ABSTRACT

The role of social media practice and research in public relations continues to press the envelope of ethical use and reporting. This chapter seeks to extend our knowledge of the ethical practice of social media and the research used to evaluate it, and to explicate a move toward standardizing the ethics of research in social media. There are a number of different ways to approach this topic. The chapter first reviews ethical theory, then introduces the reader to an ethical approach to public relations as espoused by Bowen (2004, 2010, 2012; Bowen, Rawlins, & Martin, 2010). It is integrated with Stacks and Michaelson’s (Michaelson & MacLeod, 2007; Michaelson & Stacks, 2011; Stacks, 2011; Stacks & Michaelson, 2010) contention that research should be conducted in an ethical manner, leading to both more ethical practices and an approach to ethical research standards.