A Comparative Content Analysis of News Stories and Press Releases During the 2015 Blue Bell Ice Cream Recall

A Comparative Content Analysis of News Stories and Press Releases during the 2015 Blue Bell Ice Cream Recall

Brandyl Brooks, B.S.

A Thesis

Agricultural Communications

Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Texas Tech University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of

MASTER OF SCIENCE

Approved

Dr. Courtney Meyers Chair of Committee

Dr. Courtney Gibson

Dr. Erica Irlbeck

Mark Sheridan Dean of the Graduate School

August, 2017

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

To my dad, who always encouraged me to reach for the stars.

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

As I write my acknowledgements, I find myself in a whirlwind of emotions. To look back on my life and think how far I have come with the help of so many wonderful people and having faith in the Lord, just makes me feel so blessed. Through the really hard times, to the good times, I wouldn’t be where I am today without each of you.

In the past two years, I have left Lubbock, had a great job, lost my dad, moved back to Lubbock, was accepted to graduate school, got another great job, and got married.

Now I can add receiving my Master’s to that list. If it wasn’t for Dr. Meyers talking me into coming to grad school, I wouldn’t be right where I am today. Grad school has been a pleasant surprise and something I wasn’t sure I could accomplish. I cannot thank you enough, Dr. Meyers, for being the best advisor, encourager, life mentor, and role model.

You always help me sort through my thoughts and have taught me to be patient, timely, and positive. You pushed me with just enough tough love and encouraged me to be a better student, researcher, and person, and I cannot thank you enough. You are an inspiration and I am so thankful to have been advised by you throughout my college career.

I also want to thank Dr. Irlbeck and Dr. Gibson. My research ideas, mistakes, and lessons couldn’t have been learned without you both. I may have drug this process out, but you both have been with me every postponed defense date that lead us here. You have positively influenced my research abilities and my communication skills through your classes, and visits in the office. Thank you for being positive, calm, and encouraging as I finally finished my thesis. It is amazing faculty like you that make CASNR a

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Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 welcoming college and the Agricultural Communications program such an outstanding major.

I couldn’t have accomplished anything without the love and support of my family.

It hasn’t been easy, the transition was hard, and when I told you God was telling me to move back to Lubbock for graduate school at the worst point of time in our lives, instead of telling me no, you helped me move. Thank you Mom, Aunt Sally, and Uncle David for trusting me all of these times and encouraging and helping me follow my dreams.

Finally, I want to thank my husband, Brodie. I’m sure when you were praying

about finding someone to spend the rest of your life with, you didn’t think it’d be

someone that wanted to take on way too much. Although I do have the tendency to

overload my plate, you always stand with me and help me when I need it. You have been

the light when times get dark, the happiness to all of my days, a shoulder to cry on, my

best friend, and the love for the rest of my life. Thank you for always being there for me.

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...... iii ABSTRACT ...... vii LIST OF TABLES ...... viii LIST OF FIGURES ...... x I. INTRODUCTION ...... 1 Background and Setting ...... 1 About Blue Bell ...... 3 2015 Blue Bell Creameries Recall Timeline ...... 5 Significance of the Study ...... 12 Purpose of the Study and Research Questions ...... 14 Assumptions ...... 15 Limitations & Delimitations ...... 15 II. LITERATURE REVIEW ...... 17 Food Safety and Recalls in U.S...... 17 Crisis Communication ...... 20 Crisis Management ...... 25 Reputation Management ...... 29 Brand Equity ...... 30 Reputation Halo Effect ...... 32 Theoretical Framework ...... 35 Framing ...... 35 Situational Crisis Communication Theory ...... 41 III. METHODOLOGY ...... 48 Purpose and Research Questions ...... 48 Research Design ...... 49 Sample ...... 49 Coding Procedure ...... 50 Coder Training ...... 51 Code Book ...... 53 Data Collection ...... 58 v

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

Data Analysis ...... 59 IV. RESULTS ...... 60 Research Question One ...... 60 Research Question Two ...... 63 Research Question Three ...... 65 Research Question Four ...... 69 Research Question Five ...... 74 V. CONCLUSIONS, DISCUSSION, AND RECOMMENDATIONS ...... 76 Conclusions & Discussion ...... 77 Research Question One ...... 77 Research Question Two ...... 79 Research Question Three ...... 80 Research Question Four ...... 81 Research Question Five ...... 84 Recommendations ...... 86 Research ...... 86 Practice ...... 88 REFERENCES ...... 90 APPENDICES ...... 103 A. GLOSSARY OF TERMS ...... 103 B. PRESS RELEASE CODEBOOK ...... 104 C. PRESS RELEASE CODESHEET ...... 108 D. NEWS STORY CODEBOOK ...... 109 E. NEWS STORY CODESHEET ...... 113

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

ABSTRACT

Food safety is an issue that impacts all consumers and the event of a food recall can have significant implications for a food company and the broader agriculture industry. In 2015, Blue Bell Creameries had its first recall in the company’s history. Blue

Bell issued a voluntary recall of all of its ice cream products after Listeria was detected and was linked to 10 illnesses that resulted in three deaths. The purpose of this study was to explore how the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall was presented in company press releases and news media coverage to determine what crisis communication strategies

Blue Bell was implementing and how the media presented that information.

This study was a content analysis of 23 press releases from Blue Bell and 68 articles from newspapers. Coders analyzed the articles to answer the research questions. The theoretical framework was based on framing and Situational Crisis Communication

Theory. The four crisis response strategies, or postures, used as frames were deny, diminish, rebuild, and bolster. This study also examined sources identified in the articles and the topic areas they discussed. The results indicated Blue Bell’s communication efforts were properly and effectively disseminated through the news media to the public.

Blue Bell used accommodative crisis communication postures to restore its reputation.

Blue Bell was also actively found as a source in the news stories, which benefitted the company when communicating about the recall to the public. Also, Blue Bell’s positive prior reputation helped the company when restoring its reputation and brand loyalty.

Recommendations for research and practice are provided.

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Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

LIST OF TABLES

2.1 SCCT Crisis Types by Crisis Clusters, Coombs ...... 40 2.2 Crisis Response Strategies by Posture, Coombs ...... 45 2.3 SCCT Crisis Response Strategy Guidelines ...... 47 3.1 Interpretation of Cohen’s kappa coefficient ...... 52 3.2 Press Release and News Story Source Examples ...... 56 3.3 Press Release and News Story Topic Area Examples ...... 58 3.4 Number of Press Releases and News Stories Included in the Study for Each Month in the Timeframe ...... 59 4.1 Frequency of Deny Posture in Press Releases ...... 61 4.2 Frequency of Diminish Posture in Press Releases ...... 61 4.3 Frequency of Rebuild Posture in Press Releases ...... 62 4.4 Frequency of Bolster Posture in Press Releases ...... 62 4.5 Frequency of General Information in Press Releases ...... 63 4.6 Posture Frequency in Press Release Paragraphs ...... 63 4.7 Direct Quote Source Frequency in Blue Bell Press Releases ...... 64 4.8 Number of Direct Quotes from Source Types in Blue Bell Press Release Paragraphs ...... 64 4.9 Topic Areas Represented in Quotes from Blue Bell Sources in Press Releases .. 65 4.10 Frequency of Deny Postures in News Stories ...... 66 4.11 Frequency of Diminish Posture in News Stories ...... 66 4.12 Frequency of Rebuild Posture in News Stories ...... 67 4.13 Frequency of Bolster Posture in News Stories ...... 67 4.14 Frequency of General Information Posture in News Stories ...... 68 4.15 Posture Frequency in News Story Paragraphs ...... 69 4.16 Direct Quote Source Frequency in News Stories ...... 70 4.17 Number of Direct Quotes from Source Types in News Story Paragraphs ...... 70 4.18 Topic Areas Represented in Quotes from Blue Bell Sources in News Stories ..... 71 4.19 Topic Areas Represented in Quotes from U.S. Government Sources in News Stories ...... 71

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4.20 Topic Areas Represented in Quotes from Expert Sources in News Stories ...... 72 4.21 Topic Areas Represented in Quotes from Ice Cream Consumers Sources in News Stories ...... 73 4.22 Topic Areas Represented in Quotes from Ice Cream Retailers Sources in News Stories ...... 73 4.23 Topic Areas Represented in Quotes from Other Sources in News Stories ...... 74 4.24 Posture Comparison between Blue Bell Press Releases and News Stories ...... 75 4.25 Source Comparison by Paragraph between Blue Bell Press Releases and News Stories ...... 75

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

LIST OF FIGURES

1.1 Blue Bell Ice Cream Recall Timeline ...... 11 2.1 Scheufele’s (1999) process model of framing research...... 37 2.2 Coombs (2007c) crisis situation model of SCCT...... 42

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Background and Setting

The Centers for Disease Control estimates each year one in six Americans fall ill from eating contaminated food and 3,000 people die (CDC, 2016a). Some common causes of food recalls are contamination with a pathogen such as E. coli, Listeria or

Salmonella; a foreign object contamination such as a piece of plastic, glass or metal; and undeclared allergens such as peanut, milk, egg, or shellfish (White-Cason, 2013). In 2015 alone, E. coli from Chipotle sickened 52 people, Salmonella from the Boise Co-op deli sickened 290 people, Cyclospora-contaminated cilantro from Mexico sickened 290 people, and Salmonella Poona from cucumbers imported from Mexico caused four deaths and sickened 546 people (Zuraw, 2015). Not only is the cost of foodborne illnesses for consumers devastating, it also costs the U.S. economy billions of dollars each year. In an article written in Food Safety News, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said foodborne illness is financially draining, costing an estimated $15.6 billion each year

(Flynn, 2014), which is only examining factors associated with outpatient and inpatient expenditures for medical care and lost income (Flynn, 2014). It does not include food industry costs, such as loss of consumer confidence in a brand, associated recall expenses, or charges stemming from litigation, or costs to taxpayers for local, state, and federal health agencies that respond to outbreaks (Flynn, 2014).

