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We should be careful about drawing conclusions about overall public opinion based on tweets, according to a recent Pew study . Sometimes reactions on Twitter are more politically liberal, while at other times, they are more conservative. Often, they are more negative. For example, when a California law last year banning same-sex marriage was found to be unconstitutional, Twitter conversations were much more positive (46%) than negative (8%). These results contrast sharply with a general opinion poll showing 33% to be positive and 44 to be negative. Reactions to the presidential election also ran more positively on Twitter, with most users supporting President Obama. However, reactions to the president's State of the Union address were far more negative on Twitter than in the general population. One explanation of these differences and inconsistencies is the small percentage of people who get news from and participate on Twitter. Only 13% of adults read Tweets, and only 3% regularly or sometimes tweet or retweet news. Users are not a representative sample of the U.S. population; for example, Twitter users include those under 18 and people outside the United States, while opinion surveys exclude both groups. Discussion Starters: What else could account for more negativity on Twitter? Research Twitter demographics. What, if any, other conclusions can you draw about its users?

Dr. Mehmet Oz was propelled into stardom by his popular appearances on The Oprah Winfrey Show. Now, he has his own television show, which seems to be an avenue for promoting strange products . For business communication students, the example reminds us how important it is to check facts. Does the board-certified cardiothoracic surgeon not review research of the products he promotes? Slate describes Dr. Oz's enthusiasm for garcinia extract, which he says will finally help people "burn fat without spending every waking moment exercising and dieting": "He then told his audience about a 'breakthrough,' 'magic,' 'holy grail,' even 'revolutionary' new fat buster. 'I want you to write it down,' America’s doctor urged his audience with a serious and trustworthy stare. After carefully wrapping his lips around the exotic words 'Garcinia cambogia,' he added, sternly: 'It may be the simple solution you’ve been looking for to bust your body fat for good.'" But garcinia cambogia has been studied for more than 15 years, and a JAMA article calls its anti-obesity results no better than a placebo. One of the study's authors, Edzard Ernst , said the product could have negative gastrointestinal effects and told Slate , "Dr. Oz's promotion of this and other unproven or disproven alternative treatments is irresponsible and borders on quackery." Educated at Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania, Dr. Oz presents himself as a credible source, but research does not support what he promotes. Slate compares more of Dr. Oz's recommendations to the "best available research." In most cases, his advice (e.g., to take zinc, Vitamin D, and DHA) doesn't match up. The so-called "Oz Effect"—people spending lots of money on products presented on his show—can be dangerous. As Ernst says, "Using bogus treatments for serious conditions may cost lives." Image source . Discussion Starters: Watch some of Dr. Oz's show. In addition to his status as a doctor, how else does he present himself as a credible promoter of these products. Pay attention to his language, dress, mannerisms, etc. Why do people so easily believe Dr. Oz? What is the audience's responsibility in the "Oz Effect"?

QSR Magazine just published the latest data comparing quick-service restaurants' drive-thru experience—and Burger King came in last overall. For the 2012 Drive-Thru Performance Study , seven restaurants were rated on these criteria: Average Service Time Order Accuracy with OCB Order Accuracy without OCB Impact of Pre-Sell Menu on Timing Favorable Exterior Visibility of Dumpsters Cleanliness of Menuboard Condition of Landscaping Customer Service Service Attributes Order Confirmation Board In Place Speaker Clarity The drive-thrus didn't fare too well on the customer service dimension. Brian Baker, president of Insula Research, the firm that led the study, said, "Even with pleasant demeanor, I’m thinking, why would that not be 100 percent? OK, so maybe 98 percent because everybody has a bad day, but it just seems like a no brainer to me. I’m still scratching my head on that." Rather than 100%, ratings for "very friendly" ranged from 27% ro 57%, with Burger King receiving the most "rude" ratings: 2.8% Denny Lynch, Wendy's senior vice president of communications, blamed service failures on limitations in hiring: "Part of it is to make certain we are hiring the right people. Wouldn’t it be nice if [the drive-thru crewmember] had a great personality? Wouldn’t it be nice if they could smile at you? Wouldn’t it be nice if they could say, ‘Thank you, come back again’? So you hire people that have that personality and the skill level to be able to do that. … You can’t just assume that they can handle every situation until they’ve done thorough training." The study reported good news about drive-thru cleaniness. Brands generally did well in measures such as whether the dumpsters were visible and how clean the menu board appeared. Discussion Starters and Assignment Idea: What can QSRs do to improve their customer service at the drive-thru windows? Consider the restaurants' hiring practices, training, performance standards, and management. Create a visual chart from the customer service data above. If you wanted to convince Burger King management to focus on improving the drive-thru experience for customers, which data would you include? What type of chart would you use? Assume that your chart appeared on a PowerPoint slide, and include a talking headline to convey your main point.

