[ecrea] new book: Public relations, society and culture

Public Relations, Society & Culture: Theoretical and Empirical Explorations

Historically, public relations research has been dominated by 
organisational interests, treating the profession as a function to help 
organisations achieve their goals, and focusing on practice and 
processes first and foremost. Such research is valuable in addressing 
how public relations can be used more effectively by organisations and 
institutions, but has tended to neglect the consequences of the practice 
on the social world in which those organisations operate.

This edited collection adds momentum to the emergent interest in the 
relationship between public relations, society and culture by bringing 
together a wide range of alternative theoretical and methodological 
approaches, including anthropology, storytelling, pragmatism and Latin 
American studies. The chapters draw on insights from a variety of 
disciplines including sociology, cultural studies, post-colonialism, 
political economy, ecological studies, feminism and critical race 
theory. Empirical contributions illustrate theoretical arguments with 
narratives and interview extracts from practitioners, resulting in an 
engaging text that will provide inspiration for scholars and students to 
explore public relations in new ways.

/Public Relations, Society and Culture/ makes an essential contribution 
to a range of scholarly fields and illustrates the relevance of public 
relations to matters beyond its organisational function. It will be 
highly useful to students and scholars of public relations as well as 
cultural studies, ethnicity/'race' communication, media studies, 
development communication, anthropology, and organisational 
communication. This insightful book will make a significant contribution 
to debates about the purpose and practice of public relations in the new 
century.

*Lee Edwards* is lecturer in Corporate Communications and PR at 
Manchester Business School based at the University of Manchester, UK. 
Her main research interests revolve around sociological understandings 
of PR and include the operation of power in and through PR, 'race' and 
PR, PR as a cultural intermediary, and PR in the context of 
globalization. She is a member of the Editorial Board for the Journal of 
Public Relations Research, and has contributed to a number of books 
including /The SAGE Handbook of Public Relations /(2010) and /Public 
Relations in Global Cultural Contexts/ (2010).

*Caroline E. M. Hodges* is a member of the Institute for Media and 
Communication Research based at Bournemouth Media School. She regularly 
teaches on undergraduate and postgraduate units concerned with the 
relationship between communication and culture. Caroline's research 
interests include the application of ethnography within communication 
research, Latin American communication theory, transnational and 
multicultural public relations and communication for social change.

Best,
Lee
Dr Lee Edwards
Lecturer, Corporate Communications and PR
Manchester Business School
University of Manchester
Booth Street West
Manchester M15 6PB
Ph: 0161 306 5871