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15 October 2024
EUPRERA PhD Award – 2025 call is now open!

The PhD Award for Excellent Doctoral Thesis is a bi-annual prize for excellent doctoral dissertation in any language. The call is open to any student studying public relations in Europe, regardless of the location.

Aim

The award honours academic excellence in the fields of public relations and communication management.

Chairs of the Jury

Prof. Dr. Winni Johansen, Prof. Dr. Wim Elving

Rewards

The winner will receive a certificate, naming her or his dissertation best of class in Europe. The winner will also be invited to present the dissertation at the EUPRERA Annual Congress, the main gathering for public relations scholars in Europe. Travel expenses and accommodation will be paid (up to € 350).

The winner will be recognised as a leading expert in public relations, corporate communication or communication management.

Visit the PhD Award page
Download the poster: pdf / jpg
See previous winners
3 October 2024
EUPRERA launches FuturePR International Student Competition in collaboration with ICCO

October 3rd, 2024 – The European Public Relations Education and Research Association (EUPRERA), in collaboration with the International Communications Consultancy Organisation (ICCO), is excited to announce the launch of the FuturePR International Student Competition. This new competition will take place in October and November 2024, inviting students from across the globe to tackle key challenges faced by the communication and public relations profession.

The FuturePR Competition builds on the strong foundations of previous competitions organised by both EUPRERA and ICCO. EUPRERA’s PR Arena and ICCO’s University PR World Cup have each provided students with invaluable opportunities to showcase their skills. By joining forces, the two organisations aim to create an even more impactful platform that will combine academic rigor with real-world industry expertise.

The FuturePR Competition seeks to go beyond annual case changes and client challenges. Its mission is to foster a long-term dialogue on the critical issues affecting the PR profession, with a particular focus on the role current and future PR and communication professionals play in countering misinformation and polarization. For its inaugural edition, FuturePR will address the Media Education and Information Pledge, encouraging students to develop innovative PR strategies that promote a sustainable, peaceful, and equitable future. As they explore solutions for critical global challenges, students will be able to grow their understanding of the profession’s role in society, preparing them for the complex world they will enter after graduation.

Jesper Falkheimer, President of EUPRERA, highlighted the importance of this collaboration: “The FuturePR Competition marks a significant step forward for profession-linked education. By merging the strengths of both EUPRERA and ICCO, we are offering students a unique opportunity to engage with the core challenges the profession faces and, in doing so, contribute to its evolution. This competition reflects our shared vision of an engaged role for the PR and communication profession in building a more sustainable and ethical future”.

Andras Sztaniszlav, CEO of ICCO, echoed this sentiment: “This partnership marks a new era for both ICCO and EUPRERA in nurturing the future of PR. ICCO has always been committed to fostering young talent, and with this collaboration, we are able to support a platform that not only tests students’ skills but also prepares them for the complexities of global PR challenges. This is a natural next step for ICCO as we continue to invest in the development of the next generation of communications professionals”.

Anca Anton, co-leader of the EUPRERA Education Network, explained: ”The FuturePR Competition offers students more than just a test of their PR skills; it invites them to think deeply about how the profession they are preparing for can contribute to a better society. This initiative is an educational tool that puts an emphasis on the long-term role of PR and communication in addressing critical societal issues, helping students understand their future professional and societal responsibilities”.

For more details on the competition and how to enter, please visit: www.euprera.org/futurepr

 

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2 October 2024
EUPRERA Master Award – 2025 call is now open!

The Master Thesis Award competition has been running since 1995 as our main honour and reward for master theses (MSc, MA and MPhil) in any language that make a significant professional/practical or academic contribution to the field of public relations in Europe.

The 2025 call is now open to any student studying public relations in Europe, regardless of the location.

Aim

The award is a celebration of the PR academia and of the role performed by European Higher Education Institutions in the evolution of knowledge of this field.

Chair of the Jury

Dr. Martina Topić, University of Alabama

Rewards

There are up to two categories of thesis awarded each year. The winner of each category will receive a certificate and they will also be invited* to present their thesis at the EUPRERA Annual Congress, the main gathering for public relations scholars in Europe.

* Should the winners need to travel, EUPRERA will cover travel and accommodation expenses (up to € 350 for each winner).

Shortlisted applicants, their supervisors and their universities will be featured on the website during the pre-announcement period. All nominees will receive a “Merit Diploma”. Winners, supervisors and their universities will be featured on the EUPRERA website for one year.

