Public Relations as Dramatistic Organizing: A Case Study Bridging Theory and Practice (Peter Smudde)
	Quantity in Basket:none Code: 978-1-57273-955-0 Price:$27.50 Title: Public Relations as Dramatistic Organizing Sub-title: A Case Study Bridging Theory and Practice Author(s): Peter M. Smudde Publish Date: February 2011 Pages: 252 Format: Paper
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This book examines an important public relations case in great depth over the 6-year period in the 1990s when it was managed: General Motors 1973-1987 C/K pickup trucks, which were alleged to have a defective fuel-system design. Lessons learned from this detailed, deeper examination of public relations offer valuable insights from an active bridging of theory and practice. Such lessons—including managerial decision making, message formation, discourse choices, and strategic planning—should prove meaningful for practitioners and scholars alike because the analysis focuses on implications from the case for the field. This book applied recent scholarship on public relations and leans on theories of rhetoric, organizations, and linguistics to develop and apply a new, theory-driven method for analyzing public relations discourse and deriving a model for the public relations process. The method synthesizes the rhetorical theory of Kenneth Burke (the primary theoretical orientation) with the theory of organizations of Karl Weick and applies discourse analysis to discern genres of symbolic action in the organizing processes of public relations officials. The result is grounded analysis of an actual, long-term case of public relations with far-reaching implications for the practice and study of public relations. This book’s other important contributions including defining public relations anew to emphasize, unlike other definitions, the context of symbolic action born of organizing behavior; outlining and pragmatically defining specific public relations discourse genres, which serve as vital reference points; using texts prepared for both internal and external publics; and presenting a unique program for the “dramatistic organizing of public relations” that draws on the case study, the author’s experience, and published research. Contents: INTRODUCTION: PUBLIC RELATIONS CONTEXTS. Thesis and Research Questions. Project Justifications. Literature Review. Content Preview. DRAMTISTIC ORGANIZING AS METHOD. Theoretical Framework. Framework for Textual Analysis. Epilogue: An “Ill-defined” Issue. LOGOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION OF THE CASE. Order. Pollution. Guilt. Purification. Redemption. Quantitative Corroboration of the Logological Analysis. Epilogue: An “Ill-defined” Issue. MICROSCOPIC TEXTUAL ANALYSIS OF THE CASE. Organizing the Issue. Key Messages. A Representative Text. The Cornerstone to Redemption. MACROSCOPIC TEXTUAL ANALYSIS OF THE CASE. PR Discourse Before Dateline NBC. The Turning Point: Dateline NBC’s Report. PR Discourse After Dateline NBC. Thoughts on Text and Process. LESSONS FROM THE METHOD AND THE CASE. Evaluating the Success of the Case. What the Case Teaches Us. How Well the Method Works. Implications. CONCLUSION: STRATEGIC PLANNING FOR AND VALUE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS. The Impacts of History, Tactical Bias, and Semantic Baggage. Using Rhetorical Theory in Practice. Prospective, Strategic and Rhetorical Public Relations. A Strategy for the Dramatistic Organizing of Public Relations. Public Relations’ Value Contribution. Appendixes. Notes. References. Author’s Biography. Author Index. Subject Index.