Abstract

The author focuses chiefly on the Code of Professional Standards for the Practice of Public Relations, analyzing two specific aspects of this or any professional code: implicit and explicit attitudes toward the public and toward the truth. He argues that professionals confronted by ethical dilemmas in these areas should be able to, but usually cannot, find clear direction in the official code. He suggests that to function truly as a legitimizing document, the code must be expository, analytical, and evaluational, constructed according to six recommendations offered.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">></ETX>