In order to protect consumers from products that could potentially harm them, food recalls may be issued (USA.gov, n.d.). In the first quarter of 2015, the Food and

Drug Administration (FDA) issued recalls on more than 19 million food units, which was

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 a 40% increase from previous quarters (Stericycle ExpertSOLUTIONS, 2015). Food recalls are not only an important public health issue, but are also a significant economic concern and can be detrimental to any organization (Tyco Integrated Security, 2010). The

Food Marketing Institute and the Grocery Manufacturers’ Association conducted a joint industry study on recall execution effectiveness and found the average cost of a recall to a food company is $10 million (Grocery Manufacturers Association, 2010). The final cost could be even more because it does not include litigation costs, lost sales, and the impact to the company’s market value and brand reputation (Tyco Integrated Security, 2010).

According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, incidents with consumer goods cost the United States economy more than $1 trillion yearly (U.S. Consumer

Product Safety Commission, n.d.).

According to another Grocery Manufacturers’ Association (2011) study, business interruption or lost profits was the top recall cost; however, the largest concern after consumer safety was the organization’s brand. The survey participants of this study are industry professionals. One of the survey respondents was quoted saying, “Brand and market issues are far larger than recall costs themselves” (p. 6). Overall, 81% of the respondents described the financial consequences of a recall as being either “significant” or “catastrophic” (Grocery Manufacturers Association, 2011).

In 2015 Blue Bell Creameries had its first recall in the company’s 108-year history. Blue Bell issued a voluntary recall of all of its ice cream products after Listeria was detected and was linked to 10 illnesses that resulted in three deaths (Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention, 2015.) Although the company fell from being the third leading ice cream company in the U.S. to being the eighth (Robinson-Jacobs, 2016), Blue

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

Bell’s consumers, along with its brand, could be the key to help the company recover.

About Blue Bell

Blue Bell Creameries, based in Brenham, Texas, has been operating for more than a century (Inampudi & Harwell, 2012). The company began in 1907 as the Washington

County dairy farmer’s cooperative called the Brenham Creamery Company when the founders converted a nearby abandoned cotton gin into a creamery to make butter from their excess supplies of cream. Once H.C. Hodde became manager, he decided to make use of the sweet cream and began experimenting with ice cream. They used their hand- cranked butter maker to create the ice cream and produced two gallons, which was delivered by horse and buggy to local Brenham families (Blue Bell Creameries, n.d.a).

The enthusiastic response that followed led the Brenham Creamery Company officials to approve buying the equipment that enabled them to produce 6,000 gallons of ice cream the following fiscal year (Inampudi & Harwell, 2012). In 1930, the company was renamed Blue Bell, adopting its name from the native Texas bluebell wildflower (Blue

Bell Creameries, n.d.a). Blue Bell’s iconic logo featuring a young girl leading a cow was adopted in 1977 (Madan, 2010).

During the late 1910s, the creamery overcame management changes and tough financial times before the board of directors hired E.F. Kruse (Inampudi & Harwell,

2012). Kruse passed away in 1951 and his sons, Ed and Howard Kruse, followed in his footsteps to run the company. Current CEO and president, Paul Kruse, is the third generation family member to run the creamery. Others at the creamery include cousins and Paul Kruse’s daughter, who make the fourth generation to join the Blue Bell team

(Inampudi & Harwell, 2012).

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In 1987, the company established Blue Bell Advertising Associates, an in-house advertising agency, to produce seasonal radio and television spots to air between

February and October. With strategically placed media advertising, the company reinforced its image as the “little creamery in Brenham” that makes “the best ice cream in the country” (Madan, 2010).

Over the years, Blue Bell has grown to become the third largest ice cream provider in the nation (Moore, 2015) in only about a third of the United States (Robinson-

Jacobs, 2015). Now, the company has production facilities in Brenham, Texas; Broken

Arrow, Oklahoma; and Sylacauga, Alabama. Blue Bell’s growth rested on two main policies: increasing and streamlining production, and maintaining product quality

(Inampudi & Harwell, 2012).

According to Paul Kruse, “Historically, Blue Bell has always tried to be a good partner in ways that benefit the communities we are in” (Inampudi & Harwell, 2012, p.

6). The company has provided cold treats to rescue workers and offered its vehicles for cold storage and transporting supplies following natural disasters. As a result of these efforts and others to be a community partner, Blue Bell has become a favorite for more than just its ice cream (Inampudi & Harwell, 2012).

Between phone calls, letters, and emails, Blue Bell is constantly reminded of how much its customers appreciate the ice cream. The way Blue Bell handles those forms of communication helps the company uphold its down-home feel and stay allied to communities (Inampudi & Harwell, 2012). Letters from consumers cover a variety of subjects from new flavor ideas, requests on where to start selling ice cream, and of course, how much the ice cream means to them. Paul Kruse was quoted talking about the

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 letters in “Blue Bell: The Cream Rises to the Top” published in the Houston History

Magazine and said:

We are always amazed of how our products are embraced by our consumers. It really humbles us to know that people take such pride in our products; as if they made it themselves… they become ambassadors for us. Also, we’re reminded that they associate Blue Bell with special times and memories in their lives. (Inampudi & Harwell, 2012, p. 7) 2015 Blue Bell Creameries Recall Timeline

The Blue Bell ice cream recall was a complex multistate outbreak of Listeria infections cases occurring from January 2010 through January 2015 (CDC, 2015). State and local health officials, CDC, and FDA collaborated to investigate this outbreak from

February 2015 through May 2015. The joint investigation found that certain Blue Bell brand ice cream products were the likely source for most of the illnesses (CDC, 2015).

Public health investigators used the PulseNet system to identify illnesses that were part of this outbreak. PulseNet is the national subtyping network of public health and food regulatory agency laboratories coordinated by the CDC (Swaminathan, Barrett, Hunter,

Tauxe, & CDC PulseNet Task Force, 2012) and it connects foodborne illness cases to detect outbreaks. PulseNet uses DNA fingerprinting, or patterns of bacteria making people sick, to detect local and multistate outbreaks (Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention, 2016c). DNA fingerprinting is performed on Listeria bacteria isolated from ill people using techniques called pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and whole genome sequencing (WGS). PFGE is a laboratory technique used by scientists to produce a DNA fingerprint for a bacterial isolate (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,

2016d). WGS gives a more detailed DNA fingerprint than PFGE. PulseNet manages a national database of these DNA fingerprints to identify possible outbreaks of intestinal illness (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). 5

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

Several PFGE patterns, or strains, of Listeria were involved in this outbreak. Ten people infected with several strains of Listeria were reported from four states: Arizona (n

= 1), Kansas (n = 5), Oklahoma (n = 1), and Texas (n = 3). Illness onset dates ranged from January 2010 to January 2015. The people with illness onsets during 2010-2014 were identified through a retrospective review of the PulseNet database for DNA fingerprints matching isolates collected from Blue Bell ice cream samples. All 10 people were hospitalized and three deaths were reported in Kansas (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). However, the five people that became ill in Kansas were patients at Via Cristi Hospital St. Francis. These patients had consumed Blue Bell ice cream while in the hospital, but they were already patients in the hospital for unrelated causes between

December 2013 and January 2015. According to Kansas Department of Health and

Environment spokeswoman, Sara Belfry, three of the hospitalized patients died and Blue

Bell was a factor in their deaths, but not the cause (Associated Press, 2015).

Dr. Robert Tauxe, an expert on foodborne illnesses at CDC, did an interview with

Maggie Fox at NBC News and talked about how the CDC detected Listeria in Blue Bell ice cream products from 2010. Disease detectives were looking further into the three deaths from Listeria in Kansas, and genetic testing found the same genetic sequence that matched six old cases of Listeria that dated back to 2010. Tauxe said “it is not the biggest outbreak, not by any means, but it is probably the longest outbreak of Listeria.” The outbreak went on for five years, and according to Tauxe, the cases might not have caught the CDC’s attention because they were so spread out (Fox, 2015).

The outbreak was detected February 12, 2015 during a routine product sampling at a South Carolina distribution center. The South Carolina Department of Health and

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

Environmental Control found three strains of Listeria in Blue Bell products that were manufactured at the plant in Brenham, Texas (U.S. Food and Drug Administration,

2015). Those strains would later prove to be connected to illnesses in Kansas, and four rare strains of Listeria in samples of Blue Bell’s single serve Chocolate Chip Country

Cookie Sandwich and Great Divide Bar ice cream products. The Texas Department of

State Health Services then collected product samples from Blue Bell’s Brenham facility, which contained Listeria from the same products tested in South Carolina, along with another Blue Bell ice cream product (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015).

In March 2015, Kansas health officials identified two people from the same hospital who were infected with Listeria bacteria that had the same PFGE pattern. Three additional Listeria cases with three other PFGE patterns had previously been identified from the same hospital. All five people were hospitalized for unrelated problems before developing invasive Listeria – which strongly suggested their infections were acquired in the hospital. Listeria isolates from four of the five people had PFGE patterns that were also identified in ice cream tested by South Carolina and Texas. Although some of the illnesses occurred more than a year before this investigation began, all four people with available information consumed milkshakes made with the “Scoops” Blue Bell ice cream product while they were in the hospital. The fifth person’s isolates was not the same as the other four; however, this person did consume the same milkshake and was added to the case count. Three of these five people died as a result of their Listeria infection

(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015).

On March 13, Blue Bell reacted to the previous findings and announced a limited product recall of affected products and closed down that production line at its Brenham,

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

Texas, facility (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). On March 22, the

Kansas Department of Health and Environment reported a positive test for Listeria in a chocolate institutional/food service cup that was recovered from a hospital in Kansas.

The ice cream cup was produced at the Broken Arrow, Oklahoma facility on April 15,

2014 (Falkenstein, 2015). Samples of Blue Bell brand three oz. institutional/food service chocolate ice cream cups collected from the company’s Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, facility were also contaminated. Listeria isolates from ice cream cup samples were indistinguishable from each other by PFGE, but were different from those found in the

Kansas cases and other Blue Bell products (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,

2015). On March 23, Blue Bell issued a second recall on the chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla ice cream cups (U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 2015).

