APR Exam Practice Questions

Your public relations department wants to share a magazine article from another nonprofit organization with your members. For which of the following scenarios would you need to obtain permission from the copyright owner to share the article? (Choose 3.) A) If you email the article to the members of your organization B) If you send the members of your organization a link to the article on the other organization's website C) If you distribute the article to the members of your organization at its annual meeting D) If you reprint the article in your organization's newsletter

A, C, D [From Cutlip & Center's Effective Public Relations, 11th ed., p. 140]

You assign your intern the job of finding a royalty free image to illustrate a blog. She brings back a great photo - it's from BING images. What law do you talk to her about? A) Copyright B) Plagiarism C) Slavish copyright D) Defamation - libel

A. the image on Bing may be copyrighted, you need to show her how to check. Plagiarism is when you pass off someone's else's work as your own or without attribution; Slavish copyright is when you copy word for word, and defamation-libel is when you disseminate a public falsehood about a person or organization.

Your public relations department wants to share a magazine article from another nonprofit organization with your members. Which method for sharing the article would you recommend to avoid needing to obtain permission from the copyright owner? A) Emailing the article to the members of your organization B) Sending the members of your organization a link to the article on the other organization's website C) Distributing the article to the members of your organization at its annual meeting D) Reprinting the article in your organization's newsletter

Answer: C [From Cutlip & Center's Effective Public Relations, 11th ed., p. 140—Generally, you do not have to seek copyright permission if you post an excerpt from the article and link to the original source of the article.]

You are the manager of a public relations department for a nonprofit organization. Your department director has asked you to help with selecting a summer intern. She says she would prefer that the intern will not be paid and receive college credit for the internship instead. You are unsure about the terms of this agreement. Specifically, you are concerned about whether it is ethical to offer the internship as an unpaid position. What is your next step in deciding how you will advise the department director? A) Identify the key values that you need to consider in making your decision. B) Identify ethical principles to guide you in making your decision. C) Identify who will be affected by your decision. D) Identify the economic, legal, and social factors that may influence your decision.

Answer: D (APR Study Guide, page 21. After you have defined the specific ethical issue or conflict, the next step is to identify internal and external factors that may influence the decision.)

Which of the following two statements are correct in order for you to use these photos in ads? A. The company hired and paid the photographer for the professional event photos and owns them for future use. B. These photos can only be used if the photographer has provided written permission to reproduce the event photos beyond the original purpose of an internal newsletter. C.The employees and family members photographed must have a signed consent release to have their photos used in an ad for the company. D. Company employees are not required to sign releases, but their family members would need to have signed releases to be used in the ads

B. These photos can only be used if the photographer has provided written permission to reproduce the event photos beyond the original purpose of an internal newsletter. C.The employees and family members photographed must have a signed consent release to have their photos used in an ad for the company. Reference: Public Relations Strategies and Tactics (10th ed): Page 298: Photo Releases and Page 302: Photography and Artwork.

You are the communications director at a youth serving nonprofit. The president of the organization asks you to start taking photographs of the youth members during the programs and posting them through social media to highlight the good work the organization is doing. It seems like a great idea, so you: A) Start clicking away with your camera and begin creating a social media campaign utilizing the pictures. B) Go ask the program staff for permission to take photographs of the children to post. C) Review perimeters of taking and using photos of youth under 18 with your legal team. D) Begin creating a media release form to give to the youth members to sign off on.

C Coordinate with legal team for counsel on taking photographs of youth members and retaining the proper permissions for use. Remember First Amendment protections and that minors cannot give legal consent. (EPR 10th, pgs 162-163)

You are responsible for an internal employee newsletter. A freelance photographer provides several photos you intend to use in the next issue. Your supervisor quickly reviews and approves the newsletter before leaving for an extended vacation. You are nearing your deadline and in final preparation of the files, you notice fine print copyright information by the photographer in the corner of the images. Which one of the following is the best course of action? A) This is work for hire so you can follow the directive of your supervisor and proceed with publication of the newsletter. B) Contact the freelance photographer directly to get verbal approval for publication. C) Coordinate with your legal counsel to review the contract terms before taking further action. D) Include the copyright information from the photographer in the photo caption and proceed with publication of the newsletter.

C) Coordinate with your legal counsel to review the contract terms before proceeding with publication. (EPR 10th, pgs 157-158 and PR: S&T 10th, pgs 302-303)

You are the communications director at a small real estate firm. In order to drum up business, the president wants to put out a commercial and has asked you to oversee the production of this commercial with the hired advertising agency. One aspect the president wants to focus on in the commercial is their services for foreclosures. He wishes to use the visuals of a home and family who are now going through the foreclosure process for B-roll purposes. He gives you photos of the house and family, who you know from previous dealings wish to keep their names and faces out of the public eye. What do you do? A. This is what the president wants, so you try to convince the family to agree to be in the commercial through use of the photos. B. Ask them to sign media waivers C. Go back to the president and explain why the use of the photos would be a violation of their privacy. D. Explain to the family that proceedings of the foreclosure allows the real estate firm to use their likeness in commercials.

C. EPR. Chapter 6. The family has a Right to Privacy, and for the real estate firm to uphold their wishes not to be publicly disclosed.

