Judging public relations: An analysis of an Israeli court judgement on a defamatory and negative campaign

This article analyzes a recent court ruling in Israel and argues that it has major implications for the public relations community internationally. To date, the public relations literature on legal judgments has focused on cases where media channels were sued for defamation. The article uses a 2012 Israeli court decision that may be unique in ruling out defamatory intentions in a public relations plan that was part of a lawsuit. The defendant in this case was not the media but rather a company that hired a public relations firm to, according to the judgement, conduct a defamatory campaign against a competitor. Although this is just one case in one country, the article also considers some of the wider implications for the profession and for democracy.     

基于“过程-互动-行动”的城市贫困问题分析

随着中国市场化、城市化进程的加快,城市贫困问题越发严重。基于社会学家胡格伟尔特(A.Hoogvelt)的"过程—互动—行动"分析框架,分析了现阶段我国城市贫困问题的新特点及成因,指出贫困问题的加重,一是源于对社会群体福利最大化这一社会目标的偏离,民众,特别是弱势民众没有充分享受到中国宏观经济增长的长处,"宏观上欣欣向荣、微观上民不聊生";二是民主制度的缺失致使弱势群体话语权缺失,没有一个可循的制度安排供城市贫民来表达权益;三是政策实施过程中的政府失灵。对此,文章提出破解城市贫困的制度选择。     

明晰党政资产权属 推进民主政体建设

发展民主政治是时代进步的要求，而党内民主不同于国家民主。执政党通过政治体制改革构建国家民主政体的关键是党政资产权属的改革和党政人员的职能分开。为此，一是推动党务公开，明晰党资党产和政府资产的权属。二是划清党务人员和公务人员的工作属性，解决党、政人员不分和以党代政问题。三是党组织以委托理财的方式合理使用党费和现有资产，逐年减少财政转移支付。四是适时提请立法机构制定一系列的相关法律法规，逐步过渡到党内财务自支平衡，最终从党政资产权属起步，建立社会主义的现代国家民主政体。     

现代传媒与公共治理:以杭州为个案的研究

在公共治理领域,现代传媒发挥着独特的作用,其规范性特征在于民主责任承担与民生事业关注两个层面.杭州民主民生的传媒行动,以现代传媒的实体化功能创新,建构传媒的场域效应、社会交往效应与治理效应.公共治理的现代传媒功能建构,关键在于建构合作治理的社会行动网络;其路径在于:导引社会行动,吸纳公众参与,促成制度规则体系的互动衔接.     

Tweeting democracy? Examining Twitter as an online public relations strategy for congressional campaigns’

Considering the integral relationship between public relations and democracy (Martinelli, 2011) coupled with the growing use of social media for democratic aims (Smith, 2011) the current study examines the effectiveness of Twitter as a public relations communications tool for congressional campaigns. Specifically, as a means of testing Twitter's effectiveness in informing and engaging voters, congressional candidate and political party Twitter use for all 435 U.S. House of Representatives races (N = 1284) are compared with 2010 election outcomes. Results indicate that candidates’ Twitter use significantly increased their odds of winning, controlling for incumbency and Party ID. Additionally, significant differences between incumbents’ and challengers’ Twitter use during the election cycle emerged, which has important implications for public relations practices aimed at achieving democratic outcomes.     

Engendering Global Democracy

The inadequacies of hegemonic liberal democratic ideas and institutions have been exposed by feminist theorists focusing on the marginalisation of women and by global theorists examining the impact of globalisation. These theorists have developed two distinct sets of reconstructive strategies that, until very recently, have remained in ignorance of each other. Further, both feminist and global democratic schemes have been dogged by problems in terms of their theorisation of power, politics, agency and change. Recent feminist arguments about citizenship and governance go some way to bringing together concerns about gender inequality and globalisation, but they remain centred on states and the states-system as vehicles for democratic representation and participation. This article argues that a more radical reconstructive strategy can be derived from debates about the democratisation of feminism itself. Drawing on the responses of black and third world feminists to racism in the white-dominated feminist movement, and examining their influence on efforts to organise transnationally, the article points to innovative ways of thinking about power, politics, agency and change. Together these amount to a democratic framework which has applicability beyond feminist organising and which confronts the marginalisations of both gender and globalisation.     

THE FUTURE OF PUBLIC MEDIA CULTURES

This paper seeks to tie in the arguments that can be connected to the development of a global media culture and concerns around cosmopolitan forms of democracy. This is done by considering arguments for: (i) a global human right initiative in respect of global media conglomerates; (ii) technological change in respect of digital cultures; and (iii) the arrival of what Castells'shas described as the culture of 'real virtuality'. These views and perspectives are assessed in terms of the contributions they are likely to make towards what I call a 'cautious cosmopolitanism'. Finally I seek to make some definite policy recommendations that might help foster conditions in which cosmopolitan democracy could flourish.     

政党“吞噬”民主与民主“抛弃”政党——一项关于西方政党与民主博弈关系的考察论纲

在一定意义上而言,近代西方民主政治的历史就是民主同政党纠结、互动、博弈的历史。一方面民主是政党存在的基础,政党是实现民主的载体;但另一方面,民主与政党又存在着内在的博弈,政党有吞噬、主宰民主之嫌疑,民主也有抛弃、游离政党之趋势。分析二者的互动与博弈,将揭示西方民主政治的内在逻辑机理,也将对政党政治、民主政治的未来有一个较为清晰的审视。     

孟子具有民主、民权思想吗？

孟子说:“民为贵,社稷次之,君为轻。”他还有一段“国人皆曰”的议论,认为国君在用人、去人、杀人时,应该倾听国人的意见。他还谈到,天子不能以天下与人,舜得天下是“天与之,人与之”。此外还有“诛一夫”、国君有大过不听劝谏则“易位”等说法。不少学者依据孟子的这些言论,认为他具有民主、民权甚至人民革命的思想。本文对这些说法逐一进行考证,认为这些学者的结论是不能成立的。如果说孟子具有民本思想,那么他只是将民当作君王立国的本钱、资本,而不是将民当作立国的目的、看作国家的主人。     

法治民主——近年来中国学术界关于政治体制改革方向的探讨

民主与法治是社会主义政治文明的基本内涵,然而,就两者关系,我国学术界却存在着普遍的争论,形成了和谐共生论与冲突均衡论两派主要观点。在此基础上,就中国政治体制改革的方向,亦存在着民主为本和法治优先两种不同认识。为了调和两者的矛盾,一些学者提出了法治民主政体的基本思路。