Title: Crisis communication strategy and brand – A case study of Swedish Red Cross through dialog analysis Author: Anneli Saarela Presented: 01.06.2010 Purpose: The study addresses the subjects of crisis communication and organisational brand, in relation to stakeholders and brand reputation. The purpose of this essay is to study the dialog regarding the crisis of remunerations with the Swedish Red Cross and how the organisation responds to the criticism. An identification and analysis of the discourse regarding the brand are also included in the study. Part of the empirical material will also be used in relation to Situational Crisis Communication Theory (SCCT). This to find which strategy is most accurate to the one which the Swedish Red Cross seemingly has implemented. Methodology: The study uses dialog analysis to gather the empirical material. The dialog of interest for this study consists of four different written texts. These texts are analysed with the help of concepts such as: content, context, intertextuality, recontextualisation and relation. Further, through these concepts the study uses a series of initial questions to start the analysis with regard to the concepts. Theoretical perspectives: The theoretical base for this essay consists of relevant theories to crisis management and branding. These are Situational Crisis Communication Theory, crisis communication and rhetoric as well as ideas regarding identity, stakeholders and reputation. I have used these as tools in my analysis as well as to understand the concept regarding crisis and the effects on an organisation, the brand and stakeholder relationships. Conclusions: The results show that the texts in the dialog are influenced by earlier texts to a great extent. Interesting enough the stakeholders hold the board members responsible and not the whole organisation itself. This may be because the reporting has been mainly focused on the individuals and their remunerations in the earlier stages of the crisis. In regards to rebuilding the trust and organisational brand the analysis show that the organisation should make changes regarding the members of the board, as it is those who are strongly attributed to the crisis by the interest groups. The analysis in relation to SCCT show that the Swedish Red Cross chose a strategy involving less responsibility than SCCT would have proposed. Although regarding the bolstering strategies the organisation did as SCCT would suggest and put emphasis on the earlier work the organisation has done and took advantage of its strong reputation. Keywords: SCCT, crisis communication, brand, organisation, stakeholder

The purpose of this case study is to examine the crisis response strategies and rhetorical tools Östersunds FK (ÖFK) used in their crisis communication during an economic-crime-crisis. To examine which response strategies ÖFK used to protect their image, Benoit's ​image repair theory (1997)​ supplemented with Bruce & Tahlia’s (2008) ​diversion ​and Coombs ​SCCT​ (2007), are crucial throughout this case study. In addition to that, we have done a rhetorical analysis to examine the use of ethos, pathos and logos in ÖFK:s crisis communication. The analysis indicates that ÖFK mostly used ​ethos​ and ​logos​ as rhetorical tools. Denial​, ​corrective action​ and ​reduce of offensiveness​ were the most common response strategies. Our study provides an insight into how sports associations in Sweden act in crisis. The conclusions are that ÖFK was reactive in their crises communication and we could see tendencies that are consistent with previous crisis communication research in sports association context, but also in political context.

The covid-19 pandemic resulted in large changes and restrictions that impacted the Swedish society and the whole world. Both individuals and companies were impacted by this, not least the traveling companies in the public transport. One of these companies was the Swedish travel company SJ. The purpose of this study was to understand the communication that SJ operated on the social media platform Facebook during the covid-19 pandemic, march to november 2020. Because of the new situation and unexplored field of research a qualitative exploratory research design was used. The material studied were SJs Facebook posts and a semi structured expert interview. The data was analysed through a qualitative content analysis inspired by Grounded Theory. This method generated two sets of categories, one set of categories that represented different types of issues that were communicated on their Facebook, another set of categories that represented important grounds for why the communicated turned out the way it did. By analyzing these categories and forming a timeline of the communication, communicational phases were identified. The results of the study have contributed with a new time perspective of organizational communication on Facebook during this pandemic. The study's results could therefore be seen, not only as an explanation of SJs communication on Facebook during the pandemic, but also as a hypothesis of how organizations communication might change throughout a longer societal crisis, like a pandemic.

