Surveys 291 public relations educators nationally to assess the extent to which a standard of professionalism currently exists for each of 24 items. Finds that educators viewed writing/editing and graphics/production skills, ethical guidelines, accreditation, and "public relations as advocacy" as enjoying well-established standards.…

Focuses on the organizational use of transcendent appeals to redefine "sin" into a "virtue." Analyzes Johnson Controls' apologia after critics charged that its "fetal protection policy" was discriminatory. Examines the redefinitions and ultimate terms invoked by the company to justify its choice of policy. (PA)

Looks at postmodernism as a critical theory to offer insight into modern public relations practice--a critical view of the signs and symbols of a culture allow people to see the allocation of power and the dominant ideology. Uses the campaign developed by Hill and Knowlton for Citizens for a Free Kuwait as a case study. (PA)

Surveys 1,000 practitioners' knowledge of legal issues connected with professional public relations activities. Finds that most practitioners consider themselves only somewhat familiar with the law in the areas of commercial speech, contracts, financial public relations, copyright, privacy, libel, access to information, Securities and Exchange…

Examines October 1992 press releases distributed by the public relations staffs of the major political parties to determine whether they established issue salience. Concludes that an active public played a pivotal role in issue ordering, helping determine the presidential election outcome. Posits that one reason for increased audience influence is…

Examines how to create organizational processes that allow communication professionals with a variety of expertise to support each other through coordination and integration. Studies eight of America's leading total quality management corporations, including AT&T, Federal Express, Saturn, and Xerox. Explores how various total quality…

Surveys 598 public relations professionals to assess the extent to which a professional standard exists for each of 24 elements of professional performance. Finds respondents believed ethical guidelines, accreditation, and writing/editing skills enjoy established standards, but that licensing, location of public relations on the organizational…

Reports that a study revealed a serious methodological flaw in interviewer bias in telephone surveys. States that most surveys, using standard detection measures, would not find the defect, but outcomes were so misleading that a campaign using the results would be doomed. Warns about practitioner telephone surveys; suggests special precautions if…

Describes litigation public relations (LPR) as use of public relations techniques by attorneys to advance clients' interests. Surveys Kansas litigators about LPR; suggests that LPR is more accepted in theory than in practice and seems not to be in widespread use. Finds LPR use among litigators in organizations employing large numbers of attorneys,…

Surveys 179 Public Relations Society of America members to determine if respondents valued news releases as a public relations tactic and if attitudes differed between manager and technician roles. Tests response differences by six independent variables. Finds that although several items differed by levels, the only conclusive difference indicated…

Tests viewers' responses to video news releases (VNRs). Shows that viewers assign significantly more credibility to VNR-based messages than to similar advertisements; level of credibility given to newscasts was found to be a significant predictor of VNR recall. Discusses implications for future research into VNR use. (PA)

Discusses media coverage of public relations topics. Describes a census of television news stories about public relations. Finds increased coverage from 1980 through 1995, and that politicians and foreign governments are the most commonly reported on users. States that stories generally have a neutral tone and assume the "press agentry"…

Analyzes an apologetic exchange between General Motors (GM) and NBC in 1992-93 over the safety of GM's C/K trucks. Concludes that NBC and GM used "kategoria-based apologiae," a heavy-handed strategy, in their interchange, but that, when used correctly, the strategy can be an important resource in challenging inaccurate and/or misleading…

Examines the role and perceived value of public relations in institutional ethics initiatives. Surveys ethics officers in North American institutions. Finds that public relations professionals are not playing key roles in the institutionalization of ethics, and that public relations remains a relatively untapped resource in ethics programs. (PA)

Assesses implications of the strategic management aspect of public relations for firms in Singapore. Focuses on how firms with differing organizational structure/background respond to the challenges of executing core public relations activities. Finds that manufacturing firms pay less attention to customer relations than service organizations, and…