Public Relations Digital PR and Social Media 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is 'earned media value' (EMV) in the context of digital PR?
- An estimated monetary value assigned to organic coverage and social mentions (Correct answer)
- Revenue directly generated from PR campaigns
- The cost of producing earned media content
- A competitor's total advertising spend in a given period
Correct answer: An estimated monetary value assigned to organic coverage and social mentions
EMV attempts to quantify the financial value of organic coverage by estimating what the equivalent paid media placement or social engagement would cost.
Question 2: A 'viral' PR campaign is best characterized by:
- Content that is rapidly shared widely by audiences organically (Correct answer)
- A campaign designed exclusively for healthcare PR
- Guaranteed reach through paid distribution
- A campaign using video content across all platforms
Correct answer: Content that is rapidly shared widely by audiences organically
Viral campaigns spread organically when content resonates emotionally or socially, motivating audiences to share it without any paid promotion.
Question 3: What is 'real-time PR' or 'reactive content' in digital strategy?
- Creating and publishing timely content in response to current events or trends (Correct answer)
- Responding to customer service complaints in real time on social media
- Issuing a press release within 24 hours of a crisis
- Scheduling social media posts to go live at peak audience times
Correct answer: Creating and publishing timely content in response to current events or trends
Real-time PR involves monitoring trends and conversations to create relevant content quickly, as exemplified by Oreo's famous Super Bowl blackout tweet.
Question 4: What is the purpose of 'reputation monitoring' tools in digital PR?
- Track online mentions, sentiment, and coverage to protect and manage brand reputation (Correct answer)
- Monitor competitor websites for content theft
- Verify the authenticity of social media followers
- Audit the technical performance of an organization's website
Correct answer: Track online mentions, sentiment, and coverage to protect and manage brand reputation
Reputation monitoring tools like Brandwatch, Mention, or Google Alerts track where and how a brand is being discussed online, enabling proactive reputation management.
Question 5: A 'content calendar' in digital PR planning helps to:
- Organize and schedule content across channels aligned with campaigns and news cycles (Correct answer)
- Record all media coverage received each month
- Plan the editorial calendar of a news publication
- Track social media advertising spend by date
Correct answer: Organize and schedule content across channels aligned with campaigns and news cycles
A content calendar ensures proactive, consistent content distribution that aligns with PR goals, product launches, seasonal news hooks, and industry events.
Question 6: What is 'astroturfing' in the context of PR ethics?
- Disguising organized campaigns as spontaneous grassroots public opinion (Correct answer)
- Planting artificial turf at sponsored sporting events
- Creating fake social media profiles to boost follower counts
- Purchasing fake media coverage to appear organic
Correct answer: Disguising organized campaigns as spontaneous grassroots public opinion
Astroturfing is a deceptive practice where PR campaigns are designed to appear as authentic grassroots movements while actually being orchestrated by organizations or lobbyists.
Public Relations Digital PR and Social Media 2
What is 'earned media value' (EMV) in the context of digital PR?