Vi har genomfört en retorisk analys av Oatlys externa kommunikation under tre politiskt orienterade kriser i syfte att undersöka hur de använder olika strategier och retoriska medel för att övertyga sin publik och upprätthålla sin image. Med förtroendekris, public relations, Image Repair Theory och retorik som teoretiskt ramverk har vi kunnat identifiera hur Oatlys kommunikation förhåller sig till olika normer och strategier inom dessa teorier. Resultatet visar att det i vissa fall finns ett glapp mellan vad företaget står för och hur det agerar. De håller en aktiv och personlig kommunikation med sin publik men under kriserna visar kommunikationen att den relation Oatly har med publiken bortprioriteras. Oatly har som mål att göra sitt bästa för klimatet och för att uppnå detta riskerar de att skada förtroendet och sitt etiska rykte hos sin publik. / We have conducted a rhetorical analysis of Oatly's external communication during three politically oriented crises in order to examine how their crisis communication uses different strategies and rhetorical means to convince its audience and maintain its image. With trust crisis, public relations, Image Repair Theory and rhetorics as a theoretical framework, we have been able to identify how Oatly's communication relates to different norms and strategies within these theories. The results show that in some cases there is a gap between what the company stands for and how it acts. They maintain an active and personal communication with their audience, but during the crises, the communication shows that Oatly's relationship with the audience is de-prioritized. Oatly aims to do their best for the climate and to achieve the goal, they risk damaging the trust and ethical reputation of their audience.

The research aims to examine Svenska Akademien’s external crisis communication 2017–2018, in the crisis induced by an exposition of sexual assaults and harassments by the so called "Kulturprofilen" during #metoo. Since the case is a historical event in Sweden and organizational crises of confidence, the study intends to contribute to the research field by adding knowledge about an uncharted area and case. The study examines the press releases issued from the organization, as well as the specific members' statements in the news media channel Dagens Nyheter. The question formulations include which approaches of crisis management Svenska Akademien practiced, how their communication was structured linguistically and rhetorically and which hierarchies and power structures became visible. The methodological approach to the case study is based on both a qualitative text analysis and a critical discourse analysis, with an image analysis as a complement to deepen the analysis. The theoretical approach applied includes a rhetorical framework, the Image Repair Theory and Media Logic. The result showed that the organizational communication could not affect the restoration of Svenska Akademien’s reputation because of the organization’s individual members’ medial communication, which appeared fragmentized in a big conflict. Two central characters in the conflict, Sara Danius and Horace Engdahl, created very different kinds of derived ethos by their different communication strategies, which also was affected by media logic. Because of the conflict, the crisis escalated and changed focus from the original problem to the current crisis management.

Denna studie är en kvalitativ textanalys av SAS kriskommunikation under pilotstrejken 2019. Materialet för studien är fyra pressmeddelanden som SAS publicerar på sin hemsida angående pilotstrejken. Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka SAS kriskommunikation, hur strejken framställs i pressmeddelandena, om någon konstrueras som ansvarig för krisen och om SAS tillämpar någon image reparerande strategi. Detta görs genom en teoretisk utgångspunkt från den retoriska kriskommunikationsforskningen och den systemisk-funktionella grammatiken, med fokus på den ideationella metafunktionen som anser att språkets betydelse är det centrala för texters mening. Metoder som används är den ideationell grammatik, ergativitetsanalys och en analys av image repair theory från den retoriska kriskommunikationsforskningen. Analysen visar att händelsen framställs som konkret med tydliga deltagare och påverkan, pilotföreningarna framställs som ansvarig för strejken och det återfinns flera olika image reparerande strategier i pressmeddelandena.

