Dr. Marlene Neill, APR, Fellow PRSA
Professor & Graduate Program Director
Courses
- Principles of Advertising and Public Relations
- Advertising Copywriting
- Strategic Communication Research
- Advertising Management
- Media Law & Ethics
- Theory of Mass Communication
Degrees
- Bachelor of Science in Journalism-Broadcast News from the University of Kansas
- Master of Arts in Journalism-Strategic Communication from the University of Missouri
- Ph.D. in Advertising from the University of Texas at Austin;
Dissertation: Seat at the Table(s): An Examination of Senior Public Relations Practitioners' Power and Influence Among Multiple Executive-Level Coalitions
Year Started at Baylor
- 2006
Background
- Community Relations Specialist for the City of Waco (1999-2009)
- Membership Director for Waco Family YMCA (1998-1999)
- General Assignment Reporter for KCEN-TV (1994-1998)
Accomplishments
- Accredited by the Public Relations Society of America
- Inducted into the PRSA College of Fellows (2020)
- Chair, PRSA Educators Academy (2021)
- Division Head, AEJMC Media Ethics Division (2019-2020)
- Member of the Universal Accreditation Board (2008-2010)
- Member of PRSA's Board of Ethics and Professional Standards (2013-2018)
- Accreditation Marketing Committee for PRSA (2007-2008)
- Chair for the Southwest District of PRSA (2011) - oversaw 14 PRSA chapters in 6 states
- PRSA Nominating Committee in (2012) - participated in meeting in Chicago to select slate of national officers for 2012
- Faculty adviser for Baylor PRSSA chapter (2012-present)
Research Interests
- Ethics in public relations, public relations management, integrated communication, ethics in advertising, internal/employee communication
Books
- Meng, J., & Neill, M.S. (2021). PR Women with Influence: Breaking through the Ethical and Leadership Challenges. New York: Peter Lang Publishing.
- Neill, M.S. & Barnes, A. (2018). Public Relations Ethics: Senior PR Pros Tell Us How to Speak Up and Keep Your Job, New York: Business Expert Press.
Publications (Book Chapters and Journal Articles)
- Neill, M.S. (2021). Public Relations Professionals Identify Ethical Issues, Essential Competencies & Deficiencies, Journal of Media Ethics, 36 (1).
- Men, L. R., Neill, M.S., & Yue, C. (2020). Examining the Effects of Symmetrical Internal Communication and Employee Engagement on Organizational Change Outcomes, Public Relations Journal, 13 (4). Retrieved from: https://prjournal.instituteforpr.org/wp-content/uploads/Men_Neill_Yue_PRJ_Oct-2020.pdf
- Schauster, E., Neill, M.S., Ferrucci, P., & Tandoc, E. (2020). Public relations primed: An update on practitioners’ moral reasoning, from moral development to moral maintenance, Journal of Media Ethics, 35 (3), 164-179, DOI: 10.1080/23736992.2020.1779595
- Neill, M.S., Men, L. R., & Yue, C. (2019). “Examining the Impact of Communication Climate on Organizational Change Outcomes: The Mediating Role of Organizational Identification,” Corporate Communications: An International Journal.
- Xie, Q., Schauster, E., & Neill, M.S. (2018). Expectations for Advertising and Public Relations Education from Agency Executives: A Comparative Study between China and the United States. Journal of Current Issues & Research in Advertising, 39 (3), 289-307.
- Neill, M.S. (2018). Change Management Communication: Barriers, Strategies & Messaging. Public Relations Journal, 12 (1): https://prjournal.instituteforpr.org/wp-content/uploads/NeillMarlene_ChangeManagement.pdf
- Neill, M.S., & Schauster, E. (2018). Playing Nice in the Sandbox: Is Collaboration among Advertising & Public Relations Agencies the same as Integration? Journal of Current Issues & Research in Advertising, 39 (2), 140-159.
- Xie, Q., Neill, M.S., & Schauster, E. (2018). Paid, Earned, Shared and Owned Media from the Perspective of Advertising and Public Relations Agencies: Comparing China and the United States. International Journal of Strategic Communication, 12 (2), 160-179.
- Neill, M.S., & Barnes, A. (2018). The Use of Influence Tactics by Senior Public Relations Executives to Provide Ethics Counsel, Journal of Media Ethics, 3 (1), 26-41.
