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A no-win situation: A case study of Socialstyrelsens brochure on child marriage and the moral outrage that followed

Fors, August LU (2020) SKOM12 20201
Department of Strategic Communication
Abstract
This study analyzes a no-win situation in which the Swedish public organization Socialstyrelsen were not able to achieve strategic goals, with the organizations mandate going against prevalent moral cultural ideals. When attempting to perform their mandate Socialstyrelsen was suddenly hit by an online firestorm, hurting their reputation and hindering them in performing their democratic responsibilities. Through using Campbell and Mannings theory on moral cultures, the study aims to give a deeper understanding of contemporary strategic challenges for public organizations by investigating how prevalent moral cultures manifested themselves in the outrage against Socialstyrelsen. This was achieved through a qualitative content analysis of the... (More)
This study analyzes a no-win situation in which the Swedish public organization Socialstyrelsen were not able to achieve strategic goals, with the organizations mandate going against prevalent moral cultural ideals. When attempting to perform their mandate Socialstyrelsen was suddenly hit by an online firestorm, hurting their reputation and hindering them in performing their democratic responsibilities. Through using Campbell and Mannings theory on moral cultures, the study aims to give a deeper understanding of contemporary strategic challenges for public organizations by investigating how prevalent moral cultures manifested themselves in the outrage against Socialstyrelsen. This was achieved through a qualitative content analysis of the Facebook and Twitter posts that occurred in the online firestorm. The study identified victimhood culture ideals as dominating the narratives on social media with the culture showcasing itself primarily in three different forms. The first form showcases that all sides employ victimhood culture and that it plays a large role in achieving change through framing contests. The second form highlights how children were victimized, the importance of wording and microaggressions. The third form focusing on how people using the online firestorm to raise their moral status through victimization of the self. The findings point to public organizations being put in no-win situations through the moral landscape they communicate in. Highlighting the importance of understanding prevalent moral cultures and using this knowledge to perform strategic communication without causing online firestorms. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Fors, August LU
supervisor
organization
course
SKOM12 20201
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Moral cultures, Victimhood culture, No-win situation, Online firestorm, Microagressions, Framing contests
language
English
id
9028254
date added to LUP
2021-02-01 09:24:49
date last changed
2021-02-01 09:24:49
@misc{9028254,
  abstract     = {{This study analyzes a no-win situation in which the Swedish public organization Socialstyrelsen were not able to achieve strategic goals, with the organizations mandate going against prevalent moral cultural ideals. When attempting to perform their mandate Socialstyrelsen was suddenly hit by an online firestorm, hurting their reputation and hindering them in performing their democratic responsibilities. Through using Campbell and Mannings theory on moral cultures, the study aims to give a deeper understanding of contemporary strategic challenges for public organizations by investigating how prevalent moral cultures manifested themselves in the outrage against Socialstyrelsen. This was achieved through a qualitative content analysis of the Facebook and Twitter posts that occurred in the online firestorm. The study identified victimhood culture ideals as dominating the narratives on social media with the culture showcasing itself primarily in three different forms. The first form showcases that all sides employ victimhood culture and that it plays a large role in achieving change through framing contests. The second form highlights how children were victimized, the importance of wording and microaggressions. The third form focusing on how people using the online firestorm to raise their moral status through victimization of the self. The findings point to public organizations being put in no-win situations through the moral landscape they communicate in. Highlighting the importance of understanding prevalent moral cultures and using this knowledge to perform strategic communication without causing online firestorms.}},
  author       = {{Fors, August}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{A no-win situation: A case study of Socialstyrelsens brochure on child marriage and the moral outrage that followed}},
  year         = {{2020}},
}