Examining a crisis communication void The role of context to mitigate issues Candace White University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA Abstract Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of information context in crisis communication. Previous studies have examined the effectiveness of types of message strategies used during different periods of a crisis. The crisis presented in this case is unusual in that there were no crisis communication strategies used to mitigate it. There was a void where a crisis communication strategy should have been, allowing for critique of what happens when crisis communication is not proactive and strategic. Design/methodology/approach – This is a case study of crisis response developed through participant observation and interviews with key informants, verified through quantitative content analysis of newspaper coverage. Findings – The study found that when issues reported by the media are not tempered by explanation of context from the organization, increasingly negative media frames result, therefore elevating the salience of the issues and the perceived severity of the crisis. When issues are not proactively managed, people outside the organization begin to identify with the side of the issue presented in the media. Practical implications – The study provides insights into effective crisis communication management by examining the importance of proactive communication for managing public opinion. Originality/value – The paper describes what happens when proactive communication is not used during a crisis and therefore shows what happens in the absence of effective public relations, when the crisis response is no response at all. Keywords Public relations, Communication management, Public opinion Paper type Research paper Introduction In August 2003 after only 14 months on the job, the president of the University of Tennessee resigned under a cloud of suspicion of wrongdoing. Only seven weeks before his resignation, John Shumaker received the highest praise at his annual performance review from the Board of Trustees that had hired him the previous year at an unprecedented salary of $750,000, making him the second highest-paid public university president in the USA (Lawson, 2003a). Between his performance review on June 18 and his resignation on August 8, allegations about the president that were reported by the media in rapid-fire succession included lavish spending for personal benefit, using dubious procedures in the hiring of a new athletic director and in the contract-bid process, and inappropriate use of the university airplane and credit cards. During the seven-week crisis, new issues and allegations of wrongdoing emerged every few days as older ones waned and lost salience. The scandal dominated the news, appearing on the front page of newspapers across the state and as the lead on television news programs, attaining a soap opera status with readers and viewers waiting expectantly for the next installment. The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at www.emeraldinsight.com/1363-254X.htm JCOM 13,2 176 Journal of Communication Management Vol. 13 No. 2, 2009 pp. 176-190 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited 1363-254X DOI 10.1108/13632540910951777