Data bombing and dead cats – how PR uses practices of secrecy to influence media and society

By Anne M. Cronin, Professor of Cultural Sociology, Lancaster University

More than 100 years ago, sociologist Georg Simmel wrote that secrecy is a core part of all human relationships. The ratio of secrecy to openness in a society, he argued, can tell us much about that society. I explore this in my new book, examining how public relations secrecy techniques interact (and clash) with the transparency and openness of media.

The public relations (PR) industry is made up of professionals in public affairs,…

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