Delighted that my abstract for Everywhere and Nowhere: Public Relations in postwar British fiction has been accepted for the Stirling 21 Public Relations Professional Project Conference, at the University of Stirling in September.
I have been working on this for a while but I would be very grateful to hear of any suggestions. As well as major characters (of which there are surprisingly few) I'm looking for quite fleeting appearances by people who are described as PR practitioners.
I am aware of quite a number of novels which feature political spin doctors but not so many that include characters who work inhouse or in small agencies. Can you help?
Anyway, here's the abstract:
Everywhere and Nowhere: Public Relations in postwar British fiction
Commentators and critics frequently claim that ‘PR is everywhere’, that its shaped messages pervade all forms of media. But at the same time it is readily acknowledged that most ‘ordinary’ people will struggle to name a PR practitioner or provide a definition of the discipline that could be readily accepted by its professional.
This tension routinely exercises those who seek to drive forward the professionalisation project. Many suggest that such development is made more difficult by media representations of PR. As in documentary, so in literature; although manipulation or distortion of message and truth is a mainstay of novels across many genres, there are relatively few developed characters in British fiction who are located within the practice of culture of Public Relations.
This paper suggests that the framings of fiction help us to identify and interrogate iconic and consensual constructions of public relations. Most novelists will strive to create of images and behaviours that resonate with public expectations; (usually) for a character or a plot device to succeed, the writer must have respect for parameters that are acceptable to the reader.
Often, a work environment or work role provides a vehicle for narrative expression and direction; certainly it can act as code or shorthand which both reflects and illuminates popular perceptions of that discipline or function. If the novelist is successful, fictional creations will reflect what is held to be an ‘accurate’, certainly a plausible portrayal of the function and, in some cases. reinforce and amplify compliant descriptions to iconic status (an example might be Dixon of Dock Green, which became an accepted if unrealistic portrayal of a golden era of policing).
This paper draws on concepts developed in a similar study of journalism in fiction to examine at representations of Public Relations in a range of UK novels published since 1945, taking in genres ranging from crime and thrillers, popular and literary fiction, to fantasy and science fiction. Key texts include Christopher (The Death of Grass, 1956), Bedford (Exit, Orange & Red, 1997) and Kelly (Crusaders, 2008) but it is often passing references to incidental characters in novels with little structural connection with Public Relations which offer the most resonate associations.
It gathers together these appearances under a variety of themes, some amusing, some trivial, which give an insight into how the public relations is held to operate, and how this is seen to impact on our society. This in turn encourages critical reflection on the perceived worth of public relations and, in particular, its relationship with public interest.
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