You are the public relations manager at a automotive manufacturer, reporting to the company president. Your company is about to announce an expansion, which will be a major economic boost for the community, at a press conference. Your boss would like to share some additional details about the acquisition "off the record" with several community partners following the press conference at a VIP event, which some media may attend. What counsel would you offer your boss? 1. We trust our partners and this will improve our community relations 2. It is acceptable to share these details if we inform the audience that what we share is off the record 3. It is acceptable to share these details if reporters do not attend the event 4. You should never share things off the record unless you really want it t get out

4. You should never share things off the record unless you really want it t get out (EPR p.231)

You work for a major multinational corporation which has just implemented a new salary and bonus administration program. The director of compensation calls you into his office and lets you know that the calculations allow management to receive a bonus but based on the formula, the manufacturing employees did not earn a bonus. He wants you to put a "spin" on this scenario for the communications plan. You decline stating that he had best go back and readjust a formula, or go to management, and ask them to share their bonus with the manufacturing employees, as you are aware as he is too of a movement to unionize the manufacturing employees. He states that he will go to your boss, and ask for someone else to create the communications plan he desires if you won't. Later, you see he and your boss speaking. Your boss comes to you and asks you to write the communications plan desired. You restate your proposed solution, and offer to resign. The scenario best demonstrates which ethical principles of public relations practices. Choose two. A. Avoid conflicts of interest. B. Do not damage the reputation of others. C. Use honesty and integrity as your guide. D. Ensure accuracy and truth. E. Deal fairly with all publics.

ANSWERS: C and D. Rationale and Source: APR Study Guide Ethics and Law Common Ethical Principles of Public Relations Practice, page 20 and 21. The two best are C and D. A and B pertain more to agency relationships. E is a possibility. However C and D , particularly not to disseminate false and misleading information takes a higher priority.

As the communications director for a federal agency, you have been reacting to a law enforcement incident that has received negative public and media attention. To make matters worse, today, a congressman called you and requested information about the investigation. Which one of the following is the best course of action? a. Do not provide the congressman the information due to the Freedom of Information Act. b. Quickly provide the congressman the investigation information he requested. c. Delay your response and consult with legal.

Answer: a. found in EPR 10th Edition pg. 150

XYZ Corporation just received a painting created in 1913, with significant history and monetary value, from an art dealer on loan from the artist's estate. The painting has not been copyrighted, but a photo of the painting was published in Life Magazine, March 1916. You have decided the same photo of the painting will serve as the visual centerpiece for the community art initiative public relations campaign. What best states that you are able to use the photo of the painting as your visual centerpiece for the community art initiative public relations campaign without violating copyright permission? (Choose one.) A. The painting was never copyrighted. B. The photo appeared in the Life Magazine more than 75 years ago. C. The photographer who supplied the photo is unknown. D. The artist created the piece before 1990.

Answer B. - EPR - Chapter 6, page 157-158 The photo is now in the public domain in that it was first published in 1916 by Life Magazine, which is a copyrighted magazine, for which the issue's copyright has expired according to the 1909 Copyright Act.

You are the Public information Officer at a Federal Agency. While attending a Business Networking meeting, you receive a request for the medical records of your employees from an insurance agent so that he might provide some quotes on group coverages. You: A. provide copies of the medical records B. Provide the medical records but redact personal indicators such as name, date of birth and address C. Deny his request citing the Federal Freedom of Information Act

Answer C. According to EPR 10th Edition pg. 150 The Federal FOIA indicates nine categories of exemptions from disclosure one being "medical". Note, state laws are similar to that of federal statutes, but the extent varies considerably. Public relation practitioners should familiarize themselves with state access laws.

A potential client approaches your firm wanting you to handle their new product line relating to work shoes. A current client is a competitor of this potential client in other product lines, but does not sell shoes. How should you handle this request? A. Express your gratitude but do not accept this new business. B. Take the new business but do not reveal any information about this partnership. C. Drop your current client because the new client is expected to bring in more profit margin. D. Accept the new client for this product line because it does not conflict with your current client's products that have under contract.

Answer is D - As long as the two clients are not competitors on that particular product line, your firm is not violating any loyalty by providing public relations services to both clients.

You are the public relations director for a financial company. On your first day on the job, you learn that one of the company's servers has been hacked and client information has been compromised. Information has been leaked to the press about the security breach and reporters are calling. The CEO asks for your counsel. He also wants you to limit the amount of information given to key publics as a "security" precaution. You immediately identify the ethical dilemma and work on gathering data to justify your decision regarding the best course of action. What is your next step? Choose one option below. a) Work with internal departments to compile a contact list of key publics. b) Meet with the company's designated spokesperson to coordinate media interviews. c) Review company policies and SEC regulations to influence your decision. d) Identify key values and ethical principles to support your recommendation.

Answer is c. Reference: APR study guide pg 21-22. Example of the ethical decision-making process.

You are the media relations director for a posh hotel in Arizona that has just spent $3 million in upgrades. You have issued a news release which includes a description of the hotel as the only one in the state to have three pools and a kiddie splash park. You receive a call from a CEO of a hotel across state that also has three pools and a kiddie park. You research the hotel and find out though they have three pools, only two are currently functional and the kiddie park is half the size of your hotel's kiddie park. Which one of the following is the best course of action? 1. It is acceptable to continue making the claim because your hotel is a five-star hotel and the other hotel is of a lower caliber. 2. You immediately write a correction to the news release and disseminate it to all of the communication channels you originally contacted. 3. It is acceptable to keep the marketing communications that you have created intact as long as you explain the correction to outside news sources that take an interest in the story. 4. Seek an injunction against the other hotel that will prevent them from advertising they have three pools until all three are in working condition.

Answer: 2. Ensuring accuracy and truth is an underlying principle of PR practice. If you accidentally make an error, correct it immediately with all audiences. APR Study Guide, p. 20.

