Public Relations Abroad

During the spring semester of 2008, I was fortunate enough to study abroad in Buenos Aires, Argentina. For nearly five months, I was completely immersed in a culture of people and customs I knew nothing about. March 4th, 2008, marked the beginning of my semester and start of formal classes. My first class was titled: Relaciones Publicas 2 or Public Relations 2. This upper level PR communication course would soon prove to be my outlet to a further understanding of Argentina PR.
Being a once a week, 3-hour course, mass amounts of reading each week were inevitable. Anywhere from 50 to 100 pages of (Spanish) text and articles really opened my eyes to Public Relations in this country. We began by studying the methods and techniques of Edward Bernays as well as other Public Relations experts. Things like communication to the masses, internal/external communication, communication in organizations were all topics discussed. Although theory is a very important aspect to Public Relations, my favorite part of the class came during the last hour of class when our professor allowed us open discussion.
Before continuing, it is important to understand that I was the sole international student in this night class with only four other Argentine students and a professor. This meant that I had to be attentive and quick on my feet. All semester long, my Spanish language skills would be challenged.
Like stated earlier, I really loved when we were given free time to discuss whatever we wanted. More than often all the topics related to public relations or some aspect of communication. For example, Argentine students often discussed politics and their countries current economic status. They complained about how Cristina Kirchner, Argentina's current president, always promised things but didn't act upon them. They also felt that Kirchner was sending the country untruthful messages with regards to the economy, job market, and spending budgets. They also spoke of other ways they felt Buenos Aires businesses and organizations did not exhibit effective Public Relations. This was interesting to me because I realized that in the United States were similar problems. In fact, almost every class, the students would ask for the "Yankee’s" (Spanish slang for an American), point of view. We would compare and contrast different aspects of American and Argentine Public Relations through various examples.
When I left Argentina in July of 2008, I really felt that my Relaciones Publicas 2 class prepared me for classes to come in the United States. Not only did it set a baseboard of theory and common knowledge, it encouraged me to think outside of the box. Most important, I was able to learn about the Argentine PR. I will always be thankful for my experience abroad and although class was tough, I learned a lot about Public Relations.