Being a Public Relations T-Shirt Fan

Recently the concept of "t-shirt fans" came up in conversation because of people who support colleges they did not attend. I get accused of being a t-shirt fan, or according to my best friend a faux fan, because I support the University of Texas and did not attend school there. I have also recently become a supporter of TCU because it is the local college here in Fort Worth where I live, and who wouldn’t want to support such a great football program and the people who have taken it there? I started wondering why being a t-shirt fan is associated as being a negative to those who call themselves “true fans.” Wouldn’t colleges and other true fans want as much support as possible…even if it’s only people jumping on the bandwagon? Support is support and the way I look at it, the more support you have the better everyone will be.

So how in the heck does this apply to public relations? In the field of public relations we often find ourselves playing the role of “t-shirt fan.” There are times we may not agree with, or even want to support, the decisions being made my our bosses, boards, etc. Even if we council them on the reasons why we don't want to "bless their decisions" and communicate our hesitations to them, ultimately it is not our decision. So when we do not agree with what is being done in our organization, as long as it is ethical, we have a professional obligation to show support and be a “team player.” It wouldn’t be very good PR if the rest of the organization had on TCU shirts and I showed up in a Texas Tech shirt right?

So the question becomes am I a true fan or not? Maybe not initially, but on the exterior the message I am communicating to the stakeholders of the organization is that I am fully engaged and committed to the success and/or failure of the decisions, policies, etc., that have been made and I will do my best to get others to jump on board with us…again, as long as it is ethical. To me that means I am making the professional and conscience decision to blend in with the true fans to the point where they have no idea I am what they consider a “t-shirt fan." As far as I'm concerned, we are all there for the same reason, to support our team!

So with all that said, I am PROUD to be considered a t-shirt fan both professionally and personally. I am a fan of UTEP, Texas State, The University of Texas and now TCU…but my support doesn’t stop there. I am a fan of the game and if there is a team worth my support, then give me a shirt and make room for me on the bandwagon! I have learned that you may start off as a t-shirt fan, but if you invest enough time, energy and emotion into any team (professionally or personally), you become a true fan regardless of what others might say…sometimes more so than the so-called “true fans.”

Picture: My best friend Jill (Texas Tech Grad), college friend Jon (UTEP grad/UTEP football player) and me all supporting TCU in Las Vegas versus UNLV. Three proud t-shirt fans!