International History of PR Conference

The second International History of Public Relations Conference (IHPRC) will be held at Bournemouth University next year and academics, practitioners and research students are invited to submit their papers.

The conference, organised by the Centre for Public Communication Research (CPCR), takes place on 6-7 July 2011 at the Executive Business Centre, Bournemouth University.

Conference Chair, Professor Tom Watson from Bournemouth University's Media School said: "The conference is calling for papers across the full range of topics on the history of public relations - people, organisations, campaigns, trends, theoretical developments and changes in PR practice. This year, we are making a special call for papers from Asia, Africa and Latin America which are often under-represented in academic conferences. We also welcome papers from practitioners. In the first conference we had practitioner papers from Australia, Italy, Kosovo and the UK."

The first IHPRC was held in July this year and attracted more than 80 delegates from 13 countries. There were two keynote speakers and 34 refereed papers over two days.

Papers the 2011 conference will be selected, after peer review, based on abstracts. Areas of particular interest include:

• Public relations in history before it became a named or defined discipline
• Alternative approaches to the history of public relations, e.g. on the basis of culture (personal networks and influence) or via definitions of public relations
• The evolving naming of the field from propaganda and press agency to corporate communications
• The history of public relations and its developing or diverging relationships with other disciplines like marketing, HR, legal and corporate governance
• The evolution of public relations in nations or parts of government or industry
• Seminal personalities or events that shaped the formation of public relations as a discipline (this can also include challenges to the "Great Man" or "Great Woman" approach)
• Key books or articles (or series of both) that have influenced public relations
• The history of political public relations and lobbying
• The history of public relations education
• The evolution of public relations theory(ies) over time ? from propaganda to dialogue; the history of schools of thinking in public relations
• Formative influences on public relations theory and practice, such as in or by government, industry or consultancy
• The formation of industry and professional bodies and their impact, over time, on public relations practice and education
• The evolution of public relations education, training and continuing professional development
• The impact of technology, over time, upon public relations practice and theory
• Archival sources for the history of public relations
• The theories and processes of researching the history of public relations
• Oral histories of public relations; the role of this methodology

Abstracts should be submitted to Professor Tom Watson by Monday 6 December by emailing prhistory@bournemouth.ac.uk.

For further details on the style and presentation of submissions, visit the conference blog