Disclosure Media Research Articles

Relationship breakup disclosures and media ideologies on Facebook

After relationship breakups, people must make difficult decisions about whether and how to convey this change in a networked environment. To understand and characterize behaviors around breakup disclosures, we analyzed survey responses from 119 US Facebook users who reported experiencing a recent breakup. Using mixed methods, we find that those perceiving Facebook as a more efficient disclosure medium are more likely to announce breakups. We show how media ideologies around Facebook breakup disclosures vary; yet people assume others hold similar beliefs about what is appropriate. We contribute to self-disclosure and online identity literature by identifying two new ways people engage in disclosure and self-presentation on social media: announcements, which highlight how social media can serve as efficient one-to-many disclosure sources, and private status change behaviors, a reflexive means of self-presentation. Understanding breakup disclosures provides insight into designing social media to better enable users to find support during difficult life transitions.

Risky Business: Disclosures of Risky Behavior Among Emerging Adults in the Digital Age

Communication within peer networks can encourage or discourage health risk behaviors among emerging adults, such as binge drinking and sexual hookups. This research considers how emerging adults respond to disclosure of risky behavior from friends depending on the medium for disclosure. College students reported on risk disclosures received when interacting over rich media (e.g., face-to-face, phone, video chat) or lean media (e.g., texting, e-mail, instant messaging). Students showed less concern for managing identity and emotive impacts of the interaction when communicating via lean media, and they responded by disconfirming the disclosure if they privately disapproved. By contrast, responses to risk disclosure via rich media were characterized by greater goal complexity and did not relate to private approval/disapproval of risky behavior.

How Disclosure Medium Affects Investor Reactions to CEO Bragging, Modesty, and Humblebragging

We examine if investor expectations of two common disclosure mediums (conference calls and Twitter) interact with a CEO’s communication style to influence investor judgments. Consistent with theory, results show that when the disclosure medium is a conference call, investors are less willing to invest when the CEO is modest about positive firm performance compared to when the CEO brags. In contrast, when the disclosure medium is Twitter, investors are less willing to invest when the CEO brags about positive firm performance compared to when the CEO is modest. Further analysis reveals that perceived CEO credibility mediates the influence of a CEO’s communication style and disclosure medium on investor judgments. Additionally, we find that regardless of the disclosure medium, investors are less willing to invest in a firm when the CEO humblebrags about positive firm performance relative to when he brags or is modest. Our study contributes to the emerging literature on social media and disclosures, and to the literature investigating how style features of disclosures influence investor judgments. Our results also have practical implications for firms and managers developing communication strategies for new disclosure mediums like Twitter.

Text versus Video Disclosure of Forward-Looking Information: The Effect of Non-Verbal Cues on Investors' Judgments

We conduct two experiments to examine how investors react to nonverbal cues of certainty as displayed by a CEO communicating forward-looking information via the relatively new and emerging medium of video. Results of the first experiment suggest that, at least for the setting we examine, investors react more negatively (do not react more positively) to a video disclosure when the CEO displays nonverbal cues of uncertainty (certainty), relative to the same disclosure delivered via audio or written text. A second experiment reveals that the lack of a positive reaction to the certain CEO in the video may be due to investors’ belief that the CEO has incentives to convey certainty via nonverbal cues. Indeed, even a subsequent good-news realization—which should add credibility to the CEO’s certainty cues—does not change this perception. Our study has implications for firms considering video as a medium for disclosure.

