The Practice of Government Public Relations

254 Pages·2011·1.817 MB·English

by  Mordecai Lee, Grant Neeley, Kendra Stewart

Government & Education
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American Society for Public Administration ALEE
Series in Public Administration and Public Policy RTY
In addition to traditional management tools, government administrators T
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require a fundamental understanding of the tools available to address the ever-
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changing context of government communications. Examining the ins and outs

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of the regulations influencing public information, The Practice of Government
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Public Relations unveils novel ways to integrate cutting-edge technologies—
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including Web 2.0 and rapidly emerging social media—to craft and maintain a C
positive public image. T
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Expert practitioners with extensive government communications experience E

address key topics of interest and provide an up-to-date overview of best practices. O
They examine the specifics of government public relations and detail a hands-on F

approach for the planning, implementation, and evaluation of the wide-ranging G
aspects of government public relations—including how to respond during a crisis. O
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Focusing on the roles of government managers enacting policies adopted by
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elected officials and politicians, this book is ideal for program managers seeking N
innovative and inexpensive ways to accomplish their programs’ missions. M
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• Supplies authoritative advice on the range of topics related to
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government public relations
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• Demonstrates how public relations can help government managers
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improve their work with illustrative descriptions and cases
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• Explains how to implement policy while promoting democratic B
accountability L
• Includes a CD-ROM with PowerPoint® slides, checklists, and IC
additional resources
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Although no manager can be an expert in all aspects of public administration,
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this book will help you understand the external communications tools available A
to advance the mission and results of your agency. In addition to the tools T
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provided on the accompanying CD-ROM, most chapters include a Best Practice O
Checklist to help you successfully utilize the communication strategies outlined N
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in the book.
K11561
ISBN: 978-1-4398-3465-7
90000
www.crcpress.com
9 781439 834657
w w w. c rc p r e s s . c o m
K11561 cvr mech.indd 1 6/21/11 4:45 PM
THE PRACTICE
OF GOVERNMENT
PUBLIC RELATIONS
American Society for Public Administration
Book Series on Public Administration & Public Policy
Editor-in-Chief
Evan M. Berman, Ph.D.
National Chengchi University, Taiwan
[email protected]
Mission: Throughout its history, ASPA has sought to be true to its founding prin-
ciples of promoting scholarship and professionalism within the public service. The
ASPA Book Series on Public Administration and Public Policy publishes books that
increase national and international interest for public administration and which dis-
cuss practical or cutting edge topics in engaging ways of interest to practitioners,
policy-makers, and those concerned with bringing scholarship to the practice of pub-
lic administration.
The Practice of Government Public Relations, Mordecai Lee, Grant Neeley,
and Kendra Stewart
Promoting Sustainable Local and Community Economic Development,
Roland V. Anglin
Government Contracting: Promises and Perils, William Sims Curry
Strategic Collaboration in Public and Nonprofit Administration:
A Practice-Based Approach to Solving Shared Problems, Dorothy Norris-Tirrell,
and Joy A. Clay
Managing Public Sector Projects: A Strategic Framework for Success in
an Era of Downsized Government, David S. Kassel
Organizational Assessment and Improvement in the Public Sector,
Kathleen M. Immordino
Ethics Moments in Government: Cases and Controversies, Donald C. Menzel
Major League Winners: Using Sports and Cultural Centers as Tools
for Economic Development, Mark S. Rosentraub
The Formula for Economic Growth on Main Street America, Gerald L. Gordon
The New Face of Government: How Public Managers Are Forging a New
Approach to Governance, David E. McNabb
The Facilitative Leader in City Hall: Reexamining the Scope
and Contributions, James H. Svara
American Society for Public Administration
Series in Public Administration and Public Policy
THE PRACTICE
OF GOVERNMENT
PUBLIC RELATIONS
EDITED BY
MORDECAI LEE
GRANT NEELEY
KENDRA STEWART
CRC Press
Taylor & Francis Group
6000 Broken Sound Parkway NW, Suite 300
Boca Raton, FL 33487-2742
© 2012 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
CRC Press is an imprint of Taylor & Francis Group, an Informa business
No claim to original U.S. Government works
Version Date: 20110603
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-1-4398-3466-4 (eBook - PDF)
This book contains information obtained from authentic and highly regarded sources. Reasonable
efforts have been made to publish reliable data and information, but the author and publisher cannot
assume responsibility for the validity of all materials or the consequences of their use. The authors and
publishers have attempted to trace the copyright holders of all material reproduced in this publication
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Visit the Taylor & Francis Web site at
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For Brad Brin, Ernie Franzen, and Charlie Wright—good
friends who were there when I needed them.
Mordecai Lee
For Sabrina and Jordan, the loves of my life.
Grant Neeley
For Fred Carter and Louise Majors—the first to teach me about
the importance of government public relations; and for Jimmy,
Paxton, and Paisley, who never let me forget what’s important.
Kendra Stewart

Contents
CD-ROM Contents ........................................................................................ix
Preface ............................................................................................................xi
Editors ...........................................................................................................xv
Contributors ................................................................................................xvii
 1  Introduction ...........................................................................................1
GRANT NEELEY AND KENDRA STEWART
 2  Government Public Relations: What Is It Good For? .............................9
MORDECAI LEE
SeCtion i   ReACHinG tHe CitiZenRY: tHe tooLS 
oF GoVeRnMent PUBLiC ReLAtionS
 3  Media Relations ....................................................................................29
JEROME SADOW
 4  Government Websites ...........................................................................51
NAPOLEON BYARS
 5  Public Information Campaigns ............................................................75
JENIFER E. KOPFMAN AND AMANDA RUTH-McSWAIN
 6  Crisis Public Relations for Government Communicators ..................101
BROOKE FISHER LIU AND ABBEY BLAKE LEVENSHUS
 7  Web 2.0...............................................................................................125
LEILA SADEGHI
SeCtion ii  MAnAGinG GoVeRnMent PUBLiC ReLAtionS
 8  Strategic Communication Planning ...................................................143
DIANA KNOTT MARTINELLI
vii
viii  ◾  Contents
 9  Ethics in Government Public Relations .............................................157
SHANNON A. BOWEN
 10 Doing Right and Avoiding Wrong with the Law and Politicians .......179
KEVIN R. KOSAR
 11 Internal Public Relations for Personal and Program Success .............197
ANNE ZAHRADNIK
 12 Using Monitoring and Evaluation to Measure Public Affairs
Effectiveness .......................................................................................213
MAUREEN TAYLOR
 13 Conclusion ..........................................................................................229
GRANT NEELEY AND KENDRA STEWART
CD-RoM Contents
Chapter 5 Checklist by Jenifer E. Kopfman and Amanda Ruth-McSwain
Chapter 6 Additional Resources by Brooke Fisher Liu and Abbey Blake
Levenshus
Chapter 7 Checklist by Leila Sadeghi
Chapter 8 PowerPoint Presentation by Diana Knott Martinelli
Chapter 8 Workbook Pages by Diana Knott Martinelli
Chapter 10 Addendum by Kevin R. Kosar
Case Study: I nformation Wars in Russian Politics by Elena Denezhkina and Paul
Dezendorf
Case Study: Sex Offender at the Recreation Complex by Grant Neeley
Case Study: A n Illustration of the Impact of Active Community Engagement and
Information Targeting Rock Hill, South Carolina by Scott Huffman
and Paul Dezendorf
Case Study: G overnment Public Relations and the U.S. Customs and Immigration
Services Website by Meg Warnement
ix