This text explores the historical roots of public relations and its place in society, providing a critical survey of its functions, and how they are used and abused. The book tackles the business of public relations in its most challenging and controversial guises: in politics, in corporate management, in crisis, and in the worldwide creation of hype. It reviews the advances in communications technology which are creating the new environment faced by the next generation of public relations practitioners. In a blend of business practicality and scholarly research, it provides international examples across a broad range of enterprises.… (more)