Results of an experiment testing whether message or medium is more important when dealing with a crisis highlights the importance of choosing proper communication channels.
The experiment included 1,677 participants who were given a fictional crisis scenario and one of three message types (information, apology, sympathy) via one of three mediums (newspaper, blog, twitter). Three dependent measures were analyzed:
- Participant perception of reputation
- Secondary crisis communications, including replying to or sharing information
- Reaction to the crisis, such as willingness to boycott
Results showed the communication channel used strongly influenced all three measures while the message itself only had a significant effect on secondary crisis communications. Therefore, findings deduce medium matters more than the message.
In terms of medium selection, the research suggests Twitter is a valuable platform during crisis communications. Twitter users were less likely to react negatively to a crisis than to a blog or newspaper article, and they were more likely to share the message than bloggers or people who don’t use social media.
Consequently, organizations should consider multiple platforms, choose the media that best reflects the target public’s media use, and pay more attention to Twitter and other social media outlets.
An overview and link to the study can be found on the IPR Social Science of Social Media Research Center website.
Schultza, Friederike; Utza, Sonja; & Göritzb, Anja. (2011). Is the medium the message? Perceptions of and reactions to crisis communication via Twitter, blogs and traditional media. Public Relations Review, 37(1), 20-27.
Alyssa Hubbell is a Public Relations Associate at the Institute for Public Relations
This is valuable insight.
Thank you Alyssa for your work.