You receive call from a reporter about a new hotel opening, what should you do when talking to the press? 1) Talk about how it benefits the organization and not the public 2) Argue about the design of the hotel 3) Respond with direct answers if the reporter asks direct questions 4) Respond to a question even if you don't have the right answer

Answer: 3 Effective Public Relations / page 259 Chapter 10

It is election season and you are the public relations rep for a mayoral campaign in a fairly conservative town. It has been a tight race and there are only a few weeks left until Election Day. While looking for material for the next round of commercials, a campaign staffer hands you a transcript containing unflattering information about the opponent and illicit affairs he's had with several women other than his wife. The staffer said that this information was overheard by a former staffer of the opponent while at a local bar. This juicy information is exactly what is needed to damage the opponent's reputation and put your candidate over the top to win the election. Which would be the most ethical choice in this situation for handing the information you were given? 1. You can use the information because there is no reasonable expectation of privacy at a bar. 2. You can not use the information since the former staffer did not give express permission to use what he said. 3. The information is fair game since it was gathered during the bar's normal business hours. 4. You can not use the information since you aren't sure if the source had a confidentiality agreement while as an employee of the opponent.

Answer: 4 Reasoning: Similar to "tortuous interference" liability claim by tobacco industry v. CBS for using information based on a source who was party to a standard confidentiality agreement as an employee of the tobacco industry. Source: AP Stylebook 2012, Briefing on Media Law, p. 333.

You are the vice president of corporate communications for a Fortune 500 company that is within a day of announcing plans to divest and then merge its distribution facilities into a newly formed entity. The transaction will further your company's position as a preeminent producer and supplier of automobile engines within the U.S. Your shareholders will see immediate value with gross cash proceeds in the range of $1.775 billion. Moreover, more than 750 new jobs will be created through the transaction, promising a significant economic boost to your region. In reviewing your packet of internal and external communications for tomorrow's announcement, your CEO is suggesting that you share this good news with a local business reporter to help spark interest and excitement among potential investors and community leaders. Which of the following steps should you take? A. Remind the CEO that American Stock Exchange disclosure policies require simultaneous release of investment-oriented announcements. B. Caution that a premature public announcement defies the company's shared value to inform employees of organizational developments first. C. Voice concerns that favoritism to a single reporter over others will damage important relationships with national and regional media. D. Recognize the benefits of the early announcement and promptly contact the reporter with the exciting news.

Answer: A Rationale: According to Cutlip's Effective Public Relations, page 156, announcements of material information must be shared at the same time with national business and financial news wire services, the national news wire services, the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Moody's Investors Services and Standard & Poor's Corporation. This is done in compliance with federal legislation (Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002) and Securities and Exchange Commission and the New York Stock Exchange rules all aimed at increasing transparency and eliminating unfair advantage in compensation or stock trading.

ou work for a large PR firm that is working on a special event for a PR client. You'll be hosting a series of elaborate dinners to promote the client's line of frozen foods. Food reporters will be invited and a famous chef will be be preparing the meals. You've been following the food writers preferences on their social media pages and know many prefer to eat organic over processed frozen foods. What you find most troubling though is that your boss plans to use hidden cameras at the dinner to record the reactions of the food writers when they learn that they are eating frozen dinners from the PR client's product line. Which PRSA ethical code of values are being violated here? Pick three. A - Honesty B - Conflict of Interest C - Advocacy D - Fairness

Answer: A, C and D. Conflict of Interest is a Code Provision and not a Value of the PRSA Code of Ethics.

You are the Media Relations director in the firm's Corporate Communications Office. The COO takes offense with a recent editorial that appeared in the local newspaper's weekend edition. The editorial states that he attended an online university and has demonstrated less that favorable financial decisions on behalf of the firm. Furthermore, his resignation would allow the firm to hire a qualified candidate for the COO position. He tells you he would like you to send a "letter to the editor" explaining how he has been made a victim of defamation. You ask him directly about his education and his track record with the firm. He confirms that he did indeed acquired his degree from a reputable university (online) and indicates that not every decision he has made resulted in financial gains for the firm. You explain that in order to be defamation the statement made must be untrue. In addition, you should tell him that he would have to prove the following conditions were present (select three)? A. Hatred B. Jealousy C. Contempt D. Envy E. Ridicule F. Unfavorable

Answer: A,C,E - To be defamed or damaged, an exposed person or organization must prove three conditions were present: hatred, contempt, ridicule. APR Study Guide, 2010 UAB, page 24.

You are a Public Relations Director for a major medical center, and are being asked to set up a photo shoot for your "Annual Report" - a publication sent to donors worldwide. You are photographing your local mayor, chief medical officer and a pediatric patient, who has appeared in numerous campaigns, in the past. The photographer is eager to begin shooting, and you ask for all three to sign a consent form. The photographer says, "it's not necessary to get forms signed, since one of the people is an elected official and public figure, and pictures are part of their job description, as they interact with their publics." What do you do? a. You allow the photographer to take pictures b. You ask the mayor, medical officer, and patient's parent to each sign a consent form c. You get the participant's verbal permission to take pictures d. You contact your hospital's legal department

Answer: b - You must always have each participant sign a consent form if they are taking part in any pictures, etc, in which their likeliness is being used. Reference: Cutlip & Center's Effective Public Relations, Chapter 6, Legal Considerations, page 144.

