Running head: ANNOTATIVE BIBLIOGRAPHY 1

Annotative Bibliography

Organizational and Corporate Communications

Gabi Samaniego

The University of Texas at El Paso

RWS 1301

Dr. Vierra

October 26, 2019

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Research Questions

1. What is Communications?

2. What are people doing with Organizational and Corporate Communications degrees?

3. How does Organizational and Corporate Communications differ from other media

majors?

4. What is UTEP’s history with the Liberal Arts department?

5. What are UTEP’s resources to help Communication majors succeed?

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Annotative Bibliography

Monograph

Fernandez, J. (2004). Corporate communications: A 21st century primer. New Delhi/Thousand

Oaks/London: Response Books, A division of Sage Publications.

Corporate communications as a whole has become a growing industry, and more

recognized throughout the business world. Joseph Fernandez (2004) claims that the

industry is the foundation for corporate companies’ growth. Throughout the duration of

the book, the chapters go further in depth about how corporate communications has an

effect on companies a whole. Chapter 7 touches on how many vast changes are

happening due to the surge of technologic advances (pp 190). Chapter 7 explains new

technological advances that have helped shape the industry, such as social networks.

Social networking has set a new precedent for companies to reach audiences far and wide

(pp 192). These platforms give companies an advantage in being able to reach larger

audiences and find more success in their work. The face of advertising and public

relations has seen a complete change of the industry due to technological advances, such

as smartphones and laptops. Corporate communications are an everchanging industry that

will continue to see changes due to advances being made throughout the world.

Essay

Freberg, K. (2019). Social media and emerging media. In B. R. Brunner (Ed.), Public relations

theory: Application and understanding (First Edition. ed., pp. 97-107). Hoboken: John

Wiley & Sons, Inc. Retrieved from http://0-

search.ebscohost.com.lib.utep.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cat04704a&AN=nug.b458

4284&site=eds-live&scope=site
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Communications differs from other media majors by looking deeper into how people

communicate through various forms of media. Social media has had a growing on our

society over the past decade. According to Karen Freberg (2019), social media is a great

asset to the public relations and communications industry. Social media platforms can be

used to interact with their audience and can strengthen their relationship with consumers

(p 100). It has become a major part of the industry through connecting with others and

answering questions and showcasing their work. Case studies showed that companies that

used social media to strengthen interactions with others. Clemson University used social

media to have students meet each other and create bonds through the common connection

of the University (p 107). Not only did students benefit from this, but the institution as a

whole did through school spirit increasing and promoting the school. Although social

media can be seen as a negative tool in today’s world, if used correctly it can create

Journal Articles

Counihan, P. (2015). What are you going to do with that major? The humanities, jobs, and a

career. Maine Policy Review, 24(1), 31-34.

https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mpr/vol24/iss1/9/

A common myth about Humanities and Communication majors is that there are not many

opportunities for them in the corporate world. According to Counihan (2015), these

majors come out with more skills that will aid them in getting jobs in the corporate world.

Communications majors strengthen their communication, organizational, and leadership

skills among other things. A research conducted in 2013 showed that employers prefer

hiring employees that bring new ideas to the table and have strong critical thinking and

problem-solving skills (p. 31). Communication and other Humanities majors prepare one
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for real world situations and leaves a window of opportunity to enter various types of

professions. Some examples include working in advertising, to working in law firms, to

education, and many other areas of work that all involve the same skills. (p. 33). Pursuing

a degree in this area leaves students with the ability to have a career that they are

passionate about and gives them the tools to have longevity in their careers.

Hoag, A., Grant, A. E., & Carpenter, S. (2017). Impact of media on major choice: Survey of

communication undergraduates. NACADA Journal, 37(1), 5-14. Retrieved from http://0-

search.ebscohost.com.lib.utep.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ1161687&sit

e=eds-live&scope=site

Communications has grown as a major in the past couple of years. Hoag (2017)

conducted research to see what the most influential factor was in choosing a major within

the Communications department. The research was conducted to see what convinced

students to go into certain areas of Communication studies. Their way to best interpret

what was a factor was through statistical tactics, using scales to determine how much

news and media was consumed from each student (pp 8). Researchers wanted to see if

students that had a positive experience with news outlets and other forms of media were

tied into their decision, or if it was solely based on their interest on the industry, despite

past thoughts and experiences. Their results showed that students that consume news

more often are more inclined to Communication studies. The studies showed that

students that although most had a positive experience, there was a small percentage of

students that still went into the line of work that had negative experiences or thoughts (pp

12).
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Matthews, L. (2010). Social media and the evolution of corporate communications. The Elon

Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications, 1(1), 17-23.

Due to technological advances in the past decade, a majority of industries have seen

extravagant changes in how they function. According to Matthews (2010), the rise of

social media has changed the way corporate communications interact with their audience.

