Communicating corporate social responsibility

In recent years, U.S. corporations have devoted substantial attention and resources to proactive social-responsibility programs, in part to serve the interests of the American publics and those of the publics of the foreign countries in which they operate, and in part to enhance their political and social positions in various communities. Evidence suggests, however, that because they have failed to communicate effectively the significance of their contributions to community life, these corporations have benefited less from some of their programs than they might have. In this paper, the authors suggest an explanation for this failure, and propose a strategy of social-responsibility activities and communication designed to maximize the returns on corporate efforts. Jarol B. Manheim is an associate professor of political science and Cornelius B. Pratt, APR, is an assistant professor of communication studies at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg.