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In July of 2021, Simone Biles shocked the world with her withdrawal from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics citing "mental health" as her rationale. Mental health remains a taboo subject within the realm of professional sports, and is often devalued, in stark contrast to the value placed on physical health. The present study explored Biles's framing of her withdrawal and publics' reactions to the withdrawal across two distinct social media platforms. Critical rhetorical analysis was used to analyze the Instagram posts made by Biles and a press conference transcript announcing and reifying her withdrawal, as well as 100 TikTok videos and 1000 comments illustrating publics' reactions. Findings demonstrate that Biles's framed her messages through genuineness, responsibility, resistance, and consistency. As a result of the frames used in the withdrawal messages, and the modality allowances afforded on TikTok (e.g., video, text, text and video, stitching), the space for dissent, as well as the ability to critique current power structures was created. From these findings, theoretically I argue that (1) framing theory can be used to create the space for resisting power, reclaiming agency, and challenging attacks of morality, and (2) theorize the ability of public relations to shape broader societal discourse. Practically, this research adds to the public relations literature (1) the value of new frames for image cultivation and the new role of publics for engaging in the acceptance, rejection, or co-creation of frames put forth by organizations and (2) the role of message modality for cultivating discourse and dissent. • Framing as a tool for resisting power and reclaiming agency. • Message modality access can influence dissensus discourse. • Social media allows publics to co-create frames with organizations. • Athlete communication shapes and is shaped by public relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic received considerable attention from public relations scholars and research publications after the pandemic exploded. This study provides an overview of the status of COVID-19 public relations research in terms of topics, regional focuses, organization-public relationships, public relations approaches and themes, stages of the pandemic, and theoretical and methodological frameworks. This study also investigated how public relations research has described the characteristics of the COVID-19 pandemic. We reviewed 126 articles published in peer-reviewed journals using quantitative and qualitative content analyses. We expect that this review provides new insights based on the current literature to advance public relations research in today's fast-changing society. • We analyzed 126 COVID-19 public relations research papers that have been published in peer-reviewed journals from the height of the pandemic in 2020 to February 2023. • Public Relations Review was the largest publication venue in COVID-19 public relations research (n = 17, 13.5%). • The most common topics in COVID-19 public relations research were relationship management (n = 43, 34.1%), crisis/risk management (n = 37, 29.4%), and issue management (n = 24, 19.0%). • Public Relations research papers described the COVID-19 pandemic situation commonly with six characteristics: transboundary impacts, uncertainty, global-scale event, health crisis, calling for sophisticated communication strategies, and an external crisis event. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although research in the field of investor relations has been experiencing a surge in recent years, one aspect of investor relations still commands little attention – media planning. Indeed, the research on the media mix investor relations officers use and the reasons behind such usage doesn't seem to exist. Yet, this may be an important topic to investigate for public relations scholars. In fact, anecdotal evidence suggests that investor relations would be quite different from other public relations specializations in its media usage. However, research on media planning is not well developed in the general field of public relations itself and pales in comparison with research in such fields as advertising and marketing. This study addresses this shortcoming by developing a new approach to measuring media usage in public relations. This approach is then tested through a survey of investor relations officers. The results indicate that the main tactic used in investor relations is one-on-one interpersonal communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For decades, scholars in the United States have lamented public policies and government actions that seem to affect, intentionally or unintentionally, already marginalized Black populations. Urban renewal policies and initiatives are examples of government actions that receive such criticism. Arts promotion as a strategic public relations tactic, used to attract middle- to -upper class residents and visitors to cities, is one communicative approach cities take to sell their attractiveness and viability. Yet, cities, urban renewal, and urban tourism research has not received much attention from Public Relations researchers. Critical public relations scholars, however, can help to expose key issues such as displacement and marginalization of Black citizens that are associated with city public relations activities such as promotional culture, arts/city marketing, and urban tourism. Using racial neoliberalism as a theoretical, analytical framework, we examine urban renewal in Cincinnati, Ohio USA, to demonstrate the power of boosterish, government-sponsored urban renewal efforts and the ways such paradoxically positive discourse makes it difficult for the often Black, inner-city communities to challenge advancement that might marginalize them further. • Uses Paradox of the Positive to interrogate arts promotion and urban renewal discourse. • Identifies arts promotion as form of government public relations in urban contexts. • Examines Cincinnati, Ohio USA's urban renewal discourse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Arab public relations research (APRR) has reached many milestones since its inception; however, no study has investigated extant literature to map the trends and patterns within the subject area. As a result, this study aims to aggregate the landscape of APRR from 1979 to date. To achieve this, this current study adopts a multi-method approach of content analysis and text mining of 106 peer-reviewed APRR articles. Findings show an inconsistent trend of APRR. Findings also illustrate the status of APRR methods, analytical methods, media genres, media platforms, organizations, industries, most used words and dominant perspectives within the subject area. This study concludes that despite the irregularities in the progression, APRR is an emergent sub-area with the potential to gain prominence concerning interest and output. • social media was the dominant genre followed by traditional media and digital media. • Public Relations Review distinguishes itself as the top publication destination for Middle Eastern scholars and researchers. • public relations research areas are typically characterized by theoretical contributions from other areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Governments use public relations to promote their interests in international venues like the United Nations. To understand how governments market their value in environments of elite competition, I compare Canadian, Irish, and Norwegian narratives while campaigning for seats on the Security Council. Results of a strategic narrative analysis suggest Ireland told the strongest stories, creating an authenticity as the 'nation of storytellers' that maximized its valuation. Norway failed to substantively articulate the motivation behind its foreign policy, likely impacting brand loyalty among stakeholders. Canada had the weakest storytelling, with self-referential narratives lacking a sense of care that discredited, and at times even contradicted, the mutuality of it serving on the council. I posit these varying storytelling approaches contribute to understanding the campaigns' disparate ROIs. Contextualizing strategic narratives as value propositions expands the interdisciplinarity of government public relations scholarship at the nexus of international relations, public diplomacy, and nation branding. I conclude by operationalizing system, identity, and issue narratives to highlight how practitioners can maximize organizational value through wholistic storytelling. • Strategic narratives are useful for understanding how governments use stories to relay the value of their brand and policies. • Ireland's storytelling had narrative coherence, fidelity, and continuity, reinforcing its brand as a nation of storytellers. • Norway's storytelling failed to convey the motivation in its foreign policy, weakening the ability to build brand loyalty. • Canada's storytelling was self-reflective and lacked mutuality, impeding it relationship cultivation with UN stakeholders. • This expands PR by anchoring the discursive turn in public diplomacy and nation branding in government public relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Various