Presentation at the launch of London College of Communication's 'Network for Public Relations and Society', 28th January 2014

1. Network For Public Relations
and Society

2. Tonight
1. Welcome: Simon Collister and Sarah RobertsBowman, LCC, UAL
2. Dr Scott Anthony, University of Cambridge
3. Dr Paul Rennie, Central St Martins, UAL
4. Drinks and Tom Eckersley Exhibition

3. Introducing:
Network For Public Relations
and Society
January 2014

4. Overview
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Origins
PR and Society
Vision & Aims
Delivery
Next Steps

5. 1. Origins

6. Origins: UAL Media Vision
• Ensure sustainable future
• Deliver satisfied graduates
with great jobs
• Achieve world class research
and innovation
• Attain international significance

7. What’s the Network about?
• Fluid network acting as hub for
range of academic and industry
focused projects and research
• Particular focus on societal
aspects of PR
• Initially supported by contracted
teaching staff, wider network of
academics and industry partners
NETWORK IMAGE

8. 2. PR and Society

9. What is PR and Society?

10. Building on LCC’s uniqueness
• LCC played central role in the history
and evolution of communication as a
social endeavour
• Continues practical and theoretical
engagement with communication as
a social function
• Unique material heritage of
communications in society through its
archives and collections
ECKLERSLEY POSTER

11. 3. Network Vision & Aims

12. Vision
• The Network aims to be an international leader in
studying public relations from a social perspective and
reclaiming the field from dominant managerial paradigms
• This will be achieved by bringing together scholars and
practitioners to collaborate on a range of research,
events, publications and projects designed to understand
public relations’ wider societal significance and bring
about changes in the way it is conceived and practised

13. Aims
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
To become a hub for research excellence in public relations and society
To build and support a sustainable network for research and practice around public
relations and society
To act as a centre for developing, hosting and facilitating discussions around public
relations and society, through workshops, visiting speaker programmes, conferences,
policy and training events and publishing working papers
To secure research funding from major UK and international sources
To scope content and demand for a Masters in the Social History of Public Relations
To identify, develop and build links with other UAL colleges and staff particular focus
on UAL archives and curation
To identify and establish a network of wider academic and practitioner communities both nationally and internationally

14. 4. Delivery

15. Delivering the Vision
1. Conferences
5. Network building
2. Seminars/Workshops
6. Visiting speakers
3. Research
7. Working papers
4. Consultancy projects
8. Creation of MA

16. 1. PR, Posters and British Society
• Draw on material archives at LCC
and further afield to explore visual
communications’ role in early PR
• Particular focus on posters and their
role in development of modern
British society
• Potential for archive mapping
project

17. 2. Barriers and Challenges for PR
• ‘What is it Good For?
Barriers and Challenges for
Application of Public
Relations Research’
• Pan-European project lead
by Prof. Oyvind Ihlen at
University of Oslo
• Will explore what role PR
scholarship plays in shaping
PR practice

18. 3. PR and Activism
• Seminar series
exploring PR and
activism/social change
• Aiming to rethink how
we understand PR
based on activist
practice and
experiences; drawing on
wider scholarly fields
• For further development

19. 5. Next Steps

20. Where next?
1. Focus on delivering initial projects above
2. Identify academic mentors within or outside UAL to
advise on and guide development of network
3. Continue to build the network in relevant directions
4. Bring in funding to support ongoing and new projects

21. How you can help…
1. Get involved in getting projects off the ground
2. Become or suggest a network mentor
3. Suggest network members – particularly in the areas of
British social history and social change/activism
4. Help us get more money… institutional grants; private
sources; etc

22. Questions?