- Neill, M.S., & Jiang, H. (2017), “Functional Silos, Integration & Encroachment: How IMC impacts the Practice of Internal Communication,” Public Relations Review, 43, 850-862, https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2017.06.009
- Neill, M.S. (2017) Ethics Education in Public Relations: Differences Between Stand-Alone Ethics Courses and an Integrated Approach, Journal of Media Ethics, 32(2), 118-131.
- Neill, M. S., & Weaver, N. (2017) Silent & unprepared: Most millennial practitioners have not embraced role as ethical conscience. Public Relations Review, https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2017.01.002
- Schauster, E., & Neill, M. (2017) Have the Ethics Changed? An Examination of Ethics in Advertising and Public Relations Agencies, Journal of Media Ethics, 32:1, 45-60, DOI: 10.1080/23736992.2016.1258993
- Neill, M.S., & Lee, N. (Summer/Fall 2016). “Roles in Social Media: How the Practice of Public Relations is Evolving,” Public Relations Journal, 10 (2).
- Neill, M.S. (2016) Accredited vs. non-accredited: How accreditation impacts perceptions and readiness to provide ethics counsel. Public Relations Review, 42, 856-866. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2016.08.002
- Neill, M.S. (2016). The Influence of Employer Branding in Internal Communication, Research Journal of the Institute for Public Relations, 3 (1). Available online: https://www.instituteforpr.org/influence-employer-branding-internal-communication/
- Schauster, E., Ferrucci, P., & Neill, M.S. (2016). “Native Advertising is the New Journalism: How Deception Impacts Social Responsibility,” American Behavioral Scientist.
- Neill, M.S. (Winter 2015). Emerging Issues in Internal Communications: Generational Shifts, Internal Social Media & Engagement, Public Relations Journal, 9(4). Available online: https://www.prsa.org/Intelligence/PRJournal/Vol9/No4/
- Neill, M.S., & Schauster, E. (2015). Organizational Crossroads: The Intersection of PR & Advertising Ethics. In M. Duffy & E. Thorson (Eds.), Persuasion Ethics Today (pp. 44-62), New York, NY: Routledge.
- Neill, M.S., & Schauster, E. (2015) “Gaps in Advertising and Public Relations Education: Perspectives of Agency Leaders,” Journal of Advertising Education, 19 (2), 5-17.
- Neill, M. S. (2015). Beyond the c-suite: Corporate communications' power and influence. Journal of Communication Management, 19(2), 118-132.
- Neill, M.S., & Moody, M. (2015). Who is responsible for what? Examining strategic roles in social media management, Public Relations Review, 41 (1), 109-118. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2014.10.014
- Neill, M.S. (2014). Building buy-in. The need for internal relationships and informal coalitions, Public Relations Review, 40 (3), 598-60.
- Neill, M.S., & Drumwright, M.E. (2012). PR professionals as organizational conscience, Journal of Mass Media Ethics, 27 (4), 220-234.
Academic Conference Presentations
- “Moral Reasoning and Development Across Industries of Mass Communication,” Media Ethics Division, Association for the Education of Journalism and Mass Communication Annual Conference, Aug. 9, 2019, Toronto, Ontario, - Patrick Ferrucci and Erin Schauster, Colorado-Boulder; Edson Tandoc, Nanyang Technological; and Marlene Neill, Baylor University
- “Public Relations Professionals Identify Ethical Issues, Essential Competencies & Deficiencies,”International Public Relations Research Conference, March 7-9, 2019, Orlando, Florida - Marlene S. Neill, Baylor University
- “Examining the Impact of Communication Climate on Organizational Change Outcomes: The Mediating Role of Organizational Identification,” International Public Relations Research Conference, March 7-9, 2019, Orlando, Florida - Marlene S. Neill, Baylor University; Rita Men, University of Florida; and April Cen Yue, University of Florida
- “Public relations primed: An update on practitioners' moral reasoning, from moral development to moral maintenance,” Public Relations Division, Association for the Education of Journalism and Mass Communication Annual Conference, Aug. 7, 2018, Washington, D.C. – Erin Schauster, University of Colorado Boulder; Marlene S. Neill, Baylor University; Patrick Ferrucci; University of Colorado Boulder; Edson Tandoc, Nanyang Technological University Singapore.