professional organizations in the public relations field have created opportunities for formal professional achievement. Among participating professional organizations, there is the Certificate in Principles of Public Relations for students near graduation time, and professionals may pursue Accreditation in Public Relations (APR) or Accreditation in Public Relations + Military Communication (APR+M). For advanced professionals, the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) offers the College of Fellows to its members. However, perceptions of and participation in these achievement opportunities are varied. This study uses the lens of the Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) to explore why people do or do not seek to attain these professional milestones. Mean responses on intrinsic social cognitive response variables (confidence, self-efficacy, goal-setting) did not show a significant relationship to motivation, but the extrinsic value expectation was significant. In addition, awareness and perception of these professional achievements among human resources and hiring managers were studied. Results show students and professionals who have earned career achievements have higher mean responses on social cognitive responses than those who do not. Hiring managers value professional development indicators as positive to have but not necessary if candidates have proven experience. Qualitative responses further indicated many respondents were not familiar with the Certificate in Principles of Public Relations, APR, or College of Fellows. Those who had earned these achievements were generally positive. Few students, professionals, or educators reported reaping no benefit once achieved. Those who chose not to pursue or who provided negative responses cited lack of necessity, lacks value, requires too much (e.g. time, money), or process as reasons why. • Awareness of the Certificate in Public Relations Principles is low among students, professionals and hiring managers. • The key theoretical variable driving pursuit of the Certificate and APR is value expectation, namely to be hired or promoted. • The primary value to seek membership in the College of Fellows is personal, to belong to a select group of professionals. • Hiring managers –in PR or HR—see some value in candidates having the Certificate or APR but also consider experience and degrees more. Membership in College of Fellows is less a factor when hiring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Major sporting events bring a range of social, economic, and reputational benefits for hosting nations and serve as a vehicle to showcase the nation brand. Social media engagement during sport events provides opportunities for community members to cocreate, curate and communicate their nation brand's attributes. While research in nation branding and community engagement has examined the ways place-based communities contribute to nation branding, little is known about how and in what ways virtual communities contribute to their nation brand. This study addresses this gap by examining the virtual brand community (VBC) surrounding the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. Using social network analysis and content analysis, the findings suggest that VBC contributions is dependent on the composition, participation, and cultivation of conversations focusing on the personality traits of a nation brand. Theoretically, the outcomes from this study advance understanding of leveraging the properties of VBCs in making contribution to the production and maintenance of an authentic nation brand, that values community perspectives facilitated through community engagement. For public relations, it extends the current research in digital social-level engagement in virtual settings and outlines future research in participatory approaches to nation branding. The growing use of major sporting events in supporting nation branding goals, particularly in Asian and African continents, suggests the outcome of this study has implications at regional and international levels to guide public relations managers in major events to facilitate sustainable VBCs for authentic place branding outcomes. • Digital social-level engagement facilitates authentic nation branding through VBCs. • VBCs require authentic and diverse community composition, prticipation and contribution. • Community-led nation branding reflects active community and brand organization engagement. • Cocreation of value-based content builds shared place and nation brand identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public relations scholarship frequently studies relations between organizations and publics but rarely considers how the nature of organizations influences this interaction. In this essay, we review conceptions of the organization in several areas of public relations scholarship and find complexity that is unexplained by theory, causing a disconnect between public relations scholarship and practice. Using insights from stakeholder theory, essential contract theory, and intersectionality, we provide a new definition of the organization and 14 propositions about the nature of organizations. This definition is explained with a metaphor of an organization as a tent. The tent is composed of many stakeholders, each with multiple identities, utilizing contracts as poles to push and pull the organization in their preferred direction. An illustrative example is given of how this metaphor operates in a university. We call for a reorientation of public relations theory's relationships to organizations and suggest an important role for public relations and communication in constituting the nature of organizations and ensuring representativeness in decision-making. • The nature of organizations as described in public relations scholarship is reviewed and found to be missing complexity. • This complexity is addressed with guidance from stakeholder theory, essential contract theory, and intersectionality. • 14 propositions are given regarding the nature of organization. • A metaphor of a tent and an example of a university are provided to explain the propositions in action. • Public relations has a role in constituting the nature of organizations and ensuring representativeness in decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the gap between crisis communication scholarship and the growing research on intractable issues and wicked problems in public relations. By synthesizing these literatures, the concept of intractability more clearly connects issues, risks, and crises within a community-oriented mindset. The literature review organizes crisis communication scholarship into rhetorical, perceptual, risk-oriented, and conflict-oriented categories, then introduces intractable issues and wicked problems as supplementary and beneficial frameworks. There are similarities and differences among crises and intractable issues, with distinctions mainly arising in terms of urgency and perceived proximity to organizations. Issues, risks, and crises can be mapped using the continua of immediacy/temporal urgency and organizational or societal issue centrality. This creates four quadrants: A zone of reputational crises, a zone of intractability, a zone of wicked problems, and a zone of organizational responsibility. • The purpose of the paper is to integrate intractable and wicked problems with existing crisis communication theory. • We organize existing crisis theory into four categories: rhetorical, perceptual, risk manifested, issue engagement/conflict management. • A new category of crisis as acute intractability/wickedness is proposed. • Immediacy/temporality and organization-centrality are developed as key continua. • This creates four zones of crisis communication: reputational crises, acute intractability, wicked problems, and organizational responsibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores an area that has not been widely researched in the Latin American and Caribbean region: the identification of a capability gap in relation to key strategic public relations and communication management issues and activities. To this end, this article presents findings and analysis from a survey conducted in 20 Latin American and Caribbean countries in 2020. The existence of a capability gap in relation to key issues and activities in public relations and communication management is confirmed, which represents a challenge for the development of the public relations field as well as for higher education institutions across the region. • The concepts of competencies and capabilities are characterised and differentiated. • The most important strategic issue for Latin American public relations practitioners was "coping with digital evolution and the social web". • Almost one in two Latin American professionals lacks technology and data management capabilities. • A capability gap in relation to the key issues of public relations and strategic communication in Latin America is identified, which is a challenge from a practical and academic perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public relations histories have frequently credited Ivy Lee as providing the first press release. This research uses primary