human
Give me essay regarding image restoration theory refers to a set of strategies designed to help organizations and/or individuals to restore positive public image. Give me Handout only.
assistant
The image restoration theory refers to a set of strategies designed to help organizations and/or individuals to restore positive public image. This theory underscores the different strategies that individuals, organization, and countries among others use when faced with the possibility of image destruction.
When image is threated, the reputation of the victim is at risk, and thus the image restoration theory offers a solution to this problem. At times, organizations and individuals face threats to their reputation, and in such cases, they have to invoke the image restoration theory’s provisions to restore their reputation.
Generally, organizations tend to enhance their cooperation with the media in times of crisis, thus creating a single information center to avoid rumors spreading to the public. Other strategies incorporated in dealing with conflicts that are likely to damage the reputation of an organization include denial, blame shifting, and mortification.
This paper seeks to analyze the key elements of the image restoration theory and explain practical examples of organizations and states that have used the theory successfully to restore positive public image. The paper shall specifically analyze the Middle East case, the Firestone’s image restoration campaign, and The ValuJet’s crisis.
A cross section of researchers has devoted considerable time and resources attempting to identify efficient strategies to improve the theory. Therefore, theory may be highly effective in the future following the implementation of research findings.
Some of the key resources for this paper include works by William Benoit who is credited for being one of the founders of the theory. Others include Timothy Coombs, Joseph Blaney, and LeAnn Brazeal among others as listed in the reference list at the end of this paper.
human
Give me #Communication Strategies: Image Restoration Theory Research Paper section.
assistant
human
How about a Introduction section.
assistant
Currently, the society cannot overstate the significance of image. In most cases involving threats to reputation, individuals and organizations respond by applying various strategies in defense of their image. This paper explores the theory of image restoration as a tool of solving strategic conflict in corporations.
The paper also seeks to advance the current concept of the theory of image repair through the evaluation of whether strategies of image repair, sources of information, communicative agents, and the phase of a crisis influence the nature of reporting news.
In a bid to achieve this objective, the paper will incorporate content analysis of tourism in the Middle East, Firestone, and the case of ValuJet Flight 592 in the evaluation of the case of the BP’s oil spill in 2006.The paper begins with a research of the theory of image restoration. In the last part of the paper, the paper will discuss the future research in relation to the theory of image restoration.
Literature review
According to Benoit and Hanczor (1994), image entails perceptions of individuals or organizations as revealed by the audience. Benoit (1995) contends that perceptions shared by audience arise from the actions and words of the messenger. With reference to the BP’s oil spill, it is evident that apart from the public entities, private organizations are subjected to accountability.
From the aftermath of the scandal, the significance of image repair emerged as an integral part of managing organizational conflicts. According to Blaney, Benoit, and Brazeal (2002), undesired activities of an organization can contribute to the damaging of the company’s reputation and image.
Benoit (1997) further contends that the perception of the audience contributes to the damaging of an organization’s reputation. Research shows “the prevalence of the proportional relationship between the extent of damage to the reputation and the responsibility held by the person or organization responsible for the damage” (Benoit, 1995, p. 79).
With reference to the response to crises and image repair, most researchers rarely recommend casual research. In the 1990s, Benoit (1995) formulated the concept of image repair theory, thus encouraging most researchers to formulate strategies of image repair in relation to his context.
According to Englehardt, Sallot, and Springston (2004), approaches to image repair entail descriptive analysis of rhetorical cases. In such cases, authors are inclined to the benefits or failures of a particular strategy, thus providing insufficient and biased information for decision-making.
The trend prevails because casual studies highlight “a variety of issues that affect the ability of an organization to rescue it image and reputation following a crisis (Coombs, 1998, p. 187). The two factors are crucial, especially when considering the strategy to use in repairing image of the affected company (Coombs, 1998).
Coombs and Holladay (2002) support this argument by adding that the reputation of an organizationis another significant factor that influences the strategy of image repair. In a study of tourism in the Middle Eastern countries, Avraham (2013) holds that perceptions of the people contribute to the deterioration of the image of tourism in the region.
However, the media in the Middle East focuses on adverse subjects such as war, conflicts, and terrorism, thus confirming and compounding the people’s negative perceptions towards the region. The researcher attributes crisis in the region’s tourism to negative image, stereotypes, and conflicts (Avraham, 2013).
