Homework
Prior to beginning work on this homework, read the article Crisis Communication and Ethics: The Role of Public Relations, and then watch the video Protecting a Company's Public Relationship in Times of White Collar Criminal Crisis.
A well-known professional baseball player is suspected of having used steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs. He has not been charged. His agent asks you to advise and assist him in handling the intense media interest in the case. He wants you to try to place favorable stories about the baseball star in the media and create a positive environment for him. If formally accused, it could mean irreparable damage to his baseball career.
You are not asked to do anything unethical. The money is quite good, and you know the publicity from working on the case will probably help your public relations consulting career, especially if the athlete is exonerated. The agent tells you confidentially that the athlete has admitted that he took some substance that was unknown to him, but that may have been steroids. Consider the following in your proposal:
1) Would you take the account?
2) Does the athlete's unawareness of taking steroids affect your decision?
3) What are the ethics of the situation as you see them?
Write a proposal to your business partners regarding the situation. Answer all questions brought up in the case and compare the case to at least one similar case with a well-known ballplayer found through your research. Use the Public Relations News Research in the UAGC Library guide to find a similar case to support this homework.
Finally, provide a recommendation to your partners as to whether you should accept the contract.
In your paper,
1) Analyze the case.
2) Determine if you should take the case.
a) Does the information that the athlete may have unwittingly taken steroids affect your decision to take the case?
b) What are the ethics of the situation as you see them?
3) Write a proposal to your business partners regarding the situation.
a) Assess all questions brought up in the case.
b) Compare the case to at least one similar case with a well-known ballplayer found through research.
c) Provide a recommendation as to whether you should accept the contract.
Format your homework according to the following formatting requirements:
(1) The answer should be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides.
(2) The response also includes a cover page containing the title of the homework, the student's name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
(3) Also include a reference page. The Citations and references should follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.