On April 3, the CDC reported that illnesses might be linked to ice cream made at the Blue Bell Creameries’ Oklahoma facility, but lacked sufficient information to include them as cases in the outbreak at that time. These illnesses were identified when investigators searched the PulseNet database and identified six people (one from Arizona, one from Oklahoma, and four from Texas) who had Listeria isolates with PFGE patterns that were indistinguishable from isolates from ice cream made at the Broken Arrow,

Oklahoma facility between 2010 and 2014. The four people reported from Texas were hospitalized for unrelated problems before developing Listeria, and then it was found that they each had consumed Blue Bell brand ice cream from the hospital. It was eventually revealed that only three of the four people in Texas were confirmed to have Listeria bringing the total illness count for this outbreak to 10 people (Arizona - 1; Kansas - 5;

Oklahoma - 1; and Texas - 3). That day, Blue Bell suspended operations at its Broken

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

Arrow plant (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). On April 7, the FDA notified Blue Bell that Listeria was present in samples of Blue Bell Banana Pudding Ice

Cream pints (U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 2015). Blue Bell took action and expanded the recall of ice cream manufactured in its Broken Arrow plant to include additional products that had the potential to be contaminated with Listeria (Blue Bell

Creameries, 2015a). Finally, on April 20, 2015, Blue Bell recalled all of its products on the market made at all of its facilities (U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 2015).

Eventually, the FDA released inspection reports of the Blue Bell production facilities. The reports found Blue Bell failed to manufacture and package foods under conditions and controls necessary to minimize the potential growth of microorganisms and contamination; they did not perform microbial testing where necessary to identify sanitation failures and possible food contamination; the procedure used to clean and sanitize equipment and utensils was not shown to provide adequate cleaning and sanitizing treatment; and they failed to provide running water at a suitable temperature for cleaning of equipment, utensils and food-packaging materials. The report also showed the Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, plant was not constructed to prevent drip and condensation from contaminating food, food-contact surfaces, and food-packaging materials; employees did not wash and sanitize their hands thoroughly in an adequate hand-washing facility after every time they leave the work station; and Blue Bell did not store cleaned equipment properly (Food and Drug Administration, 2016).

Before Blue Bell could re-enter the market, they had to address the issues the

CDC and FDA found within their production facilities that led to the Listeria outbreak.

Blue Bell worked to clean and sanitize each facility, including disassembling equipment,

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 conducting extensive maintenance and repairs, and conducting employee training in microbiology and sanitization. They also reviewed their operating procedures to eliminate contamination pathways (Blue Bell Creameries, 2015b).

Blue Bell’s Sylacauga, Alabama, facility started producing ice cream for market in August 2015 and slowly distributed its products across the United States followed by

Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, in September 2015, and then Brenham, Texas, in November

2015 (Blue Bell Creameries, 2015e). Blue Bell initiated a five-phase plan for market re- entry (U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 2015). The five-phase plan allowed Blue Bell to enter the market, but at a slow pace due to the limited production capacity of only producing ice cream in its Alabama facility (Whitworth, 2015). Phase one of the plan was returning ice cream to the Texas cities of Brenham, Houston, and Austin, as well as parts of Alabama. Phase two included north central Texas and southern Oklahoma. Phase three covered southwest Texas and central Oklahoma. Phase four involved the majority of

Texas and southern Louisiana. Finally, phase five encompassed Arkansas, Florida, northern Louisiana and Mississippi; parts of Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri, New Mexico,

North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia; and completing distribution in

Alabama, Texas, and Oklahoma (Blue Bell Creameries, 2015d). Phase five market re- entry was completed in January 2016 (Blue Bell Creameries, 2016); however, Blue Bell is constantly returning all of its ice cream flavors as production continues to resume.

Figure 1.1 shows a summarized timeline of the Blue Bell recall.

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

Figure 1.1 Blue Bell Ice Cream Recall Timeline

Blue Bell recalled eight million gallons of ice cream (Dinges, 2016) and the recall cost Blue Bell millions of dollars. In 2011, Blue Bell’s sales were $520 million, and by

2014 its sales had risen to $680 million, according to PrivCo, which tracks privately held companies (Robinson-Jacobs, 2016). With the recall crisis in 2015, PrivCo also found

Blue Bell sales fell by nearly 60% to $288 million (Robinson-Jacobs, 2016). According to IRI, in May 2016 Blue Bell’s sales fell to $236 million. IRI is a Chicago-based market research firm that tracks sales supermarkets, drugstores, gas stations, convenience stores, and some dollar chains. Blue Bell began to struggle once operations were halted and ice cream was not being sold. The company furloughed 1,400 employees, and about 750 full-

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 time and 700 part-time employees was laid off, which was 37% of the 3,900 total workforce (Blue Bell Creameries, 2015c). In a letter from Blue Bell CEO Paul Kruse to

Blue Bell stakeholders, it was mentioned that Blue Bell was unable to raise enough capital from existing stakeholders to stay in business, so its board of directors decided to go with an individual source that could provide the financing quickly. That source was

Fort Worth, Texas, billionaire, Sid Bass. In the agreement, Bass will lend Blue Bell up to

$125 million to help the company rebound, and the agreement could give Bass a one- third stake in the private company (Newman, 2015a).

Shortly after getting back on the market, Blue Bell found cookie dough that might have contained Listeria that they receive from a third-party supplier. Out of caution, Blue

Bell issued a voluntary recall of its chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream. The FDA found that the third-party supplier was at fault after inspectors found Listeria in its plant

(Thornton, 2017).

Today, Blue Bell is operating in 16 states, compared to the 23 states where it sold ice cream before the 2015 recall (Blue Bell Creameries, n.d.b). It also has about 2,500 workers, down 36% from its previous 3,900 employees. In the aftermath, Blue Bell spent a lot of money cleaning, repairing and replacing manufacturing equipment at its plants. It also faced lawsuits, as well as fines (Dinges, 2016). Despite the recall, in 2016 Statista showed that Blue Bell was the fifth leading manufacturer of ice cream in the U.S. based on sales (Statista, 2017).

Significance of the Study

With one in six Americans falling ill from eating contaminated food and 3,000 people dying each year (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2016a), food safety

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 is an issue that can tragically affect consumers. Food recalls are not just an important public health issue, they are also a significant economic concern and can be detrimental to any company (Tyco Integrated Security, 2010). A crisis can have a negative affect on an organization and cause damage to an organization’s performance and reputation

(Coombs, 2015; Fearn-Banks, 2011). If a company facing a food-related crisis can implement proper crisis management strategies, it could possibly overcome the crisis with its reputation intact.

There are three phases to crisis management: pre-crisis, crisis response, and post- crisis. All three phases must be carried out successfully for a company to survive a crisis

(Coombs, 2015). Not only can a company lose its reputation and damage its brand during a crisis, it can also lose consumers’ trust. However, if an organization has a good reputation, it can maintain the trust and confidence of its consumers and stakeholders and have the ability to create a competitive advantage (Gaultier-Gaillard, Louisot, & Raynor,

2009). Studies (Coombs & Holladay, 2006; Kim 2016) have tested a theory that implies if a company has a positive prior reputation before a crisis, consumers are more likely to forgive that company for its wrong doings – whether it was the company’s fault for the crisis or not. This “halo effect” could possibly be the key to keeping some company’s doors open even after the hardest crises (Coombs, 2007c).

Communication is also crucial during a crisis situation because of the need for information (Coombs 2012a). Crisis communication focuses on the crisis response, which impacts the efficiency of crisis management. When a crisis happens, crisis managers evaluate the crisis situation to select the most suitable crisis response strategy (Coombs,

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

1998). The initial crisis response focuses on three points: be quick, be accurate, and be consistent (Coombs, 2007b).

The 2015 Listeria outbreak in Blue Bell ice cream products caused the company to have the first recall in its history. The outbreak resulted in a total of 10 infected people from four states. Everyone who became ill was hospitalized and three people died. Crises are unpredictable, bound to happen, and can damage an organization’s reputation quickly.

Blue Bell had to implement a crisis management plan in an attempt to maintain its reputation and not lose consumers’ trust. The 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall provides a unique case to learn how an organization maintains positive brand reputation and recovers from a crisis situation. This evaluation can be garnered by analyzing the messages and sources used in company press releases and related news stories.

Purpose of the Study and Research Questions

1. What crisis communication response strategy postures are present in Blue

Bell press releases regarding the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

2. What sources and topic areas are present in Blue Bell press releases

regarding the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

3. What crisis communication response strategy postures are present in news

stories about the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

4. What sources and topic areas are present in news stories about the 2015

Blue Bell ice cream recall?

5. What is the difference in presence of postures and sources between press

releases and news stories regarding the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

Assumptions

The assumption was made that the database search returned all relevant materials using the identified keywords in the time frame. It was also assumed that the researcher- developed codebook was unbiased, had clear instructions, and established definite variables to ensure an accurate coding process. An assumption was also made that coder training provided clear guidelines that led to a sufficient level of interrater reliability.

Limitations & Delimitations

This study was limited to the given time frame of the recall: March 13, 2015 to

January 25, 2016. It is possible there were other press releases and news articles that were published before and after this timeframe, which would have allowed the sample size to be larger. However, the researcher attempted to acquire all of the press releases and news stories within the timeframe.

This study was also limited to U.S. newspapers available in LexisNexis during the given timeframe, which hinders the amount of news stories the database will acquire. It is possible there were other newspaper articles that LexisNexis did not identify because

LexisNexis does not include news wires within its searches, which leads to the exclusion of many news stories.

Human coder-error could also be a limitation to this study. Coders were asked to code and take breaks when needed. It was not encouraged to code all articles at once. 15

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

However, the coders could have made mistakes while analyzing the content due to being tired, overwhelmed, or busy.