Further, Avraham (2013) highlights the significance of media in correcting the reputation and image of the tourism sector in the Middle East. With the aim of expanding empirical research on crisis and image of an organization, Avraham (2013) advocates the consideration of factors such as culture in relation to stereotypes and media coverage to impact strategies of image repair.
Blaney et al. (2002) use the case of Firestone to highlight the concept of image restoration in an organization. The researchers note that Firestone attributed its crisis to the actions of Ford, which affected its reputation and image.
However, shifting blame to Ford contributed to the application of inappropriate measures of image recovery, thus failing to address the prevailing problems at Firestone. Although Firestone resorted to using the approach of bolstering as a mitigation measure, inadequate finances contributed to the failure of the approach (Blaney et al., 2002).
These studies highlight the significance of the contingency theory in the management of conflicts that affect reputation of an organization. Coombs (1999) defines the contingency theory as the dynamics that operate both inside and outside an organization and influence an accommodative stance.
The BP oil spill crisis
The BP’s oil spill crisis started in 2006, but climaxed with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill that occurred toward the end of April 2010. Following the explosion and sinking of an oilrigoperated by BP in the Gulf of Mexico, approximately 11 people perished in the accident that also contributed to polluting the sea.
As one of the largest spill accidents in the petroleum industry, it attracted the attention of different sections of society, with the media playing an active role of reporting on the crisis. The federal government of the United States approximated that the explosion discharged five million barrels of crude oil into the sea (Ifill, 2014). However, it took approximately 90 days for experts to contain leakages.
However, sources from media indicate that the well continues to leak even to date despite prior reports from the government that the experts had contained the situation (Ifill, 2014). BP responded by implementing various measures to protect wetlands, estuaries through floating booms, dispersants, and controlled burns among other methods.
However, by the time the situation was under control, extensive damage had happened to the wildlife and marine habits, which contributed to adverse effects on tourism. Investigations conducted in 2011 revealed faultyoilrigs covered with defective cement as the cause of the accident.
Furthermore, the accident was attributed to insignificant industrial practices and policies of the government that failed to ensure the implementation of adequate measures of safety. Apart from adhering to criminal charges toward the end of 2012, BP cooperated with the federal government in monitoring the company’s safety practices.
Following the sanctions, relatively high level of interests from the media and environmental agencies continued at the company. Even to date, the media scrutinizes and reports various events related to this crisis (Ifill, 2014).
Theoretical Framework
In a bid to counter the image destruction that was posed by the spill, BP employed the image repair theory in its communication strategies. In most cases, companies use both image repair and the contingency theory for the communication of crises and management of conflicts.
According to Burns and Bruner (2000), in public relations, the theory of image repair is embedded in the context of politics and social science. In the course of developing the theory, researchers identified five strategies in relation to the repair of image and restoration of a company’s reputation (Burns & Bruner, 2000).
Benoit and Pang (2008) supported these claims by identifying strategies of image repair to include corrective actions, denial, reducing offensiveness, mortification, and evasion of responsibility.
Firestone’s image restoration campaign
Firestone Corporation is a tire manufacturing company situated in the US. The company is believed to be the major contributor of about 271 deaths (Blaney et al., 2002). The deaths posed great challenges to the company’s reputation to the extent that its top managers had to intervene to restore its image.
The deaths were believed to be caused by structural deficiencies in the company’s tires (Hwang & Cameron, 2009). In efforts to save the company, the CEOs employed certain strategies described herein.
human
Give me Mortification section. Start with the words 'The ValuJet’s executives'.
assistant
The ValuJet’s executives expressed sorrow and sympathy for the families of the deceased immediately after occurrence of the accident. In a press conference, the company’s CEO apologized to the public for the damage caused by the accident. Even though the company did not fully admit liability over its recklessness, it was apologetic to the public and promised zero accidents in the future.
Shifting blame
Soon after the accident, the company worked hard to pass the blame to SabreTech, its maintenance company (Burns & Bruner, 2000). ValuJet claimed that SabreTech wrongfully mislabeled the oxygen cans thus causing inconveniences, which resulted in the accident.According to Benoit (1999), passing blame is one of the strategies applicable in the image restoration theory, and thus the company’s action was consistent with the theory.
Cooperation with the media
The company’s executives were quick to respond to the crisis through one-on-one interview over the media (Ifill, 2014). The quick response is consistent with the image restoration theory since it prevents the spread of bad rumors regarding company and ensures that updates come from a central point.
