Introduction to Public Relations: The Profession and the Practice

This course offers students a historic and strategic overview of the vital management role public relations plays as a core business process in all sectors to create and maintain goodwill and understanding between organizations and their stakeholders, and to balance strategic objectives with public expectations. Major definitions, models, principles, perspectives and practices will identify the objectives of public relations. Students will appreciate the scope of the field by exploring the tasks and responsibilities of public relations professionals in corporate, non-profit, agency and government sectors. Students examine the diversity and range of public relations tasks from assisting with an organization's strategic plan and handling a crisis to launching a new product or conducting a special event.

Professionals in a dynamic, constantly changing, future-focused field, public relations professionals leverage new technologies and are early adopters of social and digital media; strategic uses of new media to build relationships and communities will be explored.