Much maligned in the past as wasteful and self-serving, government public relations provides several distinct services that can be used to advance the substantive mission of an agency in ways that save money, time, and effort. In the same manner as budgeting, HR, strategic planning, and performance assessment, public relations must be included in the contemporary public administrator's toolbox. Using unorthodox yet cost effective measures, public relations can increase the utilization of governmental goods and services, promote voluntary compliance with new laws, improve media relations, and...
Much maligned in the past as wasteful and self-serving, government public relations provides several distinct services that can be used to advance the...
With its creation of the U.S. Bureau of Efficiency in 1916, Congress sought to bring the principles of "scientific management" to the federal government. Although this first staff agency in the executive branch lasted only a relatively short time, it was the first central agency in the federal government dedicated to improving the management of the executive branch. Mordecai Lee offers both a chronological history of the agency and a thematic treatment of the structure, staffing, and work processes of the bureau; its substantive activities; and its effects on the development of both the...
With its creation of the U.S. Bureau of Efficiency in 1916, Congress sought to bring the principles of "scientific management" to the federal governme...
The Watergate scandal of 1973 claimed many casualties, political and otherwise. Along with many personal reputations and careers, President Richard Nixon's bold attempt to achieve a sweeping reorganization of the domestic portion of the executive branch was also pulled into the vortex. Now, Mordecai Lee examines Nixon's reorganization, finding it notable for two reasons. First, it was sweeping in intent and scope, representing a complete overhaul in the way the president would oversee and implement his domestic agenda. Second, the president instituted the reorganization administratively--by...
The Watergate scandal of 1973 claimed many casualties, political and otherwise. Along with many personal reputations and careers, President Richard Ni...
Government bureaucracy is something Americans have long loved to hate. Yet despite this general antipathy, some federal agencies have been wildly successful in cultivating the people s favor. Take, for instance, the U.S. Forest Service and its still-popular Smokey Bear campaign. The agency early on gained a foothold in the public s esteem when President Theodore Roosevelt championed its conservation policies and Forest Service press releases led to favorable coverage and further goodwill.
Congress has rarely approved of such bureaucratic independence. In "Congress vs. the Bureaucracy,"...
Government bureaucracy is something Americans have long loved to hate. Yet despite this general antipathy, some federal agencies have been wildly s...
Though historians have largely overlooked Robert Horton, his public relations campaigns remain fixed in popular memory of the home front during World War II. Utilizing all media -- including the nascent technology of television -- to rally civilian support, Horton's work ranged from educational documentary shorts like Pots to Planes, which depicted the transformation of aluminum household items into aircraft, to posters employing scare tactics, such as a German soldier with large eyes staring forward with the tagline "He's Watching You." Iconic and calculated, Horton's campaigns raise...
Though historians have largely overlooked Robert Horton, his public relations campaigns remain fixed in popular memory of the home front during Wor...
