ZURb1228 Crisis communication

Faculty of Social Studies
Spring 2025
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 3 credit(s). Type of Completion: z (credit).
In-person direct teaching
Teacher(s)
PhDr. Jan Tomandl (lecturer)
Mgr. Tereza Fojtová (lecturer)
Mgr. Jaroslav Čuřík, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
Mgr. Jaroslav Čuřík, Ph.D.
Department of Media Studies and Journalism – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Mgr. Boris Rafailov, Ph.D.
Supplier department: Department of Media Studies and Journalism – Faculty of Social Studies
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 20 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/20, only registered: 0/20, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/20
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The aim of the course is to acquaint students not only with the theoretical foundations, but also with the practical examples of crisis communication. The subject is led by the active participation of practitioners who bring experience into their daily work. Students are expected to actively participate in the presentations of tasks, simulations, and debates . The complexity of the course is based on the requirements of the application sphere, as elaborated in the market analysis.
Learning outcomes
The course prepares students to acquaint with public relations professionals in journalistic practice through the acquired knowledge of future journalists, but also provides students with basic information for applying directly to public relations (in crisis communication). Upon successful completion of this course, students will acquire knowledge and skills that should be controlled by anyone who wants to successfully deal with crisis communication, to prepare themselves for possible communication crises, and to recognize the right time to start with crisis communication. They also gain theoretical knowledge and insight and skills useful in working with PR agencies or communications / press departments. Upon successful completion of the course students are able to apply acquired knowledge in practice.
Syllabus
  • Course structure: 1. The world of media and preparation for communication with them: how current media work, what has changed and changed, the current situation in the media, ways of consuming the media. 2. World of journalists, preparation and mastering the interview, difficult situations, practical demonstrations. 3. Basics of crisis communication: what is crisis communication, theory and types of crisis communication. 4. Sources and causes of crises, what to do in a crisis situation. 5. Crisis manuals of selected companies, crisis management solutions awarded in important PR competitions (I.). 6. Crisis manuals of selected companies, dealing with crisis situations valued in important PR competitions (II.). 7. Social networks: how to use social networks and what (not) to do in crisis communication. 8. Media and Internet monitoring as an important tool for both common and crisis communication. 9. Communication tools, features and specifics: press releases, press kits, press conferences, roundtables, Q & A documents, media sheets. 10. Internal communication: Specifics, techniques, tools, what and how to communicate in a crisis situation. 11. Case study: examples of different types of crises and different ways of solving them (I.). 12. Case study: examples of different types of crises and different ways of solving them (II.). Syllabus of Seminars: 1-4. Team presentations (presentations, discussion, evaluation, feedback): demonstrations and analysis of crisis communication in selected world and Czech companies. 5-8. Simulation of Crisis Communication (Simulation, Discussion, Evaluation, Feedback): students will try out crisis communication in practice. 9.-12. Presentation of seminar papers (presentation, discussion, evaluation, feedback): proposal of communication strategy, including proposal of solution of crisis situation and proposal of press release.
Literature
    required literature
  • TOMANDL, Jan, Jaroslav ČUŘÍK, Kristýna MARŠOVSKÁ and Tereza FOJTOVÁ. Krizová komunikace : principy - zkušenosti - postupy. 1. vydání. Brno: Masarykova univerzita, 2020, 221 stran. ISBN 9788021096363. URL info
  • CHALUPA, Radek. Efektivní krizová komunikace : pro všechny manažery a PR specialisty. 1. vyd. Praha: Grada, 2012, 169 s. ISBN 9788024742342. URL info
  • BEDNÁŘ, Vojtěch. Krizová komunikace s médii. Vyd. 1. Praha: Grada Publishing, 2012, 183 s. ISBN 9788024737805. URL info
    recommended literature
  • ANTUŠÁK, Emil and Josef VILÁŠEK. Základy teorie krizového managementu. Vydání první. V Praze: Univerzita Karlova v Praze, nakladatelství Karolinum, 2016, 130 stran. ISBN 9788024634432. URL info
  • ANTUŠÁK, Emil. Krizová připravenost firmy. 1. vyd. Praha: Wolters Kluwer Česká republika, 2013, 182 s. ISBN 9788073579838. info
  • FEARN-BANKS, Kathleen. Crisis communications : a casebook approach. 4th ed. New York: Routledge, 2011, xi, 381. ISBN 9780415880589. info
  • ANTUŠÁK, E. Krizový management: hrozby - krize - příležitosti. 1. vyd. Praha: Wolters Kluwer Česká republika, 2009, 395 pp. ISBN 978-80-7357-488-8. info
  • ANTUŠÁK, Emil and Zdeněk KOPECKÝ. Krizový management : krizová komunikace. Vyd. 1. Praha: Oeconomica, 2005, 91 s. ISBN 8024509458. info
Teaching methods
Lectures, seminars, teamwork of independent works and practical projects, study of prescribed literature. Simulated practical learning by doing. Mentoring from experts. Project oriented learning. Developing teamwork.
Assessment methods
The course will be successfully completed by students who submit and present within the agreed deadline and of at least sufficient quality: 1) Individual paper. 2) Team seminar work. A part of each presentation is a discussion, a debate about the presented issue. Team seminar work: Students will divide into teams and choose an assignment in which they will prepare a proposal for a communication strategy for a specific company, including a proposal for a solution to a crisis situation.
Language of instruction
Czech
Further Comments
The course is taught annually.
The course is taught: every week.
Listed among pre-requisites of other courses
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2020, Spring 2021, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2024.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Spring 2025, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/spring2025/ZURb1228