As the public relations manager for a company who produces specialized prosthetics for wounded war veterans, you are often contacted directly by customers with very personal stories and inquiries as your phone number is listed on the company's website as the media contact. Oftentimes instead of reaching out to your company's customer support—which you know to be short-staffed right now, with extremely long hold times on the phone and up to 72 hour response times via email—customers will reach out to you about inquiries regarding billing, product use and other concerns. You are doing your best to ensure every inquiry is conveyed to and addressed by the customer support team. A recent customer has latched on to you and is holding you personally responsible for addressing their serious concerns about the sizing and comfort of their prosthetic mechanism. Over the past three days, you've five phone calls and 10 emails from this customer, who is sharing graphic photos and stories about his discomfort and unrest. His last communication stated that he will be reporting this customer issue to the Channel 6 "On Your Side" reporting team if he is not fully refunded. You have alerted the leader of your customer support team, who has conveyed that they are very familiar with this customer and have done "everything they can" to resolve his concerns, including offering a new fitting and new prosthetic. However, the customer stands firm that he does not want a new fitting but instead a full refund. Your policies prohibit a complete refund outside of 30 days of purchase. What is the appropriate response to this customer's most recent communication to you? A) Respond to the customer directly to let them know that you have been in touch with your customer support team and understand that they can issue a new fitting but cannot provide a refund. B) Escalate the customer's issue to the senior leader of operations and legal counsel for review and ask them to consider issuing the refund despite company policy. C) Acknowledge the customer support team has done what they can for the customer and disregard any further emails or calls from the customer. D) Contact the reporter you frequently work with at Channel 6 to provide background on this customer's issue, asking them to provide you advance notice if the customer reaches out.

Answer: B Rationale: 1. Define the specific ethical issue/conflict. Company policies are prohibiting a customer from receiving a full refund on a product they purchased. The customer has threatened to escalate the issue to the media if they do not receive the refund, which could become a reputation issue for your company despite the company's policies. 2. Identify internal/external factors (e.g., legal, political, social, economic) that may influence the decision. Social and political factors influence the decision here as the community is sensitive to / protective of the treatment of war veterans. 3. Identify key values. ADVOCACY (understanding the sensitive nature of your customer's background and their service field), FAIRNESS (to company policies and to customers), LOYALTY (to company, customers) 4. Identify the parties who will be affected by the decision and define the public relations professional's obligation to each. COMPANY - Your loyalty must remain to the company that you work for. You are looking out for the reputation of your company and do not want this incident to negatively affect its reputation. CUSTOMER - The customer deserves fair and honest communication and support from your company and you are seeking that support on their behalf. You must, however, separate yourself from developing an intimate relationship with the customer; it's not your role to act on the company's behalf in providing solutions directly for them but to instead act as their advocate. STAKEHOLDERS - Your obligation to the stakeholders is looking out for the best interest in their investment to the company, which may be threatened if the company's reputation is at stake. EMPLOYEES - Your employees will be your company's greatest advocates if policies and procedures are communicated in a transparent and consistent way. 5. Select ethical principles to guide the decision-making process. Free flow of information, Enhancing the profession. 6. Make a decision and justify it. After weighing the immediate threats to your reputation and the persistent nature of this customer, you ask the senior leadership team to reconsider the company's refund policy and make an exception to avoid negative media attention and an upset to the community and customer base.

You are the Public Relations Director for a local school district. Recently parents have started to call with questions and concerns about the new Common Core Standards that are being adopted across the country. Some state legislators have mounted a campaign to have the standards overturned, fearing that it is an overreach of the federal government. Your superintendent asks you to put together a communication plan to help explain the new standards and their effectiveness to parents, the media, local business/community leaders, and elected officials. You put together a press packet that includes Op Ed stories and a press release; schedule interviews with local reporters; develop newsletters and brochures for parents and the community members; schedule informational meetings for parents and community members to attend; and send informational materials to your local state legislators. These efforts are examples of which communication theory or model (choose one). A. Diffusion of Innovations Theory B. Agenda Setting Theory C. Shannon-Weaver Model

Answer: B - Agenda Setting Theory - Source: APR Study Guide (page 26) - The agenda setting process is a very fluid, dynamic attempt to get the attention of the media, the public, and/or policy makers. The agenda is a "set of issues" that in order for them to become effective and part of the process, must be communicated. Reply

You are the public relations manager of a financial institution in a seaside town. A major hurricane is scheduled to hit land the next day. You anticipate that the crisis communications teams will all agree to close branches for the safety of its employees and the public. However, you have not yet released that information, internally or externally. A reporter you are friendly with is writing a story on all the local establishments set to close the next day, and heard that your company will remain open despite the looming natural disaster. What is the best course of action? A. You dispel the rumor immediately to protect your company's reputation. B. You call the reporter back confirming that the company will close branches after you inform employees through the intranet and direct email. C. You call the reporter back confirming that the company will close branches after branch managers report back that they have informed their staff.

Answer: B. APR Study Guide (2010) p. 74: "Inform your employees and internal audiences first."

You are in charge of online strategies for a health care organization, with an emphasis on writing quality content geared toward increasing organic search rank for multiple specialties and clinics. When presenting several content opportunities to a stakeholder, it is requested that your department outsource a family member as a third-party business to manage the SEO for your organization. Upon further investigation, you find that this specific business does not build quality content - but rather pays temp workers to "build" links back to your employer's website. As you dive deeper, you realize that this is deemed "black hat" in the website world and can cause damages with your links and search engines. What do you do? A. Go along with it. If it's a valuable budget spend and takes work off of your plate, why not? B. Collect best practices for SEO-tactics and create a business case for why this level of work is not worth the money or the risk. C. Tell your boss you can do both, to appease the stakeholder and your desire to build quality content. Together, the strategy may work better for the organization.

Answer: C APR Study Guide (2010) p. 20 // "Ethics principles: Maintain the integrity of communication channels; Avoid conflicts of interest; and Use honesty/integrity as your guide."

