Information-Sharing and Community-Building: Exploring the Use of Twitter in Science Public Relations

PurposeAs the number of corporate blogs has continued to increase over the years, this study examines the use of relationship cultivation strategies of Fortune 500 companies on their corporate blogs. Moreover, it focuses on how companies use corporate blogs as interactive online communication channels to create a sense of community among their publics.Design/methodology/approachA content analysis of Fortune 500 company corporate blogs was conducted to examine the use of relational cultivation strategies and their methods of promoting a sense of community.FindingsFindings indicate that networking and sharing tasks are used most frequently among all relational cultivation strategies on corporate blogs, and that there are statistically significant differences among industries for using relationship cultivation strategies on corporate blogs. The most frequently used dimension of sense of community on corporate blogs is shared emotional connection.Originality/valueStudies analyzing social media as public relations tools have not yet focused on community building. In fact, few studies have examined the community building aspect of corporate blogs in the public relations field. To fill this gap, this study focuses on community building and analyzes how companies use corporate blogs as an interactive online communication channel to create a sense of community among their publics.

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Enhancing community capacity: Roles of perceived bonding and bridging social capital and public relations in community building

Public Relations Review ◽

10.1016/j.pubrev.2013.08.009 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 39 (4) ◽

pp. 290-292 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Bumsub Jin ◽

Soobum Lee

Keyword(s):

Social Capital ◽

Public Relations ◽

Community Building ◽

Community Capacity ◽

Bridging Social Capital ◽

Bonding And Bridging

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Social Media and the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Analysis of a Physician Group’s WhatsApp Chat (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.31791 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Sawsan Abdel-Razig ◽

Pascale Anglade ◽

Halah Ibrahim

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Information Sharing ◽

United Arab Emirates ◽

Information Dissemination ◽

Medical Information ◽

Qualitative Content Analysis ◽

Community Building ◽

Effective Means ◽

Significant Proportion ◽

Social Media Platforms

BACKGROUND Social media has emerged as an effective means of information sharing and community building amongst health professionals. The utility of these platforms is likely heightened during times of health system crises and global uncertainty. Studies have demonstrated that physicians’ social media platforms serve to bridge the gap of information between on-the-ground experiences of health care workers and emerging knowledge. OBJECTIVE The primary aim of this study was to characterize the use of a physician WhatsApp group chat during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS Through the lens of the Social Network Theory, the authors performed a qualitative content analysis of posts of a women physician WhatsApp group located in the United Arab Emirates between February 1, 2020 and May 31, 2020 during the initial surge of COVID-19 cases. RESULTS The were 6101 posts during the study period, reflecting a 2.6-fold increase in platform utilization when compared with the year prior. Eight themes and nine subthemes are described. The top 3 uses of the platform were requests for information, member support/promotion, and information sharing (46%, 16%, and 15% respectively). A significant proportion of posts were related to COVID-19 (43.5%) with the most popular theme being requests for logistical (non-medical) information. Among COVID-19 related medical information, it is notable that two thirds of these posts (571 of 868) were from public, mass media or unverified sources. CONCLUSIONS Health crises can potentiate the use of social media platforms amongst physicians, reflecting their tendency to turn to these platforms for information sharing and community building purposes. However, important questions remain regarding the accuracy and credibility of the information shared. These findings suggest that training of physicians in social media practices and information dissemination may be needed. CLINICALTRIAL Not applicable

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Community Building and Early Public Relations

10.4324/9780429274718 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Donnalyn Pompper

Keyword(s):

Public Relations ◽

Community Building

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The Other Stance: Conflicting Professional Self-Images and Perceptions of the Other Profession Among Finnish PR Professionals and Journalists

Nordicom Review ◽

10.2478/nor-2014-0018 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 35 (2) ◽

pp. 105-121 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Niina Niskala ◽

Pertti Hurme

Keyword(s):

Public Relations ◽

Information Sharing ◽

The Other ◽

Trust Building ◽

Questionnaire Data ◽

Internet Communication ◽

Professional Self

Abstract Public relations (PR) professionals and journalists act as builders of societies’ communication atmospheres, and their inter-relationships are of importance. The aim of the present study is to describe and compare PR professionals’ and journalists’ professional self-images and perceptions of the other group's profession in Finland. The study is part of the ProfCom project and makes use of the project's Finnish quantitative questionnaire data. The results indicate clear perception differences. PR professionals identify themselves with bond- and trust-building objectives, whereas journalists perceive marketing and financial goals as the main objectives of PR professionals. Journalists identify themselves with information sharing, criticism and service roles, whereas PR professionals perceive opinion sharing, advising and informing about scandals as the main objectives of journalists. In addition, the study indicates a need for further research on the underlying reasons for conflicting perceptions and the effects of the developing Internet communication arena on relationships between professionals.

