Murrow Symposium > The Murrow Standard with Jaimee L. Fox: Own Your Next Move: Get Out of Your Own Way

The Murrow Standard with Jaimee L. Fox: Own Your Next Move: Get Out of Your Own Way

Speaker: Jaimee L. Fox, MA, APR

Length of Lesson: 90 minutes

  • 10 minute warmup
  • 50 minute video
  • 30 minute discussion
  • Optional Activities:
    • Leadership Ethics Scenario Simulation (30 minutes)
    • Communication Values Map (20 minutes)

Learning Objectives

By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

  • Identify and evaluate ethical communication practices in both media and organizational contexts.
  • Analyze how personal identity and values influence communication strategies.
  • Explain the role of leadership in promoting transparency and combatting misinformation.
  • Apply storytelling principles that align with public trust, clarity, and empathy.
  • Develop ethical communication responses to real-world dilemmas.

1. Pre-Video Activity (10 minutes)

What Does Ethical Communication Look Like?

Instructions

  • In small groups, students brainstorm and list real-world examples of ethical and unethical communication they’ve seen (e.g., news media, social media, advertising, corporate announcements).
  • Groups briefly share out one “ethical” and one “unethical” example with the class.
  • Teacher writes keywords from their responses on the board (e.g., “honesty,” “spin,” “bias,” “transparency”).

Objective

Activates critical thinking on communication values and primes students to recognize how communication leaders apply ethics and purpose in professional settings.

2. Play Video

3. Post-Viewing Discussion Questions

Facilitate a class discussion or use in small groups, followed by a class debrief.

  1. Jaimee talks about “storytelling with intention.” What does she mean by that, and why is it important in media and corporate communication?
  2. How does Jaimee connect her personal background and values to her professional approach to leadership?
  3. She mentions “meeting people where they are.” What does this mean in the context of ethical communication?
  4. How can internal communication shape an organization’s culture and public image?
  5. Jaimee emphasized trust and transparency. How do these values help prevent misinformation or manipulation?
  6. What role does communication play during times of organizational change or crisis?
  7. What did you learn about leadership and responsibility in media or PR roles from Jaimee’s keynote?
  8. In what ways did Jaimee challenge stereotypes or assumptions about corporate communications?
  9. What’s one moment or message from her talk that stuck with you personally—and why?
  10. How do you think ethical leadership in communication affects society at large?

Optional Activity 1: Leadership Ethics Scenario Simulation

Setup:

In small groups, students receive a fictional case study (e.g., a company facing a PR crisis over misinformation or unethical internal practices).

Task:

Each group writes a 5–7 sentence internal memo or press release applying Jaimee’s principles of ethical communication, transparency, and meeting people where they are.

Share:

Groups present their solution and explain their reasoning.

Optional Activity 2: “The Ethics of the Sideline” Debate

Individual/Pair Work:

Students create a visual map (poster or digital) of 5 values they think are essential for ethical communicators. For each value, they must:

  • Define it
  • Give an example (real or hypothetical)
  • Connect it to a moment from Jaimee’s talk

Wrap-Up:

Gallery walk or short presentations.

Instructors

Please take a few minutes to give us your feedback. Your input is greatly appreciated!

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Lesson Developers

Stacey Hust

Associate Dean of Faculty Affairs and College Operations
Professor
Graduate Faculty