and secondary historical sources to demonstrate that the American branch of the international peace movement was using press releases decades before Lee's birth. Starting at least as early as 1819, the movement disseminated press releases to newspapers. This program of sending out press releases increased in size until it was reaching as many as 1,000 separate newspapers in the 1840s. At that time, a young advocate named Elihu Burritt took over the operation. Using a newspaper loophole in postage laws, Burritt was able to regularly disseminate messages to as many as 1,500 separate newspapers, averaging over 200 article placements per message and reaching hundreds of thousands of newspaper readers. This research discusses implications for public relations history. • The public relations work of the American peace movement is documented. • The movement utilized an extensive and modern media relations program starting in 1819. • The peace movement distributed press releases to over a thousand newspapers reaching at least 500,000 readers. • Elihu Burritt utilized a loophole in postage law to distribute releases on a modern scale. • The occupation and function approaches to public relations history are explained and implications for them are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Hispanic or Latina/o community is an important and growing part of the economy, culture, and politics of the United States. As such, public relations professionals need to be knowledgeable about and responsive to the needs of Hispanic or Latina/o publics. Despite a growing emphasis on diversity and inclusion in the field of public relations, research on Hispanic public relations (HPR) remains largely unexplored. To address this gap, the present study conducted a Delphi panel with 17 experts in HPR in the U.S. The panel used a multi-iteration and consensus-building approach to evaluate different aspects of HPR, including the state of the profession, the competencies required to practice HPR effectively, the value of incorporating HPR courses into academic curricula, and strategies for recruiting and retaining HPR students. The findings of this study provide valuable insights for public relations scholars, educators, and industry leaders. By examining the current state of HPR and identifying key issues and challenges, this study contributes to a better understanding of the profession and its potential for growth and development. By highlighting the importance of HPR education and training, this study also offers practical guidance for those interested in advancing the field of HPR. • Delphi panel with 17 experts in Hispanic PR evaluated key aspects of the field. • Provides insights for PR scholars, educators, and industry leaders. • Examines the state of Hispanic PR, competencies required, and strategies for recruiting students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of community expresses a variety of responsibilities that public relations has in building connections, good will, and wellbeing amongst collectives of people. Community also parallels many U.S. expectations of government; however, public relations has few studies that investigate the collaboration between government and citizens or how different government services (e.g., public works, public health, building enforcement, etc.) influence community building. Specifically, parks and recreation has been overlooked in the public relations literature as citizens and government collectively support these lifelines of community wellbeing and social connectedness. Through qualitative analysis of focus groups with city residents and interviews with city parks and recreation personnel, I present thematic findings that explicate how citizens and city staff engage in community building and the specific role that leisure plays in community building processes. Lastly, I offer implications for public relations theory that argue to shift local community and governance theory to be citizen-centered and use the concept of family to explicate the function of community in small municipal contexts. • Argues for community building contexts to incorporate both governments and citizens. • Presents leisure as an integral community building activity for municipalities. • Offers implications for PR theory to center citizens and family in community theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public relations practitioners and academics have long debated the merits of licensing; however, licensing has not been adopted due to a lack of appetite among practitioners as well as concerns about the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Using an analogy with the professions that practice therapy, we argue that licensing of public relations can comply with the First Amendment by providing incentives to licensees, as opposed to restricting the practice of the unlicensed. We identify several potential incentives and provide a detailed analysis of a proposed right to legally privileged communication. We conclude with suggestions for next steps toward creation of licensing and resources that may help in this endeavor. • Licensing public relations professionals can address crisis of mis- and disinformation. • Using an analogy with therapy, we argue that licensing public relations professionals can comply with the First Amendment. • Licensing PR professionals requires offering benefits for licensing rather than preventing practice of the unlicensed. • Licensed public relations professionals should be given the right to privileged communication. • Next steps toward creating licensure are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on how religious and faith-based organizations practice public relations is steadily increasing and of particular interest. Public relations scholars have examined the applicability of public relations theories with religious organizations, and sought to develop new public relations theories, concepts, and models that are appropriate for the context of faith and religion. However, one set of public relations concepts has been limitedly studied, irregularly applied, and inconsistently explained regarding their definitions, how they work together, how they are distinct, and how they can be studied within and outside the narrow context of religious public relations. This conceptual framework essay explicates four constructs found in religious public relations scholarship to provide clarification regarding the application of these murky concepts and a roadmap for how public relations scholars can apply, study, and advance these concepts and models within and outside the context of religious public relations to advance public relations theorizing. • This conceptual essay explicates four constructs in religious public relations research. • The devotional model provides a framework for religious relational engagement. • Covenantal relationships are characterized by shared values, benefits, and commitment. • Devotional campaigns are a public relations strategy to inspire devotion and allegiance. • The covenantal approach focuses on relational health and opportunity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Qualitative content analysis of 74 novels featuring public relations characters distributed in the United States demonstrates that, rather than attempting to replicate reality, the mystery genre reflects debates about such issues as honesty, confidentiality, and the relative value of negative publicity. PR practitioners fit into all of the conventional mystery character roles, but particularly the role of sleuth, where access to information and powerful people allows them to solve the mystery but also sometimes forces them to choose between the client/employer and the public interest. The study confirms Fitch's (2015) contention that popular culture representations of public relations are best understood in their narrative and generic context. • Proximity to power makes public relations characters relevant to the mystery genre. • PR characters must balance client confidentiality with the public interest. • Fictional representations reveal that public relations is a contested field. • Mystery novels reveal a deep distrust of powerful institutions and people. • Fictional representations do not attempt to reflect the field accurately. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, I analyze part of a 1973 phone conversation between President Richard Nixon and Special Counsel to the President Charles Colson, regarding the Watergate scandal. I find that the conversation is organized largely in terms of three, successively developed contrasts. These contrasts brought into play two "dimensions of contrast"—pervasiveness and importance. The analysis resulted ultimately in a structure of meaning that included both taxonomical and scaling relations. It is shown how this structure is developed sequentially and collaboratively, how ambiguities are resolved, and how both participants converge on a common interpretation of the situation. Throughout, Watergate is treated primarily as a news story rather than an event or crime. Matters of law and ethics are subordinated to matters of perception and public relations. The ultimate objective of this analysis is methodological—to add to the toolkit of occasioned semantics, the study of how structures of meaning are developed and manifested in verbal discourse. Whereas my previous work has focused primarily on co-categorization, inclusion structures, and scaling, this study shows how contrast can function as the primary element structuring meaning in talk. • President Nixon and Special Counsel Colson discuss Watergate. • Conversation is structured by three contrasts. • Contrasts are interrelated and cumulative. • Contrasts are scaled by pervasiveness and importance of the media story. • Structure of meaning developed sequentially and collaboratively by participants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is an increasing awareness of the prevalence and impact of trauma on publics' lives, particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. As intermediaries who shape symbols, discourses, meanings, and practices amidst evolving social, cultural, and psychological landscapes such as these, public relations professionals must remain mindful of their potential to inflict harm on the recipients of their work and understand publics' lived experiences that may involve trauma. Yet, little research has explored public relations work from a trauma-informed approach. Building upon Macnamara's (2016b, 2018) architecture of listening model, this study considers how public relations can help enact trauma-informed organizational listening. As such, this qualitative analysis of interviews with 54 public relations and strategic communication professionals yielded insights for listening with consideration for trauma and harm among diverse publics. Findings suggest that public relations professionals engage in trauma-informed listening via respect and sensitivity, listening out for invisible or unheard trauma, consideration of power distance, understanding that the trauma can be inflicted by communications work, and with consideration for 'compassion fatigue.' Combined with existing organizational listening theory, this article offers practical recommendations for how organizations can enact trauma-informed listening. • Interviews with 54 PR professionals yielded insights for listening for trauma. • Findings suggest that PR pros listen with respect, with consideration of power, and with consideration of compassion fatigue. • Trauma-informed listening can be seen as a bridge function between organizations and publics who have experienced trauma. • Public relations would benefit from training that draws upon concepts from counseling, medical, sociological, and psychological approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Organization-public relationships (OPRs) have been central to public relations theorizing for decades. Guided by Broom et al.'s (1997) foundational three-stage model of OPRs, this study contributes to the public relations literature by conducting the first meta-analysis of the associations between each of the four dimensions of OPRs (trust, satisfaction, commitment, and control mutuality) and their most frequently studied antecedents and consequences. A total of 454 correlations from 67 empirical studies (N = 30, 223) were included in the analysis. The results confirmed the strong correlations among OPRs and the nine most frequently studied antecedents: engagement, involvement, authenticity, transparency, interactivity, two-way communication, interpersonal communication, mediated communication, and symmetrical communication. The research also confirmed the strong connections among OPRs and six commonly researched consequences: reputation, attitudes, positive word-of-mouth communication, purchase intentions, advocacy, and information seeking. We identified the sampling method, employee-organization relationships (EORs), organization type, and country as significant moderators for certain relationships. Overall, the findings support OPRs as a mature and well-supported theory that continues integrating with other public relations theories. Findings also enrich the three-stage model of OPRs with integrated empirical evidence. Areas for future scholarship are discussed relevant to the insignificant potential moderators, such as channel and crisis topic, along with important limitations in the extant scholarship. • Guided by three-stage model of OPRs, this research confirmed strong relationships among OPRs and their dominant antecedents and consequences, enriching this model with integrated empirical evidence. • A total of 454 correlations from 67 studies (N = 30, 223) were included. • We identify sampling method, country, employee topic, and organization type as significant moderators, which reconcile incongruous previous findings and set an agenda for future research. • Overall, OPRs is a mature and well-supported theory that continues integrating with other public relations theories and is well-aligned with the relational core of many public relations practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social media has emerged as a very popular topic in public relations research but building social media theory seems to have been almost neglected. In this curation, we explore recent attempts to develop social media theory in public relations while focusing on the various characteristics and conceptualizations of research. We explore recent theoretical work published in Public Relations Review that features theoretical perspectives of social media. This curation offers a thematic analysis of the current research initiatives. We also specify potential future directions in theory building and discuss how future theory public relations development and refinement should address social media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As an empirical effort to explore the public relations potential of AI-enabled technologies such as chatbots, this study examined how chatbot social conversation—a communication strategy that encompasses both social presence and conversational human voice and is conceptualized in consideration of chatbots' mediated communication environment—can contribute to organization-public relational outcomes (i.e., OPRs). To understand how this process works, we incorporate the personification approach to organizations, and also investigate the impact of chatbot social conversation in shaping public perceptions of corporate character (i.e., agreeableness, enterprise, competence, and ruthlessness). A survey of 778 Facebook users in the United States was conducted, where participants were randomly assigned to have a guided conversation with an AI-enabled social chatbot utilized by real companies on Facebook. Results confirm that chatbot social conversation can serve as a strong antecedent of the corporate character of the organization that deployed it and OPRs. Perceived corporate character also directly influences the quality of OPRs, demonstrating the potential of using AI-enabled social chatbots for public relations purposes. • This study examined how chatbot social conversation can contribute to organization-public relationships (OPRs). • It also investigates the impact of chatbot social conversation in shaping public perceptions of corporate character. • An online survey was conducted with 778 Facebook users who had a guided conversation with an AI-enabled social chatbot. • Results showed that chatbot social conversation served as a strong antecedent of corporate character and OPRs. • Perceived corporate character also directly influenced the quality of OPRs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to evaluate the scientific production on public relations addressing Latin America through a quantitative content and bibliometric analysis of articles and special issues published between 1980 and 2020, written in the official languages of the region: Spanish and Portuguese. The results of 123 articles confirm a substantial increase of studies since 2011, and some limitations of scientific dissemination. Although almost half of the authors were based in Brazil (40%), 17 base countries were counted. This work complements the latest studies on the object of study in English (Thelen, 2021) and provides the scientific community with recognition and access to native production. • A set of 123 native language articles where analised on public relations addressing Latin America. • There is a significant increase in the number of studies from 2016 onwards (29%). • Brazil accumulated the largest number of papers in the period (n = 49). • It was found that the impact in native languages (4.2) was lower than in English (43.2). