Revisiting the Impact of the Pandemic on Cultural Diversity in Advertising and Public Relations Courses

Abstract

Cultural diversity is a topic that has been taught across disciplines, but the pandemic has made it more difficult for universities and colleges to teach and discuss it when active interaction is limited in the classroom setting. The difficulties and challenges observed in communication courses, including advertising and public relations, brought this interdisciplinary talk with three professors. In the reflective essay, the faculties discuss the importance of teaching and discussing cultural diversity in the disciplines and how to incorporate the topic into the curriculum while acknowledging the challenges during the pandemic. Finally, the observations from teaching the courses last two years and analysis of theories and literature offered some guidelines and recommendations to help students and faculties move forward in the post-pandemic

Advertising is often seen as the epitome of capitalism and a mirror of society. As Pollay (1986) points out, cultural values are reflected in advertising but often disproportionally or distorted. He argues that several factors, including politics and religion, prioritize the chosen values in advertising. Reality is reflected in advertising, but what is depicted can influence how people think and behave. Assuming many advertising and public relations professionals have degrees in their expertise when entering the workplace, the importance of higher education to mirror including cultural diversity to students during the pandemic must be considered.

The unprecedented pandemic also shed light on disparity in health and many challenges in higher education (Solomos, 2021). Increasing reports on racism and discrimination have been observed during the pandemic regarding the diversity of the geographic area, given the decreased exposure to diverse races (Su et al., 2022). A survey report by Jensen et al. (2022) stated that some disciplines, such as social sciences, faced more challenges in adopting remote learning than others during the pandemic. The challenges included varied skill sets in using technology, extra work/time added to the faculty and staff in an effort to modify the class structure, and a declined number of internships (specifically international internships). The report also suggests that several universities included in the survey tend to be more theory-focused than practice due to remote learning.

Specifically, the lack of cultural diversity in the classroom due to the decline in international students and difficulties in participating in experiential learning with project-based assignments made it difficult for students and faculties to perform the tasks designed before the pandemic (Nietzel, 2021). The level of cultural awareness and cultural identity declined during the pandemic due to low visibility and exposure to a diverse audience. The sense of belonging among BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) students and first-year college students was particularly low (Potts, 2021). In addition, we faced challenges in interacting with students who had help accessing the Internet or had low Internet literacy. In fact, many students couldn’t adapt to face-to-face classes, and students with physical disabilities or language barriers had difficulty adapting to classes during and after the pandemic, requiring the instructor to adjust the class format. Identifying the need for neurodiverse individuals and providing adequate support during the pandemic were particularly challenging. It was because DEI initiates often overlooked this group (Dwyer et al., 2023). This is especially true for advertising and public relations courses where at least one or more major assignments are case study and project-based.

As universities and faculties in higher education have had to make drastic changes during and post-pandemic, this essay aims to discuss the challenges, changes, and recommendations from several sets of observations and literature reviews from faculties of advertising and public relations courses.

The Need for Cultural Diversity in the Field of Advertising and Public Relations

With the emergence of globalization and the advent of the Internet that enables long-distance and borderless communication, advertising and public relations practitioners have been forced to work on developing and maintaining relationships between organizations and their internal and external publics from different geographical and cultural backgrounds (Sriramesh, 2003). Rapidly growing ethnic minorities in the U.S. population also provide a rationale for developing advertising and public relations courses with a multicultural focus. According to the U.S. Census Bureau (2021), the number of ethnic minorities has increased since 2010, and the diversity index rose from 54.9% in 2010 to 61.1% in 2020. However, an article by Zippa.com (Public Relations Demographics and Statistics in the US, n.d.) suggested that white is the dominant race in the industry as of 2021, comprising over 67% (a decrease from 75% in 2010) with little or no change in others race (e.g., Asians and African Americans) except for Hispanics.

Even though “diversity as strength” is often used to advocate diversity issues in most organizations, employment discrimination and harassment of racial and ethnic minorities are still common in the workforce (Hon & Brunner, 2000, p. 310; Li et al., 2021), thus requiring attention to the critical role of advertising and public relations education in reexamining and developing strategies to encourage diversity communication and practice. Scholars and practitioners in advertising also understand the significance of cultural diversity to reflect the values of the professional world (Holt, 2017). To understand multiple layers of cultures, especially in advertising and public relations education, providing adequate education for practitioners should include several perspectives ranging from the organization to the global perspectives. As Norman and McFarlane-Alvarez (2023) stated, using social media and advanced technology highlighted the importance of broadening intercultural awareness among advertising and PR students and practitioners.

