Today's Public Relations: An Introduction

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.

W. Timothy Coombs (PhD Purdue University in Public Affairs and Issues Management) is the George T and Glady H Abell Professor in Liberal Arts in Department of Communication at Texas A&M University.  His primary areas of research are crisis communication and CSR including the award-winning book Ongoing Crisis Communication. He is the current editor for Corporation Communication:  An International Journal.  His research has appeared in Management Communication Quarterly, Public Relations Review, Corporate Reputation Review, Journal of Public Relations Research, Journal of Communication Management, Business Horizons, and the Journal of Business Communication.