Public relations and the web

Public Relations Review 29 (2003) 335–349

Public relations and the web: organizational

problems, gender, and institution type

Michael Ryan∗

School of Communication, University of Houston, Houston, TX 77204-3786, USA

Received 22 September 2002; received in revised form 9 January 2003; accepted 23 January 2003

Abstract

Attitudes of 109 professionals toward public relations and the web were measured. Results suggest

that virtually all practitioners have acquired the skills they need to use the web, that encroachment is not

a serious problem, that the biggest organizational problem is teaching others the components of a good

site, that the biggest departmental problem is acquiring technical and conceptual training, and that links

are in place for dialogic communication. The views of men and women, of practitioners in for-profit

and not-for-profit organizations, and of those working in science and non-science organizations are

substantially the same.

© 2003 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction

The value and importance of the Internet in public relations was heatedly debated during the

nineties,1 but the argument is essentially moot—research shows that 21st Century practitioners

need Internet skills in the same way that a cougar needs claws, and that most have acquired

them.2

The question now is how best to adapt traditional practices to the new technologies. Geibel

rightly suggests that carelessly applying these tools to the Internet “... is roughly akin to trying

to fit a jet engine onto what had been a horse-drawn carriage.”3 Professionals need to understand

“... how the Internet works, what its capabilities are and then assimilate the Internet into their

strategic thinking.”4

Clearly, practitioners cannot rush blindly onto the World Wide Web, for they might create

more problems than they solve. Professionals must carefully consider ways to establish two-

∗ Tel.: +1-713-743-2887; fax: +1-713-743-2876.

E-mail address: [email protected] (M. Ryan).

0363-8111/$ – see front matter © 2003 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

doi:10.1016/S0363-8111(03)00040-7