History of Government Public Relations in the United States

This book presents a history of public relations in the modern American administrative state. Because government agencies have a democratic obligation to be open and transparent, the practice of public relations by government is qualitatively different from that in business administration and nonprofit management.The duty of government agencies to engage in public relations largely emerged during the Progressive era (1890-1920). It evolved significantly under President Franklin Roosevelt. He wanted citizens to know about New Deal programs they qualified for. During World War II, federal PR encouraged civic participation in the war effort. By the 1990s, the media's traditional coverage of government faded, requiring agencies to communicate in new ways. Government PR continued evolving in the 21st century to take advantage of advances in technology.This book relates to political science, American history, public administration, and communication/PR. It is intended as a textbook, by researchers, and for academic libraries.