Erasmus University Thesis Repository
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Market Responses to Corporate Carbon Emissions Disclosure: Studying the Effects of Environmental Impact Disclosure, Performance and Communication on the Stock Price of S&P 500 Companies
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The Effect of Indulgence vs. Restraint on Performance in Cross-Border Mergers & Acquisitions
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Dancing on Thin Ice: The BBC's Crisis Communication Strategies in Managing Strictly Come Dancing Controversies
No full textWhen the news becomes the story: How does the BBC handle reporting on its own crisis?
This study examines how the BBC navigated a critical reputational crisis involving allegations of
misconduct against professional dancers on Strictly Come Dancing, following complaints from
contestants regarding training methods and workplace culture. As both the programme's producer and
news broadcaster covering the controversy, the BBC found itself in a precarious position, reporting on these allegations impartially while maintaining institutional credibility.
Two critical questions drive this research: (1) How are crisis communication strategies
operationalised in the BBC's institutional communications during the Strictly Come Dancing crisis?
(2) How is the crisis framed across the BBC's institutional communications? As one of the oldest
public service broadcasters, with a mandated commitment to impartiality and transparency, the BBC
offers a particularly compelling case for examining institutional crisis communication in the context
of increasing public accountability pressures. This context provides valuable insights into institutional
self-coverage and the crisis communication strategies employed to manage both public perception and
organisational accountability.
Employing Situational Crisis Communication Theory (SCCT), Framing Theory, Reputation
Management and Image Repair Theory, this study examines how the BBC strategically controlled its
external messaging throughout the crisis. Through Qualitative Content Analysis of BBC sources,
including BBC News articles, public statements from victims and the accused, and formal apologies
from the BBC Director-General, the analysis identifies distinct communication patterns. The BBC
employed measured reporting and strategic distancing from implicated individuals, before shifting
toward controlled acknowledgement during peak crisis moments, suggesting institutional
responsiveness while avoiding full organisational responsibility. As allegations escalated and pressure
intensified, distinct communication patterns emerged from the BBC's deliberate use of strategies,
including denial, distancing, corrective measures, and narrative reframing.
This research contributes to crisis communication studies by examining how a public service
broadcaster addresses the complex challenge of reporting on internal crises while maintaining both
journalistic credibility and institutional reputation, providing insights into organisational
accountability within media institutions. Furthermore, it illustrates how traditional crisis
communication frameworks operate within public service media contexts, where commercial
reputational concerns conflict with democratic accountability obligations, and where tensions have
been revealed between institutional self-preservation and public service mandates during internal
organisational crises
Ethics in Social Media Marketing: How do practitioners balance ethical considerations with strategic goals in practice?
No full textThe digital landscape has evolved into a complex and potentially harmful environment. This study shifts the focus from platform owners to the practitioners who actively operate within the social media marketing (SMM) space. Central to this research is the concept of Ethical Marketing, which refers to the integrity of professional behavior. The study draws on the Business Ethics as Practice approach, which emphasizes ethical engagement as rooted in self-awareness and moral sensitivity. Motivated by the ideal of a non-exploitative digital ecosystem, this thesis aims to raise awareness and deliver strategic recommendations for ethical compliance. When genuinely implemented, such practices have been shown to enhance long-term business success. Therefore, a critical tension remains: are ethical stances authentic or self-serving? This research assumes that monetary profit often sidelines ethical responsibility towards consumers, who remain marginalized in marketing considerations. To explore this under-researched intersection of strategic and ethical imperatives, 10 semi-structured expert interviews were conducted. Sampling criteria was occupation only, defined as active engagement in the SMM field. Therefore, different accounts, ages, and nationalities form a broad sample. Such a heterogeneous group enabled nuanced and diverse findings. The central research question guiding the inquiry was: How do social media marketing practitioners manage and balance ethical considerations, such as data & privacy, transparency & authenticity wellbeing, or other negative side-effects, with economic needs while strategically ensuring the consumption of brands, products and social media content? Thematic analysis of the interview data revealed eight key insights: (I) Business objectives, especially profit, can compromise ethical integrity (II) Unethical practices are widespread within the SMM industry (III) Participants showed ethical awareness and active engagement (IV) Organizational practitioners reported stronger monetary prioritization than freelancers (V) Internal pressures can undermine ethical intentions (VI) Social media presents greater complexity than previous analogue marketing environments (VII) Ethical challenges impact not only users but also practitioners themselves (VIII) Digital addiction emerged as a frequently expressed concern. Overall, the findings suggest a fragmented landscape. While ethical awareness among practitioners is evident, the dominance of monetary objectives and the severity of emerging ethical challenges call for urgent reconsideration of marketing practices to prevent further harm
On the way to cultural democracy: public participation in Spanish cultural mediation programs
No full textIn a framework of cultural democracy, cultural entities are expected to consider audiences as active interlocutors with the right to access, participate and contribute to the cultural offer, creating space for their aesthetic tastes and social values while decentralizing cultural resources. However, literature shows that participation strategies are not at the heart of the cultural policy agenda yet.
