Rasquinha, MarkSissons, Helen2026-05-212026-05-212026-05-20Public Relations Review, ISSN: 0363-8111 (Print), Elsevier BV, 52(3), 102714-102714. doi: 10.1016/j.pubrev.2026.1027140363-8111http://hdl.handle.net/10292/21185Public relations research continues to privilege survey-based, experimental, and textual methods that emphasize managerial frameworks, message effects, and attitudinal outcomes. These approaches provide limited access to how public relations work is accomplished in the lived flow of interaction, particularly in Global South contexts where professional practice is shaped by culturally specific communicative norms. This article introduces Ethnographic Communication Analysis (ECA) as a methodological framework that addresses this limitation by integrating video ethnography, Conversation Analysis, gesture analysis, and Critical Discourse Studies. ECA treats public relations as situated communicative action and examines how power, professionalism, and organizational culture are enacted through talk, gaze, posture, spatial arrangement, and tool use. Empirically, the article draws on fieldwork in two Indian public relations departments and illustrates the framework through a routine content-creation episode between a manager and practitioner. The analysis shows how the methodology can be used to make contributions towards public relations theory concerning organizational hierarchy, gender, and regulated workflows, performed in real time.© 2026 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons CC-BY license, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. You are not required to obtain permission to reuse this article.http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/15 Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services19 Studies in Creative Arts and Writing20 Language, Communication and CultureCommunication & Media Studies47 Language, communication and cultureEthnographic communication analysisProfessional practiceMultimodalPowerVideo EthnographyConversation analysisDiscourse analysisCritical discourse studiesJournal ArticleOpenAccess10.1016/j.pubrev.2026.102714