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Journal of Promotional Communications

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Published

2019-05-30

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Vol. 7 No. 1 (2019): Special Issue on Cross Cultural Communication

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Dialogic communication in faux pas paracrises. What do users want to discuss on brands’ official Facebook pages?

Ekaterina Bogomoletc

North Carolina State University

Abstract

This study provides an analysis of spontaneous publics’ reactions to crisis statements on the official Facebook pages of two global organizations that experienced faux pas paracrises in 2017-2018, Dove and H&M. The companies were accused of being racially insensitive and “tone deaf†after publishing their advertisements and catalogues respectively. Using quantitative content analysis alongside thematic analysis, themes were identified related to spontaneous reactions to paracrises regarding accusations of cultural and racial insensitivity. The analysis supported the revisions of situational crisis communication theory (SCCT) claiming that apology and corrective action may be effective tools to handle faux pas paracrises. The study also contributes to the understanding of a dialogic communication approach to communication by demonstrating the conversational nature of spontaneous comments under the crisis statements.

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