This book represents the definitive research collection for corporate social responsibility communication, offering cross-disciplinary and international perspectives from the top scholars in the field.

• Addresses a gap in the existing CSR literature


• Demonstrates the relevance of effective CSR communication for the management of organizations


• The 28 contributions come from top scholars in public relations, organizational communication, reputation management, marketing and management

Øyvind Ihlen is Professor of Media and Communication at the University of Oslo.

Jennifer Bartlett is Associate Professor of Advertising, Marketing and Public Relations at the Queensland University of Technology.

Steve May is Associate Professor of Communication Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

About the Editors viii

Notes on Contributors ix

Acknowledgments xxi

Part I Introduction 1

1 Corporate Social Responsibility and Communication 3
Øyvind Ihlen, Jennifer L. Bartlett and Steve May

2 The Paradoxes of Communicating Corporate Social Responsibility 23
Sandra Waddock and Bradley K. Googins

Part II Field Overviews 45

3 Management, Communication, and Corporate Social Responsibility 47
Jennifer L. Bartlett and Bree Devin

4 Public Relations and Corporate Social Responsibility 67
Jennifer L. Bartlett

5 Organizational Communication and Corporate Social Responsibility 87
Steve May

6 Marketing and Corporate Social Responsibility 110
Peggy Simcic Brønn

7 Reputation Management and Corporate Social Responsibility 128
Mark Eisenegger and Mario Schranz

8 Rhetoric and Corporate Social Responsibility 147
Øyvind Ihlen

Part III Corporate Social Responsibility Communication in Action 167

Concepts and Aspects

9 Ethics: Corporate Social Responsibility, Power and Strategic Communication 170
Jacquie L'Etang, Jairo Lugo-Ocando and Zeti Azreen Ahmad

10 Risk Communication and Corporate Social Responsibility: The Essence of Sound Management for Risk Bearers, Generators and Arbiters 188
Michael J. Palenchar, Tatjana M. Hocke and Robert L. Heath

11 Trust and Credibility as the Basis of Corporate Social Responsibility: (Mass-) Mediated Construction of Responsibility and Accountability 208
Günter Bentele and Howard Nothhaft

12 Corporate Social Responsibility Communication and Dialogue 231
UrSa Golob and Klement Podnar

13 Transparency and Neoliberal Logics of Corporate Economic and Social Responsibility 252
Majia Holmer Nadesan

14 The Concept of Stakeholders and its Relevance for Corporate Social Responsibility Communication 276
Juliana Raupp

15 Significance of Sector-Specific Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives: Status and Role in Different Sectors 295
Augustine Pang, Angela Mak and Joanne Mui-Hean Lee

Tools and Processes

16 Corporate (Social) Responsibility and Issues Management: Motive and Rationale for Issue Discourse and Organizational Change 316
Robert L. Heath and Michael J. Palenchar

17 Communicating Corporate Social Responsibility through Nonfinancial Reports 338
Elise Perrault Crawford and Cynthia Clark Williams

18 Communicating Corporate Social Responsibility through the Internet and Social Media 358
Paul Capriotti

19 Communicating Corporate Social Responsibility through Corporate Image Advertising 379
Alan A. Pomering

20 New Partnerships for a New Generation of Corporate Social Responsibility 399
Melissa J. Bator and Cynthia Stohl

21 Media Relations and Corporate Social Responsibility 423
Craig E. Carroll

22 NGOs as Communicative Actors within Corporate Social Responsibility Efforts 445
Sarah E. Dempsey

23 Communication and Corporate Social Responsibility: A Storytelling Perspective 467
Stefan Wehmeier and Friederike Schultz

Part IV Commentaries and Conclusions 489

24 Interrogating the Communicative Dimensions of Corporate Social Responsibility 491
Lars Thøger Christensen and George Cheney

25 A Provocation: Thinking the "Social" into Corporate Social Responsibility 505
Shirley Leitch and Judy Motion

26 Commentary: The View from Management 516
Güler Aras and David Crowther

27 The View from Organizational Studies: A Discourse-Based Understanding of Corporate Social Responsibility and Communication 534
David Grant and Daniel Nyberg

28 Conclusions and Take Away Points 550
Øyvind Ihlen, Jennifer L. Bartlett and Steve May

Name Index 572

Subject Index 580