Steering discourses in a complex world

Sammanfattning: This study aims to problematise if and how an organisation can steer discourses in a crisis situation. The study brings knowledge to the field of strategic communication from a single case study regarding a product recall made by a multinational corpora-tion. Previous research on the topic covers the proactive planning and strategies used during the crisis, but does not cover the complexity concerning the communication. We have discovered two main schools of thoughts, the first is the traditional view that focuses on the managing of the crisis. The second one is the post-modern view, that could be seen as created as a reaction to the traditional. It problematises the simplifi-cation that a crisis can be solved by proper planning and not take the complexity of the situation into account. This study uses various analysis methods to make sense of the empirical material consisting of press releases, Facebook posts including comments, news articles, and interviews. Text material was analysed through textual analysis, with rhetoric and discourse in mind. The interviews gave a deeper understanding of the organisation and the way they managed the situation. The result shows that discourses can be steered with proper planning, the right people in place, and by learning from past crisis experiences. The study brings practical knowledge regarding the managing of crisis communication in a complex world. The knowledge can be used by communi-cation professionals that act on the global, multinational arena.