According to Benoit and Hanczor (1994), cooperating with the media is a good way of protecting corporate image especially after such crises. The company’s CEO was the sole spokesperson during the incident, thus eliminating chances of negative rumors spreading to the public.
human
Give me Conclusion section.
assistant
The image restoration theory denotes a set of strategies that can be employed to cut down the damage to the reputation of a certain organization or individual. William Benoit is credited for being one of the founders of the theory.
Currently, prominent individuals and companies are engaged in scandalous affairs and they will be forced to employ this theory in a bid to save their image. For instance, when the war in Syria ends, the incoming leadership will definitely use this theory to save it shattered image.
The Snowden case suffices to conclude that the future will be riddled with the application of image restoration theory. Currently, Russia is using this theory to save its image after the ornery invasion and occupation of Ukraine. Israel uses this image all the time to justify its invasion and occupation across the West Bank. Therefore, moving forward, this theory will be applied widely in the future.
human
Add another sentence about Individuals, showing, increased, engaging.
assistant
The image restoration theory denotes a set of strategies that can be employed to cut down the damage to the reputation of a certain organization or individual. William Benoit is credited for being one of the founders of the theory. 
Currently, prominent individuals and companies are engaged in scandalous affairs and they will be forced to employ this theory in a bid to save their image. For instance, when the war in Syria ends, the incoming leadership will definitely use this theory to save it shattered image. Individuals are showing increased tendency of engaging in image-tarnishing behaviors and governments are in it too. 
The Snowden case suffices to conclude that the future will be riddled with the application of image restoration theory. Currently, Russia is using this theory to save its image after the ornery invasion and occupation of Ukraine. Israel uses this image all the time to justify its invasion and occupation across the West Bank. Therefore, moving forward, this theory will be applied widely in the future.
human
Give me Denial section. End with the sentence 'The strategies employed by the company are explained herein.'
assistant
The other strategy employed by Firestone in an attempt to restore its reputation is denial and shift of blame (Hwang & Cameron, 2009). The company’s management on several occasions denied having produced structural deficient tires and passed the blame to its customers by asserting that the accidents occurred due to carelessness on the part of the users (Blaney et al., 2002).
Ford Explorer was specifically identified by Firestone as the cause of the accidents since it recorded a larger number of accidents as compared to other users. Firestone CEOs asserted that the accidents would be prevented if the tires were inflated properly.
Middle East countries
Crises can affect a country’s reputation negatively. Crises may be either short-term or long-term depending on the length of time taken (Blaney et al., 2002). Crises take many different forms ranging from ethnical and religious wars to terrorist attacks that have increased in the recent past.
Terror attacks have had an increasing trend over the past few decades. In countries most affected by the attacks, their reputation may diminish amongst the public. A case in point is the Middle East’s terror attacks that have recurred from time to time.
Media coverages on the attacks and their recurrence have affected the countries’ reputation negatively, which requires strategies to restore public image. Statistics indicate a great decrease in the annual tourists in the affected countries, thus leading to decreased income from the tourism industry (Benoit & Pang, 2008).
The fall of the tourism industry in the Middle East countries is linked to the poor security in the country, which is caused by the recurring terrorist attacks. However, marketers from the Middle East have come up with a number of strategies aimed at restoring the region’s positive public image.
They have specifically adopted the conceptual framework of the multistep model for altering place image, which comprises three major components, viz. source, message, and audience. In most cases, terrorists target western tourists to earn international media coverage.
Terrorism directed to westerners is harmful to the tourism sector. The entry of terrorists into the media prompted experts to formulate strategies aimed at cutting down the attacks. The Middle East has unique landscapes and it hosts about three different religions.
The west is specifically the main tourism client of the Middle East and terrorist attacks may thus affect the sector adversely. The assumption that Arab countries are violent and inhuman has destroyed the image of the Middle East. In addition, there is an assumption that Arab nations are intolerant and they hate westernization.
An attack in one country is taken as an attack in every country in the Middle East (Avraham, 2013). This generalization has negative impacts across the entire region, thus making the tourism sector less resourceful. The Middle East policymakers adopted three major strategies, viz. “source-focused strategies, message strategies, and audience-focused strategies” (Blaney et al., 2002, p. 381).
Source-Focused Strategies
The Middle East, after recognizing the role of the media in destroying its image, has come up with strategies aimed at mobilizing journalists to join hands with marketers and policymakers in restoring a positive public image (Benoit & Pang, 2008). Among the steps taken under the source-focused strategies is to cooperate with the media, regulate media coverage, and block some media companies that are in defiance with the set regulations.
