Paul Elmer has returned from the historic city of Istanbul where he worked with researchers and students of public relations.

One result is a joint research project, together with Dr Candan Celik of Istanbul University, which will look at the marketing of leisure in the light of cultural difference. This project builds on the work Paul is doing for the Stirling international round table, which will take place in May.

ìI am very fortunate to have met Dr Celik at a previous conferenceî says Paul. ìOur interests are similar, bit complimentary rather than the same, so together I think we can really generate some interesting research.î

While he was in the city, Paul also spent time with students looking at research methodology in public relations, with public relations professionals in the city who are undertaking postgraduate courses, and with postgraduate dental students, who gain an understanding of communication as part of their professional programme of study.

Crisis public relations

He also took time to share his experience of crisis public relations, and ran a disaster exercise for undergraduate students that helped them to understand how to deal with a major chemical incident.

ìIt was great fun, but a bit nerve-wracking,î says Paul. ìWhile I was researching the exercise I was Googling for types of poisonous gas that might be shipped commercially, and their medical effects, so at any moment I expected a visit from Special Branch asking me what the hell I thought I was up to. Also, I was researching without any true knowledge of the city, and while the exercise all worked out fine, it was a bit disturbing to find that I had inadvertently contaminated the lovely quarter where I was staying.î

The visit was funded via the Erasmus scheme which enables international interchange of students and staff. ìI really do encourage UK students to go to Istanbulî says Paul, ìthe city is cosmopolitan, fast-paced, chic and beautiful, and many of the universities operate public relations programmes in English, so it really is an option for our students to consider. It is exotic enough to make you feel adventurous, but really familiar enough not to be a problem – I speak no Turkish and found my way around without any difficulty at all.î

Readers who are looking forward to a picture of Paul on a Turkish motorcycle will be disappointed ìThe traffic was so bad in Istanbul that I simply whimped out of hiring a bikeî he admits. ìBut I did try to play a traditional Turkish folk instrument called a Ney. It makes a sound a bit like an Irish low whistle – very haunting. At least, it would make that sort of sound if I could get a note out of it, which of course I couldn’t.î

Paul’s returned to the UK to continue his fieldwork among senior public relations practitioners in London, a project that continues through the summer and which aims to improve teaching methods in the subject.

More info
Applied Communication research
BA (Hons) Public Relations
Istanbul University

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