A Lingering Crisis: A qualitative investigation into the Red Cross's perceived crisis communication strategies and a ten-year media representation of the 2009/2010 crisis.
(2020) SKOM12 20201Department of Strategic Communication
- Abstract
- This research aims to contribute to the field of crisis communication conducted within the specific context of a non-governmental organization (NGO). Focus is put on investigating the perceived strategies for crisis communication that the Swedish Red Cross made use of during its crisis in 2009 and 2010 as well as a ten-year media representation of the issue. The empirical material consists of interviews held with communication professionals engaged at the head office of the Red Cross during the crisis, the internal newspaper magazine HENRY and articles sampled from Swedish newspapers between 2009 and 2019. The theoretical framework comprises the theory of situational crisis communication theory (SCCT) and the framing theory which are used... (More)
- This research aims to contribute to the field of crisis communication conducted within the specific context of a non-governmental organization (NGO). Focus is put on investigating the perceived strategies for crisis communication that the Swedish Red Cross made use of during its crisis in 2009 and 2010 as well as a ten-year media representation of the issue. The empirical material consists of interviews held with communication professionals engaged at the head office of the Red Cross during the crisis, the internal newspaper magazine HENRY and articles sampled from Swedish newspapers between 2009 and 2019. The theoretical framework comprises the theory of situational crisis communication theory (SCCT) and the framing theory which are used as lenses through which the gathered material is analyzed. As this particular research has been conducted roughly ten years after the crisis took place, it provides suggestions for the long term implications of the perceived crisis communication strategies and how the continuous reporting of Swedish newspaper articles may have influenced stakeholder’s perception of the crisis and in turn, the organization as a whole. Findings suggest that the Red Cross is yet to recover from the crisis and that the media has actively hampered its ability to restore its reputation as an overall negative image of the organization has repeatedly been communicated to the audience and, in line with the arguments of the framing theory, influenced individual perceptions. Other reasons for the Red Cross’s lack of success have been showcased in this research where, amongst other things, its inability to prepare stakeholders for the crisis, the internal culture and mixed perceived strategies for crisis communication are lifted. This research further elaborates on the theoretical implications of the SCCT and its applicability to crisis communication for NGOs as well as practical implications for communication professionals engaged in such organizations. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9012935
- author
- Burman, Vilma LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- SKOM12 20201
- year
- 2020
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- NGO crises, Crisis Communication, The Red Cross, Restoring trust, Reputation building
- language
- English
- id
- 9012935
- date added to LUP
- 2021-02-01 09:24:22
- date last changed
- 2021-02-01 09:24:30
@misc{9012935,
abstract = {{This research aims to contribute to the field of crisis communication conducted within the specific context of a non-governmental organization (NGO). Focus is put on investigating the perceived strategies for crisis communication that the Swedish Red Cross made use of during its crisis in 2009 and 2010 as well as a ten-year media representation of the issue. The empirical material consists of interviews held with communication professionals engaged at the head office of the Red Cross during the crisis, the internal newspaper magazine HENRY and articles sampled from Swedish newspapers between 2009 and 2019. The theoretical framework comprises the theory of situational crisis communication theory (SCCT) and the framing theory which are used as lenses through which the gathered material is analyzed. As this particular research has been conducted roughly ten years after the crisis took place, it provides suggestions for the long term implications of the perceived crisis communication strategies and how the continuous reporting of Swedish newspaper articles may have influenced stakeholder’s perception of the crisis and in turn, the organization as a whole. Findings suggest that the Red Cross is yet to recover from the crisis and that the media has actively hampered its ability to restore its reputation as an overall negative image of the organization has repeatedly been communicated to the audience and, in line with the arguments of the framing theory, influenced individual perceptions. Other reasons for the Red Cross’s lack of success have been showcased in this research where, amongst other things, its inability to prepare stakeholders for the crisis, the internal culture and mixed perceived strategies for crisis communication are lifted. This research further elaborates on the theoretical implications of the SCCT and its applicability to crisis communication for NGOs as well as practical implications for communication professionals engaged in such organizations.}},
author = {{Burman, Vilma}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{A Lingering Crisis: A qualitative investigation into the Red Cross's perceived crisis communication strategies and a ten-year media representation of the 2009/2010 crisis.}},
year = {{2020}},
}