In order to foster positive relations with the media, government officials regularly come into direct contact with journalists to report on the progress of events as they unfold. This move is meant to ensure uniformity of the news aired by different media houses and deter the media from airing news based on rumors.
In some countries within the region, strict rules regulate the media. Journalists are barred from covering certain events that may destroy a country’s image. In the past, journalists have been arrested and even convicted for covering news perceived to be damaging a country’s image.
In other cases, the media is prevented from covering certain events that are perceived to be harmful to the country’s image. Media blockage has been evident in Palestine in the recent past. For example, in 2011, Palestine security officials deterred a journalist from the Associated Press from covering an event that involved locals celebrating an attack made on westerners (Avraham, 2013).
Message Strategies
Under this strategy, the involved parties have various unique ways of handling terrorism cases. One of the message strategies is ignoring or rather disregarding a crisis. In most Middle East countries, marketers have responded to terrorist attacks by disregarding their intensity and remaining silent on their effects.
Egypt has used this strategy in an attempt to restore a positive image of the country. Government officials in the country have disregarded terrorist attacks and even failed to report on the consistency of the attacks (Ifill, 2014). Limiting strategy is yet another message strategy used in trying to restore a country’s image (Benoit & Pang, 2008).
Under the strategy, an attack is shown as limited to just a certain area. The aforementioned strategy aims at encouraging tourists to visit other areas not affected by the attacks as opposed to generalization of insecurity.
Acknowledging a crisis is yet another strategy employed by the Middle East countries in an attempt to regain a positive image. The strategy involves recognizing a crisis and using the new era slogans to portray that the country has changed. Iraq employs this tactic in a bid to restore its image.
On several occasions, the country’s tourism department has emphasized that the country is now changed (Benoit & Pang, 2008). Another technique used by the Middle East is hosting international sports and cultural events (Benoit & Pang, 2008). Such events are meant to attract the attention of both the local and the international media so that they shift their attention from airing news on the attack that may have the effect of damaging a country’s image.
Various countries in the Middle East have successfully employed the aforementioned strategy in an attempt to restore a positive image. For instance, Yemen hosted an international soccer tournament [Gulf Cup] in 2010 to divert the attention of the international media (Avraham, 2013). The tournament portrayed the country as one that is peaceful as opposed to the perception that it is a battleground of terror attacks.
Audience-Focused Strategies
Audience focused strategies focus on creating a positive image to the audience. The strategy has the effect of eliminating the perception that the Middle East loathes the west (Avraham, 2013). Under the strategy, a country is portrayed as being similar to other countries in terms of human rights and democracy (Englehardt et al., 2004).
Marketers and policymakers in the Middle East have employed these strategies to show their willingness to work with western countries. For example, Tunisia demonstrated its willingness to work with the US and the western countries to preserve peace especially after its series of terrorist attacks.
Another example of a country that has successfully used this technique is Saudi Arabia (Benoit & Pang, 2008). The country launched a campaign against terror and demonstrated its close ties with the US after the 9/11 attacks (Benoit & Pang, 2008).
The ValuJet’s crisis
ValuJet started its operations in 1993 by offering more affordable airline services than its competitors (Benoit, 1997). The company, in its initial stages, was promising and it outshined other airline service providers such Delta Airlines (Englehardt et al., 2004).
The company was under scrutiny for safety issues even before the ill-fated ValuJet Flight 592 crash, which occurred in 1996, thus marking the beginning of the company’s downfall. ValuJet employed strategies similar to those employed by the firestone company in an attempt to restore a positive image. The strategies employed by the company are explained herein.
human
Give me Mortification section.
assistant
The company’s officials partially accepted liability for their irresponsible act that caused mass deaths. On several occasions, the company apologized to its customers and especially to the family and friends of the deceased (Benoit & Pang, 2008).
Apologizing to the concerned individuals is an effective way of regaining trust from customers and the company employed this tactic to achieve its purpose (Hwang & Cameron, 2009). Masatoshi Ono, the then CEO, at one instance was recorded apologizing to the public following the accidents that claimed lives of pedestrians.
Even after Masatoshi retired from office, the subsequent CEOs embraced the same tactics by apologizing publicly on behalf of the company and promised to put strict measures to avert the recurrence of similar incidences in the future.
