Westboro Baptist Church Press Releases

Westboro Baptist Church

The Legitimacy of their Press Releases

     A big thing in public relations is authenticity. Knowing where you have been, where you are now, and where you want to go is your mission in public relations. Throughout my classes pertaining to my major, I have learned 12 key elements to be effective in communicating your message to the public. 6 of which I will be using tonight.These key elements will be the foundation of my future critiques.

      Now the Westboro Bapist Church (WBC) has a few different ways of communicating with the public. Members of the founding family, the Phelps, all have twitter accounts that they utilize by commenting on current events, actions of public figures, and announcing future pickets. In addition, the family runs a website tastefully entitled God Hates Fags. This website of course can be found at www.godhatesfags.com. Using examples from their website, picket announcements, and tweets I plan on explaining how the Westboro Baptist Church press releases and public image is by the book.

1. Looking into a different mirror -- being able to take a different perspective.
1. In regards to being able to use a different perspective isn't exactly WBC's strong suit. It is pretty much a "my way or the highway" type of organization. So in that respect, WBC fails to accept or entertain the ideas of others that do not hold their religious beliefs. 
2. Link the product (message) to the purpose -- make sure your intended message matches up with the actual (perceived) message. 

1. Being as their main goal is to inform the general public that they are going to hell, then, by definition, their message is linked to their purpose. The Phelps Family wants everyone to know that homosexuals are, indeed, going to hell. 
3. Walk your talk -- do the things you promise or preach. This means finding your place in the world utilizing your time, talent, and treasure. 
1. WBC does walk their talk. They take a stand against the people whose beliefs do not align with their own. They picket military funerals (because the military fights for a nation that is full of "fag enablers"), along with picketing other churches because they are "whorehouses masquerading as churches". View a press release at the following link. http://www.godhatesfags.com/fliers/20120821_Lenexa-KS-Churches.pdf
4. Work inside-out -- making sure your internal publics, or the people within the organization, know what the message is and work to better your organization. That means being transparent, and having consistent communication.
1. Having a rather small congregation of 40 people, it is easy for the Phelps family to communicate to everyone within their group. Having a transparent organization is different than exercising openness. Transparency is what people outside of the group can find out on their own, this means digging up things the organization may not want the general public to know. But since the WBC doesn't hide anything, this isn't an issue, therefore fulfilling this element.
5. The Real Reality -- using real stories, real people, and real words.
1. Well... if you ask anyone within the community, everything they say is true. But obviously, not everyone shares the WBC's views making it difficult for the public to connect with them. In this regard, I do not believe they fulfill this particular element. 
6. Openness -- being completely honest and upfront with the audience.
1. Like I said, the WBC doesn't hide anything, they want everyone to know and accept what they have to say. They post it on their website, and tweet about it.

MargiePhelps ‏@MargieJPhelps

Today he's in hell. #AllThatMatters MT @donnabrazile: #DNC2012The tribute to former US Sen Ted Kennedy was remarkable,inspiring&passionate.

All in all, the Westboro Baptist Church fulfills four of the six key elements discussed today. That's a 66%... which is a D.... which is technically a passing grade... So I guess at the end of the day, I have to give this group some credit for at least utilizing their media resources for their exact purpose.