Coronavirus, Social Justice, Technology, Youth Activism and Relevance in 2021
What is relevant today? With the pandemic, social justice issues, violence against marginalized communities and climate change, it may be difficult to choose what to focus our attention on. USC Annenberg Center for Public Relations Director Fred Cook sat down with a few essayists over Zoom during a webinar on Thursday, October 29 as part of the #PRFuture Speaker Series to discuss the emerging trends concerning the public and delved into the 2021 Relevance Report. The Relevance Report is an annual collection of research and essays from public relations leaders and professionals, USC faculty and students about emerging issues that could shape society, organizations and brands in the upcoming year.
A variety of essayists spoke at the event about their topics including: managing and adapting to the pandemic, diversifying an inclusive leadership team in a meaningful way and speaking on pressing social issues, as well as addressing the rapidly increasing stakeholder group of youth activists. The main topics of the Relevance Report summarized the increasing need for organizations to adapt to a changing social and technological climate: A Time for Change, Adopt and Adapt, Activate with Purpose. The report is a guide for how organizations, brands and larger entities can conduct themselves and engage with their stakeholders in the upcoming year.
Organizations are living organisms that interact with the environment around them. Staying relevant with emerging trends helps organizations connect to their stakeholders, set their goals and find their place in a changing environment. The new report tackles the complex year of 2020 - a dreadful year filled with so many groundbreaking events. “This year’s report focuses on addressing the impact the COVID-19 pandemic and social justice protests will have on the future of the PR profession,” said Fred Cook, director of the USC Center for Public Relations.
Coronavirus
The ongoing Coronavirus pandemic has shaped society in so many ways, and it is likely to still be relevant in 2021, whether or not the pandemic is a major public health threat. The essayists predict the effects of the pandemic will remain relevant, and the memory of the COVID era will affect the way this generation thinks, learns and engages in society. “This is the first time in 80 years where we know everything is going to be reconsidered coming out of COVID,” Cook stated. COVID has forced us to “rethink how to learn, travel, work, travel, consume.” According to the research found in the report, “87% said even after a vaccine, people will stay away from others, viewing them as a health threat.”
Adapting to Coronavirus
Many see COVID as the “new normal” and many say this “normal” is something that could have been prevented instead of normalized. Nevertheless, some organizations and communities are already adapting to physical distancing as they restructure their business models and practices. Stephanie Corzett, director of global external communications and media relations of The Walt Disney Company, explained how their newest platform, Disney Magic Moments, is a virtual place where Disney-goers can enjoy a park experience safe at home. “The best brands are the ones who are using communications as a free-flowing tool to educate and inform and create community,” Stephanie stated.
Xenophobia
While some companies have found it easy to adapt to technological platforms, the Coronavirus pandemic has also deepened learning gaps within primary school students struggling to earn an education through a screen. The pandemic has also encouraged xenophobic rhetoric against Asian-American communities, furthering a need for society to address systemic racism and xenophobia. Bill Imada, chairman of the IW Group centered his essay, “History and Myths Marginalize Asian Americans”, on how the United States’ dark history and discrimination of Asian Americans after World War II seemed to resurface during the pandemic as Asian Americans continue to be marginalized.
Racism
Another emerging trend highlighted in the report is the increasing knowledge and understanding of how history’s footprints are imprinted in the policies and attitudes of American society. As more protests against police brutality and racism towards the Black community occur, public stakeholders are anxious to know how their favorite brands will respond and act in the path towards justice. A deep trend mentioned during the event is that public stakeholders don’t care as much about what brands say, rather how they react and how their actions affect the issues they care about. What good is a social media post addressing the #BlackLivesMatter movement if the brand’s leadership board has no Black executive? What good is the brand’s activism if their own company has a toxic culture of silencing their Black employees? A brand’s practices will be exposed, especially in a new technological era where social media allows stakeholders to keep a close eye on which organizations align or don’t align with their personal values.
“Our industry really has to work hard and not only understand what the right thing is to do, but also be committed to doing the right thing,” said Julia Wilson, CEO and Founder of Wilson Global Communications. “Take the lead. Hire black people in your firms. Bring people in who can tell their own stories and bring their own images. This is the opportunity to make that change because the peace and prosperity of our great nation depends on it.”
Margenett Moore Roberts, chief inclusion and diversity officer, Golin Communication, addressed the role of the diversity office at the event. Chief diversity and inclusion officers help shape who has power within an organization. “The past six months during the Coronavirus pandemic and extended violence against the Black community has evolved the role of chief diversity and inclusion officer into something more and something that is not just reflected within employees of a company, but also from an organization to its external stakeholders,” Roberts stated. “Events play a role in how people show up at work. For the first time, many people are starting to see how systemic the issues Black and Brown people face in society, everything from the social justice system to the corporate system as well.”
However, with an increasing trend in brands supporting issues concerning Black and Brown communities, there has also been a rise in performative activism from PR professionals as people became desperate to see how their favorite brands were addressing the issues. “When brands rushed to support the Black Lives Matter movement, their agencies released disappointing results on their own diversity,” Cook stated.” Like never before, audiences devoured content: social initiatives, press conferences, activists…”. The general public wants to know how their favorite brands are actively working to end systemic racism. The general public understands that organizations play an active role in society. The question is how are they going to use that role.
Youth Activism
The 2021 Relevance Report ultimately sums up the power of taking an active role in addressing the needs of its stakeholders. One of the most prominent stakeholders who are extending an ear to what brands are doing is the youth activist. Especially during an election year, in which the public has been keeping a close eye on the issues that matter to them, youth were also keeping an eye on the issues that could affect their future. Youth activists, whether they are protesting in the streets, or holding corporations accountable, want to see how organizations are directly taking action in support of their communities. Youth are speaking out against gun violence, climate change and environmental racism in their communities. “It’s the young people in this country who are creating the movement,” said Brenda Gonzalez, State Press Secretary, Office of U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris. “All over the world we’re seeing young people push back against the status quo, and it’s actually working.”
With a total of 54 essays and extensive research and polls on the state of society, the 2021 Relevance Report is the largest report ever published by the USC Annenberg Center for Public Relations. Several essays include:
- “A Time for Radical Change” - Dean Willow Bay, USC Annenberg School
- “Diversity Offices are More Relevant than Ever” - Margenett Moore-Roberts, Constituency Management Group
- “Does Brand Nationality Still Matter?” - Jay Wang, USC Center on Public Diplomacy
- “BLM and Shift to Purpose-Driven Brands” - Adrine Keosian, USC Annenberg School
- “Creating a More Adaptive, Empathetic Team” - Josh Rosenberg, Day One Agency
- “The Future of Live Experiences” - Adrienne Cadena, Havas Street
- “Social Seniors: Defying Loneliness in the Era of COVID-19” - Heather Rim, AECOM