ABSTRACT
The dominant frames of reference for the discussion of public relations ethics are professionalism and social responsibility, two concepts that form the foundation to educate practitioners, discuss professional dilemmas, and legitimize the practices and Correspondence: Lois A. Boynton, School of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 397 Carroll Hall, CB# 3365, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3365; email: lboynton@email.unc.edu
ethical nature of public relations. Although status often takes precedence in the literature, social responsibilities also are encouraged. However, both concepts are complex, and scholars often disagree on even the most basic issues. For example, whether public relations is, in fact, a profession has been bantered about by practitioners, scholars, and the discipline’s critics for more than a half century. Further, social responsibility has been discussed independently as well as a subset or goal of professionalism. Although rooted in both corporate and journalism ethics, social responsibility’s common backgrounds are not typically discussed in tandem.
