The disappearance of a female soldier at a Texas Army base in 2020 was met by silence and opaqueness from military officials. But when family social media posts were amplified by a celebrity and Latina advocacy group, it might have been the necessary pressure for change.
Former Army soldier and public affairs specialist Michelle Johnson researched this as a case study into whether a groundswell of social media attention could result in organizational change, even in such a large, inflexible entity as the US military. She's now a Ph.D. student of Mass Communications in Syracuse University's Newhouse School of Public Communicaitons.
Johnson found the tragic case of Vanessa Guillen — whose body was eventually found murdered — showed that enough social media attention could engage change agents. She further discovered the case, which touched on women's issues and sexual assault in the military, spurred updated laws and policies, with ramifications for women's enlistments and public affairs practices.
Listen to hear more about Vanessa Guillen's case, the #IAmVanessa Guillen movement, and what can be learned about public relations messaging from response to this tragedy.
