Explains that public relations and the rhetorical heritage focus attention not narrowly on the self-interest and opinions of the organization but the person whose goodwill is needed for the organization to succeed. Essay question: To what extent does this definition apply to the practice of political public relations in a democracy? Essay Option 2 Ancient thinkers such as Plato, Aristotle, Quintilian, and Confucius have all offered frameworks for thinking about persuasive communication and ethical conduct. Essay topic: Are these Ancient scholars and their ideas relevant for thinking about the practice of contemporary political public relations? Discuss. Essay Option 3 Grunig and Hunt (1984, pp. 215-216) argued that at its purest, lobbying means providing sufficient data to a legislature so that all the facts can be known before a vote is cast. Their point is that such dialogue is often welcomed by government officials, as it provides valuable industry information to legislators and it can potentially lead to better policy decisions. However, some lobby groups have shown a willingness to use their resources to win arguments against policymakers (McKnight & Hobbs, 2013; Hobbs, 2020) which might not be in the public interest. Essay topic: discuss the role of outsider lobbying (. public lobbying) in Australian democracy, assessing specific practices and their efficacy. Essay Option 4 Cambridge Analytica Ltd was a British political consulting firm which used big data and social media for political campaigning and have been credited with helping Donald Trump win the US federal election in 2016. However, using micro-targeting for political communication is not new, with both of Australias major political parties using their own electoral data bases for campaigning activities. Essay topic: Analyse the effectiveness of micro-targeting and the use of big data for contemporary political public relations. Essay Option 5 Moffitt (2016) argues that populism today has changed and developed from its earlier iterations, embedded as it is within a rapidly shifting political and media communications landscape, (). Drawing on contemporary examples, critically evaluate the role of communication and performance strategies in the success of populist politicians Essay Option 6 Despite their prevalence in Western democracies, media advisers are at times dismissed as merely spin doctors who seek to manipulate public opinion for short-term political gain (see Hobbs, 2016; McKnight, 2016; Tiffen 2017). Critically evaluate the communication activities of media advisers and assess the value of the profession for democracies like Australia.