As the public affairs officer for a military installation, you must be fully informed about both state and federal open access legislation. If you are searching for information and meeting notes from a government agency meeting, you would use which of the following to obtain access to those records: A) Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 B) Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act of 1946 C) Freedom of Information Act of 1966 D) 1996 Electronic Freedom of Information Act

Answer: C. Freedom of Information Act of 1966 from Cutlip & Center's Effective Public Relations, Tenth Edition, p. 150

You start a Facebook page for a hospital birthing center. Several people "Like" your page and start posting comments about wonderful experiences they have had in your birthing center. You share them with your VP of Women's and Children's Services, who immediately says she wants to use those comments as testimonials on the hospital website. a) You contact each of the people who posted positive comments and ask for their written permission to use their comments on the hospital website. b) You use the comments on the hospital website, but leave out the names of those who posted them to protect patient information and privacy. c) You post a request on the hospital Facebook page, thanking people for their support and asking them to send you their comments for the hospital website. d) You do not post the comments, but you do link to them from the hospital website.

Answer: C. The power of social media is the honest sharing of good and bad experiences. Asking permission to reuse a comment for marketing purposes, when that comment was posted out of good will, is not as ethical as soliciting fans to submit comments and letting them know specifically how you will use them.

You are the Communication Director for a small 250 person company. Your Boss asks you to conduct a survey to determine how many members of the workforce clearly understand the company's mission statement. As you develop your survey research what type of survey samples would you select? A. Probability samples B. Nonprobability samples C. Cross-sectional D. Census

Answer: D. Census if your universe is under 300. Source: APR Study Guide (2010) page 62.

You are the marketing director for an independent nonprofit hospital in a competitive market. Your new supervisor, vice president of marketing, at a department meeting, requests that your staff start writing anonymous posts bashing a competitor in a local newspaper's popular "Talk of the Town" daily column. You: A) Figure she must know what she's doing and let your staff proceed. B) State your opposition to her privately and see where the chips fall. C) Report her request to your legal department for review. D) Refuse to partake but suggest appropriate actions that don't deceive stakeholders.

Answer: d Reasoning: Honesty and integrity need to be your guide to act in the public interest. You also want to maintain ethical relationships with the media and maintain the credibility of your organization which would be tainted if people knew who wrote these anonymous comments. (General principles underlying public relations practice)

You manage the Facebook page for a prominent software company. Last month you posted a link to an article that reported on trends in your industry and included a quote from an industry analyst who stated that the CEO of your main competitor was on anti-depressants and "crazy." You featured that quote in your post. You just found out that this quote was based on information from a leaked medical record. Now your competitor is threatening to sue your company for defamation. What should be your course of action? A) Claim that you were only quoting someone else accurately as well as using accurate information (Fair and accurate report) and therefore are protected so your post is defensible in court. B) Tell your supervisor the situation and let them handle it. C) Post a full retraction and apology on your Facebook page and engage your legal department about your actions.

C Citation: The Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law 2013, pp 328-368;

You represent a large pharmaceutical company. Your client asks you to develop a public relations campaign for a new drug that will be released soon. What is your first step? a) start planning an official launch party b) research the industry and similar products in the market c) hold a focus group to review and offer feedback on messaging options d) call a member of the media to offer them an exclusive on the story

Correct Answer: B http://www.praccreditation.org/aprdemo/htmldemo/item_12_ans.htm

As the public relations director for your company one of the functions of your office is to take photos at official company events. For this particular event your company hires a photographer outside of the company to take photos. One of the employees emails you and asks for copies of a few of the photos. What is the best response to provide to the employee? A. I will provide you the photos after I provide them for legal review. B. The organization owns an employees work done on behalf of the organization. C. The photographs can be found on the company's website and you can select the photos you would like to use. D. The photos that the company owns the copyrights to will be placed on the company's website once they are approved by the legal office.

Correct Answer D Reference: APR Study Guide 2010, page. 24

You are the public relations manager at an active adult community reporting to the community's developer. The community is about to announce an expansion, which shows growth, and is intended to drive awareness of available lots. Your VP would like to share this news via the company's blog and Facebook page. What are the benefits of using these information channels? 1. Actively engage stakeholders to create a conversation 2. Reach a broad audience 3. Third part credibility 4. The results are easily measured

Correct Answer: 1 and 4 Social media is the only marketing platform that allows you to engage and interact with your consumers - it's a two-way relationship The results are measurable, and practitioners can take immediate action to spot trends and re-align campaigns (Cutlip & Center's EPR, 11th Edition, pgs. 209-221)

You are a public relations director for a printing and graphic design company composed of more than 100 employees in three cities across the southeast. An employee in the sales department has turned in her two week notice, and is scheduled for an exit interview with the company's vice president of human resources. One month later, your supervisor calls you in to discuss a negative posting on a company review site that she believes was the former employee. Your supervisor accuses this former employee and would like to explore the option of pressing charges for defamation of character. Your supervisor asks you to confirm that the former employee made these same negative statements in her exit interview. Which one of the following is the best course of action? A. Contact the former employee and inform her that the company is looking into a defamation case. B. Provide your supervisor with the exit questionnaire filled out by the former employee at the exit interview. C. Share your personal reactions to the exit interview. D. Discuss previous conversations other employes have had with the former employee.

Correct Answer: B

You are a public relations manager for a large non-profit that operates several homeless shelters. A female resident at one of the shelters sends out a tweet, along with a photo, claiming that one of the shelter's bathrooms is dirty and has bugs. When you contact the shelter manager, you are told that the bathroom is perfectly clean and the woman who sent the tweet is a troublemaker. What should you do first? (Please choose ONE of the options below) A) Dispute the resident's claim by sending a tweet that states "we always maintain the highest standards of cleanliness in our shelters." B) Respond to resident's tweet by acknowledging the resident's concern and letting her know that your organization will address her complaints. C) Survey other shelter residents about the cleanliness of the shelter bathrooms. D) Speak to your shelter manager's supervisor about the situation.

