Public Relations Journal is a free, web-based, open-access, quarterly academic journal presented by the Public Relations Society of America and the Institute for Public Relations dedicated to offering the latest public relations and communication-based research. In June 2017, IPR combined its “Research Journal of IPR” with the PRSA “PR Journal.”
Volume 12: Issue 4 (September 2019)
Special Edition presented by the Arthur W. Page Center
Editor's Introduction:
The Future of Corporate Purpose: Delivering Value to All Stakeholders in the Digital Age
Guest Editor: Marcia DiStaso, Ph.D., University of Florida
On August 19, 2019, the Business Roundtable, an association of about 200 CEOs from America’s most prominent companies, issued a powerful statement redefining the mission of companies. After more than two decades with businesses driven for profit by putting shareholders first, these CEOs state: “Each of our stakeholders is essential. We commit to deliver value to all of them, for the future success of our companies, our communities, and our country” (Business Roundtable, 2019).
Effective purpose-driven companies align their business objectives with improving global wellbeing. The 2016 Harvard Business Review study on purpose and profit found that purpose and profit tend to go together (Gartenberg & Serafeim, 2016). In fact, the statement issued by the Business Roundtable identified five stakeholders: customers, employees, suppliers, communities, and stockholders.
This special issue resulted from a call for Page and Johnson Legacy Scholar grant proposals from the Arthur W. Page Center in the College of Communications at Penn State University. The four research studies published in this issue help fill the gaps in literature about social media and stakeholder communications. Each article focuses on a different stakeholder group: employees, consumers, influencers, and low-income publics. Read the full editor's introdution here.
Employee Perceptions of CEO Ghost Posting and Voice: Effects on Perceived Authentic Leadership, Organizational Transparency, and Employee-Organization Relationships
Tom Kelleher, Ph.D., University of Florida
Rita Linjuan Men, Ph.D., University of Florida
Patrick Thelen, Ph.D., San Diego State University
Strategic CSR Communication in Social Media: The Effectiveness of Stakeholder Information, Response, and Involvement Communication Strategies Factoring Corporate Reputation
Yeonsoo Kim, Ph.D., James Madison University
Listening In: Fostering Influencer Relationships to Manage Fake News
Michele Ewing, Kent State University
Cheryl Ann Lambert, Ph.D., Kent State University
Exploring Digital, Social and Mobile Dialogic Engagement with Low-Income Publics
Katie Place, Ph.D., Quinnipiac University
