PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the influence of individual, organizational, and social contexts on internet adoption by Saudi public relations professionals.Design/methodology/approachUsing the diffusion of innovations model, this study investigates the responses of 354 Saudi public relations professionals to a survey about internet adoption in public relations‐related tasks.FindingsThe paper finds that only 46 per cent of Saudi public relations professionals adopted the internet for public relations. Organizational context variables were the influential predictors of internet adoption.Research limitations/implicationsIn the light of the intense bureaucracy in Arab organizations, scholars should be cognizant of the roles played by Arab organizational structures in the adoption of innovations.Practical implicationsWhile the adoption of innovations in Western organizations is more likely to be influenced by commercial needs, organizational structures play more defining roles in Arab organizations' adoption of innovations.Originality/valueThe study is one of the few to investigate the influence of organizational contexts on the adoption of innovations in Arab societies.