Corporate communication during a reputation crisis : a critical analysis of Lebanese food establishments’ crisis response.

Abstract

The Lebanese food industry, especially restaurants and food vendors, witnessed an unprecedented reputational risk in 2014. The Ministry of Health headed by Mr. Wael Abou Faour initiated a food safety national campaign that would name and shame all establishments that do not meet the food safety guidelines. This campaign created an uproar and a national scare. It resulted in food vendor closures and in tarnished reputation of many famous brands. This thesis investigates this phenomenon by looking at the impact it had on businesses and on their level of preparedness to face reputational crises. This work is anchored in Situational Crisis Communication Theory and it relied on crisis management literature and multiple research methods to understand (1) the different online social media communication strategies Lebanese food establishments followed during the 2014 crisis, (2) how different stakeholders construct the crisis strategies followed by Lebanese food establishments, (3) and the role the media played, specifically the press, in projecting different voices, in covering, and in framing this crisis. Towards these aims, I conducted a qualitative content analysis of the social media posts of three famous Lebanese brands affected by the 2014 food safety campaign; Roadster Diner, Kababji, and Crepaway. The content analysis entitled Facebook posts and Instagram images shared by the chosen three food establishments. This analysis uncovered how shy the social media communication was of these three establishments, which signals lack of honesty and openness, how the three establishments were not consistent nor adequately communicating with their publics throughout the crisis, and how some took too long to communicate with their concerned publics. I also conducted personal interviews with key stakeholders. A total of 18 participants were interviewed from both the public and private sectors. Lastly, I conducted thematic analysis of 288 Lebanese press articles published between the 3rd of October, 2014 and the 31st of Janua