Some delimitations to this study are that the researcher did not use international newspapers because it seemed more relevant to use newspapers located in the U.S. due to their proximity to the Blue Bell facilities. The researcher also did not examine social media, magazine articles, radio, and other forms of communication channels that may have provided information regarding the recall because the research purpose was to explore print materials.

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

CHAPTER II

LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter overviews key concepts and establishes the theoretical foundation for the variables of interest in the study. The review of literature provides background information about food safety and recalls in the United States, crisis communication, crisis management, reputation management, brand equity, and the reputation halo effect to better understand the Blue Bell recall and answer the proposed research questions. The theories in this study were framing (Entman, 1989; Goffman 1974; Scheufele &

Tewksbury, 2007; Scheufele, 1999) and Coombs’ (2006b, 2007c, 2015) Situational Crisis

Communication Theory (SCCT), which recommends appropriate response strategies, or postures, to crisis managers. The SCCT outlined four major postures of crisis response strategies that are also applicable for this research.

Food Safety and Recalls in U.S.

Salmonella, E. coli, and Listeria cause the most food related illnesses, hospitalizations, and deaths in the United States (Foodsafety.gov, n.d.a). Salmonella is estimated to have caused one million foodborne illnesses, 19,000 hospitalizations, and

380 deaths (Foodsafety.gov, n.d.d). Symptoms usually last four to seven days and people can recover without treatment (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2016f).

However, Salmonella can be more serious for older adults, infants, and people with chronic diseases. Some sources of Salmonella are contaminated eggs, poultry, meat, unpasteurized milk or juices, cheese, nuts, spices, and contaminated raw fruits and vegetables. Salmonella can be prevented by washing hands throughout the cooking process and proper cooking techniques (Foodsafety.gov, n.d.d).

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

Escherichia coli, also known as E. coli, lives in the intestines of people and animals, and most types are harmless; however, others can make consumers very ill

(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2016b). A severe complication with E. coli infections is hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), which can require intensive care, kidney dialysis, and transfusions. Some sources of E. coli are contaminated food, undercooked beef, raw milk, raw juice, raw fruits and vegetables, and contaminated water

(Foodsafety.gov, n.d.b).

Listeria is a serious infection usually caused by eating contaminated food with the bacterium Listeria (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2016e). Listeria is found in soil and water and can be present in raw milk and foods made from raw milk, as well as plants that process those products. Listeria is a unique germ because it can grow in cold temperatures. Just like Salmonella, proper cooking techniques and clean hands can kill Listeria (Foodsafety.gov, n.d.c). Listeria is an important health problem in the United

States and can pose major risks for older adults, people with chronic diseases, and pregnant women (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2016e).

Typically when a company finds any kind of bacteria or unwanted substances in their products, a recall is inevitable. A food recall is an action made by a manufacturer or distributer to protect the public from contaminated products that could cause harm (Food

Safety and Inspection Service, 2015). The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for the regulation and safety standards for approximately 80% of the food supply in the U.S. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and

Inspection Service (FSIS) regulates the remaining 20%, which include meat, poultry, and some egg products (Food Safety and Inspection Service, 2015).

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

Although procedures are in place for a recall in the event it is necessary, manufacturing companies work diligently to prevent recalls (White-Cason, 2013).

Specific plans are ready to ensure the quality and safety of the manufacturing process, however, mistakes occur. When a problem arises, it is the manufacturer’s responsibility to remove the product from the market as quickly as possible before it causes harm to consumers. Typically, these events are anticipated to happen so emergency and crisis management strategies are put into place, which can speed up the recall process (White-

Cason, 2013). Once a company issues a recall, the FDA or Food Safety Inspection

Service (FSIS) will evaluate the potential threat and severity of the recall and make sure that efforts are being made to remove the problem (Food Safety and Inspection Service,

2015).

In 2015, dairy products were at the top of FDA recalled food category, with Blue

Bell being the primary cause followed by Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream who recalled 100 ice cream products due to Listeria contamination, and Kraft who recalled 34 processed cheese products because the plastic film remained attached to the cheese slices

(Whitworth, 2016). Joe Stout, a food safety consultant who used to be a manager at Kraft

Foods said, “[The outbreaks have] really been a wake-up call for the food industry, and not just for dairy but for other companies as well who though they were in good shape but are now asking, could this happen to me?” (Newman, 2015b)

Companies are implementing stronger procedures that require them to clean their facilities better, and test more often to prevent Listeria. A lot of the recalls have been due to better testing procedures, which causes companies to come into the media spotlight.

Because of this, the amount of ice cream recalls was a lot, which indirectly affected the

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 dairy industry. However, the dairy industry was not directly affected by the Blue Bell recall because Blue Bell ruled out contamination of the supply chain. Blue Bell pasteurizes its milk after it gets to the facility from the Diary Farmers of America. The use of pasteurizing milk kills any bacteria that might be there. The dairy cooperative supplies Blue Bell with the milk of 60,000 cows a day (Collette & Deam, 2015). When

Blue Bell shut down operations, it could have affected not only dairy producers, but also the strawberry and peach producers. Blue Bell purchases more than 5 million strawberries a year, and about one million pounds of peaches a year (KBTX, 2012).

In 2015, the FDA took significant steps to prevent foodborne illness by completing rules that implement the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). For the very first time, this included establishing and enforcing food safety standards for consumers, animal food and produce farms, as well as regulating imported food (Food and Drug Administration, 2015). These new rules are focused primarily on preventative measures to ensure food companies are taking action and working with the FDA to prevent hazards from the beginning.

Crisis Communication

Communication is the essence of crisis management because of the demand for information during a crisis (Coombs 2012a). Crisis communication is the collection, processing, and dissemination of information required to address a crisis situation. In order to reduce and try to contain harm to organizations in crisis, the organization strategically communicates with the publics (Reynolds & Seeger, 2005; Seeger 2006).

Crisis communication also focuses on the crisis response, what an organization says and

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 does when a crisis happens, which impacts the effectiveness of crisis management

(Coombs, 2012a).

A crisis can create three related threats to an organization, its stakeholders and an industry: public safety concerns, financial losses, and reputation loss (Coombs, 2007b).

The primary concern during a crisis is public safety. Public safety concerns occur when there are injuries, illnesses, or loss of lives during the crisis. A crisis can cause an organization to suspend operations, which creates a forfeiture in sales and consumers’ intentions to purchase their products, and it can trigger lawsuits related to the crisis, all of which cause major financial losses (Coombs, 2007b). Furthermore, any crisis is bound to reflect poorly on an organization threatening its reputation (Barton, 2001), so the crisis response phase should devote some time to reputation repair. Effective crisis communication is crucial to restoring an organization’s reputation, brand, and consumer trust. This can greatly affect the agriculture industry because the industry itself is often misunderstood by the public (Palmer, Irlbeck, Meyers, & Chambers, 2013).

When a crisis occurs, crisis managers evaluate the crisis situation to select the appropriate crisis response strategy (Coombs, 1998). The crisis response is what management says and does after a crisis hits. There are two main types of responses: the initial crisis response, and reputation repair and behavioral intentions.

The initial crisis response focuses on three points: be quick, be accurate, and be consistent. When communicating to consumers and stakeholders, a company should respond quickly (Coombs, 2007b). Being quick means providing a response in the first hour after the crisis occurs so the organization can tell its side of the story before the media finds other sources and someone else tells their version of the story. Accuracy is

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 always an important factor; however, it can be challenging to be accurate when the information needs to be publicized quickly (Coombs, 2007b). Organizations need to make sure the information is correct before it is shared with the public because inaccurate statements make the organization look inconsistent and incompetent. Accuracy and being quick to respond go hand-in-hand when dealing with public safety. People need to know what is going on and what they need to do to protect themselves during a crisis situation.

If companies and organizations do not say anything or take too long to speak up during a crisis, they are allowing rumors and misinformation to build up, causing their consumers to lose trust (Coombs, 2009).

Reputation repair strategies are in place to help repair the reputational damage a crisis causes to a company (Coombs, 2007b). Although Benoit (1995; 1997) evaluated these strategies from many research traditions that shared a concern for reputation repair, it was Coombs (2007c) who integrated Beniot’s work to create a master list of strategies.

These strategies can be used during the crisis response phase, post-crisis, or both.

Although a company’s reputation is very valuable, behavioral intentions need to be examined as well. The more a company is being blamed for the crisis, the greater the chance of negative word-of-mouth pertaining to the company, causing consumers to purchase less from said company. However, if a company creates an effective plan to protect its reputation, it can reduce the chances of negative word-of-mouth as well as the negative effect on purchase intentions (Coombs, 2007c).

In 1982, McNeil Consumer Products, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, was faced with a crisis situation when seven people died due to ExtraStrength Tylenol capsules being laced with cyanide (Kaplan, 2005). Due to the outbreak being only in the

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Chicago area, it was determined that the product had been tampered with. The crisis led to a widespread panic of the public nationwide. It also led to copycats who attempted to provoke the tampering in Chicago. Johnson & Johnson acted quickly when responding to the crisis and reached consumers across the nation through the media, and recalled all

Tylenol products on the market. For McNeil Consumer Products and Johnson &

Johnson’s post-crisis communication, they rebranded Tylenol and gave consumers a discount to buy their product (Kaplan, 2005).

In regard to the 1982 Tylenol crisis, Kaplan (2005) found that a quick, accurate response is key to helping a company overcome a crisis. Johnson & Johnson immediately reacted to the Tylenol crisis by alerting consumers, teaming up with public authorities to find the culprit who tampered with their product, and creating a two-phase plan that was implemented effectively. The Tylenol crisis was possibly the biggest crisis to hit the pharmaceutical industry, but with their effective public relations program that both protected the public interest and was given support by the media, Johnson & Johnson was able to recover quickly (Kaplan, 2005). A slow or inaccurate response can lead to injuries or deaths, whereas quick actions can prevent any further damage and protect the reputation of an organization by proving the organization is in control (Coombs, 2007b).