Correct Answer: B Rationale: Since you do not have firsthand knowledge about the cleanliness of the bathroom, any factual claims you make regarding the bathroom's condition may be false or misleading. To deal fairly with all publics, you must acknowledge the resident's concern, even if you believe her claims to be false. While options 3 & 4 may be part of your response plan, option 2 is the best first response to the situation. Source: APR Study Guide, p.20 (General principles underlying public relations practice)

You are the head of your company's PR department. You are working with an agency on your upcoming 50th anniversary event, which is weeks away. The agency is securing promotional items to give away at your event to employees, stakeholders and community leaders who have contributed to your company's success. The agency often utilizes Get Noticed, a large specialty promotional sales company. Get Noticed has given the best delivery turnaround time as well as the lowest pricing for your items. Your spouse is the CEO of Get Noticed but was not involved in the the sales pitch or price negotiations for this account. The agency is unaware of your affiliation with Get Noticed and you have never mentioned using their company in the past. Get Noticed offered the most competitive pricing as well as a turnaround time that fits within your time constraints. Which of the following is the best course of action? A) Allow the PR agency to make the decision independently, without your input one way or the other. If Get Noticed has the best prices, they deserve the account. B) Notify the PR agency as well as your supervisors of the potential conflict of interest. Allow them to make the final call on moving forward with the account or not. C) Notify the agency of your affiliation with Get Noticed and request they not utilize the promo company for any future programs. D) Request the PR Agency to grant the account to Get Noticed - they have the best prices and turnaround time.

Correct Answer: C Although your company may spend more on the promotional items and Get Noticed may lose out on a large account, the loss of trust and a negative perception of your company due to how this conflict of interest could be perceived could damage the credibility of your company with key stakeholders, employees and community members. Your obligation is to protect your client's reputation and credibility.

You are the director of public relations for a school district that recently got in trouble for a cheating scandal. The media has written a number of negative stories since the incident occurred. The school district was given corrective actions to complete by a certain date and has failed to comply regarding one of the requirements. The school district superintendent wants you to send out a press release touting the changes that were successfully made, ignoring the action that was not achieved. Which two answers best represent the way to address this request? A. Draft and the send out the release because most of the corrective actions were achieved successfully. B. Explain the importance of being transparent given the delicate nature of the situation. C. Go to the media and try to get ahead of the story before any articles are published. D. Write a release that addresses both the successes and shortcomings of the corrective action plans.

Correct Answers: B and D B. You want to discuss transparency with your boss and underscore the importance of being honest about the progress the school district has made, even if there were shortcoming. There should also be counsel on how to address this shortcoming stakeholders (employees, parent, students, community, community leaders, media) know you are work to correct this action. D. You want to write a release that touts the accomplishments but also address the shortcoming of not meeting one of the corrective action. You should also address how this will be corrected as the school districts works to make sure cheating does not happen in the future. These answers fall under several areas of the PRSA Code of Ethics - Professional Values (Honesty), Core Principles (Free Flow of Information & Disclosure of Information). (PR Strategies and Tactics 7th pgs 60 - 63; EPR 10th, 151-153)

Your new employee forgot to get an intern to sign a release form for her photo for the annual report. He also secretly recorded a phone conversation with a client that he was afraid would turn confrontational. As you debate whether to keep this employee in your agency, you have him write an essay on which of the following torts? Choose 2. A) Public disclosure B) False Light C) Intrusion D) Appropriation

Correct answer - C & D. Secretly recording a conversation is a violation of intrusion and using a person's image or name without their permission is Appropriation. a is embarrassing facts or pictures that come out in public and B is when a truthful statement is out of context and puts a person or organization in a misleading context.

You have been informed by your boss that the government organization you work for is going to hold an off-site meeting and team-building activity. The meeting will start at 2 and end at 4, which is the normal office closing time for the organization. When you ask, you are told the team-building exercise is bowling, and the off-site location is a bowling alley that serves alcohol, which will be paid for by employees and not the government organization. What is your next step in determining if this is legal and / or ethical? 1. Identify the pros and cons of your decision. 2. Discuss with legal team to determine what activities are allowed using taxpayer resources. 3. Identify what other public and non-public organizations do for team-building activities. 4. Provide clarity on who can purchase what at the team-building activity.

Correct answer is #2. EPR 10th, pgs 157-158.

You are the Public Relations Director for a nonprofit agency. Your executive director is concerned about the budget and asks you to develop a fundraising campaign, complete with a logo, tagline and slogan. She shows you one from a similar nonprofit agency in another state across the country and says she wants to copy their campaign idea, including the logo. What should you do? 1. Copy the idea since it is unlikely that the other agency would ever see it since they are in another part of the country. 2. Take the idea, but make significant changes in order to make it "your own". 3. Explain to your boss that it would be unethical and a possible trademark violation if the other agency had trademarked the campaign/logo.

Correct answer is 3. Due to trademark restrictions as well as ethical considerations, you cannot steal a trademark to use as yours.

The boss has asked you to compile a 50th anniversary coffee table book in which copies will be made available for sale to the public. She asks you to include aerial photographs that show how the company expanded over the years. Your review of the dozen or so aerial photographs clearly shows that the photos were copyrighted by the aerial photographer, who is now deceased. Which of the following two statements are true about a photograph copyright? A) Purchasing a print means you have lawfully purchased the copyright B) Once a photographer dies, copyrighted work he/she created also expires C) Unless you have permission from the photographer, you can't copy, distribute D) Copyright infringement involves a violation of the copyright "rights" of an owner

Correct answers: C, D; Source: Copyright section in EPR, 11th edition, pp. 139-140 ... note: if you cannot obtain permission to use a photograph, you must assume life + 75 years before "assuming" you can use a photograph.

