David Phillips explores the growth of social media sites such as Facebook, MySpace, Bebo, Flickr etc, and of virtual environments, virtual communities, information sharing sites and blogs. PR practitioners must now explore and experiment with new technologies and new ways of thinking to get their message across - and an environment which has been made far more transparent, due to social media. Other topics covered include new models of information exchange, commercial implications of the internet, how social media impacts on PR strategy, developing online PR strategies, risks and opportunities and CSR.