The Internet is an important tool for organizations to communicate with journalists and publics (Taylor & Perry, 2005). The Internet gives organizations the chance to communicate with journalists and the publics by connecting links to other pages, having videos or interviews on their sites, and provides an opportunity for two- way communication (Taylor & Perry, 2005). The Internet has also increased the need for a fast crisis response. If an organization takes too long to respond, the media could move

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 on to other sources that are unreliable, which could lead to stories that are inaccurate and/or framed in such a way that can make the organization look dishonest (Coombs,

2009). When crisis communication is done effectively, it can reduce the damage that a crisis imposes on an organization and its reputation and can establish the foundation for repairing the damage that did happen (Coombs, 2015). In Taylor and Perry’s (2005) study about the diffusion of traditional and new media tactics in crisis communication, they found organizations are still using traditional media when in a crisis. One finding showed 98% of the organizations in their study that used the Internet during a crisis situation had at least one traditional media tactic in their crisis response, and 34% of organizations relied only on traditional media tactics. Eighty percent of the organizations that responded to a crisis through the Internet posted a news release (Taylor & Perry,

2005). If an organization does not respond through the Internet during a crisis situation, that could be the equivalent of “no comment.”

Organizations should also express concern and sympathy for the victims involved in a crisis. Expressions of concern can lessen the reputational damage and reduce financial costs for an organization. Dean (2004) and Coombs and Holladay (1996) found that organizations that expressed concern and sympathy for victims experienced less reputational damage verses a response that was lacking any expression of concern.

Crisis communication that involves agriculture-related crises tends to come from media sources outside of the incident or industry because the food and agriculture industries tend to not get involved (Eyck, 2000). Despite the need to hear directly from food scientists, they could be uncomfortable being interviewed for reporters because they have not had adequate spokesperson training (Anderson, 2000). In Fry’s (2012) study

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 over the risk and crisis communications used in the 2009 Salmonella outbreak in peanut products, she found that although the local peanut organizations had good relationships with the media, that right scientific based individuals were not found promoting the industry (Fry, 2012). Additionally, food safety issues are portrayed negatively in the media because the news media report every outbreak of any circumstance (Riddle, 2007).

When a food safety issue is involved in a crisis situation and the news media reports it, it can cause consumers to stop eating the affected food, which can result in a negative impact on the industry (Marks, Kalaitzandonakes, Allison, & Zakharova, 2003).

A crisis communication plan is very important for organizations in the agriculture industry because public perceptions already tend to be negative or neutral due to a lack of trust in the industry and past occurrences of crises that involves agriculture (Irlbeck,

Jennings, Meyers, Gibson, & Chambers, 2013). In Palmer et al.’s (2013) study about the

2008 Salmonella outbreak, they found crisis managers involved with the outbreak emphasized the need to get their information out to the public quickly. This study also concluded that working with external stakeholders improved communication efforts during the crisis.

Crisis Management

A company or organization cannot function properly without effective crisis management. Although crisis management has many different definitions, Coombs

(2015) said, “[crisis management is] a set of factors designed to combat crises and to lessen the actual damaged inflicted” (p. 5). Crisis management should ultimately lessen those negative outcomes that happen during a crisis and protect the company, stakeholders, and industry. A crisis can cause a major threat to organizations and

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 companies and have negative results if not handled properly (Coombs, 2007b).

Inadequate crisis management can result in serious damage to the stakeholders, losses for a company, and can even cause the company to close its doors (Coombs, 2007a). A crisis can also cause an inconvenience to the industry where the crisis took place. For example, in 2011 two farmers with Jensen Farms pleaded guilty for introducing adulterated food

(cantaloupes) into interstate commerce and consumers were sickened with Listeria

(Gibson, 2014). This crisis was noted as the deadliest outbreak of food-related illness in more than 10-years in the U.S. with 147 people sickened across 28 states and 33 deaths.

This was also called one of the worst food-related outbreaks of Listeria in U.S. history.

However, Jensen Farms was not the only farm affected by the Listeria crisis; cantaloupe farmers across Colorado had to respond to the media coverage. Sales of all cantaloupes were affected as well following the outbreak (Gibson, 2014).

The 2008 Salmonella outbreak sickened more than 1,400 people in 43 states

(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2008). The outbreak was originally linked to a specific kind of raw tomatoes, but it was eventually found imported jalapeno and

Serrano peppers from Mexico caused the outbreak because they were tainted by contaminated irrigation water (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2008).

Consumers were confused about what was safe and what was not and many stopped purchasing tomatoes altogether. Losses to the tomato industry were estimated at $100 million (Palmer et al., 2013). A crisis communication plan, when followed efficiently, can potentially reduce the damages caused by a crisis.

There are three phases to crisis management: pre-crisis, crisis response, and post- crisis. The pre-crisis phase is all about the efforts that need to be taken to avoid a crisis

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 and prepare for one if it happens (Coombs, 2009). The pre-crisis stage has two aspects: prevention and preparation. Prevention identifies and reduces risks that can eventually develop into crises. Good crisis managers watch for these signs before they happen; however, it is hard to do. So, crisis managers must understand that a crisis is a matter of

“when” not “if”. In the preparation stage, a crisis management plan (CMP) is created and used to test the plan and the employees for a crisis situation. This plan contains tasks for employees and contact information (Coombs, 2009).

Crisis response is when the company must actually respond (Coombs, 2007b). In this stage, management’s main responsibility is to handle the crisis situation and try to return the organization to normal operations. An organization should be quick to respond, avoid “no comment”, be accurate, and be consistent. If an organization is not quick to respond, stakeholders will not know what is happening in the crisis. The news media also need sources, so if the organization will not speak with the news media, media representatives will find someone else to use and tell their story of the crisis (Coombs,

2009). To avoid “no comment” organizations are encouraged to tell the media they do not know the answer to that question yet. An organization needs to provide accurate information; however, that can be hard when combined with a quick response. It is crucial to give accurate information at all times, otherwise an organization can be misinforming the public. Consistency means the crisis messages coming from the organization must not contradict each other. Every spokesperson for the organization needs to have the same knowledge about the crisis in order to speak about it consistently

(Coombs, 2009).

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The post-crisis phase focuses on evaluating what efforts worked and did not work so companies can improve those strategies for future crises, and it is also when companies should be following through on the promises it made during the crisis, which includes providing follow-up information (Coombs, 2007b).

In order to ensure consumer confidence within the food system, effective crisis management is crucial. A prompt and complete response to food safety problems is essential. In a study about meat and poultry recalls, Hooker, Teratanavat, and Salin

(2005) found that there are factors that can harm or help the effectiveness of crisis management. Those factors are managerial and technical factors. Managerial factors at the plant level are assumed to influence the impact of recalls. The size of the manufacturing plant, timing, and history of crisis management at the plant are all assessed. Technical factors include the type of inspection environment (meat or poultry plant), the type of product recalled (processed or raw), and the size and severity of the recall. The size of the recall is measured in pounds of product recalled. Large recalls are more difficult to handle effectively and can lead to lower recovery rates and longer periods to complete the case (Hooker, Teratanavat, & Salin, 2005).

When smaller companies do not prepare for a product recall, they could see major damage to their market share, which could also leave them exposed to a takeover by another company (Bowers, 1999). Blue Bell’s crisis management efforts during the recall were mentioned as being “one of the most botched efforts in history” (O’Malley, 2016, p.

8). Their efforts were referred to as a piecemeal recall, which is an approach used by firms hoping to “quietly solve a problem where it occurred rather than assuming it is a symptom of something more widespread” (O’Malley, 2016, p. 8), and it did not go well

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 for Blue Bell. They lost $180 million in sales, but with a $125 million bailout from Fort

Worth, Texas, billionaire Sid Bass, Blue Bell was able to continue managing the crisis

(O’Malley, 2016). According to Barrett and Hynes’ (2016) study, Blue Bell followed an effective crisis management plan, and their positive prior reputation and branding is what helped them weather the crisis.

Reputation Management

Henry Ford, the founder of Ford Motor Company, once said, “The two most important things in any company do not appear in its balance sheet: its reputation and its people” (Klewes & Wreschniok, 2009, p. 37). A reputation is an evaluation stakeholders make about an organization and is recognized as a valuable, intangible asset. Reputation is the main asset of any organization and is worth protecting (Coombs, 2007b). A reputation is a form of attitude based on the relationship between the stakeholder and an organization (Coombs & Holladay, 2006). Reputations are built through two main interactions between a stakeholder and an organization: direct and mediated. A direct interaction is one way to build a reputation and would include buying a product or visiting a store (Coombs, 2012b). Mediated interaction also builds reputation and involves the messages an organization sends, like online messages, and second-hand information from other people such as word-of-mouth communication as well as news media coverage (Coombs, 2007c).

An organization’s media visibility and favorability can be crucial to an organization’s reputation when it comes to sending its messages. Media favorability is

“the overall evaluation of a firm presented in the media … resulting from the stream of media stories about the firm” (Deephouse, 2000, p. 1097). This suggests that the media

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 are making reputational assessments to their audience members about an organization while conveying information. All of the experiences with an organization, good or bad, are embedded in a stakeholder’s mind and creates the organization’s reputation (Coombs

2007c). When these messages focus primarily on the positive aspects of an organization, a favorable reputation is created.

Reputation management involves efforts to shape how stakeholders perceive the organization with the goal of creating more favorable impressions. A reputation takes years to build and only minutes to ruin (Gaultier-Gaillard et al., 2009). If an organization has a good reputation, it can maintain the trust and confidence of its consumers, investors, suppliers, and other stakeholders, and have the ability to create a competitive advantage (Gaultier-Gaillard et al., 2009). A good reputation consistently meets or exceeds the expectations of its stakeholders (Coombs, 2007c) and a bad reputation is when the words and actions of an organization falls short of the stakeholders’ expectations (Reichart, 2003). A favorable reputation not only supports an organization to operate and grow, generating new partnerships, but it also provides reputational capital or equity that can help an organization withstand a crisis (Van Hasselt, 2011).

