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Based on a concept of professionalism, this study analyzed and compared current public relations curricula of higher education among the United States, the United Kingdom, and South Korea. In terms of three educational orientations, results indicated that public relations education in the United States is the most balanced among theoretical, skill-based, and practical content; U.K. schools offer more theoretical courses, and South Korean schools are significantly more concerned with skill-based and practical courses. (Contains 3 tables and 52 notes.)

This research provides an initial investigation of whether US retirement mutual fund providers complied with the Investment Company Advertising Rules (2003) adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). A content analysis was used to examine advertising disclosures presented in 953 retirement mutual fund magazine advertisements from 2004 to 2010 based on SEC's advertising guidance. The results suggest that during the given period, retirement mutual fund providers generally presented mandatory and triggered advertising disclosures, but paid less attention to the readability of advertising disclosures. Implications for regulators, consumer groups, and financial services marketers are discussed in light of financial literacy and consumer welfare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Retirement savings and investments have been two of the most important financial service vehicles for American consumers' futures in recent years. With this backdrop, policymakers and consumer educators need retirement financial service providers to play the crucial role of helping consumers make economic decisions with regard to retirement plans and ultimately build retirement assets. This research of how retirement financial services advertising attempted to inform, communicate and persuade investors during the past four years (2006-2009) includes two crucial events in the US retirement marketplace-the Pension Protection Act of 2006 and the 2007/2008 US financial crisis. A content analysis examined the type of information, the communication strategies and the judgmental heuristic cues presented in a total of 1,430 retirement financial service advertisements in six national US business-finance magazines from 2006 to 2009. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate how the US financial services organizations (FSOs) provided marketing information and the way they strategically used various appeals through their advertising before and during the current financial crisis. Design/methodology/approach – This takes the form of a content analysis examining a total of 2,480 financial services ads (FSA) in print magazines within two periods – the two years before the crisis (2005 to 2006) and the two years during the crisis (2007 to 2008). Findings – This study showed three significant findings: because of the economic struggle, there was a significant decline across the two periods in the total number of yearly FSA; the economic crisis led to a significant increase in the use of informational message strategies across all FSOs; and financial value and atmospherics appeals were predominant after the crisis. However, each FSO used appeals in a different way. Research limitations/implications – This study focused on only print media. A future research project aimed at other traditional media such as television and new media such as the internet or weblogs could provide additional analysis of financial advertising strategies. Practical implications – The findings of this study suggest that FSOs may rely much more heavily on informational than on transformational approaches during an economic crisis. The findings may provide further valuable implications for non-profit institutions and international marketers. Originality/value – This study contributes in several ways to understanding of the strategic communicative reactions of FSOs during the crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Between 2005 and 2009 financial service organizations in the United States altered their advertising messages in response to changing economic conditions brought about by a sustained recession. This analysis of print magazine advertisements for banks, credit cards, investment firms, and insurance providers demonstrates that financial service advertisers shifted away from transformational approaches in favor of informational approaches. Credit card companies were slower to change their strategies than were bank, investment, and insurance companies. The results of this analysis support the argument that advertising serves the role of providing market information and that the nature of such information is determined by economic conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study compares current communication research in the United States and South Korea. Through a thematic meta-analysis of recent communication books published in the two nations between 2002 and 2004, this study identifies the current status of communication research in the U.S. and South Korea in general, and then focuses on the status of research in each nation on the Internet in particular. A total of 782 books were content-analyzed (413 from the U.S. and 369 from South Korea). Findings indicate that the current status of communication research differs between the two nations, although the area of mass communication dominates communication research in both. However, in the area of Internet research, both nations focus on the effects of the Internet, as well as cultural, social, and educational issues. And although researchers in both nations focus on research about the Internet itself and its technical applications, many books deals with the medium's uses and effects on people at the same time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]