Corrective action
The company immediately replaced the defective tires with new ones in what was seen as a strategy to woo public trust (Blaney et al., 2002). The recalls were accompanied by press releases that emphasized the company’s mission of ensuring safety for its customers.
The recall was also followed by a campaign dubbed ‘making it right’ that underscored the company’s commitment to producing high-quality tires (Benoit & Pang, 2008). The campaign was initiated through direct adverts on the local media. Texts containing messages of corrective action were aired in local televisions and newspapers.
The messages emphasized the company’s mission as not only being making profits, but also maximizing the quality of its products.
human
Give me the whole essay based on the above. End with the sentence 'Therefore, moving forward, this theory will be applied widely in the future.'
assistant
#Communication Strategies: Image Restoration Theory Research Paper
##Handout
The image restoration theory refers to a set of strategies designed to help organizations and/or individuals to restore positive public image. This theory underscores the different strategies that individuals, organization, and countries among others use when faced with the possibility of image destruction.
When image is threated, the reputation of the victim is at risk, and thus the image restoration theory offers a solution to this problem. At times, organizations and individuals face threats to their reputation, and in such cases, they have to invoke the image restoration theory’s provisions to restore their reputation.
Generally, organizations tend to enhance their cooperation with the media in times of crisis, thus creating a single information center to avoid rumors spreading to the public. Other strategies incorporated in dealing with conflicts that are likely to damage the reputation of an organization include denial, blame shifting, and mortification.
This paper seeks to analyze the key elements of the image restoration theory and explain practical examples of organizations and states that have used the theory successfully to restore positive public image. The paper shall specifically analyze the Middle East case, the Firestone’s image restoration campaign, and The ValuJet’s crisis.
A cross section of researchers has devoted considerable time and resources attempting to identify efficient strategies to improve the theory. Therefore, theory may be highly effective in the future following the implementation of research findings.
Some of the key resources for this paper include works by William Benoit who is credited for being one of the founders of the theory. Others include Timothy Coombs, Joseph Blaney, and LeAnn Brazeal among others as listed in the reference list at the end of this paper.
##Introduction
Currently, the society cannot overstate the significance of image. In most cases involving threats to reputation, individuals and organizations respond by applying various strategies in defense of their image. This paper explores the theory of image restoration as a tool of solving strategic conflict in corporations.
The paper also seeks to advance the current concept of the theory of image repair through the evaluation of whether strategies of image repair, sources of information, communicative agents, and the phase of a crisis influence the nature of reporting news.
In a bid to achieve this objective, the paper will incorporate content analysis of tourism in the Middle East, Firestone, and the case of ValuJet Flight 592 in the evaluation of the case of the BP’s oil spill in 2006.The paper begins with a research of the theory of image restoration. In the last part of the paper, the paper will discuss the future research in relation to the theory of image restoration.
Literature review
According to Benoit and Hanczor (1994), image entails perceptions of individuals or organizations as revealed by the audience. Benoit (1995) contends that perceptions shared by audience arise from the actions and words of the messenger. With reference to the BP’s oil spill, it is evident that apart from the public entities, private organizations are subjected to accountability.
From the aftermath of the scandal, the significance of image repair emerged as an integral part of managing organizational conflicts. According to Blaney, Benoit, and Brazeal (2002), undesired activities of an organization can contribute to the damaging of the company’s reputation and image.
Benoit (1997) further contends that the perception of the audience contributes to the damaging of an organization’s reputation. Research shows “the prevalence of the proportional relationship between the extent of damage to the reputation and the responsibility held by the person or organization responsible for the damage” (Benoit, 1995, p. 79).
With reference to the response to crises and image repair, most researchers rarely recommend casual research. In the 1990s, Benoit (1995) formulated the concept of image repair theory, thus encouraging most researchers to formulate strategies of image repair in relation to his context.
According to Englehardt, Sallot, and Springston (2004), approaches to image repair entail descriptive analysis of rhetorical cases. In such cases, authors are inclined to the benefits or failures of a particular strategy, thus providing insufficient and biased information for decision-making.
The trend prevails because casual studies highlight “a variety of issues that affect the ability of an organization to rescue it image and reputation following a crisis (Coombs, 1998, p. 187). The two factors are crucial, especially when considering the strategy to use in repairing image of the affected company (Coombs, 1998).
Coombs and Holladay (2002) support this argument by adding that the reputation of an organizationis another significant factor that influences the strategy of image repair. In a study of tourism in the Middle Eastern countries, Avraham (2013) holds that perceptions of the people contribute to the deterioration of the image of tourism in the region.
