Managing Turbulence in the Blogosphere: Evaluating the Blog-Mediated Crisis Communication Model with the American Red Cross

Through interviews with 40 American Red Cross communication professionals, this study examines how an organization that frequently responds to crises proactively manages on- and offline communication before, during, and after crises. The results provide the first empirical evaluation of an emerging model: the blog-mediated crisis communication model (BMCC). The lessons shared by the American Red Cross are insightful for researchers to understand the process of blog-mediated crisis communication in the nonprofit sector, which are also relevant for other public relations professionals. The findings support components of the original BMCC model, but also clearly indicate important revisions, including renaming the model the social-mediated crisis communication model (SMCC).     

Revisiting the concept “dialogue” in public relations

This paper follows a critical approach in exploring the philosophical underpinnings and key features of dialogue in public relations practice and thinking. It argues that dialogue has been uncritically equated to two-way symmetrical communication, which has not done justice to the nature of dialogue, and has effectively stifled concrete development of a dialogic theory in public relations. The paper draws from a range of literature, including mainstream public relations and communication philosophy—in particular the philosophy of Martin Buber. The purpose of this paper is to inform public relations thinking by encouraging debate rather than proposing a new theoretical approach. As such, it sets out to explore the concept of dialogue and its philosophical underpinning, considers its practical application and suggests that it should not be seen as superior to persuasion.     

A Postmodern Turn for Social Media Research: Theory and Research Directions for Public Relations Scholarship

The public relations literature on social media has focused primarily on how social media platforms can be leveraged to the advantage of organizations for relationship building and so-called dialogue with publics. Yet most research has positioned relationships in social media merely as opportunities for information exchange, perpetuating models of public relations grounded in systems theory that ignore power imbalances. Consequently, this article offers insights from postmodernist theories to first deconstruct existing research and then offer suggestions for future social media scholarship. The article argues that social media scholars have privileged dominant rational models of social engagement. Dissensus and disorder, according to Lyotard, may be as legitimate and more liberatory states of discourse for marginalized publics. Postmodern theories of language games and differential consciousness are also positioned as ways in which social media theory and practice may be advanced. The article thus complicates how relationships are theorized in contemporary scholarship and challenges both scholars and practitioners to rethink approaches to social media practice through a postmodern lens.     

Toward a normative social media theory for public relations

Social media might represent the greatest social innovation/revolution in the history of communication, fundamentally altering how humans communicate, and the practice of public relations, journalism, advertising, marketing, and business. Dozens of theories and concepts including dialogue, engagement, identification, social presence, uses and gratifications, conversational human voice, and many others inform social media. However, what has commonly taken place in social media contexts and public relations has been the importation and application of other theories and concepts, rather than exploring and clarifying the unique features and capabilities of social media per se. This essay argues that social media represent a new communication paradigm, and this essay takes up the challenge of building social media theory for public relations by identifying features of social media that have emerged from existing research as fundamental to understanding social media, and eventually developing a theory(s) of social media for public relations.     

Social media dialogues in a crisis: A mixed-methods approach to identifying publics on social media

Despite the promise of social media to engender dialogue, the common approach to studying social media may prioritize monologue, whereby research considers the strategies organizations use in targeting publics, particularly in a crisis. This study uses a mixed-method approach to analyze dialogue in a crisis—semantic network analysis and content analysis. Specifically, this study examines the emotional expression and crisis coping behaviors on social media during two separate terror attacks: the Paris terror attacks in 2015 and the Barcelona terror attacks in 2017. Results demonstrate how publics may be identified and understood through semantic network analysis and content analysis. This study also shows the connection between emotions and coping, expanding the crisis communication literature in public relations, and suggests the need to consider agenda-setting and resilience in crisis communication research. Finally, we discuss this study’s implications for assuming a dialogic orientation in public relations.     

The dialogic ladder: Toward a framework of dialogue

This paper articulates the existence of different forms of ‘dialogue’, ranging from the conduct of simple two-way communication through more interactive forms culminating in true (or capital D) Dialogue. The importance of, and rationale for, the making of these distinctions is discussed in relation to the theorizing and practice of dialogue in public relations. A framework encompassing variations on the theme of dialogue is proposed in the form of a dialogic ladder that reflects the everyday usage of the term, while also preserving the existence and distinction of the normative form.The clearer and more consistent conceptualization of dialogue resulting from the dialogic ladder will assist in developing teaching curricula and associated materials that enable future researchers and practitioners to distinguish between true Dialogue and other forms. The dialogic ladder contributes to the development of dialogue theory that either expands to include dialogue-in-name-only (Kent & Theunissen, 2016), or narrows its focus to consider only true Dialogue. It will also allow identification of situations in practice where two-way communication falls short of true Dialogue, and stimulate efforts to consider why this shortfall occurs and how it might be addressed—if the conduct of true Dialogue is deemed necessary and possible. Finally, the dialogic ladder provides an alternative perspective on the role of dialogue in the two-way symmetric model of public relations.     