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What was participatory culture's role in advancing critical PR ideals through community placemaking for UK City of Culture 2021 (UKCoC) bids? To answer this question, 20 semi-structured interviews were conducted across five UKCoC contender locations, paying particular attention to presentation of professional self. Reported events were theorised using the academic concepts of critical PR and participatory culture. It is argued that two elements to proceedings created conditions for critical PR ideals to be advanced at intervals. The first was a low barrier to inclusion and artistic expression – although this had the opposite effect for some arts people. The second was, due to the low barrier, the possibility for the emergence of autonomous space for participants, facilitated by the organisational, cultural curator, PR role. The low barrier is key to the definition of participatory culture. However, its relevance to critical PR has been un-theorised until now, despite growing interest in the intersection between the disciplines of participatory culture and critical PR. This is the first such work to examine UKCoC using critical PR and participatory culture theories. The community placemaking activities under scrutiny are presented as embodiments, in parts, of critical PR ideals, made possible by participatory culture. In summary, it is demonstrated that the PR role provided the potential for residents to be empowered, and to gain an enhanced love of place or topophilia. This was a bottom-up and anti-neoliberal effect of the top-down and time-limited undertaking of bidding for UKCoC status, highlighting the value of participatory culture principles to critical PR. • This study extends a small body of work highlighting participatory culture's potential to advance critical PR ideals. • It emphasises participatory culture's low barrier to involvement in the context of critical PR, to benefit the common good. • The study highlights the limitations of the low barrier to involvement, for participants with experience in the arts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While campaigning for president of the United States, both Donald Trump (2016) and Joe Biden (2020) faced serious allegations of sexual misconduct. Consequently, the sexual misconduct allegations were classified as a crisis for the candidates themselves and their campaigns. This study identified the crisis communications strategies that each individual and their respective campaign utilized, analyzing the ways in which each candidate adhered to and deviated from the established framework of the crisis communications model (Strategic Crisis Communications Theory) (Coombs, 1995). Artifacts during the campaign season such as statements, press releases, responses, and news articles were collected and analyzed under the framework of the SCCT. Research indicates that each candidate was able to utilize "mismatched" strategies successfully, suggesting that the SCCT may be applied in political contexts. More research is needed to better understand the role SCCT plays in the political realm--especially within political organizations and campaigns. • Identifies crisis communication strategies used by presidential candidates accused of sexual misconduct. • Proposes that future crisis communication research needs to focus on evaluating the effectiveness of mismatched strategies. • Demonstrates that crisis strategies may function differently in political context. • Public perception of crisis responsibility should direct whether a matched or mismatched crisis strategy is used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the role of public relations in Antonio Gramsci's concept of cultural hegemony, specifically in a counterhegemony. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s preparation for the 1968 Poor People's Campaign serves as a test case on how public relations can help subordinate groups confront a hegemony. This paper suggests that Gramsci's philosophy provides an analytical heuristic for researching instances of contestation. Examining counterhegemonic campaigns offer public relations practitioners a means both to think about and to intervene in the world more effectively. • Antonio Gramsci postulated principles for how to conduct a counterhegemony. • Counterhegemony needs a multifrontal approach and a unifying, master frame. • The 1968 Poor People's Campaign was used to study the role of PR in counterhegemony. • Study shows counterhegemony also needs long term planning to overcome fixed beliefs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While data, digital analytics, and technology have the possibility of further elevating public relations to a strategic function, many communicators cite barriers, including that many on their teams lack digital data and analytics competency. Researchers interviewed 28 senior-level communicators who have experience working with digital data and analytics. The study sought to examine how communicators are adapting to and leading teams in this data revolution by exploring two primary research questions: (1) What are the perceived opportunities and challenges with digital data and analytics? and (2) How can communicators create an environment to encourage discovery and innovation connected to digital data and analytics? Participants described the challenges of managing vast data streams and alignment, staying current with digital trends and technology, and dealing with the shortcoming of AI tools and algorithms. When asked about opportunities, participants described how communicators are uniquely positioned to align data and analytics efforts to help them understand audiences, foster mutually beneficial relationships with publics, and share stories with these publics and senior counsel that contribute to organizational objectives. Participants said they develop data competency among their communication teams by fostering a creative and curious culture, creating diverse teams, and championing employees. In summary, this study expands understanding of how communicators can evolve and lead in an increasingly data-driven world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This VOSviewer-enabled bibliometric study examines scientific knowledge construction in public relations research since 1955. A co-citation analysis indicates that while sustaining its cross-disciplinary nature, public relations increasingly relies on scholarship generated within its own discipline, with Public Relations Review, Journal of Public Relations Research and Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly most cited academic sources. A citation analysis of author affiliations revealed a number of findings, including universities with the highest count of publications, university pairs that tend to cite each other, as well as regional university groups and large clusters within a broader, citation-based network. Among the 108 most productive academic institutions from four continents included into the study, U.S.-based universities produced the highest number of publications in nine peer-reviewed journals. Cross-referencing citation relationships among university clusters in different world regions illustrates an ongoing pattern of globalized construction of public relations knowledge. • A bibliometric network analysis traces the construction of public relations knowledge since 1955. • Public relations has been increasingly relying on scholarship generated within the discipline. • Public Relations Review and Journal of Public Relations Research are most cited academic sources. • U.S.-based universities produced the highest number of publications in nine peer-reviewed journals. • Based on cross-referencing citation relationships, the construction of public relations knowledge has been globalized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reframing public relations for a changing world remains a significant challenge. This study presents a three-year research project intended to propose the Capability Framework for public relations practitioners, employers/consultants, and academic communities in Malaysia. It has validated the three capabilities categories: communication, organisational, and professional, as encapsulated in Anne and Fawkes's Global Capability Framework. The study employed a mixed-method approach with a dominant qualitative component. In the first part, the Delphi method was conducted to understand the fundamental issue of acceptability of the Global Capability Framework. Secondly, the study included an online survey that provided descriptive results about variations in the Global Capability Framework's applicability within the Malaysian context. For the final part, interviews were organised to explore the views of three PR communities on the Global Capability Framework at the individual, organisational, and professional levels in Malaysia. This study is the first attempt to provide a comprehensive Global Capability Framework for the Malaysian context. We found that cultural capability should emerge as a new dimension of this framework in Malaysia's PR context. Hence, this study will benefit all PR communities in standardising and delivering a country-specific capability approach based on the Global Capability Framework to deal with national and global challenges in an increasingly complex world. • There are key insights on the strategic roles, competencies, and capabilities of public relations practitioners, academicians, and employers. • This study is the first attempt to provide a comprehensive Global Capability Framework for the Malaysian context. • All PR communities would standardise and deliver a country-specific capability approach based on the Global Capability Framework to deal with national and global challenges in an increasingly complex world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on conspiracy theories in the fields of social and political psychology has identified dispositional and situational factors that lead to belief in