Detta kandidatarbete syftar till att påpeka några av de möjligheter som digitaliseringen bidrar till, genom att bland annat lyfta smartphones och sociala medier som en potentiell kanal för utökad kriskommunikation. I en krissituation är kommunikation av yttersta vikt. I Sverige har den traditionella kriskommunikationen länge kretsat kring ljudsignalen Hesa Fredrik och VMA (viktigt meddelande till allmänheten) i statligt ägda tv- och radiokanaler. På senare tid har stora delar av samhället kommit att digitaliseras, vilket även medför att förutsättningarna och möjligheterna för kriskommunikation utvecklas och förändras. Detta har visualiserats i en film med hjälp av designfiktion och diegetiska prototyper för att spekulera och testa vilka digitala lösningar som hade kunnat vara möjliga i en nära framtid. Vi har utgått från Bleeckers (2009) definition och beskrivning av designfiktion och som ett stöd i skapandet av detta användes metoder såsom Three Layered Model of design fiction av Lindley & Coulton (2014), scenarier som beskrivs av Nardi (1992) och framtida personas enligt Fergnani (2019). För filmens slutgiltiga resultat spelade framför allt de diegetiska prototyperna en betydande roll, men också den verklighetsbaserade grunden samt narrativet för att kunna sammanföra verkligheten med den spekulativa framtiden. I filmen visas dock endast ett fåtal av de oändliga möjligheter som digitaliseringen medför, men kan förhoppningsvis ses som inspiration till vidare utforskning av nya digitala lösningar för kriskommunikation. / This Bachelor Thesis aims to highlight some of the opportunities that the digitisation contributes to, by among other things, lifting smartphones and social media as a potential channel for increased crisis communication. In a crisis situation, communication is of utmost importance. In Sweden, the traditional crisis communication system has long revolved around the audio signal “Hesa Fredrik” and “VMA” (important announcement to the public) in state-owned television and radio stations. Recently, big parts of the society have been digitised which means that the conditions and opportunities for crisis communication both develop and change. This has been visualised in a film by using design fiction and diegetic prototypes as a way to help speculate and test which digital solutions may be possible in a near future. We have used the definition and explanation of design fiction as mentioned by Bleecker (2009), and methods such as the Three Layered Model of design fiction by Lindley & Coulton (2014), scenarios as described by Nardi (1992) and future personas according to Fergnani (2019) were supportive in the making of the film. For the final result of the film, the diegetic prototypes played a significant role, as well as the foundation based on reality and the narrative in order to connect the reality with the speculative future. Only a few of the endless opportunities that the digitisation brings is shown in the film, but may hopefully inspire further exploration of new, digital solutions for crisis communication.

Coronapandemin är en av de största kriserna på flera decennier och har gjort att Sveriges regering stått inför en situation där kriskommunikation krävs. En av de primära kommunikationsmedel som Sveriges regering har använt under pandemin är presskonferenser. Syftet med studien är att genom en gestaltningsanalys se hur Sveriges regering har gestaltat pandemin i sina presskonferenser. Analysen ska också besvara hur gestaltningen förändrats under olika faser av krisen. En språklig analys gjordes på 20 presskonferenser publicerade mellan 24 februari 2020 och den 16 september 2021 där ett förbestämt ramverk, teorier kring kriskommunikation och CERC-modellen utgjorde grunden för analysen. Studiens förbestämda ramverk är baserat på CDC och WHO:s rekommendationer inom kriskommunikation och har använts tidigare i liknande studier. Studiens resultat visar på liknande inramningar i alla valda presskonferenser från pandemin. Ramarna Budskap till allmänheten och Uttryck av empati var två inramningar som identifierades i samtliga presskonferenser. Hur allmänheten kan hjälpa till, Klargörande av fakta, Åtgärder som för närvarande vidtas och Åtgärder som kommer att vidtas var andra inramningar som identifierades ofta, särskilt under vissa tidsperioder av pandemin. Innebörden av ramarna är också något som skiljer sig mellan olika faser, framför allt Budskap till allmänheten och Uttryck av empati. / The covid-19 pandemic is one of the worst health crises in many decades, and it has put the Swedish government into a situation where crisis communication is needed. One of the primary tools for communication used by the Swedish government is press conferences. The aim of the study is to determine how the Swedish government has framed the pandemic through the press conferences. This will be done through a framing analysis. The study will also determine how the framing has changed through different phases of the crisis. A linguistic analysis was made on 20 press conferences published between February 24th 2020 and September 16th 2021 with a predetermined framework, theories in crisis communication and the CERC-model as base for the study. The predetermined framework is based on CDC and WHO recommendations in crisis communication and has been used in similar studies earlier.  The result of the study shows similar framing in all chosen press conferences from the pandemic. The frames Key messages to the public and Expression of empathy were two frames that could be identified in all press conferences. How the public can help, Clarification of facts, Actions currently being taken and Action that will be taken were frames that also could be identified in several press conferences, especially in specific phases of the pandemic. The signification of the frame was also something that changed through different phases, particularly Key messages to the public and Expression of empathy.

Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att söka djupare förståelse kring hur företag agerar vid företagskriser, vilka strategier de tar till sig. Vidare syftar studien till att bidra till djupare förståelse kring hur kriskommunikation tas emot av konsumenter på sociala medier. Metod: En kvalitativ fallstudie har tillämpats på fyra företag som har genomgått en publik företagskris. Den samlade empirin grundar sig på sekundärdata som har framställts genom en E-forskningsmetod. För att undersöka konsumentresponsen har 100 slumpmässiga kommentarer valts från respektive kommentarsfält för att sedan presenteras i ett ordmoln där de mest kommenterade orden illustreras. Teoretiskt perspektiv: Den teoretiska referensramen innefattar teorierna: Corporate Apologia, Image Repair Theory och Situational Crisis Communication Theory. Slutsats: Studiens slutsats ger indikationer på att företag ber om ursäkt för händelsen och kommunicerar ut alla beslut som tas rörande den. Det går att antyda att konsumenter reagerar varierande på kriskommunikation där företag enbart ber om ursäkt för den händelsen. Det går även att antyda att konsumenterna till största del har en generellt positiv bild av kriskommunikation där företag kommunicerar ut en handlingsplan, i samband med att företaget tidigare har bett om ursäkt för händelsen. / Purpose: The purpose of the study is to examine how companies use external communication, through different communication strategies during a corporate crisis. Furthermore how customers respond to the company's crisis communication.   Methodology: A qualitative case study was applied to four companies that have undergone a corporate crisis. The empirical data is based on secondary data that have been collected through an E-science methodology. To examine the customer response on the crisis communication, 100 random comments were selected from each comment section. The response is presented in a wordcloud where the most frequently used words are illustrated in the cloud. Theoretical framework: The theoretical framework includes the theories: Corporate Apologia, Image Repair Theory and Situational Crisis Communication Theory. Conclusion: The conclusion provides indications that companies apologize for the incident and communicate all decisions made regarding it. It can be suggested that consumers react differently to crisis communication where companies only apologize for that event. It can also be suggested that consumers for the most part have a generally positive image of crisis communication where companies communicate an action plan, in addition to that the company previously has apologized for the incident.

Denna undersökning har som syfte att analysera och jämföra Boris Johnsons och Stefan Löfvens tal till respektive nation gällande COVID-19 pandemin 2020. Med grund i en retorisk analys utmärks argumentationsmedlen ethos, pathos och logos samt stilfigurerna anafor, metafor och metonymi för att se vilka av dessa retoriska medel som dominerar i talarnas krisretorik. Resultatet visar att argumentationsmedlen ethos, pathos och logos används i båda talen men i olika omfattningar. Pathos dominerar i Löfvens tal medan alla tre argumentationsmedel samspelar till samma grad i Johnsons tal. Resultatet visar även att alla tre stilfigurer används men att anaforen är mest framträdande i båda talen och förekommer betydligt oftare än metaforer och metonymier. Slutsatsen som dras är att ingen av dem använder sig av stilfigurer i någon högre grad vilket kan bero på att ett land i kris kräver seriös kommunikation utan utmålade ord och ledare som behöver vara tydliga och vara säkra på att alla som lyssnar förstår. Undersökningen visar att Löfven använder sig mest av pathos medan Johnson balanserar alla argumentationsmedel i samma utsträckning.