Crisis communication and event reputation in Saudi Arabia: the moderating role of the distributed leadership

Since the mid 1990s the field of crisis communication research has grown substantially as a topic of international communication studies. Especially in public relations journals a growth of the publication output has been observed recently, whereas broader communication journals still publish scarcely on crisis communication (An & Cheng, 2012; Ha & Boynton, 2014). The increasing number of conferences and specialized working groups at major academic communication associations such as the International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) and the European Communication Research and Education Association (ECREA) as well as the publication of specialized journals such as the Journal of International Crisis and Risk Communication indicate the ongoing institutionalization of the field (Schwarz, Seeger, & Auer, 2016a). Moreover, an increasing number of academic and public research centers, primarily at American and European universities, point to the rapid growth and societal relevance of the field (Palenchar, 2010). Within the field of public relations and strategic communication research the management of crisis communication already counts as a vital sub-discipline (Coombs, 2012b). This gain in importance can also be explained by the numerous devastating crisis events which do not only have tremendous social, political, ecological, and economic impact, but also reveal in many cases the complexity and limitations of managing crisis communication as practiced by organizations in various fields of society. This complexity and scope of crises go along with the interdisciplinarity and multiperspectivity of the research field, which in most cases lacks reciprocal reference (Coombs, 2012a; Loffelholz & Schwarz, 2008).

This paper examines the historical evolution and contemporary relevance of crisis communication within legal contexts. Crisis communication, traditionally studied in corporate and organizational frameworks, is often complicated in legal settings where reputational management collides with legal liability. This study examines how crisis events have historically been framed and addressed through legal language, public communication strategies, and evolving media technologies. Drawing on landmark legal cases, it analyzes how the balance between legal discretion and public expectation has shifted, particularly under the pressure of real-time social media discourse. The paper integrates theories such as Situational Crisis Communication Theory (SCCT) and Attribution Theory to understand responses to crises that straddle the line between legal obligation and public accountability. Through the analysis of case studies ranging from institutional scandals to hashtag-driven activism, the research illustrates how legal institutions and actors navigate crisis scenarios while maintaining judicial integrity and public trust. It concludes by proposing a revised framework for legal crisis communication that incorporates ethical considerations, media dynamics, and stakeholder engagement in an era dominated by transparency and immediacy. Keywords: Crisis Communication, Legal History, Public Relations, Situational Crisis Communication Theory (SCCT), Legal Liability, Social Media, Hashtag Activism.

Research on crisis communication has traditionally focused on private organisations' reputation and blame avoidance strategies. As a result, there is limited knowledge on crisis communication from the perspective of public organisations. This is troublesome as public organisations have substantial responsibilities for preparing, communicating and managing large‐scale crisis events. In order to be able to better conceptualise public organisations' crisis communication, a typology based on communication aims and orientations is introduced. According to the typology, public organisations engage in two dimensions of crisis communication: reputation‐oriented vs. resilience‐oriented and strategic vs. operational. These dimensions are illustrated and discussed by empirical examples from theQueensland floods of 2010/2011. The paper ends with a discussion on how to understand these dimensions of crisis communication in relation to public organisations' priorities, processes and practices.

Much research has informed the development of a valuable series of sender‐focused best practices for effective crisis communication. Relatively little crisis communication research, however, focuses on receiver‐focused best practices as related to eliciting appropriate actions before, during and after crisis events. Because effective instructional communication is measured by learner (i.e., receiver) outcome achievement of affective (perceived value), cognitive (comprehension) and behavioural (performance) variables, this study examined perceived message effectiveness and behavioural intention using the IDEA model of instructional risk and crisis communication. Results of this comparative quasi‐experimental study revealed that messages integrating all elements of the IDEA model were more effective than status quo messages and point to the need for continued research on effective instructional crisis communication message design.