Brand Equity

A brand is what the consumer buys and is a collection of emotional and functional associations. A brand is something that consumers can identify with that can separate it from other companies (Business Dictionary, n.d.a).

In a consumer’s mind, a brand’s image can become tied with a certain level of credibility, quality, and satisfaction over time. When consumers are rushed in the supermarket, a brand can help consumers choose a product based on what the brand

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 stands for and its value to that customer. “The best brands have remarkable creativity in advertising to help them break through people’s wall of indifference to create brand heat and product lust” (Goodson, 2012, para. 8). According to Gene Grabowski, who handled

Blue Bell’s crisis management, “Blue Bell has one of the most powerful brands in the country. Nobody blamed Blue Bell.” (Deese, 2016, para. 13). Grabowski continued to say the same cannot be said for companies like Chipotle, General Mills, or other companies who experience a recall even though they have strong brand recognition (Deese, 2016).

Brand equity represents a product’s value to a consumer and could lead them to choose that brand over another within the same product category (Leuthesser, Kohli &

Harich, 1995). “Brand equity is the differential effect that brand knowledge has on consumer response to the marketing of that brand” (Keller, 1993, p. 45).

Brand equity can also become damaged due to organizational crises, which could end up ruining the relationship between the brand and its consumers (Park & Lee, 2013).

Henger, Beldad, and Heghuis (2014) examined brand equity to determine if crisis response strategies influenced post-crisis brand equity and the influence of pre-crisis brand trust on the relationship between crisis response and post-crisis brand equity. The study showed that the ways brands react to a crisis does have an influence on brand equity because non-response leads to the depreciation of brand equity. Additionally, pre- crisis brand trust can serve as a buffer for a brand during a crisis and even after it (Henger et al., 2014).

Brand loyalty also goes hand-in-hand with brand equity and is ultimately the connection a consumer has to that particular brand (Aaker, 1991, p. 39). Strong brand loyalty can be very beneficial to an organization because it leads to favorable word-of-

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 mouth and loyal consumers (Dick & Basu, 1994). Lassar, Mittal, and Sharma (1995) measured customer-based brand equity using five underlying dimensions of brand equity: performance, value, social image, trustworthiness, and commitment. The study showed that consumers demonstrated a halo [effect] across the dimensions of brand equity, which suggests that if consumers evaluate a brand to perform well, they value and trust it. For example, Honda vehicles have brand equity because of their price value, where as Lexus cars have brand equity because of their high performance and social image. The Dallas

Morning News quoted Jeffery Peacock, who is a partner with New York-based BERA

Brand Management, saying, “People who are close to the brand [Blue Bell] and are familiar with this brand really love this brand” (Robinson-Jacobs, 2015, para. 21). He also added that Blue Bell would have “a degree of forgiveness that a lesser brand would not” (Robinson-Jacobs, 2015, para 21). Peacock’s firm examines the relationship between brands and consumers. U.S. consumers perceive Blue Bell as ranking higher than 63% of all other brands among 4,000 that span 200 categories. Other ice cream brands share strong customer loyalty; Ben and Jerry’s stands at 91.54% and Haagen-Daz at 88.63% with brand love (Robinson-Jacobs, 2015).

Reputation Halo Effect

Having a favorable pre-crisis reputation could be beneficial for an organization during a crisis (Coombs, 2012a). Pre-crisis reputation can create a halo effect that is said to protect an organization during a crisis. In 1920, U.S. physiologist Edward Thorndike identified the halo effect as “the tendency to make specific inferences on the basis of a general impression” (Rosenzweig, 2007). A “halo” can shape how we perceive a company regardless of its performance. The “halo” can also work as a shield that deflects

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 the potential reputational damage a crisis can cause to an organization. It might also encourage stakeholders to give the organization the benefit of the doubt during a crisis

(Coombs & Holladay, 2006).

Halo as benefit of the doubt and halo as a shield are two possible explanations for a reputation halo effect in a crisis. If a stakeholder holds a generally favorable view of an organization, that positive reputation could cause the stakeholder to overlook the negative crisis information (Claeys & Cauberghe, 2015). A stakeholder could give the organization the benefit of the doubt by assigning the organization less responsibility for the crisis. The halo as a shield claims that stakeholders will focus on the positive and ignore the recent negative information that was created by a crisis (Coombs & Holladay,

2006).

Coombs and Holladay (2006) attempted to clarify what the halo effect is and to determine if it helps protect an organization during a crisis. They found that the halo effect can actually protect a reputation but only from certain threats. They used

Situational Crisis Communication Theory (SCCT) as a guide to identify two aspects of accident crisis situations when a halo effect might be in use. The first situation is when the halo can act as a shield due to the cause of an accident being human-error. Typically with human-error causes, the attributions of crisis responsibility and reputational damage are increased. However, the halo effect as a shield could prevent the increase of attribution of crisis responsibility and reputational damage if stakeholders evaluate the organization’s reputation similar to a technical-error cause. In the next situation, the halo can provide benefit of the doubt if there is not a cause for an accident. When it comes to an accident being human-error, stakeholders are likely to designate the fundamental

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 attribution error instead, allowing the halo effect to possibly lead stakeholders to view a no-cause crisis as a technical-error accident. The overall conclusion of Coombs and

Holladay’s (2006) study found that the halo effect as a shield occurs in a limited crisis domain, but it only works for organizations with a very favorable prior reputation, such as Johnson & Johnson when addressing the crisis of Tylenol laced with cyanide (Kaplan,

2005).

As proven by Coombs and Holladay’s (2006) study, having a good overall reputation can reap many benefits. It might not only offer a shield (halo effect) against a crisis situation, but could also shield against negative publicity following those events.

When the media reports an accusation of an organization of misbehaving, it can cause additional damage to the organization’s reputation (Vanhamme & Grobben, 2009). For example, research indicates that negative news articles regarding an organization lead to a decline in reputation and trust in the organization, which in turn results in a decline of public support (Kim, Carvalho, & Cooksey, 2007). However, a favorable pre-crisis reputation could void the organization of the harm with negative publicity. Coombs and other researchers have also recognized how important an organization’s history and crisis history is when it comes to understanding current crises. Coombs (2004) showed how similar crises increase the threat to an organization’s image when a new crisis is encountered, meaning the more prior crises an organization has, the worse the threat is to the organization’s image and reputation. Coombs and Holladay (2001) previously argued an organization’s relational history with stakeholders is an important part of its performance history. The organization’s history has an instrumental effect on how it will be perceived during a crisis and how its crisis response communication will be received.

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

In a study about understanding publics’ perception and communicative behaviors in crisis communication, Kim (2016) found that a prior reputation, positive or negative, could affect certain public’s perceptions of an organization during a time of crisis. The study found that consumers who are not actively seeking information are more likely to ignore a crisis if it contradicts with the information they are given about the crisis when the organization already had a positive reputation. This study supports the finding that organizations can benefit from having a positive prior reputation during a crisis situation because their good reputation “buffers” the crisis situation, which positively benefits the organization throughout the troubled time (Helm & Tolsdorf, 2013; Tucker & Melewar,

2005).

Theoretical Framework

One way to study media is to study its content (An & Gower, 2009). Through various forms, the news media can shape the way the public thinks and feels about significant issues (Cohen, 1963). The theories that helped guide this study were framing

(Scheufele & Tewksbury, 2007; Scheufele, 1999; Entman, 1989; Goffman, 1974) and

Coombs’ (2006b, 2007c, 2015) Situational Crisis Communication Theory.

Framing

Journalists are usually unbiased when they are reporting. This is also referred to as journalistic objectivity, which is comprised of three components: depersonalization, balance, and accuracy. Depersonalization means that journalists should not express their own views or feelings. Balance means presenting the sources’ views on both sides of a topic without favoring one side or the other (Entman, 1989). Accuracy means that

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 journalists need to quote sources directly and present the facts from the sources accurately (Beder, 2004).

Framing theory explains how mass media present information by either choosing to cover an issue, or choosing not to cover certain facets of an issue (Stone, Singletary, &

Richmond, 1999). Framing can be determined by what an individual’s expectations are of a condition causing them to create their own understanding in social situations (Baldwin,

Perry, & Moffitt, 2004), which supports Goffman’s (1974) explanation that individuals use prior experiences to process information. According to Goffman (1974), frames can assist audiences when trying to make sense of the information they are given. “Framing is based on the assumption that how an issue is characterized in news reports can have an influence on how it is understood by audiences” (Scheufele & Tewksbury, 2007, p. 11).

Entman (1993) said that public perceptions can be affected by the way information is framed in news reports, which is why it is crucial for organizations to participate in the framing process.

Scheufele (1999) developed a process model of framing that divides the important links in framing into inputs, processes, and outcomes (Figure 2.1). This model displays framing as a continuous process where the outcomes of specific processes serve as inputs for processes that follow after. The process begins in the frame building stage where the influence is centered on the journalists because they construct frames to make sense of information. Journalists’ ideology and attitudes can be reflected in the way news coverage is framed. Frame setting is the next step in the process, which is focused on the salience of issue, attributes, meaning, specific values and facts are given greater importance than they might really have (Nelson, Clawson & Oxley, 1997). Individual-

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 level effects of framing are behavioral, attitudinal, and cognitive variables. The final step in the process is journalists as audiences, which indicated that journalists are susceptible to frames set by the news media (Scheufele, 1999).

Figure 2.1 Scheufele’s (1999) process model of framing research.

How the crisis is being framed is an important observation when dealing with a crisis situation (Coombs, 2015). Creating frames for understanding a crisis situation and offering explanatory definitions are both very important to effective communication during a crisis (Coombs, 1999). In order to better understand the publics and their communicative behaviors during crisis situations, crisis communication researchers have studied how the publics feel and respond to a crisis (An & Gower, 2009). Organizations should also try to tell their story or their side of the situation to influence perceptions

(Holladay, 2010). Entman (1991) noted that news frames could be emphasized through elements like “keywords, metaphors, concepts, symbols, and visual images” (p. 7).