Visit the MA Award page
Download the full call
Download the poster: pdf / jpg
See previous winners
1 October 2024
2024 Distinguished Public Relations Scholar Award

The European Public Relations Education and Research Association (EUPRERA), a body of academic institutions, researchers and senior professionals in the field of strategic communication with 550 members from 51 countries, has named Anne Gregory, Professor Emeritus of Corporate Communication at University of Huddersfield, UK, Distinguished Public Relations Scholar.

The lifetime award recognizes her outstanding contribution to research and education in public relations as a social science discipline on an international level.
She has been awarded on September 13, 2024, at Bucharest University, Romania, on the occasion of the EUPRERA annual congress.

Anne Gregory (Ph.D.) is Professor Emeritus of Corporate Communication at University of Huddersfield, UK, and a global thought-leader in our field. She is also Adjunct Professor at RMIT Australia and LSPR Indonesia and Visiting Professor at the Universities of Navarra, Spain, Johannesburg, South Africa and UTS, Australia.

Anne became a Professor at the University of Huddersfield in 2014 after several years at Leeds Beckett University, where she also completed a term as Pro Vice Chancellor, and was Director of the Centre for Public Relations Studies.

Before starting her academic career, Anne spent many years in practice, including being Director of Weber Shandwick (North) and Director of External Affairs, University of Bradford. Anne was Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Communication Management until 2016 and has as impressive publishing list. Among many books, the 2nd edition of Strategic Public Relations Leadership (Routledge) was published in 2022. Anne is the Director of the Global Capabilities Framework research project, adopted by the Global Alliance of Public Relations and Communication Management which is the
confederation of the professional bodies worldwide.

Anne has published high-quality public relations and corporate communication research, often with a focus on applied and professional aspects, connecting theory with practice, Anne has numerous other assignments. She is a Reviewer of Government Communication Departments in the UK, appointed by the Prime Minister’s Office and Cabinet Office. She is a former President of the CIPR in the UK, leading it to chartered status and former Chair of the Global Alliance. She holds the Sir Stephen Tallents Medal for outstanding contribution to the profession, The Institute for Public Relations Pathfinder Award for outstanding research, the Canadian Public Relations Society Outstanding Achievement Award for the Global Capability Framework and the Public Relations of America Atlas Award for outstanding contribution in international public relations.

Anne has been a part of and contributed to the EUPRERA community for many years. One example of this is when she organized the 2011 EUPRERA congress in Leeds (with the still relevant theme “Public Relations in Times of Turbulence”).
We acknowledge and thank professor Anne Gregory for her contribution to the field and we are honoured to call her an EUPRERA “Distinguished public relations scholar”.

 

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19 September 2024
Awards for Best Papers 2024: EUPRERA honours academics and practitioners from Europe

We are just back from the EUPRERA Annual Congress, organised by the University of Bucharest, looking grand in its 160 years of history.

The congress was a success both in participation with nearly 200 attendants and in scientific contribution, with works on the theme “The Art of Communication”, grasping the legacy and challenges of the unprecedented times we are facing, characterized by fast-facing changes.

The Annual Congress is also time to hand out the EUPRERA Best Paper Awards. As always, the Awards were given to the authors of three papers with the highest rankings in a blind peer-review process performed by experienced reviewers from the EUPRERA community, under the guidance of the Heads of the Scientific Committee, Alina Dolea and Sarah Marschlich.

EUPRERA Best Paper Awards

The three winning papers:

Strategic Communication and Value Creation: Towards a Multi-Perspective Understanding of the Value-Formation Process in Strategic Communication Management
by Rickard Andersson

This paper significantly contributes to understanding the value formation process in strategic communication management. It proposes a novel multi-perspective that integrates the stakeholder, organizational, and societal perspectives. It has academic relevance and strong link with professional practice especially since demonstrating how strategic communication management creates value has long been considered a critical challenge for communication departments and managers. Moreover, it advances the theorizing of value creation in strategic communication.

Interdisciplinary Patchwork: A Bibliometric Analysis of Investor Relations and Financial Communication
by Laura Hackl

This paper provides a state-of-the-art overview of an important area that is less studied, investor relations and financial communication. It uses a bibliometric approach that draws on big data analysis and opportunities for different forms of analysis that technology/AI allows. Through the historical review, it nicely positions itself in relation to previous literature, highlighting similarities, differences, and relationships. It is a well-designed and methodologically sound interdisciplinary paper that significantly contributes to the under-developed study of investor relations and financial communication as part of strategic communication.