Your client is developing its first grooming product, a baby shampoo, and intends to promote it as green with all-natural ingredients. Your research reveals that formaldehyde often is added to shampoo to prevent bacteria from growing in water-based products. Other research links formaldehyde to cancer in humans. You check a draft of the product label and there is no listing of formaldehyde. You speak with the CEO, who confirms there will be formaldehyde in the shampoo. He reminds you that formaldehyde occurs naturally in the environment, and that there are no U.S. laws banning its use in beauty products. What do you do? Choose two. A. Convince the client to add formaldehyde to the list of ingredients, and keep the all-natural label. B. Counsel the client to reformulate the shampoo to eliminate the public's exposure to toxic ingredients. C. Don't list formaldehyde in the ingredients, and label the product as: All ingredients found in nature. D. Prepare talking points to explain how formaldehyde prevents bacteria in baby products. E. Remind the client of the potential damage to their reputation if their claims are false or misleading.

Correct answer is B and E. Answer Analysis: A. Convince the client to add formaldehyde to the list of ingredients, and keep the all-natural label. This is truthful, but still deceptive. "All-natural" isn't necessarily healthy or green as is demonstrated by naturally occurring, but poisonous, formaldehyde. B. Counsel the client to reformulate the shampoo to eliminate the public's exposure to toxic ingredients. Removing the possibility of harm is in the best interest of the client, the public, the PR profession and the PR professional. C. Don't list formaldehyde in the ingredients, and label the product as: All ingredients found in nature. This is misleading by omitting information that could harm the public. D. Prepare talking points to explain how formaldehyde prevents bacteria in baby products. This tactic positions formaldehyde as the lesser of two evils. Would you rather have a little formaldehyde or a lot of bacteria in your baby shampoo? It will not hold up to public scrutiny for safety. E. Remind the client of the potential damage to their reputation if their claims are false or misleading. PR professionals are duty-bound to inform their clients of the consequences of greenwashing and false or misleading claims that could lead to legal action, loss of revenue and loss of public trust. Sources: Public Relations Society, Professional Standards Advisory PS-12, Questionable Environmental Claims and Endorsements (Greenwashing)

You are a manager in the public relations department, not the department head, who is away on holiday, when an accident occurs on one of the assembly lines of your company. Hence, you have to take charge of the situation. Which of the following steps do you not carry out as part of your decision-making process? 1. Identify internal and external factors (legal, political, social, economic) that may influence the decision. 2. Identify the audiences who will be affected by the decision and define your obligation to each. 3. Select ethical principles to guide your decision-making process. 4. Give false information if it ensures that your company will not be painted in a bad light.

Correct answer: 4. Ensure accuracy and truth; hence, do not disseminate false and misleading information. (APR Study Guide, page 20.)

You work for Blackwell County Environmental Protection who received a grant as part of the federal stimulus to implement a homeowner energy efficiency outreach program. As part of this program you are required to give a series of energy efficiency workshops to homeowner associations in the county about the importance of energy efficiency upgrades and the tools the new program provides. Your supervisor provided you the presentation materials and in preparation for the first workshop you conduct research to better position yourself for responding to questions. As part of this research, you discover that several statements in the presentation are misleading and promote changes to the home that are not energy efficient upgrades and even recommend a specific contractor to complete this work. You even uncover email correspondence between the contractor and your supervisor arranging work on his home at no cost based on the number of new clients received through the program. Is it ethical to present the workshop information as provided by your supervisor ? (select 2) a.Yes, If you present this information you are acting in the public interest. b.No, If you present this information you are not using honesty and integrity as your guide. c.Yes, loyalty to your employer and management comes before other obligations. d.No, If you present this information you are not avoiding a potential conflict of interest.

Correct answer: B & D Rationale: "The application of ethics to the practice of public relations is critical to our profession" Common Ethical Principles of Public Relations Practice Act in the public interest. Find the greater good for the majority of the people. Use honesty and integrity as your guide. Ensure accuracy and truth. Do not disseminate false and misleading information. Avoid conflicts of interest. Disclose interests of yourself and others. Source: APR Study Guide page 20.

You are responsible for maintaining your organization's corporate blog. As a part of your responsibility, you must manage and edit all guest blogger content, including photos. Your upcoming guest blogger, an employee of the organization's, submits a photo of his own, but no copywright information is included. Who owns the content, and how do you proceed? A: The blogger. You must obtain written permission to use the photo. B: The organization. As an employee, the photo for use on the blog is property of the organization. C: The blogger. You can proceed with photo use after receiving verbal consent. D: The organization. You are allowed to use anything for professional use.

Correct answer: B. The organization owns any work done by an employee for purpose of use within the organization.

Jonah Lehrer, the 31 year old wunderkind author of Imagine, was recently fired from the New Yorker. He was caught for several violations - made up quotes including one attributed to Bob Dylan. A Dylan scholar hounded him for the source and Jonah had to confess he made it up. The publisher of Wired.com hired a journalism professor to review his work for authenticity. The professor discovered Lehrer paraphrased without attribution and some of his conclusions were found to be from the work of another scientist. Which of the above are violations of copyright? A) Making up quotes B) Paraphrasing without attribution C) Copying another scientist's work for his own book

Correct answer: C. a is unethical, b is plagiarism.

