Introductory Note: Polaroid Advertising

Sara Balonas is an assistant professor at the University of Minho and a researcher at the Communication and Society Research Centre (CECS). She holds a PhD in Communication Sciences, specialising in advertising within the social sphere, and she teaches strategic communication, brands, advertising, and creativity. Her research interests include advertising and behavioural change, social change, strategic communication, brands, creativity, political communication, health communication, and social marketing. She has authored numerous articles, books, and other scientific publications in these fields. Additionally, she coordinates Createlab — Experimentation and Innovation Laboratory (CECS) and the Communication, Organisations, and Social Dynamics research group (CECS). She previously coordinated the Advertising Working Group of the Portuguese Association of Communication Sciences. Furthermore, she is the founder of B+ Comunicação (2002) and Be True, a strategic intervention programme in the social sphere (2010).

Sónia Silva is a visiting assistant professor at the Faculty of Philosophy and Social Sciences of the Universidade Católica Portuguesa — Braga Regional Centre. Since 2020, she has also been a visiting assistant professor in the Department of Arts and Communication at the University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro. She teaches Organisational and Strategic Communication and is responsible for various subjects related to advertising, public relations, marketing communication consultancy and protocol and event organisation. Additionally, she has taught cross-disciplinary subjects such as Communication Theories, Research Methodology, Sociology of Communication, Methodology and Quantification of Information and Scientific Communication. Since 2015, she has also been a collaborating member of the Communication and Society Research Centre and, since 2024, an integrated member of the Centre for Philosophical and Humanistic Studies. Her research focuses on organisational and strategic communication, social responsibility, advertising and public relations.

Isabel Ruiz-Mora serves as an associate professor at the University of Malaga (Spain) within the Department of Audiovisual Communication and Advertising. She teaches courses on Public Relations and Transmedia in both undergraduate and graduate programmes. Engaged in various funded projects focusing on lobbying, sustainability, urban processes, and gender perspectives in the railway sector at both national and European levels. Her research interests include citizen activism, sustainability, and strategic communication. Isabel Ruiz-Mora is also an editor for the International Journal of Public Relations and has held positions as a senior lecturer at Sheffield Hallam University and as a visiting researcher at several institutions, including the University of Stirling (Scotland), Roskilde University (Denmark), University of Sheffield (England), University of Leeds (England), and TAR-UC College (Malaysia). She is actively involved in AcademicasPR, a collaborative platform dedicated to studying and promoting the work and research of academic women in the field of public relations, and Relaciones Públicas al Descubierto (Public Relations in the Spotlight), a series of podcasts aimed at showcasing the contributions of public relations to society.