Toward a dialogic theory of public relations

This essay clarifies the concept of dialogue in public relations. As public relations theory and research move toward a two-way relational communication model, many scholars and practitioners are increasingly using the terms “dialogic” and “dialogue” to describe ethical and practical approaches to public relations. The concept of dialogue is deeply rooted in philosophy and relational communication theory. Its inclusion in the public relations vocabulary is an important step toward understanding how organizations can build relationships that serve both organizational and public interests. This essay traces the roots of dialogue, identifies several over-arching tenets, and provides three ways that organizations can incorporate dialogue into their communication with publics.     

Anticipatory socialization in the use of social media in public relations: A content analysis of PRSA's Public Relations Tactics

This article examines one issue in how public relations students are socialized in their understanding of the value and power of social media in the practice of public relations. The public relations academic research about social media is explored, as well as the professional claims about the value of social media as a public relations tactic. The researchers conducted a content analysis of 1 year of Public Relations Tactics issues. The data are viewed through the theoretical frame of the socialization literature ( Jablin, 1987). The results suggest that claims of social media power far outweigh evidence of social media effectiveness as a communication tool. A disconnect exists between what authors of Public Relations Tactics pieces view as the potential for social media and the research findings about the effectiveness of social media. The final section of the article discusses the implications for public relations educators, professional associations, and practitioners as they consider social media tactics in public relations strategy.     

Corporate social responsibility and the oil industry: Theory and perspective fuel a longitudinal view

To gain an in-depth theoretically-grounded understanding of managing corporate social responsibility (CSR), the current study offers four key propositions for CSR theory development: (1) Living corporate social responsibility from the inside out, (2) Earning trust of the public and the media, (3) Giving back as a community citizen, and (4) Accepting that we’re all in this together, but still unique. Also offered are five best practices for public relations in the oil industry. All emerged during in-depth interviews with three senior public relations managers of a leading independent US oil company; executives who have navigated CSR decision making and practices through nearly five decades (1966-2010) at different points in time. In the wake of two massive 2010 oil spill crises in North American waters that garnered extensive media attention, findings are particularly relevant for advancing CSR theory and for providing complex insider perspectives less traveled in the public relations literature.     

Public engagement with nonprofit organizations on Facebook

Explicating Facebook's engagement features, this study explored whether organizational message strategies based on the four models of public relations have an impact on the different levels of public engagement. The study found that publics demonstrate high levels of engagement with organizational messages when two-way symmetrical communication is used, compared to public information or two-way asymmetrical models. The study also provided practical implications for nonprofit practitioners to engage with publics via social media.     

Using social media dialogically: Public relations role in reviving democracy

This article explores how technology and our recent access to, and abundance of, information, are affecting democracy, and the role of public relations professionals in a post mass media society. The article reviews pros and cons of new technology, discusses how public relations can improve, democracy using dialogue, communitarianism, and Long Now thinking, and discusses how to actually, use social media dialogically. The article argues that as public relations revives its conceptualization of, relationship, communication professionals also benefit democracy and society as a whole.     

What do Stakeholders Like on Facebook? Examining Public Reactions to Nonprofit Organizations’ Informational,Promotional, and Community-Building Messages

Although public relations scholarship has often discussed the possibilities of dialogue and engagement using social media, research has not truly explored this dynamic. Instead, research on social media platforms has focused on measuring the content and structure of organizational profiles. This study seeks to enhance the field's discussion about social media engagement by determining what organizational content individual stakeholders prefer on Facebook in terms of liking, commenting, and sharing. A content analysis of 1,000 updates from organizations on the Nonprofit Times 100 list indicates that, based on what they comment on and like, individuals prefer dialogic, as well as certain forms of mobilizational, messages; however, they are more likely to share one-way informational messages with their own networks. These findings are interpreted using practical and theoretical implications for the practice of public relations.     

Moving forward the dialogic theory of public relations: Concepts,methods and applications of organization-public dialogue

Advanced information and communication technologies and social media (Web 2.0) have significantly shaped every aspect of contemporary society since Kent and Taylor’s (1998) proposal of dialogic principles, which later evolved into dialogic theory of public relations. It is now time to move the theory forward. The special section aims to advance the dialogic theory of public relations by reviewing the scholarship in organization-public dialogue to pinpoint critical issues for its development and introducing studies that take the dialogue approach to examine a range of public relations practices in China. In this introduction, we first identify critical issues to be addressed for the development of the dialogic theory of public relations and then introduce the articles included in the section. We conclude by proposing research directions for the theoretical and practical development of the dialogic approach to public relations.     

Social Media Adoption Among University Communicators

Long interviews were conducted with university communicators at 2 distant universities with distinct social systems. Participants were drawn to adopt social media mainly by relative advantage, compatibility, and trialability attributes of the innovation. Inductive themes that emerged from the interviews included an emphasis on publics, information sharing, cost, and convenience. A believer–nonbeliever distinction among adopters is introduced. Believers are driven by the same characteristics of social media that public relations researchers have found to be essential to the practice of public relations itself: 2-way communication, interactivity, dialogue, and engagement.     

