Encyclopedia of Public Relations

As I drafted the introduction for the second edition
of the Encyclopedia of Public Relations (EPR2), I
revisited the preface published in the first edition
(EPR1). I did not appreciate when we produced
the first edition how much of a footprint it was
and how such projects help us track the movement
of the discipline; the journey it is taking toward a
relatively uncertain destination. Footprints suggest
where a discipline has been, where it is, and where
it might be going.
In such projects, we can never forget that we are
dealing with a profession. People can be educated,
accredited, and rewarded for the quality of their
professional work. They can be scorned for engaging in spin. The question is how well academics
work with professionals for the good of the profession, the organizations it serves, and the societies
where it is practiced. Many of us aspire to make a
strong connection between what is good for the
profession and what is good for society. Like other
academic disciplines and professions, we are variously chauvinistic with enthusiasm for what this
profession can do for others and how it can continually be improved by tough l