Strategic Issues Management 2/e

Robert L. Heath, professor emeritus of communication at the University of Houston, is an internationally recognized authority on public relations, crisis communication, issues management, risk communication, and business-to-business communication. He has published many award-winning books, including The SAGE Handbook of Public Relations (2010), Handbook of Risk and Crisis Communication (2009), Strategic Issues Management (2nd ed., 2009), Rhetorical and Critical Approaches to Public Relations II (2009), and Terrorism: Communication and Rhetorical Perspectives (2008). Heath has 3 decades' experience in corporate communication and positioning research. He has conducted research on risks related to various hazards, including those associated with chemical manufacturing and community right-to-know-key themes in community relations. In addition, he has published more than 100 chapters and articles and serves on the editorial and reviewer panels of several premier academic journals. He has received many honors from public relations professionals and academic associations and has lectured nationally and internationally on a wide array of topics. Michael J. Palenchar is an assistant professor in public relations at The University of Tennessee's School of Advertising and Public Relations, College of Communication and Information (Ph. D., University of Florida; M.A., University of Houston). Research interests include risk communication and issues management related to manufacturing, community relations and community awareness of emergency response protocols and manufacturing risks, community right to know issues, crisis communication, front groups and general public relations. He has more than a decade of professional experience working in corporate, non-profit and agency, as well as a risk communication and issues management research consultant for clients ranging from Fortune 500 companies to local government agencies to nongovernmental agencies. His research has been published in the Journal of Public Relations Research, Public Relations Review, Public Relations Journal, Environmental Communication and Communication Research Reports. He has five book chapters on risk, terrorism and professional ethics and more than 40 regional, national or international communication conference papers, winning 12 national or international top paper awards. With co-author Robert L. Heath in 2000 and Kathy Fitzpatrick in 2007, he won the Pride Award from the Public Relations Division, National Communication Association, for top published article in the field of public relations. He is an active member of AEJMC, NCA, PRSA, and ICA.

1. A Foundation of Community Vignette: British Petroleum--Enlightened Leader or Lightning Rod? Chapter Goals Historical Evolution SIM: Strategic Issues Management Defined SIM: Stakeholders/Stakeseekers SIM: Bringing More Than Communication SIM: Cornerstone of Strategic Business Planning SIM: Advocacy, Dialogue, and Collaborative Decision Making Conclusion SIM Challenge: CSR and Long-Term Planning Summary Questions 2. Historical Foundations Vignette: Westinghouse Versus Edison Chapter Goals Opinions Shape Operating Environments Argument Structure in Public Policy Debate Robber Barons and the Making of Mass Production Society The Great Depression and the Redemption of Capitalism Dissent Flowers in the 1960s The Present and the Future Conclusion SIM Challenge: Science or Sham? Summary Questions 3. Scouting the Terrain Vignette: The Greening of Nuclear Power Chapter Goals Things Go Bump in the Dark Logics of Issues Monitoring The Systematic Stages of Issues Monitoring Creating an Issues Monitoring and Analysis Team Issue Content: Basis for Issues Analysis Conclusion SIM Challenge: NAACP and Issues Monitoring Summary Questions 4. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Vignette: Wal-Mart's Makeover? Chapter Goals Mutual Interests: The Basis of Corporate Responsibility Standards of Corporate Responsibility: A Rhetorical Rationale Changing Organizational Policies: Getting the House in Order Corporate Responsibility Partnerships: Communicating Ethical Performance Conclusion SIM Challenge: Global Warming Summary Questions 5. Special Interest Activists as Foes or Allies Vignette: Fast Food--A Lightning Rod for Big Food Protest Chapter Goals Moral Outrage Power Resource Management Strain: Nexus of Issues, Risk, and Crisis Stages of Activism Incremental Erosion Fostering Mutual Interests Instead of Antagonism Conclusion SIM Challenge: Is Clean Energy an Oxymoron? Summary Questions 6. Issues Communication Vignettes: Activists Speak With Many Tools Chapter Goals The Issue of Issues Communication Narrative Theory The Good Organization Communicating Well Images and Issues: Complements and Counterparts Framing: Giving Issues Argumentative Context Media Effects in a Multitiered Society Communication Technology and Issues Communication Issues Communication as Argument Conclusion SIM Challenge: Voice of a Trade Association Summary Questions 7. Obligations and Constraints on Issues Communication Vignette: Corporate Speech--Free, Free for Some, or Not at All? Chapter Goals Legislative, Judicial, and Regulatory Constraints on Issues Communication The Rationale for Organizations Speaking as Citizens Federal Constraint Conclusion SIM Challenge: Looking to the Future Summary Questions 8. Issues Management and Crisis Communication Vignette: It Takes Two to Tango Chapter Goals Crisis Management: The Search for Control Prevent a Crisis From Becoming an Issue Conclusion SIM Challenge: Can a Crisis Be Prevented From Exploding Into an Issue? Summary Questions 9. Issues Management and Risk Communication Vignette: Risk, Risk Everywhere Chapter Goals Community Right to Know The Difficulties of Risk Assessment Risk Management and Communication Approaches SIM's Approach to Risk Communication Risk and Crisis Communication Working Together Conclusion SIM Challenge: Reality List Summary Questions 10. Brand Equity and Organizational Reputation Vignettes: Proactive Versus Reactive Chapter Goals Corporate Branding Brand Equity: Many Faces and Definitions Brand Attributes and Attitude Theory Logics of Brand Equity Brand Equity and Crisis Brand Equity and Risk SIM Challenge: Corporate Responsibility and Long-Term Planning A Brand Equity Case Study: Coors Boycott in the 1970s Summary Questions