Thus, cultural mediation programs become essential to foster a mutual exchange of knowledge between the institutions and the public, with a specific focus on listening, dialogue and co-creation. But not every program promotes the same level of participation, depending on aspects such as the artistic field; the target audience; the methodology; the level of influence on decision-making; or the role of the mediator, the artists and the participants.
In order to study how cultural mediation can promote different levels of public participation in Spanish cultural entities, a thematic analysis with a case study approach is performed, looking at six projects from three specific institutions: CDN (Centro Dramático Nacional), Concomitentes and Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza.
The collected data from the content analysis and the 15 interviews (with managers, mediators and participants) shows a wide variety of programs, which attempt to diversify their audiences and promote the cultural inclusion of under-represented communities -from people with disabilities to imprisoned women or migrants-. Despite their diverse interpretations of "participation", almost all the projects inform, consult and involve the participants in the decision-making process, while a few manage to collaborate with and empower them (International Association for Public Participation, 2018).
Additionally, certain elements are identified across cases as essential topics in the practice of cultural mediation at Spanish institutions. These include the jump from "access" to "participation"; the complex balance of time duration; the importance of creating "trust"; the connection of certain artistic fields with co-creation; or the need of an audience-oriented and holistic methodology with blurred lines between the different collaborating parties.
Although some of the analyzed programs can be considered "co-creative" -allowing to establish certain guidelines for an effective practice-, only two of them come close to "demand-based" and "hosted" mediation (Mörsch, 2014; Simon, 2010). Enabling the participants to take the initiative and "use" the institution as a platform seems to be the remaining challenge, especially due to the intangible barriers that prevent the organizations from accepting decentralized scales of cultural value and empowering citizens as leaders of the cultural offer
Negotiating Diaspora Cuisine
No full textRestaurants serving diaspora cuisine are vital cultural and symbolic spaces for the diaspora community, especially in cities heavily influenced by present and historical migration. The owners of these restaurants are placed in key roles to carry out the responsibilities of managing such a space while dealing with their own business endeavours. In pursuit of enriching current studies of gastronomy and the diaspora identity, this thesis examines how the owners of Indonesian restaurants in The Hague have positioned themselves in the diaspora cuisine landscape of the city.
To answer the research question, semi-structured expert interviews were conducted with the owners, or their counterparts, of 12 Indonesian restaurants in The Hague that spanned approximately 14 hours. The thematic analysis revealed that these owners do not have full autonomy over their positionalities which have instead been established through a negotiation with their diners, their competitors, structural constraints, and cultural responsibilities based on family legacy and their personal diaspora identity. This negotiation then manifests in a fragile balance of dual identities of being a culinary ambassador for the diaspora cuisine and being a viable entrepreneur, which, when compounded by tensions with other stakeholders, can manifest in an incoherent identity of the diaspora cuisine due to inconsistent representations across the network of restaurants. The ability of the owners to position themselves and represent their cuisine is also hindered by external limitations, such as immigration policies and import regulations.
This thesis contributes to existing literature and definitions on diaspora identity and diaspora cuisine, with a particular focus on culinary authenticity, memories, and entrepreneurial strategies. Additionally, this thesis calls for more acknowledgement to be given to the restaurant owners for their key roles in the construction of their diaspora cuisine, and for stronger institutional aid in support of their journey