Global versus cultural approaches in public relationship management The case of the European Union

Purpose - The aim of this paper is to present and compare two approaches (the global and the cultural) to public relationship management and to argue by reference to different cases, why the cultural approach can be considered more effective in establishing good relationships in different national cultural contexts. Design/methodology/approach - The discussion identifies some of the limitations of recent thinking regarding the nature of a global public and the possibility to define and treat international publics as a global public in public relationship management. As validation of this claim, cases in the European context are presented to show that a cultural approach provides better interpretations of human behaviour in different national contexts and thus better understanding of organisations' publics. Findings - It is argued, that the idea of a global public in public relationship management does not work in different national cultural contexts, while the traditional cultural approach can work in situations characterised by diversity in values, interests and principles. Originality/value - The paper intends to demonstrate the enduring validity of the cultural approach in international contexts, especially where public relations activities are directed at establishing good relationships with publics belonging to different nations, cultures and interests.