ETHICS IN PUBLIC RELATIONS AND CURRENT CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY APPLICATIONS

Abstract

There is a strong expectation that the enterprises managing their social responsibilities correctly will receive their rewards. Some research findings confirm this expectation. Ethical behavior and corporate social responsibility can bring significant benefits to a business. The idea that business enterprises should have some responsibilities to society beyond that of making profits for shareholders has been debated for centuries (Barry, 2000). For the enterprise decisions, the interests of the society should be taken into account as well as consumer needs and the interests of the company. In this period, the relationships established by the enterprises with social stakeholders are important and they have to think about the interests of social stakeholders as well as their own interests. However, the expectation of conducting the corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities are carried out through public relations practices in accordance with the ethical definition, and even the necessity of the ethics of quality, responsibility, reliability, and management of the public relations profession show that these three concepts are closely related. Careful and consistent ethical analyses provide trust, which enhances the maintenance of trust in the company. In addition to these, that should be the main responsibility of the public relations function. In this study, the concepts of ethics and public relations were explained and their connection with CSR was discussed. As CSR campaigns change according to the enterprise expertise, consumer expectations, and period circumstances, some current applications were analyzed.