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Nineteenth and twentieth century developments in corporations’ legal duties involving “public relations” activities gave rise to professional public relations practice. During the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, court cases, trade press, and the popular press used the term “public relations” to refer to the status of an organization and certain expected behaviors. As corporations and utilities grew in the late nineteenth century these “public relations” responsibilities were applied to them creating a legal requirement of transparency, disclosure, and good faith actions. Examining court decisions and the popular press this paper shows how this application of the term “public relations” to corporations had a relationship with public relations practice. Implications for public relations historiography and American public relations development are discussed.

The article discusses the underling law of sovereign immunity waivers for copyright cases. Topics covered include the constitutional challenges to the Copyright Remedy Clarification Act of 1990 (CRCA), the potential implications of Allen v. Cooper, and the ways that sovereign immunity affects copyright infringement claims when dealing with state defendants.

The role of publicists in public relations history is largely overlooked. Although today publicists are commonly associated with the entertainment industry, late nineteenth and early twentieth century publicists were a professional group that played an important role in developing modern public relations practice, particularly the craft of research-based, ethical, and strategic communication. These early publicists' reputations and skills at managing public opinion were highly sought after by universities, businesses, and in political circles. Because their work often involved international issues, their impact was present both domestically and outside of the United States. Understanding the role the publicist played in public relations development presents a new narrative of public relations history that shows that early public relations practice contained professional, strategic, and international communication practices.

This study examines the portrayal of Robert E. Lee in the popular northern press from the end of the Civil War in 1865 until immediately after his death in 1870. Through this examination of the postbellum northern press two distinct images of Lee emerge—one of Lee as a traitor and one of Lee as a hero. In examining these portrayals of Lee this study examines how the northern press framed Lee in terms of his involvement with secession, the Civil War, and Reconstruction. These articles demonstrate the difficulty the press had in reconciling the positive image of Lee with the unpopular image of the Civil War. Using scholarship on the Southern cavalier myth, the Lost Cause, and American hero creation as theoretical frameworks, this study analyzes these articles to show the genesis of the creation of Lee as an American hero.

The publicity agent in the United States during the early twentieth century served as a transitional profession between the nineteenth-century press agent and the post–World War I public relations practitioner. This article examines the corporate roots of publicity agents, their split from the advertising industry, and their role in grassroots organizations. It shows that publicity agents and publicity men participated in a stand-alone, salaried profession with professional associations and standards. More importantly for public relations history, the rise of the publicity agent shows the initial connection and eventual split between advertising and public relations that was previously ignored in public relations historiography.