conspiracy theories. However, there is still a lack of research on how and why individuals engage in conspiratorial thinking (CT) within the area of public relations. This study views CT as individuals' propensity to consider malicious events and circumstances as secret plots initiated by a powerful organization for its self-serving purposes and applies CT to a government-public relationship context. Using a survey dataset collected from a nationally representative sample of Australia citizens (n = 542), this study examines CT about the Australian government using five survey items that measure CT. CT was found to be significant in fully mediating the relationship between organization-public relationship quality and negative megaphoning. • Studies conspiratorial thinking (CT) in the context of government. • Measures it with five survey items. • Examines organization-public relationship quality (OPRQ) as its antecedent. • Examines negative megaphoning (NM) as its outcome. • Finds CT's significance in fully mediating the relationship between OPRQ and NM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates how social media can be better managed to cultivate positive organization-public relationships. It advances an expanded and integrated conceptual model to test how the communication features of corporate pages on social networking sites may influence publics' perception of the organization's communication ethicality, which further predicts organization-public relationships as a compound index of trust, commitment, and satisfaction. The results, based on structural equation modeling, showed that three important communication strategies are success factors that could shape perceptions of communication ethicality: timeliness, responsiveness, and the use of human voice in a dialogic framework. In particular, publics' perception of the organization's communication ethicality emerged as a key mediator driving communication effects to foster positive relationships with stakeholders in an online environment. • Timeliness, responsiveness, and human voice are effective communication strategies that shape the perception of ethicality. • Use of human voice is the most influential predictor for communication ethicality. • Perception of communication ethicality further fosters organization-public relationship. • Communication ethicality is an important mediator in the process of building trust with stakeholder in an online environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores how the ideas of Hannah Arendt can further public relations' understanding of organizational listening and its role in civil society. We draw on three major theoretical concepts from Arendt and scholars studying her work—plurality, interspaces, and lamp holders—and contextualize them within existing civil society research in public relations. Reading Arendt into organizational listening and civil society literature yields insights for how public relations contributes to the maintenance of structures and spaces for deliberation and civil society. Her theory points toward the concepts of bracketing and unbracketing as ways to enter civic spaces with an awareness of power and identity. As research on organizational listening has yet to fully identify how listening can contribute to supporting representative deliberation in polarized societies, this paper helps to theoretically position listening within civil society and provides initial suggestions as to how civic-minded listening can be incorporated into public relations practices aimed at building community. • The purpose of the paper is to explore how Arendt's political theory augments public relations' understanding of organizational listening in civil society. • Reading Arendt into organizational listening and civil society literature provides direction as to how public relations can strengthen civic bonds. • Arendt's political theory points toward new ways to implement organizational listening including bracketing and unbracketing. • This paper positions listening within civil society and provides initial suggestions as to how civic-minded practice has the potential to benefit communities as well as organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses an important era of women's activism in Kuwait. In the 1950s, when the government recognized women's rights for education, the wave to obtain other civil rights clashed with culture, tradition and religion which became serious obstacles facing women in their struggle for basic rights. This historical study focuses on the establishment of two women's organizations -- the Arab Women's Development Society in December 1962 and the Kuwait Women's Cultural and Social Society in February 1963. To sway the negative image of women in a patriarchal society, women used activism as a public relations tool to achieve their social, civil and political rights. The study uses cultural-economic model (CEM) to illustrate how activism and public relations were articulated as synonymous to foster women's rights in Kuwait. Archived documents and content analysis of media content published in the 1960s reveal that activism played a vital role as a public relations strategy and that social activism was more effective than political activism. The study highlights the implications of culture within the context of both public relations and activism. • Study adopts the cultural-economic model of public relations to analyze activism in the womens rights movement of Kuwait. • Content analysis of newspapers and magazines suggests public relations and activism were synonymous to the women's rights movement in Kuwait. • Women's activism for social rights was more emancipatory than for political rights in an Islamic society such as Kuwait. • Study provides insight into public relations, activism and the Middle East. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research utilizes computational methods to examine crisis communication scholarship from 2010 to 2020 in two studies with a census of all articles in Public Relations Review and the Journal of Public Relations Research (n = 1293 articles, 7400,685 words). Results indicate crisis scholarship has expanded beyond its prior focus on reputation repair. Situational crisis communication theory and image repair are compared in volume of scholarship and methodological affinity. Social media, SCCT, and media relations are identified as central topics within crisis communication scholarship. • Two studies examine the crisis paradigm in public relations using all text in two SSCI journals from 2010 to 2020. • Crisis scholarship has broadened to include non-reputation topics following the path set forth by Liu and Fraustino (2014). • Reputation research using situational crisis communication theory has grown significantly and remains largely quantitative. • Research using image repair theory is declining as a percentage of crisis scholarship and remains predominantly rhetorical. • Social media, SCCT, and media relations are identified as central topics within crisis communication scholarship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated how public relations practitioners understand and practice dialogic communication in the controversial oil and gas industry. Guided by theoretical works of dialogic theory of public relations, the dialogic ladder, and negative spaces of dialogue, in-depth interviews were conducted with 21 practitioners who held public relations/communication positions serving the oil and gas industry in Canada. The findings suggest some points of alignment between practitioners' understanding of dialogic public relations and the related theoretical orientation. Practitioners reported predominantly using an interpersonal approach for shallow dialogue followed by mediated and procedural approaches with different stakeholders in practice. Interviewees also shared the unique challenges they face in practicing dialogic communication due to the controversies surrounding the industry. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. • Practitioners' understanding and practice of dialogic public relations partially align with some of the five features of true dialogue. • Practitioners carefully tailor interpersonal, mediated, and procedural approaches toward different stakeholder groups. • Dialogic communication is issue-based, constantly changing, and sensitive to public pressure for controversial industries. • The five features of true dialogue need to be examined further and there may be a progressive relationship among these features. