Lauren Schwartz returns to Duck TV this term as co-director of Public Relations. The Public Relations major says she’s excited to help Duck TV grow using new skills learned last fall while working at The i.d.e.a. brand, a medium-sized public relations agency in San Diego.
Last winter, Lauren decided she wanted a break from Eugene, but she wanted her time away to be productive. What better way to gain experience and advance her career than an internship in public relations? She chose a San Diego agency because it was a new environment and less expensive than studying abroad, and she was attracted to The i.d.e.a. brand’s organized internship program, integrated agency, and wide variety of clients, which ranges from museums to malls.
“I managed The San Diego Museum of Art’s Facebook page and Twitter account,” she says. “The museum has 37,400 Twitter followers, and I learned the importance of professional messaging through managing their account.”
Lauren went on to say she wasn’t a fan of Social Media before the internship but she now recognizes its importance in terms of spreading awareness of organizations, and she believes Social Media will be integral in the expansion of Duck TV.
“Social Media will allow us to broaden our reach to the whole student body and get our name out there so that people not only know what Duck TV is, but how to watch it on their own,” she says.
Lauren is looking forward to Duck TV growing and changing this year. With more students both on and off campus becoming aware of and tuning into Duck TV, she feels it’s more important than ever to have a strong and consistent media presence. Lauren hopes students will begin to follow Duck TV news more closely via sites such as Twitter and Facebook as the organization continues to grow.
“I believe that Duck TV should be viewed as the student run television channel for the entirety of the student body,” she says. “Just as Emerald is our school’s newspaper, I think in a couple of years, Duck TV will have the same perception of being a professional, student-run organization which the student body can go to for news, sports and even pure entertainment.”
By Katie Foster
