Like other industries, environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria are also of legitimate importance for PR practitioners. Proximity to questionable corporate or political actors, child labour, environmental malpractice, and other issues, have profound implications for business and the wider profession. The expected ideal response is for agencies to distance themselves from such clients. But is walking away always the most sensible action to take? PR firms’ engagement with the fossil fuel sector, and calls to cut these ties, provide food for thought.

Despite declining global popularity, press releases remain the workhorses of the GCC’s newsrooms and communications industry. Yet, as the region moves ahead with its national development visions, this tried and trusted PR tool might eventually find itself surplus to requirements.