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Even though the extant literature has pointed to the steady growth of public relations research in different contexts, the developing economy context continues to be marginalised in terms of scholarship, theory development and, consequently, the practice of the discipline. This has necessitated calls from scholars to document research in the discipline to trigger future research agendas. This study was therefore undertaken to scientifically synthesise and analyze 26 peer-reviewed public relations studies in Ghana, which were published over a period of 10 years (2012–2021) to document the dominant issues, gaps, and future research avenues. Through a systematic review, the study found that there is an over-concentration on themes such as CSR and CSR communication, public relations within higher education institutions, and dialogic public relations at the expense of other key subject areas within the discipline. Methodologically, 65% of the studies reviewed have employed the qualitative methodology as opposed to the quantitative and mixed-method approaches, thereby reducing the ability to extrapolate their findings to other populations. The study has thoroughly discussed the implications for public relations scholarship, theory development and practice within Ghana and other emerging contexts. • Public relations research. • Future research agenda. • Systematic review. • Developing economy context. • Growing public relations research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this literature review and proposed theoretical model, the author argues that we often engage in advocacy in public relations on behalf of causes we hold dear, much as a strong defender on a soccer field becomes physical in defending the goal without violating explicit rules or our sense of what is right and appropriate in a competitive world. The author presents this image of an athlete contending in fair competition as a metaphor for a rejection of canonized thinking about accommodation in public relations in favor of public relations as strategic conflict management. This paper is offered to continue the discussion in the field of public relations from the contingency theory of strategic conflict management and consider the ethical challenges faced by public relations practitioners in an ongoing cycle of conflict. • Moral conflicts are everywhere and inherent in public relations process; professionals should develop strategies to manage such conflict in an ongoing cycle, as should do other stakeholders. • The proposed model in this paper represents moral conflict and dynamic equilibrium of an organization and its publics ranging from self-interest to the kingdom of ends. • The proposed model provides an alternative to analytic debate, embraces autonomous individual and group processes, and holds up a non-assumptive search of social reality. • Ethical considerations in public relations include socially acceptable and necessary roles for persuasion or advocacy in a democratic and participatory society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A conversational human voice in CSR communication positively affects social presence in CSR communication. • In CSR communication, messages written in a gain-framed style have higher social presence than those written in a loss-framed style. • The use of conversational human voice in CSR communication can enhance publics' willingness to spread positive word-of-mouth. • The findings suggest that gain-framed messages generate higher positive WOM intention than loss-framed messages. • By using human voice with gain-focused frames on Facebook, companies can enhance the benefits of CSR communication. To understand how tone of voice, message framing, and type of online media affect public perceptions and reactions to an organization in the context of corporate social responsibility (CSR) communication, this study conducted a 2 (tone of voice: human voice vs. organizational voice) x 2 (message framing: gain-focused vs. loss-focused) x 2 (online media: Facebook vs. organizational blog) online experiment (N = 394). Conversational human voice and gain-focused framing significantly influence the social presence of the organization and publics' positive word-of-mouth intention. Publics' intention to generate positive word-of-mouth was highest when the organization used conversational human voice with gain-focused message and conveyed the message on its Facebook page. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The study tested dynamic linkages among local government-public relationships, sense of community, and community-building. • Local government-public relationship directly influences a sense of community and positive word-of-mouth. • A sense of community significantly influences positive word-of-mouth and community participation. • A sense of community mediates the effects of the local government-public relationship on the public's community engagement. This study examines the relationship between factors central to community building, including local government-public relationships, sense of community, positive Word-of-Mouth (WOM) toward community, and community participation. A national survey of U.S. respondents (n = 447) was conducted through MTurk. The results indicate that the effects of local government-public relationships on positive WOM and community participation are mediated by individuals' sense of community. This study advances the relationship-management scholarship by demonstrating that managing government-public relationships is ineffective in community-building when a sense of community is absent. In addition, the results of this study may benefit government public relations practitioners who are interested in public engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Activists do not only solely on their own rhetorical arguments to attain legitimacy. • Activists link their arguments to external narratives to help acquire legitimacy. • Activists must vigilantly monitor issues to capitalize on developments. Activist organizations use issues management when pressuring corporations to alter practices and policies that these groups find problematic. Throughout this process, activists must establish legitimacy for their issue concerns, organizations, and proposed solutions to gain public support for their activities. This study qualitatively analyzes the communication practices of 21 activist organizations to understand the strategies that these unique groups harness as they seek to build legitimacy as part of the issues management process. The findings contribute to a growing body of public relations research on activist communication by introducing a new legitimation strategy that underscores the importance of ongoing issues monitoring for activists and illustrates how activist organizations can co-opt extant narratives to build legitimacy for their existing issue arguments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Part of the Communist Party Historians Group work can be considered part of the history of PR. • The work conducted by Thompson, Rudé, and Hobsbawm suggests the existence of a hidden historiography of PR. • The Luddite movement can be approached as a modern protest PR antecedent. • Public relations is a longue durée phenomena. In this article, we examine what PR history can learn from a small but internationally influential group of radical historians in Britain. In particular, we examine how they managed to be powerfully democratic through an imaginative sensitivity to the voices of people often excluded from history; through grounding research in specific, often small, localities, and communities; and paradoxically, managing to avoid enough of the insularity associated with the notorious "little Britain" mindset to attract interest and interactions from historians across the world. Our article highlights the relevance to PR history of the following four aspects: 1) their awareness of the need to interact locally and beyond national boundaries; 2) their concern for inclusion (especially for subjects excluded or marginalized in earlier historical accounts); 3) their strategies for escaping insularity and increasing interdisciplinarity; and 4) their illustrations of imagination as a vital component in historical writing. For contemporary PR history writing we argue: that the first aspect, the fusion of the local with the post-national, has become a necessity as globalization keeps expanding; that the second, strategic inclusiveness, has urgency for a field reflecting on the social shortcomings of its own organization-centered past; that the third, interdisciplinary, has intensified in utility as fields adapt to the massive growth in different kinds of knowledge (from big data to neuroscience); and that the fourth, passionate and engaged imagination, is needed for revisionist accounts of the past to help reclaim more prosocial futures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Alternative perspective on "propaganda" in the public relations historiography. • Propaganda was a term that was still in use during the late 1960s. • One of Sweden's largest communication achievement during the 20th century. This article presents an alternative perspective regarding the concept of "propaganda" in the historiography of public relations. Recent scholars of public relations have rightly criticized early attempts to write the field's history as a linear progression, from propaganda to excellence. At the same time, however, the same recent scholars have come to accept a linear conceptual change, and that "propaganda" became an impossible term in liberal democratic countries in the 1960s. By using the empirical case of the massive communication efforts initiated by the Swedish Commission on Right-Hand Traffic, which was assigned to implement right-hand traffic in 1967, this article shows that the concept of "propaganda" both occurred frequently and was used in a neutral sense. To