Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

The Handbook of Public Relationsis another in the series of communication handbooks which has distinguished SAGE Publications. Like its companion handbooks, it offers a comprehensive and detailed examination of the topic. It gives students, scholars, and practitioners a solid review of the status of the scholarly literature, stressing the role that public relations can play in building relationships between organizations, markets, audiences, and the public. The Handbookis divided into five sections. Section one defines the field, seeking to explain the role public relations play in society. Section two examines the state of the practice by delving into the cutting edge issues of management, ethics, gender, evaluation, public relations education, and media. Section three challenges academics and practitioners to identify the best practices that shape the daily activities of practitioners. Section four looks at the fascinating and daunting challenges the new communication technology pose for scholars and practitioners. Section five takes a global view, examining theories in international public relations as well as the trends in practice that will shape the field in the coming years.

No other book in public relations is as comprehensive in its inclusion of authors and its coverage of academic research, theory, and best practices. Global in scope, the book′s contributors comprise an academic "who′s who" of the public relations discipline. The Handbook offers one-stop shopping for the best insights into the definition of the field of public relations, the practice, and best practices. It has substantial insights into the impact of new communication technologies and the global challenges of international public relations. A must-have reference for libraries and practitioners, the book also is ideal for upper level and graduate study of public relations.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Part 1 Defining the Discipline
• Introduction
• Shifting Foundations: Public Relations as Relationship Building
• Two-Way Symmetrical Public Relations:
• Past, Present and Future
• A Rhetorical Enactment Rationale for Public Relations
• The Good Organization Communicating Well
• Public Relations and Community
• A Reconstructed Theory Revisited
• Cultural Topoi
• Implications for Public Relations
• Updating Public Relations
• 'New Science', Research Paradigms and Uneven Developments
• In Search of a Metatheory for Public Relations
• An Argument for Communitarianism
• Interpersonal Communication and Public Relations
• Public Relations Field Dynamics
• Bringing Publics into Public Relations
• New Theoretical Frameworks for Practice
• Research Perspectives on 'The Public'
• Public Relations and Crisis Communication
• Organizing and Chaos
• Public Relations as Contested Terrain
• A Critical Response
• Part 2 Defining the Practice
• Introduction
• The Dynamics of Change in Public Relations Practice
• Dynamics of Change
• The Mystery of Public Relations
• Unraveling Its Past, Unmasking Its Future
• Defining the Relationship between Public Relations and Marketing
• Public Relations' Most Important Challenge
• Extending Strategic Planning to Communication Tactics
• Public Relations and the Question of Professionalism
• How Feminist Theory Advanced the Practice of Public Relations
• Public Relations Law
• Integrating Planning and Evaluation
• Evaluating the Public Relations Practice and Public Relations Programs
• Media Effects Research for Public Relations Practitioners
• Stewardship
• The Fifth Step in the Public Relations Process
• Activism
• Public Relations and Conflict Resolution
• Organizational Legitimacy
• Public Relations and the Ecology of Organizational Change
• The Centrality of Organizational Legitimacy to Public Relations Practice
• Issues Management
• The Paradox of the 40-Year US Tobacco Wars
• Utilizing the Collapse Model of Corporate Image for Campaign Message Design
• Educating Practitioners
• The Workplace, Undergraduate Education and Career Preparation
• The Public Relations Academic and Practitioner Views
• Accreditation
• Is There Access to the Process for All Public Relations Academic Programs
• Case Studies and Their Use in Public Relations
• Public Relations Ethics
• Public Relations and Social Responsibility
• Public Relations Ethics
• An Overview and Discussion of Issues for the 21st Century
• Ethics in Public Relations
• Theory and Practice
• Public Relations between Universality and Particularity
• Towards a Moral-Philosophical Conception of Public Relations Ethics
• The Measurement of Ethics
• Instruments Applicable to Public Relations
• Part 3 In Search of Best Practices
• Introduction
• Learning Best Practices from Experience and Research
• Best Practices in Planning and Organization
• A New Order for Public Relations
• Goodbye Cost Center, Hello Profit Center
• Best Practices in the Public Relations Agency Business
• Strategic Media Planning
• Toward an Integrated Public Relations Media Model
• Improving Corporate and Organization Communications
• A New Look at Developing and Implementing the Communication Audit
• Best Practices in Crisis Communication
• Crisis Communication
• A Review of Some Best Practices
• Anticipatory Model of Crisis Management
• A Vigilant Response to Technological Crises
• Corporate Apologia
• When an Organization Speaks in Defense of Itself
• Race and Reputation
• Restoring Image beyond the Crisis
• Best Practices in Relationship Building
• Relationships Within Communities
• Public Relations for the New Century
• Managing Community Relationships to Maximize Mutual Benefit
• Doing Well by Doing Good
• Best Practices in Educational Public Relations
• Educational Public Relations
• Strength in Diversity
• The Place of Public Relations in Higher Education Institutions
• Sports Information Directing
• A Plea for Helping an Unknown Field
• Best Practices in Context
• Political Power through Public Relations
• Labor and Public Relations
• The Unwritten Roles
• Public Relations in the Health Care Industry
• Part 4 Public Relations in Cyberspace
• Introduction
• The Frontier of New Communication Technologies
• Cyberspin
• The Use of New Technologies in Public Relations
• Online Research Techniques for the Public Relations Practitioner
• Public Relations and New Media Technology
• The Impact of the Internet
• The Development of a Structuration Analysis of New Publics in an Electronic Environment
• Part 5 Globalizing Public Relations
• Introduction
• Globalization: The Frontier of Multinationalism and Diversity
• International Public Relations
• Opportunities and Challenges for the 21st Century
• Effective Public Relations in the Multinational Organization
• International Public Relations
• A Focus on Pedagogy
• New Zealand Perspectivess on Public Relations
• The Development of Public Relations in China, Russia and the United States of America
• The Changing Shape of Public Relations in the European Union
• Middle East Public Relations
• A New Frontier in the United States

