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The purpose of this study is to describe the current practice of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in South Africa, its linkage to corporate social investment (CSI), the impact of new Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) legislation and the contribution that South African public relations practice can have on the development challenges facing the continent of Africa.

Empirical data and reports drawn from various industry and evaluative sources is interpreted in the context of key contemporary elements of practice. The last part of the article provides a theoretical discussion of the public relations role as a “change” agent in South Africa and for the continent of Africa as a whole.

The South African Government’s prescriptive stance on transformation and BEE has thrust the reconsideration of CSR onto every corporate agenda in South Africa. With set targets and expenditure requirements, CSI has become a performance-driven pursuit among businesses seeking to improve their overall BEE scores. At the Pan-African level, a generic model of African public relations with a strong developmental focus is required for the education and training of public relations professionals.

African public relations practice challenges accepted normative approaches in the conceptualisation of a sustainable new global model of the profession. More research will be needed to show how the African humanist approach might impact on the debate about the political, social and economic relevance of the profession in society and the reputation of the profession worldwide.

This study provides historical context for recent developments in public relations in South Africa, providing insights into the direction of the development of public relations practice in Africa.

This paper explores the creation of a global protocol on ethics in public relations. It begins by looking into the global ethical debate. It examines existing codes of ethics of a selection of public relations institutes and associations around the world, provides comparative analysis of these codes and discusses the pros and cons of their enforcement. It suggests that the immediate way forward in a highly litigious world is to provide some values‐based guidance to member associations together with access to an evolving database of case studies illustrating ethical problems. In the medium term more effective sanctions may be possible.

The purpose of this paper is to examine aspects of corporate social investment (CSI) in the Southern African context.

The paper looks at current practice in Southern Africa against the historical development of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and CSI. It looks at the impact of new legislation in South Africa.

The paper concludes by reflecting on the contribution that African public relations practice may have on the development challenges of Africa.

The paper adds insights into CSR in South Africa, focusing for energising trends.

MacDermid Europe announces the appointment of Terence Copeland as new group managing diretor in charge of European operations. Mr Copeland, formerly manager of MacDermid Singapore and marketing director of MacDermid Asia, took up the post from the 1st of June.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the online retail banking industry and determine if there is evidence that online banking will be a dominant player in the financial services retail marketplace.

An analysis of 22 banks is conducted and it is determined that the barriers to entry that are identified may not be enough to prohibit a substantial number of entrants into the marketplace.

Using Porter's five‐force model to conduct the industry analysis; online banking is still in its infancy, although with great potential. According to FDIC, while approximately 40 percent of the 10,623 banks and thrifts in the US market have a website, only 376 offer transactional internet banking at the time of the study. About 30 internet‐only banks or a pure‐play format operate in the USA. All of the web‐only banks in the USA combined have about 250,000 depositors, out of the nearly six million customers who have stated that they do significant banking activities over the internet.

Owing to the different types of potential suppliers, the suppliers in the online‐banking industry do not appear to have as big a bargaining power in this industry as they would in another industry. Buyers, however, hold the keys to success in the online‐banking industry. Buyers do not need the product that is offered due to the many substitute products available in the market.

In the end, the rivalries among banks lead them to differentiating their internet banking products which is what will afford one bank to have a competitive advantage over the rest of the market.

The pharmacological addition syndrome which integrates the complex factors involved in maintenance of smoking as a behaviour, has led to many attempts to find aneffective cessation treatment, either through replacement therapy or through behavioural programmes or a combination of both. Research carried out by the Wessex branch of Operation Smokestop, a project providing training, support and research for community‐based self‐help stop‐smoking groups, reveals that the problem may now be more fruitfully examined through a social and political framework. Such influences may prove to have more bearing on the suggested gender‐based differences in smoking and cessation than that of nicotine alone. Women smoke as a way of dealing with their daily lives. Health and addiction worries result in their greater numbers of attempts to stop smoking. Significant drops in prevalence for women are not found since they are more likely to relapse through their dependence and because girls are taking up smoking at a greater rate than boys. Women are not smoking more to be more like men but because they feel powerless and unable to change their cultural, social and political and economic environments. The results are based on 516 Smoking Patterns test questionnaires which produce a picture of an individual's smoking motivations based on seven factors.

Charity shops have met a number of challenges in light of the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic. The paper aims to explore the economic and social impact of charity shops and reviews the transformative impact they have on place, the experience of place and the social environment.

The paper conducts a review of the extant literature in the field of charity shop retail. Considering the issues that are raised, the article proceeds to discuss the opportunities that arise for place marketing efforts and charity shops in the retail environment, the wider sector, the high street and as a positive, key component of place(s).

The paper provides novel sectorial insights and recommendations that can be adopted by charity retail outlets. This includes discussion on transformative place marketing, the experience of place and the charity shop’ role in the social environment beyond the existing references to charity shops in place(s) and the high street.

Charity shops play a vital role in society and yet they are an under researched field. The paper contributes knowledge on the role of charity shops in transforming and experiencing place. The paper concludes with observations made from the discussion on charity shops, and states areas for future research regarding the role of the charity shop and place marketing, place identity and transformation.