Hearit (communication, Western Michigan U.) examines the ways in which individuals, organizations, and institutions seek to respond to criticism of an ethical nature. The author argues that, due to today's multimediated environment, apologia has changed from a private matter to a public one, and from an exchange between individuals to a social matrix that includes companies and institutions. Apologetic exchanges are seen as "secular remediation rituals" which are less a way to repair social relationships than they are a means of completing "the typical wrongdoing, guilt, and restoration drama" in order to get the individual or organization off the front page. Hearit incorporates case studies throughout the text, including many recent examples from the U.S. For practitioners, scholars, and students in public relations, business communications, and management.