The entertainment industry operates in an era of digital virality, where brand reputation can be significantly impacted by public scandals, misinformation, and crisis events. The rapid dissemination of content across social media platforms has intensified reputational risks, making crisis communication strategies essential for media corporations, celebrities, and production companies. A poorly managed crisis can lead to financial losses, audience disengagement, and long-term brand damage, while an effective response can restore credibility and strengthen public trust. This paper explores crisis communication in the entertainment industry, focusing on strategies for managing brand reputation amid digital virality. Using real-time social listening, AI-driven sentiment analysis, and strategic public relations (PR) frameworks, entertainment brands can mitigate reputational damage and control crisis narratives. Case studies of high-profile celebrity scandals, production controversies, and corporate missteps highlight the role of transparency, proactive messaging, and audience engagement in crisis resolution. Additionally, this study examines how apology strategies, media framing, and influencer advocacy influence public perception and brand recovery. The research further analyzes the effectiveness of pre-crisis planning, crisis response frameworks, and post-crisis brand rebuilding strategies in the entertainment industry. Findings indicate that brands leveraging authentic communication, rapid response protocols, and digital reputation management tools are more resilient to crisis fallout. As digital media continues to shape audience perception, mastering crisis communication is crucial for sustaining brand equity and audience loyalty in an era of instant public scrutiny.

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to investigate communication on Twitter during two unpredicted crises (the Manchester bombings and the Munich shooting) and one natural disaster (Hurricane Harvey). The study contributes to understanding the dynamics of convergence behaviour archetypes during crises.Design/methodology/approachThe authors collected Twitter data and analysed approximately 7.5 million relevant cases. The communication was examined using social network analysis techniques and manual content analysis to identify convergence behaviour archetypes (CBAs). The dynamics and development of CBAs over time in crisis communication were also investigated.FindingsThe results revealed the dynamics of influential CBAs emerging in specific stages of a crisis situation. The authors derived a conceptual visualisation of convergence behaviour in social media crisis communication and introduced the terms hidden and visible network-layer to further understanding of the complexity of crisis communication.Research limitations/implicationsThe results emphasise the importance of well-prepared emergency management agencies and support the following recommendations: (1) continuous and (2) transparent communication during the crisis event as well as (3) informing the public about central information distributors from the start of the crisis are vital.Originality/valueThe study uncovered the dynamics of crisis-affected behaviour on social media during three cases. It provides a novel perspective that broadens our understanding of complex crisis communication on social media and contributes to existing knowledge of the complexity of crisis communication as well as convergence behaviour.

Nowadays, social media has become an indispensable part of information dissemination, and its role and influence are constantly shaping the information ecology of today's society. At the same time, the attention of crisis events on social media continues to increase, which is of great significance for crisis management and response. This paper aims to take Twitter as an example to explore the role and influence of social media in crisis communication, and to analyze its role in instant transmission, information transmission speed, public opinion guidance, public relations channels and emotional connection in crisis events through literature review and case analysis. This paper aims to reveal the function mode, communication effect and coping strategy of social media in crisis communication and provide theoretical support and practical reference for improving public crisis awareness and crisis coping ability. At the same time, this paper provides reference for establishing an effective crisis communication management mechanism, which is helpful to improve the public's cognition and understanding of crisis events.

Crisis communication is a strategy for managing crisis situations through the process of sending and receiving information during or after a crisis event with the aim of managing the situation, minimizing damage, and ensuring the safety of the people involved, or victims. The leadership of the National Police institution has an important role in carrying out crisis communications as a communicator in improving the organization's reputation. The scandal, which was not carried out institutionally, but involved the involvement of high-ranking police officials and a number of other police officers, caused the reputation of the police organization to experience the threat of a crisis of public distrust. Law enforcement agencies that are actually faced with violations of the law are demanded by both the families of victims and the public that police agencies prioritize transparency, accountability and justice in resolving cases. The three stages of the press conference as a form of conveying the National Police Chief's crisis communication were chosen for analysis, namely the press conference held on August 4, 9 and 25 2022. Based on the content analysis, it was concluded that the most highlighted messages were relevant messages, messages emphasizing credibility, and statements. ongoing process. Meanwhile, the Timely message and messages of empathy for victims were not highlighted in the National Police Chief's press conference to show that empathy is an important thing in the National Police Chief's crisis message.