However, the media in the Middle East focuses on adverse subjects such as war, conflicts, and terrorism, thus confirming and compounding the people’s negative perceptions towards the region. The researcher attributes crisis in the region’s tourism to negative image, stereotypes, and conflicts (Avraham, 2013).
Further, Avraham (2013) highlights the significance of media in correcting the reputation and image of the tourism sector in the Middle East. With the aim of expanding empirical research on crisis and image of an organization, Avraham (2013) advocates the consideration of factors such as culture in relation to stereotypes and media coverage to impact strategies of image repair.
Blaney et al. (2002) use the case of Firestone to highlight the concept of image restoration in an organization. The researchers note that Firestone attributed its crisis to the actions of Ford, which affected its reputation and image.
However, shifting blame to Ford contributed to the application of inappropriate measures of image recovery, thus failing to address the prevailing problems at Firestone. Although Firestone resorted to using the approach of bolstering as a mitigation measure, inadequate finances contributed to the failure of the approach (Blaney et al., 2002).
These studies highlight the significance of the contingency theory in the management of conflicts that affect reputation of an organization. Coombs (1999) defines the contingency theory as the dynamics that operate both inside and outside an organization and influence an accommodative stance.
The BP oil spill crisis
The BP’s oil spill crisis started in 2006, but climaxed with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill that occurred toward the end of April 2010. Following the explosion and sinking of an oilrigoperated by BP in the Gulf of Mexico, approximately 11 people perished in the accident that also contributed to polluting the sea.
As one of the largest spill accidents in the petroleum industry, it attracted the attention of different sections of society, with the media playing an active role of reporting on the crisis. The federal government of the United States approximated that the explosion discharged five million barrels of crude oil into the sea (Ifill, 2014). However, it took approximately 90 days for experts to contain leakages.
However, sources from media indicate that the well continues to leak even to date despite prior reports from the government that the experts had contained the situation (Ifill, 2014). BP responded by implementing various measures to protect wetlands, estuaries through floating booms, dispersants, and controlled burns among other methods.
However, by the time the situation was under control, extensive damage had happened to the wildlife and marine habits, which contributed to adverse effects on tourism. Investigations conducted in 2011 revealed faultyoilrigs covered with defective cement as the cause of the accident.
Furthermore, the accident was attributed to insignificant industrial practices and policies of the government that failed to ensure the implementation of adequate measures of safety. Apart from adhering to criminal charges toward the end of 2012, BP cooperated with the federal government in monitoring the company’s safety practices.
Following the sanctions, relatively high level of interests from the media and environmental agencies continued at the company. Even to date, the media scrutinizes and reports various events related to this crisis (Ifill, 2014).
Theoretical Framework
In a bid to counter the image destruction that was posed by the spill, BP employed the image repair theory in its communication strategies. In most cases, companies use both image repair and the contingency theory for the communication of crises and management of conflicts.
According to Burns and Bruner (2000), in public relations, the theory of image repair is embedded in the context of politics and social science. In the course of developing the theory, researchers identified five strategies in relation to the repair of image and restoration of a company’s reputation (Burns & Bruner, 2000).
Benoit and Pang (2008) supported these claims by identifying strategies of image repair to include corrective actions, denial, reducing offensiveness, mortification, and evasion of responsibility.
Firestone’s image restoration campaign
Firestone Corporation is a tire manufacturing company situated in the US. The company is believed to be the major contributor of about 271 deaths (Blaney et al., 2002). The deaths posed great challenges to the company’s reputation to the extent that its top managers had to intervene to restore its image.
The deaths were believed to be caused by structural deficiencies in the company’s tires (Hwang & Cameron, 2009). In efforts to save the company, the CEOs employed certain strategies described herein.
##Mortification
The company’s officials partially accepted liability for their irresponsible act that caused mass deaths. On several occasions, the company apologized to its customers and especially to the family and friends of the deceased (Benoit & Pang, 2008).
Apologizing to the concerned individuals is an effective way of regaining trust from customers and the company employed this tactic to achieve its purpose (Hwang & Cameron, 2009). Masatoshi Ono, the then CEO, at one instance was recorded apologizing to the public following the accidents that claimed lives of pedestrians.
Even after Masatoshi retired from office, the subsequent CEOs embraced the same tactics by apologizing publicly on behalf of the company and promised to put strict measures to avert the recurrence of similar incidences in the future.
