Catalan Journal of Communication & Cultural Studies - Volume 7, Issue 2, 2015

The organizational and attitudinal characteristics of the communications workforce have recently become the subject of an emergent research field in Spain. To date, no studies have been conducted on organization and work processes in the field of corporate communications and public relations, an area that has experienced tremendous growth in recent decades. This article is a socio-psychological analysis of these professionals, from a gender perspective. An online survey, based on a nationwide sample of 190 professionals belonging to the Spanish Association of Communications Executives and Managers (DIRCOM), was conducted from May to September 2014. With low levels of burnout and high levels of engagement, communications executives and managers have a positive opinion of the sector and of their quality of life. Unlike other areas of communications, sex-based horizontal segregation was not detected. However, as in advertising and journalism, vertical segregation was observed.

The aim of the present work is to examine the profile of the people who manage digital communication in the main Spanish tourist destinations, and ascertain how they plan the strategy and their presence in the major social media. The research stems from the assumption that most of them have received training in the field of communication and public relations, although a need is perceived to expand their training towards other areas to enable better management of the social media. This communication, based on the study of the case of tourist destinations in different Spanish autonomous communities, is supported by both the quantitative and qualitative method, as a survey is conducted among managers of social networks in the chosen destinations and in an interview held with the communication officers in order to identify their role in the structure of the department, their functions and training needs.

This article describes and analyses the available syllabuses for Public Relations in Public Relations and Advertising graduate degree programmes (or equivalent) in the Catalan university system for the academic year 2014–2015. The theoretical context includes specialist literature published in the last year to assess whether the curriculums of the analysed graduate degree programmes allow for dialogue between universities and professional practice. A transversal descriptive study was carried out on the websites of Catalan universities that offered information about a degree in Public Relations and Advertising during 2014–2015. The conclusions of the study show that subjects on Public Relations are in the minority in comparison with courses on Advertising, are confined to the background, and are the object of fundamentally instrumental – tactical – rather than strategic aspects.

The Vuelta Ciclista a España is one of cycling’s three grand tours, alongside the Tour de France and the Giro d’Italia. As a yearly sports mega-event, broadcast all over the world, the Vuelta is a relevant object of study. Nonetheless, from a scholarly perspective it remains mostly unexplored and unbroken ground for public relations research in particular. This article analyses the changes in the Vuelta’s communication strategy and media relations since the French multinational company Amaury Sport Organization’s (ASO) takeover of Unipublic (the Vuelta’s organizer) in 2008. The analysis has been carried out on the basis of an extensive review of the academic and non-academic literature regarding the object of study and of in depth interviews with Unipublic’s CEO and press officer. The main conclusion of this research is that the new ASO management has focused on strengthening both the global dimension of the race (by means of expanding its global TV viewership) and its relations with the Spanish regional and local press. This move has meant that Unipublic has aligned with the Tour de France model of relations with the local media, aimed at increasing the visibility of the race throughout the year and not just during the event’s celebration, and at increasing the crowds attending live on the roadsides.

Social media, which are important tools of public relations, have revolutionized the communication of tourist destinations. Photographs are one of the elements that communications managers of destinations can use to communicate their brands. But how are these photographs used via social media? The results of this study show a more frequent use of photos on Facebook, whereas the use of photo-sharing sites such as Flickr is still not very widespread. Photos best communicate emotional values, but destinations most often use them to present their attraction factors. In addition, in many destinations there is a lack of communication strategy in the use of pictures, which complement information without regard for any actual communication criteria. The useful recommendations for destinations that can be drawn from the results are: a more strategic use of photographs in communication via social media and the utilization of their potential in communicating the brand’s emotional values.

This article explores the relevance of cultural and art promotion in corporate communication strategies for contemporary management models. In Spain, where the funding for culture is declining due to the crisis and decrease in funds from the government – one of the most important supporting cultural agents – some corporations are developing new initiatives to support culture and arts. Nowadays, the field of corporate social responsibility has an increasing relevance for company reputation. This article shows how companies leverage arts and culture to increase their reputation and credibility with stakeholders. It proves that organizations cannot focus just on economic earnings while ignoring social responsibility. Arts and culture can be a strong pillar supporting company goals on social and public responsibility.

Taking into account the recent development of social media and its impact on PR practice among different organizations, this study aims to examine and assess the performance of PR practice think tanks in social media. The major focus is on social media application to their PR strategies and general output and outcomes of this implementation. The study is based on a case study method combined with triangulated techniques of data analysis and collection. The sample is formed by the selected East European think tanks. The study applies free of charge eTools for digital communication measurement in order to detect the value of the presence and activity in various social networks. The objective of the study is to examine whether East European think tanks apply 2.0 communication and to determine the best practices with their corresponding values in order to present a benchmark for such organiza- tions in this area of digital space.

Som la Pera is a public communication campaign for the prevention of obesity and the promotion of healthy lifestyles among teenagers, launched in May 2014 in Reus (Catalonia, Spain). The campaign is linked to the EU-funded project EYTO, and establishes consistent bridges between public relations and social marketing. This article argues that although these fields have traditionally been wary of each other, both have complementary aspects such as interventions that encourage behavioural changes regarding sociocultural contexts. These contact points especially occur in health promotion campaigns.