ABSTRACT
Chapter 1 defines the terms public relations and public relations writing. It provides an overview of the purpose, process, style, form and tone associated with public relations writing. The chapter provides an introduction to the four-phase public relations process advocated by the Public Relations Society of America — Research, Planning, Implementation and Evaluation (RPIE) — and identifies where public relations writing falls within that process (Implementation). It also provides an overview of the style guide used by communications professionals — The Associated Press Stylebook — and introduces the inverted pyramid as a tool used by communications professionals to structure and organize their writing. The chapter concludes with three exercises: an editing exercise using Associated Press Editing Symbols; an exercise organizing content using the inverted pyramid; and an exercise defining the term public relations.
