Practitioners in Russia's provinces: Affectionate and unpredictable

Shaken, not stirred: Western public relations practices in Russia

“…However, a concurrent process of the Russianization spun by the Kremlin (Sakwa, 2008) advances 'host' factors, such as the view of a communication profession as a mission (Erzikova, 2012a). This perception stems from the sixteenth century -the time when Russian literature became increasingly publitsistichnoi (from a Latin word, publicus -public), meaning it started addressing acute social problems (Likhachev, 2007).…”

“…They might perceive their mission as affecting society rather than solving a single organizational problem (Erzikova, 2012a). A recent example is a discussion by members of a Facebook group about launching a political party of PR practitioners.…”

“…The task of contributing to the bottom line is an organizationallevel undertaking. Ambitious enough in a rational managerial society, this goal might not be big or motivating enough for Russian practitioners who think of PR as having potential to influence society at a macro-level (Erzikova, 2012a).…”

“…However, when it comes to practice, a question arises if a large-scale public communication attempt can go uncensored in the Russian authoritarian environment (Erzikova, 2012a). PR practice that conforms rather than challenges the regime might have a little value to society.…”

“…Importantly, Russian PR is young -nearly 25 years old (Erzikova & Berger, 2006), which implies a weak institutionalization (Erzikova, 2012a). In addition, Russian universities rely on Western PR curricula (Azarova, 2003;Tsetsura, 2000), meaning PR students are exposed to normative approaches of Western PR.…”