Social media has paved the way for corporate companies to receive direct feedback from

their customers and helps improve marketing (p 19). Due to the surge in social media

usage, most corporations have turned to using social media platforms to promote their

company or product. After studies were conducted, the results showed that Public

Relations utilizes social media more than any other area of communications. Social

media platforms have not only created new strategies for marketing and public relations

but have created new job opportunities for many.

Scholarly Websites

Miller, T. P. (2005). How rhetorical are English and communications majors? Retrieved from

https://www.jstor.org/stable/40232454?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents

Communications is a growing department that has a variety of pathways and career

choices available. According to Miller (2005), communication studies offers students to

master different skills, with some programs different than others. Based on Smith and

Turner’s survey taken in 1993, their results varied in courses taken (p. 97). Coincidentally

enough, rhetoric was a common requirement for students studying communications.

Students had gained a better grasp on English, and their major as a whole compared to

other students that may not have had the opportunity to take part in these classes (p. 103).
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Overall, it can be inferred that communication studies are broader in which one can

master multiple skills, in comparison to other liberal arts majors.

Primary Sources

Hutchins, P. D. (1933, Mar 30,). A student's plea for the college of mines. The Prospector

Retrieved from https://theprospector.newspaperarchive.com/el-paso-prospector/1933-03-

30/page-2/

UTEP’s history with the Liberal Arts department was quite rocky at the beginning. As

told by Hutchins (1933), the College of Mines (presently known as UTEP) was having

legal battles with the University of Texas at Austin in regards to economic issues. These

issues led to determining if any specific departments would face setbacks, or even closure

of the entire university (pp 1). The Liberal Arts department was in danger of dissolving.

Since the department was just established, and it was seen in the eyes of administration as

not as important compared to the Engineering college, it was first on the list of thing

being considered to go. The department was fully established the year before in 1932, and

still making adjustments and getting on its feet (pp 2). This period of time was hard for

the university, as they were fighting to keep programs in place, and even harder for the

College of Liberal Arts. The college had a rough beginning, but over time grew with

more enrollment of students seeking a four-year degree.

Marin, J. (2005, Nov 12,). Sam Donaldson center increases efforts to bring recruiters to UTEP.

El Paso Prospector. Retrieved from https://theprospector.newspaperarchive.com/el-paso-

prospector/2005-11-30/page-16/
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The Communications department at UTEP will prepare students for success through their

various programs that are offered. As stated by Marin (2005), the Sam Donaldson Center

opened to students in 2002 for students in Communication studies. Sam Donaldson is a

graduate of UTEP, and went on to represent El Paso as a broadcaster with ABC News.

The purpose of this center is to prepare students for the workplace, through internships

and guest speakers. The center stands out from similar programs throughout the country,

because it caters to bilingual students (para 6). With such a large population of bilingual

students, it sets the program apart from others, with students having an advantage already

walking into potential employers. Providing guest speakers that are experienced in the

field gives students an insight on what to expect, and what is expected of them as well

(para 10). The Sam Donaldson Center is a beneficial counterpart to the Communication

Studies department.

Tertiary Sources

Rosteck, T., & ROSTECK, T. (2011). Communication and media studies. In M. Ryan (Ed.), The

encyclopedia of literary and cultural theory (). Hoboken, NJ, USA: Wiley. Retrieved

from http://0-

search.credoreference.com.lib.utep.edu/content/entry/wileylitcul/communication_and_me

dia_studies/0

Communications coincides with media studies, which goes into depth about how people

consume media, amongst other things. According to Rosteck (2011), media studies are

focused in on how people consume media, and how it is successfully communicated to

others. They are divided into three subsections-mass communication, media environment,
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and the historical/imperative (para. 2). These explain how the information affects people

as a whole, how people interact with different forms of media, and how it will affect

history in political terms. All of these different factors have an immense impact on how

critics compose information for it to be received well by their targeted audience. Their

approach has several different techniques that are followed throughout their discourse

community. Although these have stayed relatively the same, recent technological

advances and mediums have changed some of their processes.

Schrøder, K. (2001). Media language and communication. In R. E. Asher, & R. Mesthrie

(Eds.), Concise encyclopedia of sociolinguistics (). Oxford, UK: Elsevier Science &

Technology. Retrieved from http://0-

search.credoreference.com.lib.utep.edu/content/entry/estsocioling/media_language_and_

communication/0

Over the course of time, mass media has had a large impact on the way people

communicate with each other. According to Schrøder (2001), media has become

entangled with all realms of communications over the course of time and technological

advances. Since the 1980s, multiple industries faced changes, including the broadcasting

and advertising industries. Companies had to compete with new advertising strategies due

to new methods (para. 1). The rhetoric used in broadcasting has changed with not being

able to simply state facts, but with still entertaining the audience at the same time.

Although they were attempting to entertain, it was being done in a professional manner

among certain topics (para. 4). Finding these happy mediums was difficult, but changed
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the rhetorical impacts in which we receive our news and other forms of media, which

altogether changes the Communications industry.