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The weight of social responsibility in public relations (PR) has never been more pronounced. Ensure the professionalism and credibility of your business using the practical tips and guidance in this book, written by a leading academic in the field and recommended for PR students and practitioners alike.
Ethical practice in any professional discipline is guided by age-old philosophical perspectives, but its modern parameters are continually evolving. Ongoing developments in technology, social media and social contexts mean that public relations and its practices are constantly changing, and so do the ethical questions faced by practitioners in the field.
Face the ethical questions and dilemmas that are inherent to public relations and ensure you practice across the public relations spectrum in an ethical and socially responsible manner with this fully updated guide, packed with useful tools and insights to support those in PR and corporate communications.
Engaging and accessible, Ethics in Public Relations offers a lively exploration of the key ethical concerns present in the public relations world today, written by an accredited academic with over 26 years' professional experience in the field.
Fully updated, this third edition includes an entirely new chapter on the uses of ethics in social media, covering topical issues such as blogger engagement and the relationship between employee social media activity and organizational reputation.
List of contents
Section - PART 1: What Lies Beneath Chapter - 01: Before we begin: New profession... or one of the oldest? Chapter - 02: Lies, truth and honesty: their role in PR practice Chapter - 03: Truth, trust and the virtue of being 'good'. Chapter - 04: Whose rights are right? Chapter - 05: The trouble with rules Chapter - 06: Utilitarianism: Right acts and wrong reasons Section - PART 2: Ethics and the Practitioner Chapter - 07: Your moral development: Cultivating respect and humility Chapter - 08: Codes of ethics: The good, the bad and the (almost) ugly Chapter - 09: Conflicts of Interest: Sex and other relationship issues Chapter - 10: (Very) personal ethical decisions: Whistle-blowing and moonlighting Section - PART 3: Strategies and Dilemmas Chapter - 11: Public Relations ethics and traditional media Chapter - 12: Public Relations ethics and social media Chapter - 13: Persuasion propaganda and advocacy: The ethics of influence Chapter - 14: Supporting 'good causes': bad ethics or bad taste? Chapter - 15: Deceptive authorship: Ghost-writing and plagiarism Section - Part 4: Organizations, Ethics and PR Chapter - 16: Making decisions: The true reality of everyday ethics Chapter - 17: PR and the corporate ethics programme Chapter - 18: The future of ethical PR: education and leadership Chapter - 19: Appendix 1: For your bookshelf Chapter - 20: Appendix 2: Chartered Institute of PR Code of Conduct Chapter - 21: Appendix 3: Guidelines for the ethics audit
About the author
Patricia J Parsons APR, FCPRS spent 26 years as a faculty member and former chairman in the Department of Communication Studies at Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax, Canada retiring recently as a (full) Professor. Her research, writing and teaching focused on public relations ethics and strategy, and healthcare communication.
Patricia Parsons is the author of a dozen books and numerous papers for the professional and lay press. She is accredited in public relations and is a member of the Canadian Public Relations Society's College of Fellows.
