Agenda-Setting and Gatekeeping Functions of Higher Education

Image plays a significant role in the success of the university. The public relations (PR) departments of higher education institutions have a responsibility to maintain a strong public image by using the mass media. With this in mind, many private and public organizations have focused a large portion of their attention and budget on perfecting their image. Typically, the imaging process is managed and maintained by public relations (PR). Over the past decade problems plaguing universities such as: rising tuition costs, scandals, academic quality concerns have forced administrators to acknowledge a need for a strong positive public image making public relations a core element of university administrative functions. This study examined the PR delivery methods used by the two state research institutions when communicating to the state's two metropolitan newspapers and the criteria used by each newspaper's higher education writer in deciding what gets published about the universities. The study also analyzed the newspaper coverage of the two universities and how the coverage may impact the university's image.