università degli studi di pavia

Università degli Studi di PaviaCorso di Laurea Specialistica Interfacoltà in Editoria e Comunicazione Multimediale

Tesi di laurea di Marianna Mortaruolo

106 days and millions of barrels: Crisis Communication and the case of British Petroleum

PURPOSE OF THE THESIS

METHODS OF WORK

The importance of Crisis Communication in the Risk Society:

the case of British Petroleum

• Interviews with experts in Public Relations

• Empirical Analysis: the case of British Petroleum

• Instruments of CSR

• Press Review

BRITISH PETROLEUM

THE CRISIS: APRIL 20, 2010

CRISIS MANAGEMENT

CRISIS COMMUNICATION

PUBLIC RELATIONS

MASS MEDIA

PRESS REVIEW

CONCLUSIONS

WHO IS BP?BRITISH

PETROLEUM

CRISIS MANAGEMENT


PUBLIC RELATIONS

MASS MEDIA

PRESS REVIEW

CONCLUSIONS

• The British Petroleum Company• Set of six different brands

• Helios: new logo, new philosophy

• Leader in business and protecting the environment• Strong corporate values: Progressive, Responsible, Innovative, Performance driven• Human Rights• Corporate Governance• Environmental regulations

• Corporate Social Responsibility • Internal Audit

• E-learning

• Sustainability Review

• Code of Conduct

Gli strumenti di CSR devono rappresentare un

impegno esplicito dell’impresa

(Livia Piermattei)


BRITISH PETROLEUM

CRISIS MANAGEMENT


PUBLIC RELATIONS

MASS MEDIA

PRESS REVIEW

CONCLUSIONS

GAP BETWEEN PUBLIC PERCEPTION AND THE REALITY OF THE BEHAVIOR OF BP

APRIL 20, 2010: ENVIRONMENTAL CRISIS

• May 7, 2010: operation Top Kill

• April 20, 2010: explosion of the platform Deepwater Horizon

• July 15, 2010: draft Lower Marine Riser Package

• February 2010: complications begin in the Gulf

• August 4, 2010: operation Static Kill closes the well Macondo

• September 19, 2010: final cement after procedure Bottom Kill, the end of the tragedy and the beginning of the collapse of BP

PRODROMAL PHASE

ACUTE PHASE

CHRONIC PHASE


BRITISH PETROLEUM

CRISIS MANAGEMENT


PUBLIC RELATIONS

MASS MEDIA

PRESS REVIEW

CONCLUSIONS

Scritta in cinese la parola crisi è

composta di due caratteri. Uno

rappresenta il pericolo e l’altro l’opportunità.

(John Fitzgerald Kennedy)

• 11 workers affected by the explosion

• Gulf of Mexico: from heaven to black hell

• Animals victims of ecological disaster

• Tourism ceases in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida

• Heavy losses to the local fishing industry

APRIL 20, 2010: CONSEQUENCES OF THE CRISIS

• Unemployment among fishermen

• The health of the population affected for years

• Increase in oil prices

• Loss of BP stock price

• Image for BP collapses: Greenpeace proposes the rebranding of the oil company


BRITISH PETROLEUM

CRISIS MANAGEMENT


PUBLIC RELATIONS

MASS MEDIA

PRESS REVIEW

CONCLUSIONS

HOW TO HANDLE A CRISIS?

CRISIS MANAGEMENT

1- TO ANTICIPATE

2- TO PLAN

3- TO COMMUNICATE AND MANAGE THE

CRISIS

4- TO MANAGE THE POST-CRISIS

Not a real accident, but a tragedy waiting to happen

The plan for crisis management proved to be a copy and paste of old plans

prepared for the Arctic Ocean

Crisis communication unprofessional, improper, non-transparent and

ineffective

Collapse of the multinational’s image

BP

S.O.S.

Top 10 crises of 2010

1. British Petroleum2. Toyota3. Goldman Sachs4. HP5. Nestle6. Facebook7. Foxconn8. India’s Commonwealth Games

Organising Committee9. BAA10. Wikileaks

The Fifteen Most Hated American Companies of 2010

1. American Airlines2. Nokia3. Toyota4. Best Buy5. Charter Communications6. Citigroup7. AT & T8. Bank of America9. Dell10. Dish rete11. Johnson & Johnson12. McDonald’s13. United Airlines14. British Petroleum15. Direct TV



MODEL OF CRISIS COMMUNICATION

1. Admit mistakes and apologize2. Calling on both inside and outside3. Interactivity4. Reliable and scientific information5. Proactive, voluntary, transparent6. Language suitable7. Analysis of local and social context8. Avoid no comment, alarms, excessive reassurance9. Fair and honest sources10. Specific information and not generalized11. Updated communication12. Code of ethics13. Environmental communicator

BRITISH PETROLEUM

CRISIS MANAGEMENT


PUBLIC RELATIONS

MASS MEDIA

PRESS REVIEW

CONCLUSIONS


BRITISH PETROLEUM

CRISIS MANAGEMENT


PUBLIC RELATIONS

MASS MEDIA

PRESS REVIEW

CONCLUSIONS


BP’S CRISIS COMMUNICATION

1. Minimized the likelihood of risk in the prodromal phase2. Overstated the company’s ability3. Inaccurate data and incorrect sources4. Tactics of blame5. Masked the real damage of the crisis6. Lack of admission of guilt and a sincere apologies7. Lack of transparency in communications8. Communications unrealistic and inconsistent with the facts9. Sources dishonest and misleading information