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Does your corporation “care”? Exploring an ethical standard for communicating CSR relationships online

Public Relations Inquiry ◽

10.1177/2046147x211032913 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 2046147X2110329

Author(s):

Virginia S Harrison

Keyword(s):

Corporate Social Responsibility ◽

Content Analysis ◽

Public Relations ◽

Information Sharing ◽

Qualitative Content Analysis ◽

Ethical Standard ◽

Fair Share ◽

Public Relations Practitioners ◽

Employee Volunteerism ◽

Corporate Social

A qualitative content analysis of corporate social responsibility (CSR) webpages of top-ranked corporations was conducted to determine the ethical nature of online communications surrounding nonprofit partnerships. Are corporations giving nonprofits their fair share of online publicity? All CSR-related webpages from the top 30 Fortune’s 500 Most Admired Corporations for 2017 were examined. Ethical principles from public relations communications regarding open, honest, and transparent information sharing guided textual analysis. Evidence shows that CSR website communications often engage in self-promotion rather than genuine and mutually beneficial support for nonprofit partners. Through corporate branding of CSR activities, advertising through philanthropy stories, and exploiting employee volunteerism and donations, the balance of CSR relationships tilts heavily in the corporation’s favor. Yet, public relations practitioners have a special calling to be the “ethical conscience” of their organizations. Understanding how corporations can provide ethical communications about their nonprofit partners helps guide ethical voice of the practice. This study is unique for looking specifically at the ethics of corporate CSR communications themselves and for addressing the nonprofit perspective of CSR, which is often overlooked. While nonprofits may benefit from CSR relationships, this article shows that opportunities for mutually beneficial communications about these relationships may be lacking.

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An Examination of How World Vision Canada Communicates with Publics of Various Ideological Backgrounds and Moves Them to Donate

The McMaster Journal of Communication ◽

10.15173/mjc.v11i0.1410 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 11 ◽

Author(s):

Julia Rim Shepard

Keyword(s):

Public Relations ◽

Community Building ◽

Development Work ◽

Christian Identity ◽

Charitable Organization ◽

World Vision ◽

Salient Points ◽

The Right ◽

Do So

This case study explores how a charitable organization, World Vision Canada, engages publics of various ideological backgrounds and moves them to donate based on a number of contingency factors, as well as the community-building and co-creational theories of public relations. How the organization is identifying, communicating, listening, and responding to core audiences of various denominations and faith backgrounds was studied. Three salient points emerged from interviews, documentation, and archival records: First, the organization is able to identify and communicate with its broad base of core audiences, and it has been able to do so thus far by striking the right balance. Second, it has mechanisms in place that allow it to listen and engage with these audiences deeply and regularly. Finally, the organization needs to further articulate its Christian identity, to better communicate how development work is carried out in the context of its faith motivations, and to tailor communications uniquely for current and future audiences.

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Approaching Trust: Case Studies for Developing Global Research Infrastructures

Frontiers in Research Metrics and Analytics ◽

10.3389/frma.2021.746514 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 6 ◽

Author(s):

Heather Flanagan ◽

Laurel L. Haak ◽

Laura Dorival Paglione

Keyword(s):

Information Sharing ◽

Case Studies ◽

Community Building ◽

Trust Building ◽

Technical Service ◽

Core Component ◽

Global Alliance ◽

Stakeholder Groups ◽

Research Infrastructures ◽

Governance Processes

Trust is a core component of collaboration. Trust is a local phenomenon, and scientific research is a global collaborative, its impact multiplied through open exchange, communication and mobility of people and information. Given the diversity of participants, local policies and cultures, how can trust be established in and between research communities? You need transparent governance processes, thoughtful engagement of stakeholder groups, and open and durable information sharing to build the “stickiness” needed. In this paper we illustrate these concepts through three trust building use cases: ORCID, Global Alliance for Genomics and Health, and SeamlessAccess, platforms sharing an identity and access technical service core, painstaking community building, and transparent governance frameworks.

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