Corporations certainly don’t need PR people to make them more altruistic. They conduct these campaigns as part of larger branding efforts, as you explain. I don’t get why the idea of a company making money or a nonprofit raising funds is so bad. And, certainly, PR professionals aren’t superheroes fighting corporate villains, like one would imagine if reading the Excellence Theory.

I see other parts of the corporation advocating for societal rules and laws, such as attorneys making sure that companies are acting within the law. If someone sees a larger societal role for PR, then they should ask, where were the PR people during Enron, Worldcom, etc.?

Thanks for your comments, I appreciate hearing from you.

My work in PR has always been a blend of strategy and tactics - while some projects required more from one than the other, I’ve learned that you need both. How does relying on tactical approaches make someone a “lazy” professional? I don’t buy it.

And while I think it’s admirable for those in our profession to try to help corporations become more altruistic, it seems to me that companies want to have more socially responsible programs to improve their reputations. Among consumers and the media. To boost sales. To increase the bottom line. There’s nothing wrong with that - it’s common sense business, right?