Arthur W. Page: Publisher, Public Relations Pioneer, Patriot

Arthur W. Page: Publisher, Public Relations Pioneer, Patriot. Noel L. Griese. Tucker, GA: Anvil Publishers, Inc., 2001. 448 pp. $24.95 hbk. Chief executive officers today who complain that public relations people may know communications but not the company's business would feel some empathy for public relations pioneer Arthur W. Page. Of course when Page was practicing public relations, 1927-1960, the new field was offered few opportunities to learn that just knowing public relations is not enough if the company or client's business is not understood just as thoroughly. Page's insight into the field gave public relations many of the principles taken for granted today: (1) The fundamental way to get public approval is to deserve it; (2) Employees are the public relations frontline so they need input to management and information from management; (3) Managements need to get feedback from all publics so they can adjust policies to meet desires and demands; (4) Gimmicks and glitter don't build solid relationships; (5) Organizations need to contribute to charity in the public interest notjust theirs; (6) An effective public relations program must have its roots in a statement of policy or creed that is a promise to its publics. Page was the first public relations vice president of ATT secretary of state under Hoover; and governor-general of the Philippines (under Coolidge). PR people familiar with Page-thepractitioner may be surprised to learn of his involvement in getting Radio Free Europe started and sustained ostensibly by public campaigns although the major contributor was the CIA. …