Policy Window and News Media Lobbying – Crisis Narratives of Finnish Trade Associations During a Public Health Crisis
by Markus Tapani Mykkänen, Chiara Valentini

This paper explores how the three major Finish trade associations used news media for lobbying during the pandemic. It is innovative in the sense that it tries to combine the theory of policy windows/cycles with the study of media lobbying. The combination of these approaches constitutes the originality of the study. The authors show the main narratives and meta-narratives the trade associations used, emphasizing the importance of timing. Overall, this is a very well-executed and argued study. It is neat, clear and relevant both for practice and research. The research on how lobbyists are arguing and how they work through media is understudied and this paper contributes to the literature on lobbying, interest groups and strategic communication.

 

Special recognition to the best reviewer

EUPRERA Best Reviewer Award recognizes the work done by the reviewer because it is an essential contribution to the quality and success of the annual congress. This year’s winner is:

Dr Martina Topić,
College of Communication and Information Sciences, The University of Alabama

Dr. Topić stood out through the number of high-quality reviews she did for EUPRERA this year. Her feedback was detailed, diligent and constructive, with lots of suggestions offered to help authors develop and improve their papers.
Her willingness to help and pick-up last-minute additional reviews was also genuinely appreciated by the Scientific Committee.

 

 

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17 September 2024
EUPRERA Congress 2026 – Save the date… Malaga we are coming!

We are just back from Bucharest, which hosted our latest Annual Congress, and we are already planning the coming editions.
As already anticipated, next year, 2025, we will be hosted by the University of Lund, in Sweden from September 24 to 27.
About it, please stay tuned since call for papers and other important announcements are coming soon.

But the real good news is the disclosure of the host university and dates for the 2026 edition, which will take place at the University of Malaga from September 16 to 19, 2026.

All you have to do now is write it down on your diary!

 

 

16 September 2024
2024 Master Thesis Awards – #euprera2024

The European Public Relations Education and Research Association (EUPRERA), a body of academic institutions, researchers and senior professionals in the field of strategic communication with more than 500 members from 51 countries has awarded two master students for their excellent theses in strategic communication.

The Master Thesis Award for Excellence is an annual prize aimed to celebrate the PR academia and the role performed by European Higher Education Institutions in the evolution of knowledge of this field. The jury, headed by Martina Topić, from the University of Alabama, selected the winning theses in two categories:

Practical Impact Award

Darejan Tsurtsumia
“Flexible Organizational Structures of the Digitally Mediated Collective Actor – A Case of the Shame Movement in Georgia”
Supervisor: Ilkin Mehrabov, Lund University, Sweden

The success of social movements is highly dependent on their sustainability, and in
their efforts to produce meaningful change, they inevitably encounter oppressive
dominant forces. The winning dissertation is entitled ‘Flexible Organizational
Structures of the Digitally Mediated Collective Actor – A Case of the Shame
Movement in Georgia’ an analyses the stages of transformation a collective actor
undergoes, from a reactionary crowd-enabled network to a more traditional social
movement and emphasises the role of strategic communicative processes and
digital technologies in the constitution of its organisational structures.

 

Theoretical Impact Award

Megan Rollerson
“Strategic Communication of Trustworthiness in Autonomous Systems, Machine Learning & AI”
Supervisor: Marléne Wiggill, Lund University, Sweden

Autonomous systems, machine learning and artificial intelligence are increasingly
integrated into our everyday lives at an accelerating pace. The winning dissertation
is entitled ‘Strategic Communication of Trustworthiness in Autonomous Systems,
Machine Learning & AI’ and analyses how an organisation can effectively and
strategically communicate an autonomous system’s trustworthiness before and
during a system crisis, failure or rupture and develop a framework for how strategic
communication can foster trust in the technology and support a successful
organisation-public relationship.

 

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6 September 2024
World Public Relations Forum (WPRF) 2024 – Partnership and Call for Papers

The World Public Relations Forum (WPRF) is a premier global event in public relations and communication management, organized by the Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management. It brings together professionals, academics, and industry leaders from around the world to exchange ideas, strategies, and best practices.