What cultural values influence American public relations practitioners?

This paper advances a cultural approach to public relations research and practice through the extension of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions to Grunig’s models of public relations. This study tested a quantitative instrument that links societal culture, corporate culture, and the public relations communication of American practitioners. Two findings emerged from this study. First, American practitioners continue to practice one-way models of public relations even when their organizations may not dictate one-way communication with publics. And second, public relations practitioners who have collectivistic values tend to practice two-way models of public relations.Gabriel Vasquez is an assistant professor in the School of Communication, University of Houston, TX. Maureen Taylor is an assistant professor in the School of Communication, Information, and Library Studies at Rutgers University, NJ.     

Social movements and public relations in the early twentieth century: How one group used public relations to curtail venereal disease rates

ABSTRACT

A case study of the American Social Hygiene Association (ASHA) campaign to craft a national vision for social health showed that the group used public relations-like strategies to, as one of their officials said, “crystallize public opinion” years before Edward Bernays wrote a book of the same title. Although these efforts might not have been labeled public relations at the time, this study introduces some precedents of contemporary public relations. In this study, social activism offered a more robust approach to addressing an issue than using media relations alone could do. ASHA members used communication strategies such as segmenting audiences, utilizing events to reach appropriate audiences, using visual media, and creating house organs to arouse public sentiment, influence attitudes, and promote desired behavior.

This case study expands public relations history theory by examining why ASHA members practiced public relations as they did. In this case, ASHA used persuasive communication to pierce the veil of silence around venereal disease to craft a national vision for social hygiene and legitimize the group as the major voice on this topic. Lessons from this case can illustrate how public relations can be conducted more effectively, especially in relation to social movements.     

Mandating dialogue? International perspectives on differences between theory and practice

This paper replicates an Australian study (Lane, 2018) into how public relations practitioners understand dialogue in practice. The original study found practitioners believed they were carrying out dialogue legally required by government, but what they were doing was no more than two-way communication. It also found practitioners’ operating environments meant they could never actually undertake dialogue, even if mandated to do so. These empirically-based insights revealed the existence of gaps between theory and practice in dialogue in public relations. The study was repeated in Austria to determine if these findings were consistent internationally, and to consider what this might mean for the place of dialogue in public relations. Examples of so-called mandated ‘dialogue’ provided by Austrian public relations practitioners in semi-structured interviews were analyzed using Kent and Taylor’s (2002) five principles of dialogue. This analysis showed that despite the Austrian practitioners’ familiarity with the work of Habermas on dialogue, the mandated communication they carried out was not dialogue. The Austrian experience also showed that the nature of the underlying context of mandated communication—the need to achieve agreement between parties in varying levels of conflict; and conducting communication within boundaries of time and non-negotiable pre-existing decisions—meant dialogue could never occur. Comparing the two studies demonstrated high levels of similarity between the countries’ results, which we hope can provide the starting point for the development of a longitudinal and international perspective. This paper concludes that the place of dialogue in the theory and practice of public relations is dependent on the education of practitioners in its implementation; and a re-thinking of the role of the aspirational in situations where it can never be attained.     

Socially distributing public relations: Twitter,Haiti, and interactivity in social media

Social media and communication technology have shifted the power of communication from public relations practitioners to social media users who may not have a recognized role or defined interest in an organization. What results is a social model of public relations in which traditional public relations responsibilities are distributed to social media users, and which depends on interactivity, legitimacy, and a user's social stake. This study explores social public relations through a qualitative analysis of user involvement on Twitter regarding relief efforts to support Haiti following the 7.0 earthquake that hit Port-Au-Prince in January, 2010. This analysis of Twitter posts also expands understanding of interactivity online and demonstrates social media user fulfillment of public relations objectives.     

The press and public relations through the lens of the periodicals, 1890–1930

This paper explores and analyzes the intellectual debate and discussion about the slow reveal of public relations and both the perceived threat to journalism and the corruption of public opinion in American life as it appeared in the periodicals in the early twentieth century. Despite Edward L. Bernays complaint that a “conspiracy of silence” prevailed in the mass media about the growing field of public relations prior to 1930, this review found more than a hundred essays and articles about public relations. The topics ran the gamut from historical explanations and explorations of what were essentially the early beginnings of our contemporary information society to discussions, debates, and warnings about the ramifications of public relations in the commercial, governmental, political, and social areas of life.     

Gauging the public's preparedness for mobile public relations: The “Text for Haiti” campaign

The technology acceptance model was created to measure the public's attitudes toward and acceptance of new technologies. Text messaging has been used in the public relations domain for crisis communication alerts, but there have been few attempts to use it in other domains. Through an electronic survey of previous American Red Cross donors, donors to the “Text for Haiti” campaign had more favorable attitudes than those who did not donate via text messaging. However, the survey participants did not completely reflect the technology acceptance model. Although they perceived that text message campaigns were easy to participate in, the path analysis revealed that these thoughts resulted in less desirable attitudes toward participating in the campaigns.