Corrective action
The company immediately replaced the defective tires with new ones in what was seen as a strategy to woo public trust (Blaney et al., 2002). The recalls were accompanied by press releases that emphasized the company’s mission of ensuring safety for its customers.
The recall was also followed by a campaign dubbed ‘making it right’ that underscored the company’s commitment to producing high-quality tires (Benoit & Pang, 2008). The campaign was initiated through direct adverts on the local media. Texts containing messages of corrective action were aired in local televisions and newspapers.
The messages emphasized the company’s mission as not only being making profits, but also maximizing the quality of its products.
##Denial
The other strategy employed by Firestone in an attempt to restore its reputation is denial and shift of blame (Hwang & Cameron, 2009). The company’s management on several occasions denied having produced structural deficient tires and passed the blame to its customers by asserting that the accidents occurred due to carelessness on the part of the users (Blaney et al., 2002).
Ford Explorer was specifically identified by Firestone as the cause of the accidents since it recorded a larger number of accidents as compared to other users. Firestone CEOs asserted that the accidents would be prevented if the tires were inflated properly.
Middle East countries
Crises can affect a country’s reputation negatively. Crises may be either short-term or long-term depending on the length of time taken (Blaney et al., 2002). Crises take many different forms ranging from ethnical and religious wars to terrorist attacks that have increased in the recent past.
Terror attacks have had an increasing trend over the past few decades. In countries most affected by the attacks, their reputation may diminish amongst the public. A case in point is the Middle East’s terror attacks that have recurred from time to time.
Media coverages on the attacks and their recurrence have affected the countries’ reputation negatively, which requires strategies to restore public image. Statistics indicate a great decrease in the annual tourists in the affected countries, thus leading to decreased income from the tourism industry (Benoit & Pang, 2008).
The fall of the tourism industry in the Middle East countries is linked to the poor security in the country, which is caused by the recurring terrorist attacks. However, marketers from the Middle East have come up with a number of strategies aimed at restoring the region’s positive public image.
They have specifically adopted the conceptual framework of the multistep model for altering place image, which comprises three major components, viz. source, message, and audience. In most cases, terrorists target western tourists to earn international media coverage.
Terrorism directed to westerners is harmful to the tourism sector. The entry of terrorists into the media prompted experts to formulate strategies aimed at cutting down the attacks. The Middle East has unique landscapes and it hosts about three different religions.
The west is specifically the main tourism client of the Middle East and terrorist attacks may thus affect the sector adversely. The assumption that Arab countries are violent and inhuman has destroyed the image of the Middle East. In addition, there is an assumption that Arab nations are intolerant and they hate westernization.
An attack in one country is taken as an attack in every country in the Middle East (Avraham, 2013). This generalization has negative impacts across the entire region, thus making the tourism sector less resourceful. The Middle East policymakers adopted three major strategies, viz. “source-focused strategies, message strategies, and audience-focused strategies” (Blaney et al., 2002, p. 381).
Source-Focused Strategies
The Middle East, after recognizing the role of the media in destroying its image, has come up with strategies aimed at mobilizing journalists to join hands with marketers and policymakers in restoring a positive public image (Benoit & Pang, 2008). Among the steps taken under the source-focused strategies is to cooperate with the media, regulate media coverage, and block some media companies that are in defiance with the set regulations.
In order to foster positive relations with the media, government officials regularly come into direct contact with journalists to report on the progress of events as they unfold. This move is meant to ensure uniformity of the news aired by different media houses and deter the media from airing news based on rumors.
In some countries within the region, strict rules regulate the media. Journalists are barred from covering certain events that may destroy a country’s image. In the past, journalists have been arrested and even convicted for covering news perceived to be damaging a country’s image.
In other cases, the media is prevented from covering certain events that are perceived to be harmful to the country’s image. Media blockage has been evident in Palestine in the recent past. For example, in 2011, Palestine security officials deterred a journalist from the Associated Press from covering an event that involved locals celebrating an attack made on westerners (Avraham, 2013).
Message Strategies
Under this strategy, the involved parties have various unique ways of handling terrorism cases. One of the message strategies is ignoring or rather disregarding a crisis. In most Middle East countries, marketers have responded to terrorist attacks by disregarding their intensity and remaining silent on their effects.