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

This handbook provides a comprehensive examination and review of the theory, academic research, and professional practices of the public relations discipline. Ninety leading scholars and practitioners from around the world provide insights into the historical and changing role of public relations in building relationships with "organizations, markets, audiences, and publics." The handbook is divided into five sections, each of which begins with an introductory overview: "Defining the Discipline" (12 chapters), covering shifting foundations of the discipline and public relations as relationship building; "Defining the Practice" (23 chapters), covering the dynamics of change in public relations practice, organizational legitimacy, education of practitioners, and public relations ethics; "In Search of Best Practices" (16 chapters), focusing on planning and organization, crisis communication, relationship building, and educational public relations; "Public Relations in Cyberspace" (4 chapters), covering the frontier of new communication technologies; and "Globalizing Public Relations" (7 chapters), addressing issues related to multinationalism and cultural diversity. The extensive bibliography includes more than 2,000 references, some multidisciplinary, which serve to enhance understanding of public relations. The detailed index is user friendly. A must for academic collections serving scholars, practitioners, and students, upper-level undergraduate and graduate. R. R. Attinson; emeritus, CUNY College of Staten Island

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Robert L. Heath , professor emeritus of communication at the University of Houston, is an internationally recognized authority on public relations, crisis communication, issues management, risk communication, and business-to-business communication. He has published many award-winning books, including The SAGE Handbook of Public Relations (2010), Handbook of Risk and Crisis Communication (2009), Strategic Issues Management (2nd ed., 2009), Rhetorical and Critical Approaches to Public Relations II (2009), and Terrorism: Communication and Rhetorical Perspectives (2008).

Heath has 3 decades′ experience in corporate communication and positioning research. He has conducted research on risks related to various hazards, including those associated with chemical manufacturing and community right-to-know--key themes in community relations. In addition, he has published more than 100 chapters and articles and serves on the editorial and reviewer panels of several premier academic journals. He has received many honors from public relations professionals and academic associations and has lectured nationally and internationally on a wide array of topics.