential industries operates, identify and analyze common PR strategies and tactics in this field. Among the issues we will explore: What is the best way to communicate a new drug to the public; how to build a successful drug information campaign without encouraging drug abuse; what are the best strategies to deal with a health crisis; and what role do public relations play in the age of new media and increasing use of covert advertising. In addition, we will discuss ethical issues related to PR strategies, as well as new challenges in this field, such as the increasing penetration of covert advertising and new media technologies.
Course Objectives:
• Have knowledge on basic concepts and definitions in this field
• Get to know central theories and models in Public Relations
• Discuss history and evolution of public relations ethics and professionalism
• Understand the complex and sophisticated corporate influence process exerted by the pharma and PR industries, and the role it plays in modern society
• Be able to critically evaluate various pharma PR strategies and tactics in terms of efficiency, ethics and law, and apply ethical principles to effective public relations practice
• Discuss the integration between PR activities, overt and covert advertising and lobbying in drug campaigns
• Examine strategies for crisis management in pharmaceutical companies
• Discuss how new challenges, such as the increasing penetration of covert advertising and new media technologies, are affecting PR professionals' work.
The course will focus on the intersection between three powerful industries – the pharma, public relations, and the media, and will address the roles played by PR practitioners in shaping media coverage, as well as health policies and clinical practices. During the course, we will try to lift the screen behind the pharma PR work, in order to understand how this influential industry operates, identify and analyze common PR strategies and tactics in this field. Among the issues we will explore: What is the best way to communicate a new drug to the public; how to build a successful drug information campaign without encouraging drug abuse; what are the best strategies to deal with a health crisis; and what role do public relations play in the age of new media and increasing use of covert advertising. In addition, we will discuss ethical issues related to PR strategies, as well as new challenges in this field, such as the increasing penetration of covert advertising and new media technologies.