Research for strategic communication as a vehicle for reputation management

Abstract

Globally, the power of strategic communication as a tool for ensuring institutional progress has gained considerable approval. Institutions dedicate considerable resources towards manipulating it for attainment of set goals in various circumstances. However, not all of them reap enough from this noble investment which consequently accords some a better competitive edge. To inspire individuals and institutions towards fruitful strategic communication endeavours, this chapter argues that all efforts to strategically communicate would only realise their maximum possible potential when informed by extensive research activities. This is accomplished through exploring how ZANU-PF, under the tutelage of former president, Mugabe, manipulated research as a facet of strategic communication in its effort to maintain a considerable reputation in Zimbabwe for ensuring its sailing through the vicious challenges from different political parties ever since the nation’s attainment of independence from British colonial rule. Using various components of pragmatics, the chapter makes a qualitative analysis of purposively sampled strategic communications by Mugabe and ZANU-PF to establish the extent to which they demonstrate proper exploitation (or lack) of research for strategic communication as a tool for reputation management during a period that was characterised by many hurdles.