Women in PR History

The history of PR has received limited attention over the years, and especially the role of women in PR has been an ‘untold’ story thus far. This book is the first attempt, following research presented at the International History of Public Relations Conference, to shed light on the significant role that female pioneers have played in the evolution of PR. This book explores the field in a way that will offer insight of the significance that women had in the evolution of PR, with diverse chapters that provide rich perspectives on women’s contributions to PR throughout the years and across the globe. It opens with an overview of women in public relations. Later chapters focus on the case of Turkey, which seems to have a rich history of women in public relations, then on specific cases from Oceania (Australia), Europe (Spain), Asia (Malaysia and Thailand) and America (United States). The final chapter deals with the case of Inez Kaiser, who was the first African- American women to open a US public relations agency. This book will add knowledge and understanding to the fields of PR history and historiography. Academics and researchers will find the volume appropriate for research and teaching. Practitioners will also find the book extremely relevant for training, short courses and professional practice.

Introduction Anastasios Theofilou 1 Re-examining the existence of the "velvet ghetto" and the "glass ceiling": examining the status of American women in public relations a generation later Donald k. Wright 2 Women in public relations: a thematic analysis of ECM data (2009–2019) Martina Topic? and Ralph Tench 3 ‘Signum authenticum’ of women: herstories in Turkey’s public relations during the early years Melike Aktas¸, G. Senem Gençtürk Hizal and B. Pinar Özdemir 4 Professional standards of PR in three decades through the lenses of Turkish women presidents of IPRA Pelin Hürmeriç and A. Banu Biçakçi 5 Betty Stewart, Orientalism and Oriental Cavalcade: entertainment public relations in late 1950s Australia Kate Fitch 6 The militant documentary films of Helena Lumbreras as dissent and protest public relations Isadora Guardia, Carolina Martínez and Jordi Xifra 7 A ‘herstory’ of Malaysian public relations: Paddy Schubert, Malaysia’s women PR pioneer Rizwanah Souket 8 The Loi Krathong festival and Nang Noppamas: Applying current ‘PR’ theory to identify the first Thai female PR practitioner Parichart Sthapitanonda 9 Inez Kaiser: the perseverance of a public relations pioneer Denise Hill and Shelley Spector Conclusions Anastasios Theofilou

Anastasios Theofilou is Principal Academic in Public Relations at the Faculty of Media and Communication, at Bournemouth University, UK. He holds a BA in Political Science and Public Administration, specializing in International Relations, awarded by the University of Athens, an MBA awarded by the National Technical University of Athens and the Athens University of Economics and Business, and finally a PhD awarded by the Athens University of Economics and Business.