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Dialogue and persuasive strategic communication are often perceived by public relations scholars as two distinct approaches to the practice. After revisiting and reassessing debates surrounding the two approaches, this article introduces accounts of the use of dialogue and strategic communication in the political life of Martin Buber, whose philosophy has inspired PR scholarship on dialogue. It traces Buber’s writings and activities as communicator in the service of the early Zionist movement and, in his later life, as campaigner against the establishment of the State of Israel, and as promoter of dialogue between Zionists and Arab Palestinians. Based on archival research the article uncovers Buber’s political and PR work to provide insights into his philosophy in the context of his political and life experiences. Inspired by Buber’s work the article argues that dialogue and strategic communication both have the potential to be deployed ethically, and for prosocial causes, or to be deployed in a self-serving and unethical way. In this, it supports other scholars’ argument that public relations should reconcile with the fact that both are legitimate tools and it further argues that both might be used either ethically or unethically. It concludes that ethical PR practice depends less on the form of communication, and more on transparency, honesty, openness, and respect in the way dialogue or strategic communication are conducted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The words of Lund and Nabavi, “we learn more about something if we talk about it” ( 2008 , p. 27), highlight the importance of conversation and dialogue in bringing about change – be it in an organization or in society. In South Africa, given the country's history, changed and new conversations are needed even though dialogue across ethnic, social and political divides does not come naturally. Despite celebrating 20 years of democracy, South Africans still face many economic, social and moral challenges. These challenges manifest themselves through protest actions against the slow pace of improvement in the townships, frustration with lack of personal progress among young South Africans and a lack of tolerance and understanding of the “others” ( Seekings, 2007 ). Unfortunately, change takes time and concerted effort ( Eyre & Littleton, 2013 ); trust must be built and is earned through participation in open dialogue and mutual negotiation ( Bardhan, 2011 , p. 97). Public relations (PR) activism as a manifestation of the postmodernist worldview and PR activists as change agents are at the heart of this exploratory study of the role of public relations in South African society. This article investigates the principles and methods used by Primedia Broadcasting South Africa's LeadSA initiative to start and facilitate social dialogue and to contribute to social change. Data were collected by means of interviews with key decision-makers at LeadSA. In addition, a variety of documents, such as electronic newsletters, internal documents and research reports, was analyzed. A case study approach was used to contextualize the theory and illustrate the principles and practices implemented by LeadSA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Kent and Taylor proposed five dialogic principles for mediated public relations in 1998 and numerous studies of activist groups, corporations, and educational institutions have shown that most websites fail to meet their dialogic potential. This study explores some of the reasons why activist organizations do not integrate dialogic features into their websites. Thirteen activist public relations practitioners were interviewed to determine their perceptions of websites as tools for information dissemination and resource mobilization. Three consistent themes emerged from the interviews: (1) website communication is perceived to be most effective when tied to issue-specific events and issue currency, (2) websites cater to existing and highly involved publics, and (3) websites are viewed as passive communication tools that must be supplemented with traditional public relations practices. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]