A comparative study of food safety-related public relations practices in China and the United States.

摘要

Public relations practices for recent food safety-related crises varied in China and the United States. This comparative study researched on the 2010 American egg recall and the 2008 Chinese milk scandal. Following the theoretical guideline extracted from the10 Best Practices of Risk and Crisis Communication by National Center for Food Protection and Defense (NCFPD), the Model of Issue Lifecycle and A Professional Responsibility Theory of Public Relations Ethics, surveys and individual interviews were designed and conducted in this study. The results and their implications were discussed. A discussion based on U.S.-China differences were carried out to seek the reasons for different public relations practices in the United States and China on food safety issues. Through analysis, this study provided insights on effectiveness of public relations practices in the above two cases, and proposed ways for public relation professionals in the United States and China to better deal with food safety crisis.