Defining culture or cultural values, let alone cultural diversity, requires a multi-dimensional approach. However, as Godfrey and his colleagues point out (Godfrey et al., 2020), most measurements examining cultural diversities revolve around racial diversity, ethnicity, and nationality. The concept of cultural diversity should go beyond thinking only of other races and cultures but rather include all socially underprivileged people and minorities because the notion of socioeconomic diversity has been largely disregarded despite its impact on society. Therefore, this study seeks to expand the definition of cultural diversity by including digital diversity, which encompasses digital inclusion and digital literacy, considering the unique circumstances of the pandemic.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Efforts Made in the University Setting

In response to the importance of globalization in the industry for a few decades (Bardhan, 2003; Taylor, 2001), educators in advertising and public relations have been incorporating international or multicultural perspectives into their curricula of undergraduate courses with the help of digital textbooks containing case studies on various cultures. One of the attempts to introduce and discuss cultural diversity and values in advertising courses for a critical cultural approach is to have students more involved in the classroom by including students from different cultural backgrounds to reflect their perspective on the advertisements (Brown & Sekimoto, 2017).

From late April to early May 2022, Meganck and Kim (2022) surveyed 77 public relations educators to examine how they implemented Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in the classroom by providing six dimensions to evaluate pedagogical approaches (intrapersonal awareness, professional development, interpersonal awareness, curricular transformation, inclusive pedagogy, and inclusive learning environment) and five dimensions of structural elements (value statements and policies in course materials, course objectives and learning outcomes, textbook selection/reading selection, assignments, and course evaluation).

According to the study, PR educators put their efforts into creating inclusive pedagogy and learning environment (e.g., by caring for their students, providing constructive and positive feedback, and working closely together inside and outside the classroom), intrapersonal awareness (e.g., by sharing, articulating, and examining diverse cultural background, values, ideas, and experiences with students), and interpersonal awareness (e.g., by fostering group work and class discussion where students’ diverse experiences and perspectives are respected). However, the findings suggest that PR educators should make additional efforts in professional development efforts and curriculum transformation by working with diverse groups to practice DEI skills beyond attending DEI workshops and conferences and articulating DEI objectives and course evaluation.

For the structural elements, the finding showed that the inclusion of value statements and policies in course materials has been actively practiced, as the inclusion of a disability-related statement is mandated at the institutional level. The finding also demonstrated that PR educators select textbooks and reading materials with examples and applications, including diverse people and multiple sociocultural perspectives. However, it showed that DEI-focused course objectives, learning outcomes, and evaluation were not directly related to course materials.

The Impact of Pandemics on Cultural Diversity in Advertising and Public Relations Programs

During the pandemic, racism and hatred against different ethnic/cultural minorities released social, economic, or political tension and frustration. Racial and ethnic underrepresentation has been considered a significant problem in public relations education and practice (Maiorescu-Murphy, 2022). The sharp decline in international students enrolled in U.S. colleges and universities since 2020 has made it even more difficult for the class to be culturally diverse, which would have helped more exposure to diversity in the classroom setting otherwise (Nietzel, 2021). More specifically, the shutdown of study abroad programs nationwide and globally made it difficult for students to have hands-on experiences working on projects representing culturally diverse groups. Although it wasn’t the direct result of the pandemic or explicitly created for the situation, virtual collaborations such as the COIL (i.e., Collaborative Online International Learning) project have been implemented by several universities, including DePaul University. Mundel’s (2020) project with Amsterdam University demonstrated that virtual collaboration can create interest and understanding of other cultures even with challenges such as time differences and class structures.

The benefits of collaborative work, such as critical thinking and the ability to solve problems, will be difficult to achieve in a remote learning setting (Friesen & Kuskis, 2013). For example, one of the authors taught strategic sports communication. Conducting promotional events for a sports organization was the final assignment, requiring research, planning, execution, and evaluation, requiring frequent visits to the facility, and in-person communication. During the pandemic, the assignment should be reduced due to limited resources, availability, and other unforeseeable restrictions. Fortunately, after the pandemic, we could resume the regular operation of the campaign project to some extent.

Similarly, Ogletree and Diaz Beltran (2021) pointed out that the pandemic forced educators and students to rely on technology to interact and discuss topics that were often limited due to remote learning. Before the pandemic, with an experiential learning approach, advertising and public relations classes incorporated non-profit and small-sized minority organizations as part of class projects. Those projects helped students to understand the organization’s challenges and develop the campaign accordingly. However, the pandemic had a detrimental impact on networking with the organization by limiting involvement in remote settings or being less proactive in overall communication.

Moreover, assessing students' intellectual capacity during the pandemic has been another important task instructors must include in their teaching. Tests and the types of assignments that were designed and used before the pandemic may require a major revamp. Alhabash’s (2021) observation and experience teaching his advertising courses suggest that students struggled with cumulative tests, while some international students were forced to interact with classmates in written discussions that were not their forte (Chen et al., 2023).