Egypt has used this strategy in an attempt to restore a positive image of the country. Government officials in the country have disregarded terrorist attacks and even failed to report on the consistency of the attacks (Ifill, 2014). Limiting strategy is yet another message strategy used in trying to restore a country’s image (Benoit & Pang, 2008).
Under the strategy, an attack is shown as limited to just a certain area. The aforementioned strategy aims at encouraging tourists to visit other areas not affected by the attacks as opposed to generalization of insecurity.
Acknowledging a crisis is yet another strategy employed by the Middle East countries in an attempt to regain a positive image. The strategy involves recognizing a crisis and using the new era slogans to portray that the country has changed. Iraq employs this tactic in a bid to restore its image.
On several occasions, the country’s tourism department has emphasized that the country is now changed (Benoit & Pang, 2008). Another technique used by the Middle East is hosting international sports and cultural events (Benoit & Pang, 2008). Such events are meant to attract the attention of both the local and the international media so that they shift their attention from airing news on the attack that may have the effect of damaging a country’s image.
Various countries in the Middle East have successfully employed the aforementioned strategy in an attempt to restore a positive image. For instance, Yemen hosted an international soccer tournament [Gulf Cup] in 2010 to divert the attention of the international media (Avraham, 2013). The tournament portrayed the country as one that is peaceful as opposed to the perception that it is a battleground of terror attacks.
Audience-Focused Strategies
Audience focused strategies focus on creating a positive image to the audience. The strategy has the effect of eliminating the perception that the Middle East loathes the west (Avraham, 2013). Under the strategy, a country is portrayed as being similar to other countries in terms of human rights and democracy (Englehardt et al., 2004).
Marketers and policymakers in the Middle East have employed these strategies to show their willingness to work with western countries. For example, Tunisia demonstrated its willingness to work with the US and the western countries to preserve peace especially after its series of terrorist attacks.
Another example of a country that has successfully used this technique is Saudi Arabia (Benoit & Pang, 2008). The country launched a campaign against terror and demonstrated its close ties with the US after the 9/11 attacks (Benoit & Pang, 2008).
The ValuJet’s crisis
ValuJet started its operations in 1993 by offering more affordable airline services than its competitors (Benoit, 1997). The company, in its initial stages, was promising and it outshined other airline service providers such Delta Airlines (Englehardt et al., 2004).
The company was under scrutiny for safety issues even before the ill-fated ValuJet Flight 592 crash, which occurred in 1996, thus marking the beginning of the company’s downfall. ValuJet employed strategies similar to those employed by the firestone company in an attempt to restore a positive image. The strategies employed by the company are explained herein.
##Mortification
The ValuJet’s executives expressed sorrow and sympathy for the families of the deceased immediately after occurrence of the accident. In a press conference, the company’s CEO apologized to the public for the damage caused by the accident. Even though the company did not fully admit liability over its recklessness, it was apologetic to the public and promised zero accidents in the future.
Shifting blame
Soon after the accident, the company worked hard to pass the blame to SabreTech, its maintenance company (Burns & Bruner, 2000). ValuJet claimed that SabreTech wrongfully mislabeled the oxygen cans thus causing inconveniences, which resulted in the accident.According to Benoit (1999), passing blame is one of the strategies applicable in the image restoration theory, and thus the company’s action was consistent with the theory.
Cooperation with the media
The company’s executives were quick to respond to the crisis through one-on-one interview over the media (Ifill, 2014). The quick response is consistent with the image restoration theory since it prevents the spread of bad rumors regarding company and ensures that updates come from a central point.
According to Benoit and Hanczor (1994), cooperating with the media is a good way of protecting corporate image especially after such crises. The company’s CEO was the sole spokesperson during the incident, thus eliminating chances of negative rumors spreading to the public.
##Conclusion
The image restoration theory denotes a set of strategies that can be employed to cut down the damage to the reputation of a certain organization or individual. William Benoit is credited for being one of the founders of the theory.
Currently, prominent individuals and companies are engaged in scandalous affairs and they will be forced to employ this theory in a bid to save their image. For instance, when the war in Syria ends, the incoming leadership will definitely use this theory to save it shattered image. Individuals are showing increased tendency of engaging in image-tarnishing behaviors and governments are in it too.
The Snowden case suffices to conclude that the future will be riddled with the application of image restoration theory. Currently, Russia is using this theory to save its image after the ornery invasion and occupation of Ukraine. Israel uses this image all the time to justify its invasion and occupation across the West Bank. Therefore, moving forward, this theory will be applied widely in the future.