Karen S. Miller – författare

In 1933, John W. Hill opened the New York office of what wouldbecome the most important public relations agency in history:Hill & Knowlton, Inc. By 1959, the combined sales of itsclients — which included Procter & Gamble, Texaco, Gillette, andAvco Manufacturing as well as the steel, tobacco, and aviationindustries'' trade associations — amounted to 10 percent of thegross national product. The Voice of Business chronicles Hill& Knowlton’s influence on American public discourse in theyears following World War II.Guided by its founder’s conservative ideals, Hill &Knowlton developed a twofold mission: to influence publicdiscussion about issues important to its clients and to educateAmericans about big business. Karen Miller shows how the agencytried to manipulate public opinion, political debate, and newsmedia content about such issues as postwar military aircraftprocurement, the deregulation of margarine production, PresidentTruman’s seizure of steel mills in 1952, and the cigarette healthscare of 1953-54. Though its campaigns did not change manyopinions, she says, Hill & Knowlton affected the publicindirectly by reinforcing the ideas of its clients and otherconservatives.

In 1933, John W. Hill opened the New York office of what would become the most important public relations agency in history: Hill & Knowlton, Inc. By 1959, the combined sales of its clients--which included Procter & Gamble, Texaco, Gillette, and Avco Manufacturing as well as the steel, tobacco, and aviation industries' trade associations--amounted to 10 percent of the gross national product. The Voice of Business chronicles Hill & Knowlton's influence on American public discourse in the years following World War II. Guided by its founder's conservative ideals, Hill & Knowlton developed a twofold mission: to influence public discussion about issues important to its clients and to educate Americans about big business. Karen Miller shows how the agency tried to manipulate public opinion, political debate, and news media content about such issues as postwar military aircraft procurement, the deregulation of margarine production, President Truman's seizure of steel mills in 1952, and the cigarette health scare of 1953-54. Though its campaigns did not change many opinions, she says, Hill & Knowlton affected the public indirectly by reinforcing the ideas of its clients and other conservatives.

In 1933, John W. Hill opened the New York office of what wouldbecome the most important public relations agency in history:Hill & Knowlton, Inc. By 1959, the combined sales of itsclients — which included Procter & Gamble, Texaco, Gillette, andAvco Manufacturing as well as the steel, tobacco, and aviationindustries'' trade associations — amounted to 10 percent of thegross national product. The Voice of Business chronicles Hill& Knowlton’s influence on American public discourse in theyears following World War II.Guided by its founder’s conservative ideals, Hill &Knowlton developed a twofold mission: to influence publicdiscussion about issues important to its clients and to educateAmericans about big business. Karen Miller shows how the agencytried to manipulate public opinion, political debate, and newsmedia content about such issues as postwar military aircraftprocurement, the deregulation of margarine production, PresidentTruman’s seizure of steel mills in 1952, and the cigarette healthscare of 1953-54. Though its campaigns did not change manyopinions, she says, Hill & Knowlton affected the publicindirectly by reinforcing the ideas of its clients and otherconservatives.