Recommendations and Conclusion

Despite the challenges and hardship during the pandemic, the good news was that several entities in the field of advertising and public relations strived to bring the talk of diversity. Interdisciplinary talks with educators and professionals through conferences, workshops, and forums have been resumed in person post-pandemic. The discussions covered a broad spectrum of diversity, including culture, workplace, and work (Spring et al., 2021). Even during the pandemic, the authors observed increasing virtual talks with prominent scholars and professionals made available to students that would be otherwise limited due to financial burdens.

Despite the popular meme, “It is in the syllabus,” insinuating that students do not read the syllabus, educators should acknowledge the significance of the syllabus. It is because the syllabus is a venue where instructors and students communicate, and the changes made during the pandemic should be reflected to make the course more inviting and inclusive for students (Chen et al., 2023). Inviting speakers from various cultural backgrounds (Biswas et al., 2022) can also be a great way of introducing diversity to students.

Many universities have noticed the importance of DEI in various ways, such as through diversity statements and workshops for faculty and staff (McBrayer, 2022; Meganck & Kim, 2022). Meganck and Kim (2022) found that educators in public relations tend to evaluate themselves highly in pedagogical approaches to improve the advancement of DEI, for example, to create an inclusive atmosphere and raise awareness of DEI. However, public relations educators should strive to make more efforts to transform and address structural elements of the curriculums (e.g., value statements and policies, course objectives and learning outcomes, and course evaluations; Meganck & Kim, 2022).

Besides developing the curriculum on multicultural advertising and public relations for K-12 and higher education, college students need multicultural experience outside the classroom to understand a different culture and deal with prejudice, ethnocentrism, racism, and discrimination toward ethnic minorities. In that regard, Brown et al., (2019) support that K-12 and higher education should work with the public industry to address racial/ethnic diversity issues to help students be prepared for their careers “academically, socially, and professionally” (p.6). One of the approaches the authors find effective regarding bringing multicultural voices outside the classroom is to invite high-school students to the media affair at one of the local universities. The media affair or university showcase tends to provide various projects created before, during, and after the pandemic. Exposure to works depicting diversity and providing chances for the high schoolers to ask and discuss the works would have a positive and mutually beneficial impact.

It is worth noting that most students learn about advertising and public relations in college. Therefore, the role of the college cultural centers becomes more important. The cultural centers support opportunities for advertising and public relations practitioners and community members to enhance academic activities and programs with an integrated view of cultural diversity. Advertising and public relations educators will be able to create a venue where students can discuss and present their projects and hear opinions from other professors and experts through symposiums or mini-conferences in connection with cultural centers. It will help students understand the differences and coexistence between different cultures and people beyond the local communities and grow into a professional in advertising and public relations who recognizes cultural diversity. Alternatively, instructors of advertising and PR courses can have a portion of their course dedicated to “cultural diversity appreciation” by informing students about news articles or topics about cultural diversity during each class.

We also suggest including cultural identities in the introductory levels of advertising and public relations courses curriculum. In many cases, faculties encounter students who have struggled to understand the boundary of cultural diversity. Students should understand multiple layers of cultural identity and its components that influence their perspectives, behaviors, and communication styles. Faculties can include cultural diversity or identity statements in the syllabus in the context of course policy statements and other statements often found in the syllabus (e.g., attendance or grading policy). Alternatively and preferably, the diversity statements can be implemented in the syllabus as learning objectives (Appendix A), which will relate to the course assignments and discussion (Appendix B).

One of the positive things that came out of the pandemic was the experiment of different class formats. If the hybrid class model is actively used, it will positively impact students by involving every student in discussion. The hybrid class model can also help with class projects in advertising and public relations on organizations or communities consisting of social members without high Internet literacy based on their physical, mental, language, and other difficulties. Instructors can accommodate those students in need with much flexibility.

As the flow of our studies now places value on influencing and contributing to society and nurturing social leaders, cultural diversity should be discussed more frequently through introducing and discussing new cases in class. Assigning projects while working closely with organizations that aim to create and increase cultural diversity might be a path coming out of the pandemic. Doing so would require a collective effort from educators and students to be proactive in their conversations. Outside the classroom, active community outreach and cooperation should move toward mutual communication between the university and the local community.

Branching out the class activities and implementing small projects revolving around cultural diversities can help close the gap. Coupled with the university’s cultural center, encouraging international internship programs, and promoting financial support for study abroad programs might be good opportunities for students to gain valuable experience, enhance their skills, and broaden their cultural awareness, given that most restrictions for international travel have been lifted by now.

After years of trial and error with virtual technology, many positive things emerged from the pandemic. More opportunities with experts and industry professionals using virtual setups helped universities with limited resources, and we will be able to see meaningful progress in discussing cultural diversity in various advertising and PR courses. Although the fruition came slowly, the pandemic made instructors more adaptive and flexible in their teaching methods, which are mutually beneficial for students and instructors.