Harvard University is investigating whether students wrongly collaborated and plagiarized each other's work on a take-home exam in a Government class last spring. Almost half of the 279 students' exams in "Government 1310: Introduction to Congress" are under further review. The course faculty member, Professor Matthew B. Platt, noticed similar responses and drew attention to the possibility of widespread cheating. The Harvard Crimson posted an image of the exam instructions: The Crimson quoted students who were frustrated by the lack of support in preparing for the exam: "'Almost all of [the students at office hours] had been awake the entire night, and none of us could figure out what an entire question (worth 20% of the grade) was asking,' the student wrote. 'On top of this, one of the questions asked us about a term that had never been defined in any of our readings and had not been properly defined in class, so the TF [teaching fellow] had to give us a definition to use for the question.' "That same student also expressed frustration that Platt had canceled his office hours the morning before the exam was due. In a brief email to the class just after 10 a.m. on May 3, Platt apologized for having to cancel his office hours on short notice that day due to an appointment." An article in the Harvard Gazette included a response by the school dean: The article also quoted university President Drew Faust: "These allegations, if proven, represent totally unacceptable behavior that betrays the trust upon which intellectual inquiry at Harvard depends. We must deal with this fairly and through a deliberative process. At the same time, the scope of the allegations suggests that there is work to be done to ensure that every student at Harvard understands and embraces the values that are fundamental to its community of scholars." While the investigation is under way, Harvard is stepping up communications around academic integrity. The College Committee on Academic Integrity also will make recommendations to the faculty to reinforce school policies, and the committee may propose new policies or an honor code. Discussion Starters: With the information you have, what's your view of the situation? For example, are the instructions clear? Do you understand why students could have shared answers during the take-home exam? What is the definition of plagiarism? How might that apply in this case?

New research shows that only 15% of online adults use Twitter, and only 8% use the service every day. Although the percentage of users remains fairly stable and is fairly small, the number of daily users has doubled since May 2011 and quadrupled since late 2010. Authors of the February 2012 Pew Research Center's report credit smartphones with the increase in usage. According to Aaron Smith , Pew senior research specialist, "I do think it's notable that typical day Twitter usage is growing even as the overall usage stats have remained fairly consistent, [which] would imply that existing Twitter users are growing more engaged over time, with mobile being a big part of that story." It took a while, but younger users are getting on board with Twitter. Between November 2010 and February 2012, the percentage of Internet users between 18 and 24 on Twitter has increased from 16% to 31%. In addition, one in five in this age group uses Twitter. Discussion Starters: Read the Pew report . What other conclusions can you draw from the study? What is your own use of Twitter? If you fit within the category of growing users, why has your usage increased? How is this new information relevant to corporate communicators?

A study of senior-level communicators reveals priorities for communication in public and private companies, government agencies, and not-for-profit organizations. The Communication and Public Relations Generally Accepted Practices (GAP VII) study is the seventh by the USC Annenberg Strategic Communication and Public Relations Center. This year, the study shows that organizations are increasing their public relations budgets, measurements of success, and responsibilities for social media and SEO. Organizations also have given PR/Communications functions more responsibility for internal communications and customer relations. Also encouraging, PR seems to have a so-called "seat at the table," according to the report findings: "In nearly 60% of responding companies PR/COM reports directly to the 'C-Suite' (chairman, CEO, COO, etc.), reflecting today’s increasingly transparent, communication-intensive environment." Additional changes are reported in the GAP VII executive summary , below, and in the full report . Discussion Starters: Which results from the study surprise you? Which results do not surprise you? The study reports little use of wikis and virtual worlds for communication. What do you think accounts for this lack of use? Analyze how the full report is organized. Is it logical and easy to follow? What, if any, improvements would you suggest to the author?

In response to criticism about pay and working conditions, Apple product manufacturer Foxconn announced plans to raise wages . However, the numbers and the amount of overtime worked have been questioned . ABC News visited the Shenzhen, China, factory and showed a grim side of the work: teenagers working long hours doing repetitive tasks and living in cramped dormitories. Foxconn workers make iPhones, iPads and other prized products. Apple has a few dedicated pages on its website to demonstrate its commitment to " Supplier Responsibility ." Instructors and students of business communication might find the company's reports interesting in light of the Foxconn criticism. Foxconn recently hired PR firm Burson-Marstellar to help control the bad press. Assignment Ideas: Create a PowerPoint presentation to explain the discrepancy in wages, as discussed in the New York Times blog . The calculations are a bit confusing, so try to clarify them with good visuals and talking headings. Read Apple's Supplier Responsibility 2012 Progress Report . Analyze how the report is organized. What are the strengths of the report? What is missing?