ANALISIS EMPIRIS FAKTOR YANG MEMENGARUHI NILAI PERUSAHAAN HIGH PROFILE DI INDONESIA

This study aims to analyze the factors that affect the company value (empirical study on high profile companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange period 2011- 2014). The sample in this research were 37 companies. Data were analyzed by using path analysis.The results showed that the profitability, public ownership, board of commissioners, media disclosure, leverage, and managerial ownership have no effect on disclosure of corporate social responsibility. Political costs have effect on disclosure of corporate social responsibility. profitability, political costs and leverage affect the company value. Public ownership, board of commissioners, managerial ownership and disclosure of corporate social responsibility have no effect on the value company. Profitability, political costs, public ownership, board of commissioners, media disclosure, leverage and managerial ownership have no effect on disclosure of corporate social responsibility simultaneously. Profitability, political costs, public ownership, board of commissioners, leverage, managerial ownership and disclosure of corporate social responsibility have effect on value company simultaneously.Studi ini bertujuan menganalisis secara empiris faktor-faktor yang memengaruhi nilai perusahaan pada perusahaan high profile yang terdaftar di Bursa Efek Indonesia periode 2011-2014. Sampel dalam penelitian ini adalah 37 perusahaan high profile di Bursa Efek Indonesia. Data dianalisis dengan menggunakan analisis jalur. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa Profitabilitas, Kepemilikan Saham Publik, Dewan Komisaris, Media Pengungkapan, Leverage dan Kepemilikan Saham Manajerial tidak berpengaruh pada Pengungkapan Corporate Social Responsibility. Biaya politik memiliki pengaruh pada Pengungkapan Corporate Social Responsibility. Profitabilitas, Biaya Politis dan leverage memiliki pengaruh pada nilai Perusahaan. Kepemilikan Saham publik, Dewan Komisaris, Kepemilikan Saham Manajerial dan Pengungkapan Tanggung Jawab Sosial Perusahaan tidak berpengaruh pada Nilai Perusahaan. Profitabilitas, Biaya Politis, Kepemilikan Saham Publik, Dewan Komisaris, Pengungkapan Media, Leverage dan Kepemilikan Saham Manajerial tidak berpengaruh pada Pengungkapan Corporate Social Responsibility secara bersamaan. Profitabilitas, Biaya Politis, Kepemilikan Saham Publik, Dewan Komisaris, Leverage, Pengungkapan Kepemilikan Saham Manajerial dan Corporate Social Responsibility memiliki pengaruh pada nilai perusahaan secara simultan

Investorss Attention and Social Media: Evidence from Innovative SMEs

In this study focused on innovative Small and Medium Entities (SMEs), I investigate the impact of social media (i.e., Twitter and Facebook) information on investors’ attention. Given that investors’ attention is a scarce resource, social media disclosure can play an important role in increasing the saliency of a stock during earnings announcement. It allows managers to directly communicate to investors with low direct costs and without intermediaries. This new communication method is particularly relevant for innovative SMEs since they operate in a complex and uncertain environment, which is also characterized by a lack of media coverage. At the same time, this type of firm is often criticized for providing opaque and scarce information to outsiders, through traditional public communication channels. Moreover, it is still an open question whether investors pay attention to news conveyed through social media, especially concerning firms with little visibility. I examine SMEs listed on the AIM London stock exchange, an exchange for firms of smaller size, over the 2007-2015 period. I show that the presence on social media and the disclosure of financial information lead to higher investors’ attention. Social media communication also affects stock prices, leading innovative SMEs to strategically use social media. I document that innovative SMEs communicate more on social media when they are about to disclose bad news. This paper contributes to the literature on investors’ attention, on the burgeoning discussion around new channels of communication and their relevance for firms with low visibility and to the debate over the demand for additional information to innovative firms of smaller size.

The use of Facebook pages as voluntary disclosure media: an analysis of intellectual capital disclosures in ASX 200 companies

Researchers in the past have used annual reports to analyse intellectual capital (IC) disclosures. In response to the recent concern on the timeliness issue of annual reports, this research provides empirical evidence on IC disclosures among top Australian companies, using their Facebook pages. The similar focus of previous IC disclosures in the annual reports and the previous core focus of social media indicates that social media is viable alternative media for companies to disclose IC. Furthermore, Facebook has been the most popular social media among Australians and Australian businesses. This research is important in that it addresses IC disclosures from the social media perspective, an area of research in non-marketing disclosure study in social media which is under investigated. This research documents that Facebook has been used by ASX 200 high IC companies to disclose their IC information. Similar to previous research on IC disclosures research in annual reports, this research reveals that external capital is the most disclosed category on companies' Facebook pages and customers are the most disclosed IC sub-category. Further, this research also documents a two-way communication process on the companies' Facebook pages and shows that the companies have responded and communicated well with their stakeholders.