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Although there are a variety of internal and external sources that can frame a crisis for the media and the public (Caldiero, Taylor, & Ungureanu, 2012), the most common source is the news release. Taylor and Perry (2005) conducted a five-year study of crisis situations and found that over 80% of organizations in a crisis had posted a news release on their website. The study also found specific internal sources that appeared in the press releases, which included statements made by organizational leaders. In news coverage of a crisis, external sources are also often quoted. Some external sources could include industry analysts, leaders, regulators, and academics. All comments made by these sources could help frame the crisis story by explaining the crisis situation through their opinions

(Caldiero, Taylor, & Ungureanu, 2012).

The media are an essential aspect to consider during a crisis situation because they have the ability to influence social behavior and policy agenda (Whaley & Doerfert,

2003). In a study about how U.S. news magazines framed stories on food safety, Whaley and Doerfert (2003) found that the majority of the articles they examined used a social frame covering labeling issues, political impacts, health benefits, and unknown risks.

They also found more than half of the articles confirmed the media’s institutional bias through governmental sources.

Heider (1958) discovered that the way the public feels and interprets events is based on what information is significant around them. Exposure to media coverage affects the salience of particular attributes and persuades individuals toward certain understandings and opinions (Coombs & Holladay, 2010). The news media can frame a story by choosing what information to include and exclude from a story (Iyengar &

Kinder, 1987; Pan & Kosicki, 1993). News framing can influence the publics’ perception

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 of an organization, which provides crisis managers with valuable insights on what response strategies would be the most effective for crisis communication (Holladay,

2009; Liu & Kim, 2011).

Using a single news story about an anti-abortion rally in Wichita, Kansas, Pan and

Kosicki (1993) attempted to connect news texts to the production and consumption processes of information. They suggested four structural dimensions of news frames: syntactical, script, thematic, and rhetorical structures. Syntactical structures include the headline, lead, background, episodes, and closure, meaning the specific and constant arrangement of words or phrases that go into sentences. Script structure provides a description of events and activities in a stable way, such as the five Ws and H: who, what, when, where, why, and how. Thematic structures examine the crisis as a common problem within the industry and have larger attributions of accountability to common problems within the industry (Holladay, 2010). They usually consist of a main theme, subthemes, and supporting elements. A rhetorical structure is related to journalists’ writing style and involves framing devices such as metaphors, catchphrases, depictions, and visual images (Pan & Kosicki, 1993). These devices help audience members process the information they are given, which helps them understand the details.

Crisis events can be framed into a victim, accidental, and preventable cluster.

Table 2.1 shows the clusters with more details about what they mean. Each cluster has different levels of reputational threat based on how and where publics attribute the crisis responsibility to the company (Coombs, 1998; Coombs & Holladay, 1996, 2002). When it comes to attributing crisis responsibility, the public tends to give little crisis responsibility in the victim cluster. Natural disasters, workplace violence are considered

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 victim crises (Coombs, 2015). The next type of crisis belongs in the accidental cluster, where stakeholders place minimal responsibility on the organization (Coombs, 2015).

Technology or equipment failures, product recalls caused by faulty equipment, and claims that organizations are operating inappropriately are some examples of accidental crises. Conversely, the public attributes strong crisis responsibly in the preventable cluster, which includes accidents or recalls caused by human error and organizational wrongdoings (Coombs, 2006b; Coombs, 2007c, Schwarz, 2012).

Table12.1. SCCT Crisis Types by Crisis Clusters Victim Cluster: in these crisis types, the organization is also the victim of the crisis. (Weak attribution of crisis responsibility causing mild reputational threat) Natural disaster: Acts of nature damage an organization, such as a hurricane Rumor: False and damaging information about an organization is being circulated. Workplace violence: Current or former employee attacks current employees on site.

Accidental Cluster: In these crisis types, the organizational actions leading to the crisis were unintentional. (Minimal attributions of crisis responsibility causing moderate reputational threat) Challenges: Stakeholders claim an organization is operating in an inappropriate manner. Technical-error accidents: A technology or equipment failure causes an industrial accident. Technical-error product harm: A technology or equipment failure causes a product to be recalled.

Preventable Cluster: In these crisis types, the organization knowingly placed people at risk, took inappropriate actions or violated a law/regulation. (Strong attributions of crisis responsibility causing sever reputational threat) Human-error accidents: Human error causes an industrial accident. Human-error product harm: Human error causes a product to be recalled. Organizational misdeeds management misconduct: Laws or regulations are violated by management. Organizational misdeeds with injuries: Stakeholders are placed at risk by management and injuries occur. Note. Adapted from Coombs (2007c, 2015)

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Crisis managers try to choose the right response strategies to frame the crisis type and alter the publics’ perceptions of the company in crisis (Boin, Hart, & McConnell,

2009; Ulmer, Sellnow, & Seeger, 2014) while at the same time the news media is framing the same crisis in similar or dissimilar ways (Bowen & Zheng, 2015; Coombs, 2007c).

The public tends to get their information and perceptions from media coverage of the crisis, rather than the crisis manager’s strategies, which means the organization needs to be actively involved as a source for news media outlets (Cho & Gower, 2006; Holladay,

2009; Liu & Kim, 2011).

One method to track information that the public receives about an organizational crisis is to examine the contents of the media reports. Media reports are rarely thoroughly examined to determine what kind of information is being reported by companies other than the organizational spokesperson and what kind of additional information is being reported about the crisis (Holladay, 2010). The clarification of a crisis must happen first before understanding crisis response strategies (Coombs & Holladay, 1996). Caldiero,

Taylor and Ungureanu (2012) noted there is a substantially lower amount of research on dealing with the analysis of specific types of crises and the crisis communications efforts from the organization.

Situational Crisis Communication Theory

There have been theoretical approaches to assist crisis managers in understanding how to effectively communicate with the public when responding to a crisis (Choi &

Chung, 2013; Seeger, 2006). Coombs (2006b, 2007c) proposed the Situational Crisis

Communication Theory (SCCT), which recommends suitable response strategies to crisis

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 managers. Figure 2.2 depicts Coombs (2007c) crisis situation model of SSCT. According to Coombs (2007c) “SCCT provides an evidence-based-framework for understanding how to maximize the reputational protection afforded by post-crisis communication” (p.

163). A crisis situation consists of four elements that can be used to examine its potential threat to an organization’s reputation: crisis type, damage severity, crisis history, and relationship history (Choi & Chung, 2013). According to SCCT literature, crisis response strategies can improve positive behavior intentions toward an organization (Coombs &

Holladay, 2007, 2008; Laufer & Jung, 2010) and restore a company’s image and reputation (Coombs & Holladay, 2002). SCCT also posits that organizations need to protect their reputation during a crisis by developing crisis response strategies and messages that are based on the current crisis situation (Fediuk, Pace, & Botero, 2010).

Figure32.2 Coombs (2007c) crisis situation model of SCCT.

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Because all crises are unique, they can create different perceptions of attribution; therefore, an organization can suggest different degrees of accepting responsibility, or accommodation, with different response messages. The initial crisis response should have instruction information which tells stakeholders what to do to protect themselves, such as taking shelter from a tornado or what products are being recalled (Coombs, 2015). The crisis response can also adjust the information to help stakeholders deal with the crisis; however, everyone needs to know the what, when, where, why, and how of a crisis situation. SCCT applies attribution theory to crisis communication. Attribution theory is based on the belief that people want to know and understand why an event occurred

(Weiner, 1985). SCCT uses attribution theory to assess an organization’s level of responsibility for the crisis and recommend a specific set of crisis response strategies

(Brown & White, 2010).

Some researchers have described types of crisis response strategies that may be used to counter threats to reputation (Allen & Caillouet, 1994; Benoit, 1995; Coombs,

1995, 2007a). These strategies are usually theorized on a scale ranging from “defensive” to “accommodative” (Coombs, 2006a). Defensive responses indicate that there is not a problem and aim to reassure stakeholders that the organization is fine, and takes action to restore normal day-to-day operations. Accommodative responses are when the organization takes full responsibility, admits there is a problem, and attempts to take corrective action (Coombs, 2006a). Additionally, Coombs (2015) divided crisis response strategies into four postures: denial, diminishment, rebuilding, and bolstering (see table

2.2). The denial posture strives to remove any connections an organization has with a crisis. If the company or organization is not involved, it will not suffer any damage from

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 the situation (Coombs, 2015). Some examples of the denial posture include attacking the accuser, simple denial, and scapegoating. The diminishment posture attempts to reduce the attributions of organizational control, or reduce the negative impact of the crisis. If the cause of the crisis is viewed less negatively, the harmful effect of the crisis is reduced and it lessens the reputational threat to the company or organization (Coombs, 2015).

Some diminishment posture examples include excusing and justification. The rebuilding posture’s goal is to improve the organization’s reputation through taking some responsibility. Crisis managers try to say and do things designed to benefit stakeholders by offsetting the negative effects of the crisis in attempt to bring more positivity to the organization (Coombs, 2015). This includes compensation and apology. Finally, bolstering is a supplemental strategy to the other three postures. Bolstering aims to build a positive connection between an organization or company and its publics by showing support from the organization for its stakeholders. This includes reminding, integration, and vicitimage.

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Table 2.2. Crisis Response Strategies by Posture Denial Posture Attacking the accuser: The crisis manager confronts the person or group that claims that a crisis exists. The response may include a threat to use force (e.g. a lawsuit) against the accuser. Denial: The crisis manager states that no crisis exists. The response may include explaining why there is no crisis. Scapegoating: Some other person or group outside of the organization is blamed for the crisis.

Diminishment Posture Excusing: The crisis manager tries to minimize the organization’s responsibility for the crisis. The response can include denying any intention to do harm or claiming that the organization had no control of the events that led to the crisis. Justification: The crisis manager tried to minimize the perceived damage associated with the crisis. The response can include stating that there were no serious damages or injuries or claiming that the victims deserved what they received.

