I think it all boils down to shared expectations and responsibility. Publics have the power of influence, which pressures organizations to play nice but maybe society would benefit from publics using that influence to be the change they want to see instead.

I know… TOTAL cliche. But hey, some are living by it already.

As someone who has never formally studied public relations, thanks for the quick rundown of the “situational theory of publics”.

I, like you, am very optimistic about the ability of publics to find solutions. Social media absolutely empowers this, especially as corporations and political machines recognize the word of mouth power of the medium.

At this point, corporate and political interests at least have to play nice, even if they have ulterior motives, to appease a more connected and vocal public.

In any case, control is slowly shifting to a place where publics can absolutely demand that the world become a better place. Hooray for optimism!

Thanks for the post.