- “Ethics Counsel in Public Relations Practice: Influence Tactics, Barriers and Consequences,” Public Relations Society of America Educators Academy Conference, Boston, Massachusetts, Oct. 7, 2017 – Marlene S. Neill and Amy Barnes, University of Arkansas – Little Rock.
- “Roles in Social Media: How the Practice of Public Relations is Evolving,” Invited to present at PRSA International Conference, Oct. 8, 2017 in Boston, Massachusetts, The Brightest and Best Academic Research in Public Relations. A session featuring a cross-section of articles recently published in PRSA’s Public Relations Journal and papers presented at this year’s International Public Relations Research Conference (IPRRC), and chosen by a sub-committee of the Journal’s Editorial Review Board.
- “The Use of Influence Tactics by Senior Public Relations Practitioners to Provide Ethics Counsel,” Media Ethics Division, Association for the Education of Journalism and Mass Communication Annual Conference, Aug. 9, 2017, Chicago – Marlene S. Neill and Amy Barnes, University of Arkansas – Little Rock. Received Professional Relevance Award from the Media Ethics Division.
- “An Examination of Social Media from an Integrated Communication Perspective in Global & Regional Organizations,” Public Relations Division, Association for the Education of Journalism and Mass Communication Annual Conference, Aug. 10, 2017, Chicago – Marlene S. Neill and Hua Jiang, Syracuse University.
- “Silent & Unprepared: Most Millennial Practitioners yet to Embrace Role as Ethical Conscience,” International Public Relations Research Conference, March 8-11, 2017, Orlando, Florida - Marlene S. Neill and Nancy Weaver, Internal Communications Manager, The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas (study sponsored by Arthur W. Page Center for joint faculty-practitioner research). Received Brigham Young University Top Ethics Paper Award
- “The Impact of Emerging Media on Advertising and Public Relations Agencies: A Cross Cultural Comparison between the U.S. and China,” Public Relations Society of America Educators Academy Conference, Indianapolis, Indiana, Oct. 22, 2016 – Quan Xie, Bradly University, Marlene S. Neill, and Erin Schauster, University of Colorado Boulder
- “Ethics Education in Public Relations: Differences between Stand-Alone Ethics Courses and an Integrated Approach,” Public Relations Society of America Educators Academy Conference, Indianapolis, Indiana, Oct. 22, 2016- Marlene S. Neill
- “Have the Ethics Changed? An Examination of Ethics in Advertising & Public Relations Agencies,” American Academy of Advertising Annual Conference, Seattle, Washington, March 17-20, 2016 – Erin Schauster, University of Colorado Boulder, and Marlene S. Neill
- “Roles in Social Media: How the Practice of Public Relations is Evolving,” Public Relations Society of America Educators Academy Conference, Atlanta, Georgia, Nov. 7, 2015 – Marlene S. Neill and Nicole Lee, Texas Tech University
- “Change Management Communication: Barriers, Strategies & Messaging,” Public Relations Division, Association for the Education of Journalism and Mass Communication Annual Convention, San Francisco, California, Aug. 8, 2015 – Marlene S. Neill
- “Fierce Competition While Playing Nice in the Sandbox: Trends in Advertising & Public Relations Agencies,” Advertising Division, Association for the Education of Journalism and Mass Communication Annual Convention, San Francisco, California, Aug. 6, 2015 – Marlene S. Neill and Erin Schauster, University of Colorado Boulder
- "Public relations' collaborative role in ethics and values communication," 18th annual International Public Relations Research Conference, Miami, Florida, March 4, 2015, Marlene S. Neill
- “Emerging Issues in Internal Communications: Generational Shifts, Internal Social Media, Supervisor Communication & Engagement," Public Relations Society of America Educators Academy Conference, Washington, D. C., Oct. 11, 2014, Marlene S. Neill
- “Who is Responsible for What? Examining Strategic Roles in Social Media Management," Public Relations Division, Association for the Education of Journalism and Mass Communication Annual Convention, Montreal, Canada, Aug. 8, 2014, Marlene S. Neill and Mia Moody-Ramirez
- "Beyond the C-Suite: Public Relations' Scope, Power & Influence at the Senior Executive Level" - Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication Annual Conference, Aug. 8, 2013 in Washington, D.C.
- "Public relations professionals as organizational conscience in practice" - American Marketing Association Winter Educators Conference, Feb. 19, 2011 in Austin, co-author Minette E. Drumwright
Favorite Thing About Teaching
Getting to know the students and helping them prepare for their careers.