10. Communication without an ethical point of view11. Optimistic reassurance in uncertain times12. General news and information uncertainty13. Poor spokesman


BRITISH PETROLEUM

CRISIS MANAGEMENT


PUBLIC RELATIONS

MASS MEDIA

PRESS REVIEW

CONCLUSIONS

THE CRISIS COMMUNICATION IS A SPECIALIZED SERVICE OF PR

PUBLIC RELATIONS

. PR ensures a proper, effective and non-manipulative crisis communication

. In the last 20 years PR have experienced profound changes: - the concept and content of communication - Corporate Social Responsibility - the purpose of communication - the role of operational and strategic positioning of companies in PR

. PR today play an important role in top management

. We speak today of Core PR e Extended PR

Le RP oggi più che mai occupano un

ruolo strategico nella realtà aziendale

(Prof.ssa Stefania Romenti)

The new manifesto of PR: STOCKHOLM ACCORDS

Si tratta di una chiamata all’azione

per i relatori pubblici di tutto il

mondo.(Toni Muzi Falconi)

1. SUSTAINABILITY

2. GOVERNANCE

3. MANAGEMENT

4. INTERNAL COMMUNICATION

5. EXTERNAL COMMUNICATION

6. COORDINATION BETWEEN INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS


BRITISH PETROLEUM

CRISIS MANAGEMENT


PUBLIC RELATIONS

MASS MEDIA

PRESS REVIEW

CONCLUSIONS

THE PR MANAGES RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE MEDIA IN A CRISIS

MASS MEDIA

. The vehicle of transmission of the emergency

. An instrument to inform in real time, to deal with stress, to give instructions

. Psychologists crisis: they favor reducing emotional buildup

. A means to declare appropriate apologies publicly

BUT… . Vultures waiting to pounce on the breaking news. They guide the public opinion: agenda setting. They send out alerts and play with the emotional tension. The media’s “truth”does not coincide with reality: disaster information . They turn the crisis into a media event


BRITISH PETROLEUM

CRISIS MANAGEMENT


PUBLIC RELATIONS

MASS MEDIA

PRESS REVIEW

CONCLUSIONS

THE PRESS: AN IMPORTANT VEHICLE FOR TRANSMITTING NEWS

PRESS REVIEW

. Under investigation: The New York Times The Guardian il Corriere della Sera La Repubblica

. Newspaper influence thoughts, anxieties and the public’s views

. Method of analysis: coverage of news and tone of discussion in the online versions of newspapers

. Reporting period: the acute phase of the environmental crisis (April 20- August 4)

. The purpose of analysis: how the crisis was dealt with in 4 major newspapers

. Number of items scanned: 1.431 articles (“British Petroleum” and “crisis in the Gulf of Mexico” as keywords)


BRITISH PETROLEUM

CRISIS MANAGEMENT


PUBLIC RELATIONS

MASS MEDIA

PRESS REVIEW

CONCLUSIONS

PRESS REVIEW

MEDIA COVERAGE OF THE CRISIS

• The New York Times: 935 articles

• La Repubblica: 130 articles• il Corriere della Sera: 92 articles

• The Guardian: 274 articles

MEDIA COVERAGE OF THE CRISIS: A DIACHRONIC ANALYSIS

• The New York Times: june 372 articles may 280 articles july 235 articles august 26 articles april 22 articles

• The Guardian: june 106 articles may 76 articles july 70 articles april 13 articles august 9 articles

• La Repubblica: may 47 articles june 45 articles

july 27 articles april 7 articles

august 4 articles

• Il Corriere della Sera: june 32 articles may 26 articles

july 26 articles april 4 articles

august 4 articles


BRITISH PETROLEUM

CRISIS MANAGEMENT


PUBLIC RELATIONS

MASS MEDIA

PRESS REVIEW

CONCLUSIONS

PRESS REVIEW

TONE OF THE DISCUSSION OF THE CRISIS IN 4 NEWSPAPERS

THE NEW YORK TIMES

NEGATIVE TONE: 460 articles

NEUTRAL TONE: 431 articles

POSITIVE TONE: 44 articles

MAY

APRIL

JUNE

JULY

AUGUST

THE GUARDIAN




APRIL

MAY

JUNE

JULY

AUGUST


BRITISH PETROLEUM

CRISIS MANAGEMENT


PUBLIC RELATIONS

MASS MEDIA

PRESS REVIEW

CONCLUSIONS

PRESS REVIEW

TONE OF THE DISCUSSION OF THE CRISIS IN 4 NEWSPAPERS

LA REPUBBLICA




IL CORRIERE DELLA SERA





CONCLUSIONSBRITISH

PETROLEUM

CRISIS MANAGEMENT


PUBLIC RELATIONS

MASS MEDIA

PRESS REVIEW

CONCLUSIONS

• Effective Crisis Communication: professional, timely, transparent

• Crisis Communication affects the impact of the crisis in the medium-long term, protects the organization affected, contains the damage

• Even when there is little that can be done to improve things, there is always a lot worse that can be said

• Do not hide one’s head in the sand, but expose it above the parapet

• The public informed are less vulnerable to risks

• “When you stop talking, you lose your clientele”. Estee Lauder ( the founder of the Estée Lauder Companies, cosmetics company)


Bye-bye Planet

università degli studi di pavia

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