Oklahoma City All Sports Association: Megan McGuire

By Natalie Beasley
I was lucky enough to land an internship for the Spring semester, at a great organization in Oklahoma City. Although, nervous about the experience I put myself out there to get the most of the internship. Through the experience I met Megan McGuire, which is why I chose to interview her.
Megan currently works for the Oklahoma City All Sports Association in Oklahoma City. I think what impresses me the most about Megan is how she is not much more than a few months older than me, but I actually look up to her. She has become successful at a young age, and landed a job that many people would dream of. Megan is the Public Relations and Event Specialist for All Sports.
Megan graduated from Oklahoma State University in May 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism with a minor in Speech Communication. She accredits being very involved with campus activities and her sorority Gamma Phi Beta for her success.
“Being involved keeps you up to date with everything going on, and leads you to greater opportunities through the people you meet,” Megan said. “Experiences through planning all the different events that OSU holds prepared me to coordinate events on a larger scale.”
All Sports is a nonprofit organization that creates, pursues, promotes, hosts, executes and secures quality athletic competitions in the state of Oklahoma. Some events that are occurring during the Spring that Megan will play a large role in are the Men’s and Women’s Big 12 Basketball Championship, NCAA Women’s Regional, Big 12 Softball and Baseball Championship, as well as the NCAA Women’s College World Series.
“It’s a lot of work to coordinate all the events we put on. It takes a lot of time and dedication to pull of a successful event of that magnitude,” Megan said.
Megan’s advice to being successful in the Public Relations field, and the sports industry is to work hard, and be prepared for everything. The trick to being successful is to be flexible and willing to work with anyone or anything that is thrown your way.

Sports PR - Importance in Communication

Sports PR

My dream job in Public Relations is in the sports world, serving as a broadcaster, sports agent, or media relations/public relations communicator. This field is a fast-paced, constantly growing industry that requires quick thinking and an “on-your-toes” approach.

Because the sports industry provides constant changes and unpredictability, there are bound to be several crises that occur. Crisis management will be a key public relations practice that should be implemented in my line of duty. In “Human Relations: Interpersonal Job-Oriented Skills, 9th Edition,” by Andrew J. DuBrin, he identifies several strategies in handling conflicts before they happen. Some of his preparation advice includes confronting the problem constructing criticism, cognitive restructuring, negotiating and bargaining, and combating sexual harassment.

Another important aspect my job will entail is time management. With an on-the-go atmosphere, time is a limited resource. Career-Success-For-Newbies.com offers the importance of time management for career success. The efficiency of your work is related to the optimum use of your time, which can offer a competitive advantage over your coworkers. When you practice good time management, you often can lower your level of stress by not procrastinating. Your performance will be better acknowledged by your superiors.

Effective communication is also a key aspect in the sports world. As it is often changing, constant communication is a must. 7 keys to good communication provided by Harriet Meyerson, Top7Business, are as followed:

1. Personal contact is important.


2. Develop a network.


3. Always be courteous in your communication with others.


4. Be consistent and clear in workplace communications.


5. Compromise decreases the tension associated with conflict.


6. You cannot hold a person's interest if you have nothing interesting to say.


7. Listen to what others are saying and show interest in the conversation.

Overall, in any job or career in public relations, it is important to remember the code of ethics and practice morals and values when dealing with employers and coworkers. The PRSA Member Code of Ethics is a good guideline to follow when in question about a difficult decision.

O.J. Simpson... Really?

-Joshua M. Jones

Last Week O.J. Simpson was arrested, again. So, I will spare everyone the commentary on O. J.'s past and get right into what we are seeing here today. But first, the rundown...

O.J. was charged with 11 felony counts in a Las Vegas county courthouse on September 16. Armed robbery, assault and conspiracy charges were among them. He claims that he was conducting a "sting operation" in the Palms hotel and casino, and was simply trying to reclaim what was rightfully his. Let's not forget to mention the rather unsavory cast of characters in this sordid affair...
Timeline


What everyone seems to be missing here is that, this is a justice system that has been craving more of O.J.'s blood for more than a decade! This is truly a man on trial for his past and whether you agree or disagree with that, you must acknowledge that these people Simpson conducted his "sting" on, are the worst kind of people. So where do we draw the line? Where do we acknowledge whether or not there is even an objective truth to this story. O. J. Simpson's life represents this postmodern line of thought more than anything, what I mean is that, with the convoluted results of Simpson's first legal fray, we lack a real context of how we should feel about this current debacle.
Postmodernism


The question I pose is this. How does a PR practitioner use this postmodern "reality," or lack thereof, to their advantage when trying to frame the image of a client? How do you help O.J. Simpson if you are his publicist? I think what you would do is first set the context to O.J.'s past in relation to his present, whatever angle you want to approach that from. Then you address the ridiculous book deal that further tainted his image last spring.
Book Deal


If you can bring those forces together in a coherent way, you may be able to do the impossible, and save a man's future. Because no matter how you look at it, Simpson's life is a reflection of a justice system that is deeply, deeply flawed.

John Ridley's two cents.