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Archive for February, 2011

Five Minutes With…Dr. Tom Watson

By: David Geddes on Tuesday, February 22nd, 2011 at 1:23 pm

This is David Geddes, chair of the Institute for Public Relations Commission on Measurement and Evaluation. Today I am talking with Dr Tom Watson, Professor of Public Relations at The Media School at Bournemouth University in the United Kingdom. Tom also served as a Measurement Commission member for several years. Tom, the International History of Public Relations Conference takes place from July 6-7, 2011 at Bournemouth University. Tell us about the history and objectives of this conference? The conference evolved from a History of Public Relations special issue of the Journal of Communication Management that I edited in 2008. There ...

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Social Capital as a Measure of Public Relations Impact

By: Maureen Taylor on Thursday, February 10th, 2011 at 9:21 am

Public relations professionals are regularly asked to provide evidence of impact. Indicators or measures such as ROI, reputation rankings, website analytics, media hits, and other measures are used to show that public relations adds tangible value to organizations. I would like to offer an additional method to show how public relations serves organizations in a measurable way that can be understood by management. There are different types of resources that provide tangible value to organizations. Most of us accept that resources such as capital (money) are necessary for any organization. Yet, there are other types of capital that provide value. Pierre Bourdieu ...

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