Drugi jezik na kojem je dostupan ovaj članak: Bosnian
Rector of the University of Zagreb, PhD Damir Boras, was declared the Anti-Communicator of the Year by the jury of the 10th Grand PRix awards of the Croatian Public Relations Association (HUOJ).
The award for Anti-Communicator of the Year, popularly known as the Pomegranate, is awarded to the person who in the last year stood out with examples of bad public communication. The award was introduced to recognize examples of poor communication practices of people whose communication and position have a major impact on Croatian society.
Explaining the decision, HUOJ stated in the press release that members of academia, and especially the Rector of the University of Zagreb as head of the largest and most respected university in Croatia, are expected to communicate clearly, factually, calmly and with respect to all stakeholders at all occasions. In many situations last year Rector had the opportunity to prove that as a former dean, vice dean and professor of the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb government knowledge he has mastered the communication skills that are successfully taught in many courses on various studies at the university. Unfortunately, not only did he failed to fulfill the expectations of the public concerned, but in many cases with his mode of communication and his messages and behavior in communication he showed that he is not capable of meeting expectations. A prominent academic citizen whose decisions influence the fate of tens of thousands of students at several educational levels is expected to show maturity of public appearances. What the concerned public actually received were: bad and manipulative rhetoric, unprepared public appearances, attempts at limitation of freedom of communication, the lack of an active, professional and poised communication on matters of public interest, the lack of clear and decisive public reaction in case of insults and attacks on teachers and students of the Faculty of Philosophy.
Croatian Public Relations Association invited Rector Boras to receive his award at the Grand PRix award ceremony. Given that one of the goals of HUOJ is to promote and educate on public relations and communication, the jury understands that public figures can sometimes err in communication during their mandate. Therefore, HUOJ says they are to offer this year’s laureate, Rector Boras, several hours of free consultation with experts in the field of communication.
Grand PRix is an annual award ceremony of the Croatian Public Relations Association which celebrates excellence in this profession. This year the competition received entries from 68 communications projects, and will review them in 12 competition categories. Shortlist were announced earlier this week, and the finalists will gather for presentations on 2 March in Zagreb.
In addition, the jury awards recognition in three special categories: Communicator of the Year, Anti-Communicator of the Year, and the Grand PRix for Contribution to Profession. All awards will be presented at a ceremony to be held in Zagreb on 16 March 2017.