You have been tasked to put together a web page containing op-eds pertaining to your organization's mission that members might be interested in. Which of the following do you not have to seek copyright permission for: a. Publish the entire article on the web b. Publish excerpt of the article on the web c. Email the article to your members

Correct answer: b. You do not have to seek copyright permission if if you post just an excerpt from the article and link to the original source of the article (EPR, 10th, pg 158

You are the Public Relations Manager for a company that is contracted by the Federal Government. The National Sales Manager has asked that the company website be updated to include testimonials and quotes from various departments in the organization, customers and potential clients, and affiliated membership organization partners. You agree and begin to gather quotes directly from sales team members and management; however, your third party affiliates tell you to just pull from their website. Which of the following protects the right to include such information? a. Freedom of Information Act b. First Amendment c. Commercial Speech d. Copyright Protection e. Consent

Correct answer: e Citation: Cutlip and Center's Effective Public Relations. 10th ed. Chapter 6.

As the internal communications officer of a large corporation, You've discovered numerous unofficial newsletters being published and distributed to 3,000 employees without your knowledge. On further investigation you discover in each newsletter a national ad appeared with the copyright symbol listed, but with digital modifications made to each ad changing the color and size. What three significant copyright laws were violated here? A. Downloading materials from the Internet, Fair Use, and Statutory Copyright B. Product Publicity, Photography & Artwork, Copyright Act D. Common law copyright, Fair Use Doctrine, and Infringement E. Trademark Infringement, Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), and Copyright Infringement.

E. Trademark Infringement, Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), and Copyright Infringement. (EPR, pg. 157-163; S&T, pg. 301-310) Verify this answer - I think it may be wrong

You are the public information officer at the state department of education. A reporter calls you asking your data office to create a report about where students have transferred from certain school districts to other school districts in a large metro city. They cite the freedom of information act (FOIA) for obtaining the information. You deny the request due to time constraints on the data team. Are you allowed to deny this FOIA request? Choose one. A. Yes, because the reporter did not submit the request in writing. B. No, because the reporter is entitled to access government records. C. Yes, because the government is not required to create new documents. D. No, because the reporter is not asking for private student data.

The answer is C. Reporters can gain access to any existing government documents, but the government is not required to create new documents (or undertake extensive data analysis) to satisfy a reporter request. AP Stylebook 2010 pages 381-382.

You were recently hired by AARP in Baltimore, MD. Your first project is to convince city government to increase the discount qualified seniors can receive on their quarterly water, stormwater and sewer bills from 35% to 50%. The incentive you have to offer to city government is a list of guaranteed water suppliers that will make the discount possible. Which of the following does AARP not have to do on your behalf? A. Report contact info for anyone who contributes $10,000 or more in six-month period for this project B. Report the water suppliers' contact info to Congress C. File financial reports twice a year for this project D. Register you as a public relations practitioner under the Foreign Agents Act of 1938

The answer is D based on the requirements of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 listed on p. 153 in Cutlip & Center's Effective Public Relations, 10th Edition.

You are the communications manager for a large real estate development company attempting to get approvals to build and management an apartment complex near a university. The development will bring 500 students into an historic neighborhood near the school. Home owners in the neighborhood are opposed to the development. You arrange and participate in several meetings with the neighborhood. In one, a woman becomes very emotional and delivers a dramatic appeal to stop the development. After the meeting, one of your team members writes a humorous email describing the meeting and portrays the woman as hysterical, ignorant and obviously "off her medication." By the time you see the email, it has been accidentally sent outside the company. In hours, it's posted to the neighborhood's forum, where it sets off a firestorm of negative comments. The woman, who turns out to be a lawyer, calls to say she's suing for libel. Your boss calls you into his office and asks: is this libel and what do we do? Your answer is: 1. No. Libel is a defamation that is published in the media. We need to apologize to the woman, but let it lie. This will blow over. 2. It's not libel. It has been published, but it is opinion which courts have specifically protected by the First Amendment. You need to call the woman to apologize personally, reassign the writer to another project, and I'll write an apology to post on their forum. 3. No. It's not libel because the woman thrust herself into a public debate making what he wrote fair comment. It was an internal document, and we're not responsible for it being published on the forum. We need to apologize and hold another meeting with the neighborhood to smooth things over. 4. Yes. It's libel. She was a private individual held up to ridicule out of malice, not negligence. We should offer an immediate apology as a type of retraction.

The best answer is 2. Rational: Effective Public Relations: Page 162. "In all libel actions, the defendant has a number of legal defenses available to counter a libel lawsuit. Opinion defenses: the definition of libel is that there be a false statement of fact. Traditionally, courts protected opinion from successful libel lawsuits because the punishment of opinion involves the punishment of ideas, and this is at the heart of the First Amendment protection for speech and press freedom.

An item in the company's annual report describes the company's fundraising efforts to aid a local organization that is fighting muscular dystrophy. The item includes a photo of a man on crutches at a company fundraiser. The photo has no caption but the implication is that the man has MD, while in fact he is an employee who injured his leg in a company-sponsored ski trip. What part of the Right of Privacy is the photo's main legal issue? A) Appropriation of a person's name or face for commercial purposes B) Public disclosure of embarrassing private facts C) Placing a person in a false light, misrepresentation D) Intrusion into someone's personal space, which can be by recordings, photography as well as physically

The correct answer is C. The man does not have MD as implied in the item, so he has been misrepresented. False light does not require damage to reputation. (APR Study Guide, p. 25)

You are the Communications Director for a local school district. One of your duties is to manage the content that goes on the public website. All of the schools that have PTO organizations are listed on the website. A parent group that is not connected to a school but are very active in the community ask to be listed on the website with other PTO groups. What should you do? Choose one. A. Allow the group to be listed because they are a parent group. B. Inform the group that there are schools without PTO's and they should help establish a group at one of those schools. C. Inform the group that you can't accomodate their request because the list is for PTO groups that are attached to a school. D. Tell the group that you need to talk to your boss and you will get back in touch with them.

The correct answer is C. APR study guide page 20. "Maintain the integrity of communication channels."