The use of Facebook pages as voluntary disclosure media: an analysis of intellectual capital disclosures in ASX 200 companies

The use of Facebook pages as voluntary disclosure media: an analysis of intellectual capital disclosures in ASX 200 companies

Economic consequences of SEC regulation pertaining to financial expert definition

This paper examines the economic effects of issue dates pertaining to the definition of audit committee financial expert regulation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and discussion of the definition by news services on firms traded on U.S. equity exchanges. This research study uses the methodology of Zhang (2007) to extend DeFond, Hann and Hu (2005) and Krishnan and Visvanathan (2008) by using event dates previously untested to provide additional insights regarding SOX regulation and market perceptions of this required disclosure of voluntary appointment of financial experts to corporate audit committees. Using stock market returns, the findings from this study suggest that companies traded on U.S. capital markets and subject to SEC regulatory requirements experienced significant negative returns around SEC financial expert regulation event dates, while media disclosure events were mostly not significant. Also, larger firms were more negatively impacted than smaller firms by this new SOX requirement.

Communicating corporate social responsibility via telecommunications websites

Many organizations engage in and also endeavor to report their corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities to placate the key stakeholders in society. This study is a cross-country analysis of CSR themes communicated by the eight top telecommunications companies in Africa using websites as a disclosure medium. The study evaluates CSR reportage in community involvement, ethical involvement, product and customer, human resource and environmental engagement in South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria and Kenya. The work concludes that the telecommunications companies in Africa sampled in the study are committed to and report their CSR activities. However, significant differences do exist in how the various companies reported on their CSR. The South African firms clearly lead in reporting CSR in most of the constructs investigated. However, the sampled firms all reported their contributions to education and community engagement. The work makes significant contributions to CSR reportage, especially in the area of cross-country analysis of CSR themes.

Differential reporting of social and environmental disclosures between local and foreign oil companies in Nigeria

PurposeThis study aims to identify the differences between local and foreign companies’ social and environmental disclosures (SEDs) practices operating in the Nigerian oil sector. It aims at distinguishing SED levels by comparing local and foreign companies operating in the oil sector.Design/methodology/approachThe paper analyses annual reports through content analysis. SED extent and type are measured by the number of sentences. SEDs are further classified into three subcategories according to whether they are negative, neutral or positive disclosures and then their proportions are compared through descriptive analysis. To better understand SED differences, the Kruskal–Wallis and Mann–Whitney–Wilcoxon tests are used.FindingsLocal companies are found to provide more content and a wider variety of SED than foreign companies. The majority of the total SEDs in both local and foreign companies are positive with very little evidence of negative news.Research limitations/implicationsThe measurement of SEDs focuses on only annual reports, without consideration of other disclosure media such as standalone reports and corporate websites. SEDs are assumed to be voluntary for the companies and they may choose not to disclose any information in annual reports, as there are no regulations or disclosure guidelines in Nigeria to be followed.Originality/valueThe main contribution of this study lies in identifying the factors that have led to diversity and uniqueness in SED between local and foreign oil companies. As such, this study seeks to contribute to the development of understanding multiple factors that could give rise to changing patterns of SED.

Diseases Neglected by the Media in Espírito Santo, Brazil in 2011-2012.