deepen the understanding of this alternative perspective, the article both presents how the historical actors conceptualized their work, and describes how the communication work of the Commission was performed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Systematic review of a total of 74 journal articles in 18 journals as well as three monographs is conducted. • Corporate diplomacy and political CSR are redefined in a distinctive and comprehensive manner. • An integrative theoretical framework to study CD is presented. • Need for further developed theory on corporate diplomacy and increased empirical analyses. The purpose of this study is to systematically review the body of knowledge on corporate diplomacy (CD) and political corporate social responsibility (PCSR) in journals from the fields of public relations, public diplomacy, general management and business ethics. By applying an interdisciplinary approach our study aims to (1) examine what definitions of CD and PCSR exist, (2) explore what theories have been applied to CD and PCSR and, (3) find differences and commonalities between the underlying concepts of CD and PCSR. Building on the results of our review, we redefine each construct and develop a theoretical framework of CD, which integrates PCSR, international public relations and public diplomacy. Our results serve as a foundation for an operationalization of the constructs in order to conduct empirical analyses and contribute to current research on the political role of multinational corporations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The historical development of GPRD of Thailand presents the influences of political environments on government public relations practice. • The GPRD's main functions include publicity, information dissemination, and propaganda through the study of four periods. • Despite the great expansion of the GPRD's media and network, its PR role under the direct control of the governments has been questioned. • The GPRD's main hindrances in governmental communication are political interference and its bureaucratic culture. The Government Public Relations Department (GPRD) of Thailand has existed in various forms since the country's governing system changed from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional one in 1932. This study reflects on how the GPRD's practices have been affected by the country's governing and political environments over time. It has periodized the eighty-four-years of development of the GPRD into sequential phases based on a continuum approach. The GPRD's roles and duties are detailed based on four periods: Beginning Period, Growth Period, Full Expansion Period, and Weak Period. The GPRD was firstly positioned to be the primary government tool for introducing the concept of democracy to the Thai populace and disseminating information about government policies, activities and propagandistic campaigns. Through Thailand's periods of political instability, World War II, the Cold War and rise of communism in Indochina, globalization, and the current digital age, the GPRD has expanded in its role within the government as the center of communication for a wide variety of governmental organizations. However, even as it has expanded and undergone re-organization, it has been criticized for being a government mouthpiece rather that a reliable source of factual information. Working under the direct oversight of the various governments led by the military, as well as both appointed and elected politicians, the GPRD has struggled to maintain a balanced public relations role at the juncture of Thai politics and public interest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The boundaries between public relations and marketing roles still exist. • An examination of how these boundaries are breached, upheld and negotiated is important to our understanding of the practice of public relations. • This article proposes a way to understand these boundaries as they continue to shift but not disappear by revisiting encroachment concepts. Although public relations and marketing trade presses regularly discuss the conflict between the functions (e.g., Ecker, 2013; Havartin, 2013), academic researchers focused on the issue primarily in the 1980s and 1990s. The drop in public relations and marketing encroachment research does not parallel a drop in encroachment in practice, especially in light of today's social media environment. In fact, historic tension between public relations and marketing intensified with the incorporation of social media into communication efforts. This paper updates the study of encroachment by reviewing the historical views of the topic, proposes ways that social media use has intensified issues related to role encroachment between public relations and marketing professionals, and outlines questions to guide future study of these topics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The collapse of the communist totalitarian regimes in Eastern and Central Europe and the end of the Cold War is one of key historical milestones in the history of the 20th century. However, the process itself and the consequences differed immensely from state to state: e.g., from peaceful so-called Velvet Revolution in former Czechoslovakia to the brutal civil war in former Yugoslavia. Our aim was to analyze the preconditions of the political and societal change in the Czechoslovak media – were there any signs of the change? How did the ruling party present the Soviet perestroika, which signalized a step towards democratization? The nomenklatura (ruling elite) was rather surprised by Gorbachev's plans and feared the resemblance with the Prague Spring 1968. Nevertheless, they had to comply with the official Soviet dictate. We used Wodak's discoursive–historical approach to analyze official propaganda reports and press agency news. We found that the Czechoslovak official nomenklatura used several argumentation and persuasive strategies to present perestroika not as a political change, but as an ongoing path towards Communism. Perestroika was presented as an accelerated path towards a classless society, however, the words were often vague or meaningless. We show that the nomenklatura welcomed perestroika verbally, but the disparity between the words and actions was omnipresent. Citizens could "read between the lines", which meant that they revealed inner inconsistencies and problems of the regime from discoursive strategies. The aim to communicate perestroika thus served merely as an evidence of the inner disintegration of the system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Press agentry was a profit motivated media relations practice. • Press agents were not exclusively an unethical PR antecedent. • American press agents worked in a variety of sectors during the 19th century. • Press agentry was a sophisticated practice that utilized multiple strategies. • U.S. press was ambivalent toward 19th century press agents. Analysis of press coverage of nineteenth century American press agents indicates that, although press agents worked in a variety of sectors, their primary motivation was profit, their main strategy was media relations, and their tactics often relied on hype or outright lying. These characteristics would appear to support previous descriptions of press agentry, yet the research also shows that the press was more ambivalent toward press agents than previously assumed and that press agents' strategies and tactics may have been more sophisticated than previously understood. A number of early practitioners of press agentry are identified for further study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Considers official attempts to manage the press in Britain in the Houses of Parliament in the 18th and 19th centuries. • Differs from previous work in that it focuses on parliament and not the civil service. • Argues for greater awareness of pre-history of PR in Britain, following similar work in Germany and the US. This paper considers a topic that has received scant attention in the historiography of public relations: official attempts to manage the press in Britain in the Houses of Parliament in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Existing accounts of the emergence of government public relations in the UK have tended to focus on the civil service in the first half of the twentieth century, but this article sheds light on a series of earlier developments, including the allocation of seats for reporters in the viewing gallery of the Commons in 1803, the construction of dedicated Reporters' Galleries in both parliamentary chambers in 1847–52 and the creation of a Westminster Lobby in 1884. Taken together, these reforms improved journalists' access to parliament in an era in which direct governmental control over newspapers lapsed. Yet, they also allowed politicians to influence media commentary by determining who was permitted access to parliament and what type of content made its way into print. A case can thus be made that Westminster, not Whitehall, played host to the earliest official attempts to manage the media in Britain, and this has important repercussions for current understandings of public relations history. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]