Do we hire for "Free" Media?" in a new media form
In today's world, it is almost undeniable that the new media which involves any contents generated in the internet is so prevalent in our daily lives in every aspect. However, with the new media there are two types which are paid media and free media. Paid media refers to contents on the net which must be paid examples are particularly related to advertisements, marketing or the publicity of a product in the internet in the form of banner ads, pop-ups, video advertisements and so on which must be paid. Free media on the other hand many times refers to sites in which are free of charge for users to use and a great example of free media are social link websites such as Facebook, Youtube, Twitter or personal blogsites. In Malaysia, almost 90% of our population are on Facebook which is a social media website on the internet and we are some of the most active users in the world. Now, the question do we hire for Free Media refers to whether there is a need to hire a specific and specialize personnel to handle all affairs of the free media in an organization.
In my personal opinion, yes we do hire new media personnel today and is a practicing trend by many organizations nowadays. Moreover, it is a must for organizations to have a new media personnel.
The first reason to my opinion is because it is undeniable that the new media is constantly changing and adapting itself daily with bits of pieces of new changes here and there. The media of today may be totally different from the new media of yesterday. Due to this constantly evolving new media it is vital for an organization to hire a new media officer to keep track of all these changes and to understand the effective measures to meet the organizations desires. By having a specific personnel to keep track of all these changes, it allows an organization to be up to date to any trends or happenings rather than being left out therefore being ineffective any longer. Example about last year a major world trend was the gangnam phenomena which was greatly discussed and circulated in the free media. From this many organizations used this phenomena and created their own versions of the gangnam style and used this as a sort of advertsement or publicity for the organization to great success. This understanding of trend may come from new media personnel.
The second reason is the knowledge a new media executive may have which will be beneficial to an organization. Today, there are many studies relating to the new media students must undergo in their education which equips potential new media officer with the knowledge and understanding to how the new media works nowadays. Example, the study we are taking now which is PR and New Media is a subject which allows students to have a greater understanding to the world of new media and how as PR practitioners we may use it effectively. Being equip with these knowledge sets new media personnel apart from other personnel in an organization.
The third reason is that by having a new media personnel it allows a specific person to be in charge of all the free media aspects. It is advantageous as by having a specific new media personnel it allows specific focus and attention paid in any pressing issues relating to the new media or free media rather by having example another public relations practitioners to handle this alongside other issues. The new media particularly free media needs a specific person in charge for example with social link sites like facebook it allows immediate and prompt feedback from users. Therefore, it is vital for an organization to have a personnel in replying these feedbacks to foster greater relationship with the public and also to prevent any problems to arise from these.
To summarize, the hiring of a new media personnel is vital for any organization seeking to effectively tap into the world of new media. With today's free media where contents can be generated by anyone anytime, it also arises many problems and without a specific personnel to monitor all these, may prove potentially harmful to an organization.
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