BackgroundThe aims of the present study were to identify and analyse the Diseases Neglected by the Media (DNMs) via a comparison between the most important health issues to the population of Espírito Santo, Brazil, from the epidemiological perspective (health value) and their effective coverage by the print media, and to analyse the DNMs considering the perspective of key journalists involved in the dissemination of health topics in the state media.MethodologyMorbidity and mortality data were collected from official documents and from Health Information Systems. In parallel, the diseases reported in the two major newspapers of Espírito Santo in 2011–2012 were identified from 10,771 news articles. Concomitantly, eight interviews were conducted with reporters from the two newspapers to understand the journalists’ reasons for the coverage or neglect of certain health/disease topics.Principal FindingsQuantitatively, the DNMs identified diseases associated with poverty, including tuberculosis, leprosy, schistosomiasis, leishmaniasis, and trachoma. Apart from these, diseases with outbreaks in the period evaluated, including whooping cough and meningitis, some cancers, respiratory diseases, ischaemic heart disease, and stroke, were also seldom addressed by the media. In contrast, dengue fever, acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), diabetes, breast cancer, prostate cancer, tracheal cancer, and bronchial and lung cancers were broadly covered in the period analysed, corroborating the tradition of media disclosure of these diseases. Qualitatively, the DNMs included rare diseases, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), leishmaniasis, Down syndrome, and verminoses. The reasons for the neglect of these topics by the media included the political and economic interests of the newspapers, their editorial line, and the organizational routine of the newsrooms.ConclusionsMedia visibility acts as a strategy for legitimising priorities and contextualizing various realities. Therefore, we propose that the health problems identified should enter the public agenda and begin to be recognized as legitimate demands.

The Response in Twitter to an Assisted Suicide in a Television Soap Opera.

Concern has been expressed about the potentially contagious effect of television soap opera suicides and suicidal language in social media. Twitter content was analyzed during the week in which a fictional assisted suicide was broadcast on a British television soap opera, "Coronation Street." Tweets were collected if they contained language indicating possible suicidal intent or used the word suicide. The modified Thompson tau method was used to test for any differences in the volume of tweets in both categories on the day of screening. Content analysis broke down the use of the word suicide into six thematic categories. There was no evidence on the day of screening of an increase in tweets expressing possible suicidal intent but there was an increase in tweets containing the word suicide. Content analysis found the most common thematic category to be information or support, followed by the raising of moral issues in relation to suicide. It is possible that for certain high-profile media events Twitter may be used more as a civic reactive forum than as a medium for introspection or disclosure of distress.

Do board interlocks motivate voluntary disclosure? Evidence from Taiwan

Conference calls have become a widely used medium for voluntary corporate disclosure, especially among firms associated with greater information asymmetry, intangible assets, and external competition. These features are common in high-tech sectors, which dominate the Taiwanese economy and render it a useful research setting for investigating whether board interlock, as a social network, affects corporate decisions to hold conference calls. We show that firms connected to conference-call-making firms through interlocked directors are more likely to hold conference calls and the frequency of holding conference calls increases with interlocking directors’ relevant experience. Moreover, such evidence is more pronounced if the connections are held through independent directors and among firms with greater information asymmetry. These results support the argument that the spread of corporate practices is positively associated with board interlock networks. Our findings have implications for the choice of board of director members, and can be generalized to other emerging economies characterized by weaker corporate information environments.

Come on Over: Analyst/Investor Days as a Disclosure Medium

ABSTRACT Our study introduces analyst/investor days, a new disclosure medium that allows for private interactions with influential market participants. We also highlight interdependencies in the choice and information content of analyst/investor days and conference presentations, a well-researched disclosure medium that similarly allows for private interactions. Analyst/investor days are less frequent, but with longer duration and greater price impact than conference presentations. They are mostly hosted by firms that already have opportunities to interact with investors at conferences, but whose complex and diverse activities make the short duration and rigid format of a conference presentation an imperfect solution to these firms' information problems. Analyst/investor days and conference presentations tend to occur in different quarters, consistent with their competing for the time and attention of senior management. When these two mediums are scheduled in close temporal proximity to each other, analyst/investor days diminish the information content of conference presentations, but not vice versa, consistent with managers' favoring analyst/investor days over conference presentations as a disclosure medium. JEL Classifications: D82; M41; G11; G12; G14. Data Availability: Data are publicly available from the sources identified in the paper.

Linguistic Formality and Perceived Engagement Investorss Reactions to Two Unique Characteristics of Social Media Disclosures

As firms increasingly use social media to provide disclosures to investors, it is important to understand whether the characteristics that are associated with these disclosures lead to different reactions from investors than disclosures provided via more traditional channels. In this paper, we use an experiment to examine whether linguistic formality in positive news disclosures, and engagement of social media users surrounding the disclosures (e.g., “likes” and “retweets”), affect investors’ judgments about a firm and its management. Results suggest that, as predicted, investors are more sensitive to signals of audience engagement when disclosures use informal rather than formal language. Specifically, when associated with signals of high audience engagement, the use of informal language leads to greater willingness to invest than the use of formal language in a disclosure. However, also as predicted, the use of informal language hurts willingness to invest when associated with signals of low audience engagement. In two follow-up experiments, we investigate how news valence and linguistic formality are expected to affect the level of audience engagement in the first place, and we investigate whether managers strategically vary their use of linguistic formality based on characteristics of the setting. Overall, our results provide evidence on how firms might use social media disclosures to better connect with investors. This study contributes to the growing literature on linguistic attributes of disclosures, and the emerging literature investigating the consequences of issuing financial disclosures through social media.

Buzzing with disclosure of social shopping rewards

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the dilemma that is based on a decision to disclose or not to disclose social shopping rewards (SSRs), in an effort to enhance the effectiveness of social shopping. To protect consumers and guide marketers, emergent forms of online commerce on social media platforms warrant closer examination. One such form is social shopping, which combines social media and online shopping. To motivate word of mouth (WOM) through social signs of approval or endorsement of brands, marketers have typically relied on social shopping rewards (SSRs). It is not typical, however, for the reason behind the social endorsement to be disclosed, leaving the branded message open to multiple interpretations. Design/methodology/approach – The dilemma of SSR disclosures is presented in a marketing and public policy analysis, drawing from findings from the WOM literature on disclosure, incentives, source credibility and on social media Disclosure Guidelines by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA). Based on this analysis and on an extension of the Dual Credibility Model, a conceptual model is proposed that shows how disclosure works through source credibility to produce positive social shopping outcomes. Findings – In addition to the conceptual model, recommendations are made for marketing research, practice and public policy. Of significance are proposed SSR Disclosure Guidelines that extend FTC and WOMMA guidelines for best practices in disclosures in social media. Originality/value – This paper represents pioneering research on the disclosure of SSRs.

Phd Thesis: International Perspective: The Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility Reports on Analysts' Coverage and Forecast Properties: Evidence from Ft Global 500

Phd Thesis: International Perspective: The Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility Reports on Analysts' Coverage and Forecast Properties: Evidence from Ft Global 500

An analysis of the determinants of corporate governance disclosure policies in multinational enterprises: A multi- medium study

This research aims to identify the factors underlying the corporate governance disclosure policies of the world’s largest multinational companies (MNCs) based on the following: (1) national factors related to the MNCs’ home countries (2) governance factors related to their governance systems and (3) operational factors arising from the operational characteristics of the MNCs. Methodology – Our sample includes 159 MNCs from 24 countries representing three geographic regions. The corporate governance disclosure policy is examined in terms of level and quality of disclosed information in two different mediums (traditional i.e .paper vs. websites). Results – Multiple linear regressions indicate that national factors, especially cultural ones, are important determinants of MNCs corporate governance disclosure policy in the traditional print mediums. National factors, however, seem to play no part in governance disclosures on the internet but can rather be explained by the international MNCs listing status. Practical implications – This study could guide the harmonization efforts of international standard setters in identifying factors leading to different governance disclosure behaviors and the disclosure medium most influenced by these factors.

Disclosure on climate change: Analysing the UK ETS effects

The objective of this paper is to explore the nature of disclosure on climate change in annual and standalone reports of organisations who took part in the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (UK ETS). This article uses content analysis to codify disclosure in order to compare disclosure in different media as well as the possible effect that membership in an emissions trading scheme may have had on reporting. The results suggest the UK ETS was associated with differences in disclosure. This study contributes to the literature by providing a longitudinal study in two disclosure media in the UK ETS context.