USC Center for Public Relations
The USC Center for Public Relations (CPR) mission is to connect corporations, agencies, academics and students to define the future of our industry and to develop those who will shape it. Our university faculty and USC CPR board members do this by examining current strategies, forecasting future trends, and providing meaningful insight and feedback to students and to help shape the department’s curriculum. We publish the annual Global Communications Report, a survey of the public relations industry, and the Relevance Report, a collection of essays and trend pieces from industry leaders and USC academics. The CPR also hosts USC Annenberg’s Kenneth Owler Smith Symposium each spring, the largest gathering of PR professionals in Southern California annually since its founding in 1991.
2023 Global Communication Report
The 2023 Global Communication Report, “New Reputation,” incorporates themes explored in previous reports about social purpose and corporate activism into the rubric of reputation, which has always been the purview of our industry. PR professionals are devoting an increasing amount of time and energy to building and protecting the reputations of their companies and their clients. That job has never been more important or more challenging because the rules of the game have changed — forcing us to think about reputation in a new way.
Trends and best practices in brand purpose communication
The USC Center for Public Relations has conducted a study, in collaboration with PRWeek, focused on identifying trends and best practices for brand purpose. Reviewing the 2019PRWeek Purpose Award Entries, the study highlights how brands can effectively engage in purposeful campaigns and become authentic purpose-based brands. Read PRWeek’s overview here and explore the full report below.
Meet the CPR team
Co-director, Public Relations Studies Program; Associate Director, Center for Public Relations
