Strategic organizational discourse and framing in hypermodal spaces
Corporate Communications: An International Journal
ISSN: 1356-3289
Article publication date: 2 October 2017
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore how organizations can strategically frame their legitimate perspective on a specific issue in order to gain salience and public support in a social media context.
Design/methodology/approach
By means of framing theory and a critical perspective on strategic discourse in hypermodal spaces, the study examines in detail the discursive strategies and framing processes employed by a non-profit organization that faces local and global contestation of its corporate operations.
Findings
Through a critical discourse analysis of the organization’s 385 Facebook posts during two periods of time, the results not only show how the corporate perspective is strategically framed and legitimized, but also challenged and consequently adapted in this hypermodal issue sub-arena. In addition to legitimizing the organizational perspective by providing evidence-based facts and external expert views as reliable and neutral sources, and echoing supporters’ voices and actions as further endorsements, the organization also strategically manages the Facebook dialogue by delegitimizing counterarguments.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the corporate communication field by revealing how framing can be materialized in specific discursive strategies aimed to legitimize and delegitimize. It shows how such strategies are interrelated in hypermodal clusters in ways that sustain the organizational discourse, and can evolve across time and within the same actor’s strategy. Methodologically, this study expands the research toolkit by introducing hypermodality in exploring framing and strategic organizational discourse.
Keywords
Citation
Ravazzani, S. and Maier, C.D. (2017), "Strategic organizational discourse and framing in hypermodal spaces", Corporate Communications: An International Journal, Vol. 22 No. 4, pp. 507-522. https://doi.org/10.1108/CCIJ-06-2017-0063
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2017, Emerald Publishing Limited