PARTNERSHIP

The WPRF 2024 will be hosted by the Indonesian Public Relations Association (Perhumas) in the picturesque setting of Bali, Indonesia, from November 19-22, 2024.
And EUPRERA will be a partner of the WPRP.

This year, 1,000 attendees are expected, creating a dynamic platform to explore emerging trends and address the challenges in the PR industry.

The theme for WPRF 2024 is ‘Purposeful Influence for the Common Good,’ reflecting the evolving role and aspirations of the public relations profession in a rapidly changing global landscape. This theme emphasizes the power and responsibility of influencing public opinion and behavior, aligning messaging with purpose-driven values to amplify the positive impact of businesses. Communication practitioners and academics play a crucial role in crafting narratives that resonate with socially responsible and environmentally conscious values, contributing to the betterment of society and the planet.

CALL FOR PAPER

Scholars and communication practitioners from around the world can join by presenting and sharing original research focused on 4 (four) topics based on the theme, but not limited to, the following subtopics:

  1. On the World Stage—Purposeful Influence for the Common Good
  2. AIʼs Purposeful Influence for the Common Good
  3. Public Relationsʼ Purposeful Influence for the Common Good
  4. Next Generation PR— Purposeful Progress

Prof. Jesper Falkheimer, president of EUPRERA will be part of the Paper Peer Review Team.

Full Paper Submission & Payment Deadline is 4 October 2024.

You can find the submission guidelines and all information here.

 

1 August 2024
EUPRERA Master Award 2024 – Finalists announced!

The jury has selected 8 finalists for the EUPRERA Master Thesis Award for Excellence. Specifically, 3 in the Practical Impact Award category and 5 in the Theoretical Impact Award one.

The winners, 1 per category, will be announced during the EUPRERA congress in Bucharest on Sept. 13, 2024.

2024 Master Award Finalists
Practical Impact Award

Jenny Biver, “Harnessing the power of cultural diversity – Facilitating awareness around interculturality and promoting intercultural competence as a key success factor for multicultural teams in Luxembourg”
Supervisors: Monica Blaga and Antonia Hein, Hanze University of Applied Sciences, the Netherlands

Anthony Scott, “Clearing the Air of the International Battle on Wind Turbine Noise: Navigating the Netherlands Issue Arena as an Example to Understand International Context”
Supervisor: Wim Elving, Hanze University of Applied Sciences, the Netherlands

Darejan Tsurtsumia, “Flexible Organizational Structures of the Digitally Mediated Collective Actor – A Case of the Shame Movement in Georgia”
Supervisor: Ilkin Mehrabov, Lund University, Sweden

Theoretical Impact Award

Laura Malaussene, “Cultural Intermediation as a Balancing Act: Exploring the Role of Public Relations Practitioners in Navigating Political, Economic, and Cultural Complexities within UK Cancer Charities”
Supervisor: Chris Holly, University of the Arts London, UK

Carla Sofia Mollenhauer, “Behind the rainbow flag: Exploring employee perspectives on corporate LGBTQIA+ advocacy”
Supervisor: Anna Berbers, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands

Megan Rollerson, “Strategic Communication of Trustworthiness in Autonomous Systems, Machine Learning & AI”
Supervisor: Marléne Wiggill, Lund University, Sweden

Caroline Siegel, “Maturity Models in Corporate Communications: A Critical Review of a Key Concept and its Relation to the Discourse on Communication Evaluation, Measurement, and Excellence”
Supervisors: Ansgar Zerfass, Leipzig University, Germany and Alexander Buhmann, BI Norwegian Business School, Norway

Alessandra Sossini, “Between Discursive Power, Visibility and Resistance: A Critical Study of Employee Ambassadorship on Social Media”
Supervisor: Mats Heide, Lund University, Sweden

Congratulations!
30 July 2024
Call for Papers – BLEDCOM 2025 (June 27-28)

The 32nd International Public Relations Research Symposium (BledCom) will be held on June 27-28, 2025. The theme for the conference is: “Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Public Relations: Boon or Curse?”

The organizers invite abstracts that are between 500 and 800 words (including title and keywords) with up to 5 references.  Abstracts can be aligned with the theme of the conference but, as in previous years, BledCom welcomes ALL papers that are relevant to public relations and communication management.

Panel proposals area also welcomed.
Paper abstracts and panel proposals should be submitted via email to
bledcom@fdv.uni-lj.si

Submissions – Deadline for consideration: 3 February 2025.

Read the complete call for paper here.

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