On 9th October 2019 an armed nationalist murdered two bypassing citizens in a killing spree directed at a synagogue in Halle, Germany. Instantly, a broad diffusion of information unfolded on Twitter. Traffic for tweets mentioning Halle reached a peak as high as a hundred times to average value of the days before. In this study we examine this immense increase in communication and observe temporal diffusion patterns in crisis communication. We compare the traffic of tweets generated in this incident against Twitter traffic persisted during two other crisis events as well as a regular trending topic. A discussion of information diffusion based on network theoretic measures during crisis and terror events is presented. Results show that active user’s behavior changes with the onset of the incidents in all events in focus–while popular user’s metrics are consistent throughout the data sets. actively tweeting and repeatedly engaging users are detected only in two data sets.

<p><em>With new environmental changes and terrorism creating opportunities for crisis situations, and the proliferation and development of mass media increasing vulnerability to crises, organizations are placing greater importance on crisis management. Vital to successful crisis management are strategic and effective crisis communications. Without it, the health and safety of stakeholders and the reputation of the organization are at risk.</em></p><p><strong><em>The purpose of the study </em></strong><em>is to analyze the existing tools of media management and crisis communications in the context of overcoming the current challenges of information warfare.</em><em></em></p><p><strong><em>Research methods.</em></strong><em> The study used the following methods: bibliographic (to analyze the current best practices of crisis media management); graphical (to visualize the damage caused by information cyberattacks); analysis (to identify the specifics of interaction between private media organizations and government agencies).</em></p><p><strong><em>Results. </em></strong><em>The author proves that unlike risk communications, which aim to help people understand the facts that really affect their lives so that they can make informed decisions about risks, crisis communications are more aimed at managing the consequences, impact and public perception of the crisis. Crisis communications is also seen as an action-based perspective, where they shape the fundamental meaning of crisis events. In this sense, crisis communicators have the possibility to influence how the crisis and the organization are perceived by the public.</em></p><p><strong><em>Novelty. </em></strong><em>It is proved that it is advisable to study crisis communications not as situational phenomena, but as a permanent process that should not be reduced to the stage of post-crisis communication. </em></p><p><strong><em>The practical significance </em></strong><em>of the results obtained is to identify the need for further development of cooperation between government agencies and representatives of the media community, including private ownership, in counteracting the consequences of a full-scale and information war in Ukraine.</em></p><p><strong><em>Key words:</em></strong><em> media management, crisis communications, social marketing, public-private partnership, media.</em></p>

This paper aims to examine the influence of different message framings (utilitarian, deontological, religious, virtue-based message, and God's punishment-based messages) on Saudi Arabians’ beliefs and behavioral intentions related to COVID-19 and the influence of message source (religious advocate, Saudi COVID-19 monitoring committee member, close person, physician, journalist, and social media influencer) on communicating messages in the COVID-19 pandemic context. The between-subject design experiment (n =222) was conducted online due to the Covid-19 restrictions in force at the time of this study and in an attempt to derive a representative sample from the general Saudi population. The results showed that the God’s punishment-based message was less effective than other moral and religious messages, including the non-framed messages, and member of the Saudi COVID-19 monitoring committee, followed by physicians, were believed to be the most effective message sources. Overall, the current research contributes to the knowledge about health and crisis communications in the collectivistic cultural context.

PurposeThis study investigates the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on human resource management (HRM) within Saudi Arabia's distinct socio-legal landscape, which is shaped by Islamic cultural norms, stringent labor laws and a diversifying economy. This context necessitates innovative HR strategies during crises.Design/methodology/approachGrounded in the resource-based view, this qualitative study employs semi-structured interviews with 18 HR professionals across various sectors. This approach enables an in-depth exploration of HRM practice adaptations during the pandemic, using purposive sampling to ensure the collection of rich and relevant data.FindingsSignificant shifts towards remote work, the digitalization of HR operations and prioritizing employee health and safety were identified. The analysis revealed key themes, including HR policy changes, resilience strategies, encountered challenges, the importance of communication in employee engagement and strategic learnings. These findings highlight the criticality of adaptability, clear communication and digital transformation in effective crisis management.Originality/valueThis research contributes novel insights into the resilience of HRM practices in Saudi Arabia’s unique socio-legal environment during health crises. It fills a gap in our understanding of how specific regional contexts influence HRM strategies during emergencies, offering valuable contributions to both theory and practice. The study provides practical guidance for HR professionals and policymakers on crafting effective HRM strategies tailored to organizational needs in crisis conditions, thereby enhancing the field’s knowledge on navigating HRM challenges in future health crises.

This chapter summarizes scholarly literature related to digital news production, explains how different reporting styles have previously been found to impact audience perceptions toward organizational responsibility, and uses Luoma-aho''s Theory of Emotional Stakeholders (TES) as a framework for developing the experimental materials. The rapid evolution of new media technology has generated calls from crisis communication scholars for inquiry and study of this emerging domain. Organizational crises vary in their scope, complexity, and causality. Situational crisis communication theory (SCCT) incorporates insight from attribution theory as the underlying rationale for linking specific types of crises to specific crisis communication strategies. Using experimental procedures, our findings show that user comments from organizations, faith-holders, and hate-holders contribute to audience evaluations of crisis responsibility, both causal and treatment. Results show that user comments from faith-holders reduced causal responsibility in the intentional cluster compared to the control condition; however, when organizations were facing preventable crises, user comments from faith-holders amplified perceived treatment responsibility. Crisis events can prompt information-seeking and sharing behaviors, understanding if and how to strategically respond is an important consideration for practitioners who are expected to skillfully engage in online relation building and reputation management.

The CEO is often the ‘face’ of a corporation during a crisis event or transgression. However, the current research finds that the type of account strategy employed in a crisis communication – denial, justification, excuse or apology – has differential effects on stakeholder perceptions, as well as on impressions of the corporation and the CEO. Using an experimental research design and a scenario-based approach, the reactions of 796 study participants to four account strategy types offered by a CEO in response to a corporate crisis event were analyzed. Research results suggest that an apology or an excuse decreases negative impressions of the CEO, whereas a justification or denial decreases negative impressions of the corporation. Thus, a company and its CEO may be at odds when determining the appropriate account strategy to use following a corporate crisis event.

This research aims to develop a comprehensive framework for analyzing and optimizing media framing in crisis communication through advanced deep learning techniques, addressing the critical gap in understanding how narrative structures influence public risk perception and response. By analyzing crisis narratives across multiple media platforms, we identify predominant framing patterns and their temporal evolution during crisis events. Our novel deep learning model demonstrates superior accuracy of 91.2% in recognizing subtle framing mechanisms that influence public risk perception, representing a 14.7 percentage point improvement over traditional machine learning baselines. Analysis of 15,873 media items reveals six major frame types, with attribution frames being most prevalent (28.7%), followed by human impact (22.3%) and conflict frames (19.5%). The study establishes an optimization framework for crisis communication that balances narrative structure, emotional factors, and information transparency, identifying critical transparency-trust thresholds at 62% and 87% disclosure levels where trust gains show non-linear patterns. Findings suggest that adaptive framing strategies significantly enhance public understanding and appropriate response to risk situations, with problem-solution narratives achieving effectiveness scores of 0.87 for technological crises and empathy-focused communication reaching 0.90 for natural disasters. This research contributes to both the theoretical understanding of crisis communication and the practical applications for media organizations, risk managers, and policymakers.