Rebuilding Posture Compensation: The organization provides money or other gifts to the victims. Apology: The crisis manager publicly states that the organization takes full responsibility for the crisis and asks for forgiveness.

Bolstering Posture Reminding: The organization tells stakeholders about its past good works. Ingratiation: The organization praises stakeholders. Victimage: The organization explains how it too is a victim of the crisis. Note. Adapted from Coombs (2007c, 2015).

During a crisis, the public will look for the cause of the crisis and assign responsibility based on their knowledge and understanding of the organization responsible (Coombs 1995; Coombs & Holladay 2004; Dowling, 2002). In Holladay’s

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(2009) study about crises that involved chemical accidents and the immediate news coverage of those accidents. She conducted a content analysis to examine how successful crisis managers were at telling their side of the story through the news media. She found that news stories rarely used an organizational member as a source and concluded that the issue could be due to the organization not getting the crisis information to the media quick enough. Ultimately, Holladay’s (2009) study found that crisis managers were not being a part of the crisis news coverage.

The crisis type, also called the crisis frame, is an important factor when attributing blame. The different types of crises that have been identified are the organization is a victim of the crisis, the crisis was an accident, and the crisis was preventable (See table

2.3). The public will not provide as much blame and anger to the organization if they believe it was a victim to the crisis. The public will attribute the most blame to the organization when they believe the crisis could have been prevented (Holladay, 2010).

Kim (2016) found that accidental crisis types produce low attribution of crisis responsibility; whereas, preventable crises caused strong attribution of crisis responsibility.

Crisis managers choose different crisis response strategies for each crisis type. For accidental crises, more defensive strategies are chosen (e.g., attacking the accuser), and more accommodative strategies are chosen for preventable crisis in order to sway the public’s perceptions of the crisis or organization (Coombs, 1998, 2015; Schwarz, 2012).

Coombs (2007c) provides a set of guidelines (see table 2.3) that can assist with deciding what crisis response strategies should be taken. In Kim’s (2016) study, it was determined that news framing can influence crisis communication when it comes to the public’s

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 thoughts and understanding of a crisis situation which can lead to potential damage and negative behavioral intentions toward an organization or company.

Table32.3. SCCT Crisis Response Strategy Guidelines 1. Informing and adjusting information alone can be enough when crises have minimal attributions of crisis responsibility (victim crises), no history of similar crises and a neutral or positive prior relationship reputation. 2. Victimage can be used as part of the response for workplace violence, product tampering, natural disasters and rumors. 3. Diminish crisis response strategies should be used for crises with minimal attributions of crisis responsibility (victim crises) coupled with a history of similar crises and/or negative prior relationship reputation. 4. Diminish crisis response strategies should be used for crises with low attributions of crisis responsibility (accident crises), which have no history of similar crises, and a neutral or positive prior relationship reputation. 5. Rebuild crisis response strategies should be used for crises with low attributions of crisis responsibility (accident crises), coupled with a history of similar crises and/or negative prior relationship reputation. 6. Rebuild crisis response strategies should be used for crises with strong attributions of crisis responsibility (preventable crises) regardless of crisis history or prior relationship reputation. 7. The deny posture crisis response strategies should be used for rumor and challenge crises, when possible. 8. Maintain consistency in crisis response strategies. Mixing deny crisis response strategies with either the diminish or rebuild strategies will erode the effectiveness of the overall response. Note: Adapted from Coombs (2007c).

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

CHAPTER III

METHODOLOGY

The prior chapter established the theoretical foundation for the variables of interest in this research. This chapter explains the procedures guiding the research process. It will focus on the following: research design, population and sample, coding procedure, and data analysis.

Purpose and Research Questions

1. What crisis communication response strategy postures are present in Blue Bell

press releases regarding the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

2. What sources and topic areas are present in Blue Bell press releases regarding

the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

3. What crisis communication response strategy postures are present in news

stories about the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

4. What sources and topic areas are present in news stories about the 2015 Blue

Bell ice cream recall?

5. What is the difference in presence of postures and sources between press

releases and news stories regarding the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

Research Design

This study used a comparative quantitative content analysis of Blue Bell

Creameries’ press releases and United States newspaper coverage of the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall. Content analysis is “the study of content with reference to meanings, contexts, and intentions contained in messages” (Prasad, 2008, p. 1). Content analysis refers to a group of techniques for the efficient, replicable examination of content.

Content analysis includes characterizing parts of the content by using a precise coding plan, or codebook. The codebook helps coders make decisions about the message content. Content analysis covers a multitude of written texts that can be digital or in print

(Rose, Spinks, & Canhoto, 2015). Researchers can use either qualitative or quantitative design when conducting a content analysis.

To understand the unique characteristics of the 2015 Blue Bell recall, the researcher conducted a content analysis of 23 Blue Bell press releases and a sample of newspaper articles published in the United States using the timeframe of March 13, 2015 to January 25, 2016. Using the information collected from the comparison, the researcher was able to examine the similarities and differences of the press releases and resulting news coverage of the crisis.

Sample

The sample for this study consisted of two types of documents – press releases published by Blue Bell and news stories published during the Blue Bell recall. The researcher chose to examine press releases because they are an organization’s form of controlled information. New stories are similar to press releases in that they are also a print medium, but the organization does not control the information in them. The

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 timeframe for the selection of the press releases started March 13, 2015 when Blue Bell sent out its first press release regarding the first recall the company made. The press release timeframe ended January 25, 2016 when Blue Bell finished phase five of its five- phase plan for market re-entry. The researcher used Google search to find the official

Blue Bell press releases by searching for the key terms ‘blue bell’ ‘press release’ followed by each individual month that aligns with the months of this study, March 2015 through January 2016. The researcher could not directly locate the press releases from

Blue Bell’s website homepage or navigational structure; however, the key terms would bring the researcher to a link that contained the original Blue Bell press release on the company website. For a week the researcher collected press releases and a total of 23 were found.

The researcher used LexisNexis Academic Source to collect a sample of news stories that were published during the Blue Bell recall timeline in one day. To identify the news stories that discussed the Blue Bell recall, the researcher searched using the keywords ‘blue bell’ and ‘listeria’ or ‘recall’ during the time period of March 13, 2015, to

January 25, 2016. The news stories were limited to those in the United States. This combination of search terms and geographic area yielded 268 articles, of that however,

200 were removed due to the news stories being duplicates or not relevant to the Blue

Bell ice cream recall. The final sample had 68 articles from a variety of news sources across the U.S.

Coding Procedure

To analyze the sample, a researcher-developed codebook was created that adapted material from previous literature (Worawongs, Schejter & Connolly-Ahern, 2009) to

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 determine the characteristics used for each press release and news story. The codebook was revised through the coder training and pilot test phases. The final codebook is described in this section.

Coder Training

Prior to data collection, the researcher conducted coder training to familiarize coders with the content being analyzed. The purpose of this was not to pre-code material, but to increase the coders’ comfort level with the content, address initial concerns, and clarify any discrepancies or unclear descriptions within the codebook (Riffe, Lacy &

Fico, 1998).

Intercoder reliability must be met and it must be accurate for content analysis studies. Lombard, Snyder-Duch, and Bracken (2002) defined intercoder reliability as “the widely used term for the extent to which independent coders evaluate a characteristic of a message or artifact and reach the same conclusion” (p. 589). It is very important to establish intercoder reliability, or else the data will not be considered as valid (Lombard, et. al. 2002). One undergraduate student and one graduate student served as coders. The coders went through a practice training and studied a series of different press releases and news stories that were not part of the research sample (Lombard, et. al. 2002). The press releases and news stories were chosen from a more recent Blue Bell recall of cookie dough. The coders were able to talk through their thoughts and concerns about the topic before they were given additional articles to code for the pilot test.

In the pilot testing phase, two coders independently analyzed eight news stories and three press releases using the researcher-developed codebook – 10% of the actual data to be used (Lombard, Snyder-Duch, Bracken, 2010; Wimmer & Dominick, 2003).

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The press releases and news stories were randomly sampled from the press releases and news stories included in the study (Riffe, Lacy, & Fico, 2005). After coding, data were entered into Microsoft Excel and uploaded to Reliability Calculator for two Coders

(ReCal 2). ReCal 2 is a free, web-based service that calculates intercoder reliability for two coders (Freelon, 2010). The intercoder reliability analysis used Cohen’s kappa coefficient, κ, to verify coherence among raters. Table 3.1 provides Cohen’s interpretation of κ values.

Table43.1. Interpretation of Cohen’s kappa coefficient. Value of kappa Level of Agreement ≤ 0 Chance agreement 0.01 – 0.20 Slight agreement 0.21-0.40 Fair agreement 0.41-0.60 Moderate agreement 0.61-0.80 Substantial agreement 0.81-0.99 Almost perfect agreement 1.00 Perfect agreement

According to Lombard et al. (2002) the “coefficients with .90 or greater are nearly always acceptable, .80 or greater is acceptable in most situations, and .70 may be appropriate” (p. 600). When it comes to Cohen’s kappa, a lower criterion is acceptable; however, a reliability level of .80 or higher was chosen to meet the reliability standards set by the researcher.

Of the eight news stories, there were 61 variables that had to meet the intercoder reliability agreement. Twenty-one did not meet the reliability of κ > 0.80. Of the 59 total variables in the press releases, 51 variables met the reliability of κ>0.80 or higher. The variables that did not meet the set of reliability standard were evaluated and clarified with

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 the coders in another meeting. The coders reached agreement on the variables that did not originally meet acceptable intercoder reliability standards. No variables were removed from the codebook; however, an additional variable, “supportive tone” was added as an option for the tone variable.

All disagreements and concerns were addressed and the codebook was altered to clarify any unclear descriptions. Once the researcher believed coders were adequately trained, the coders divided the remaining 60 news stories and 20 press releases evenly and proceeded to code them using the codebook.

Code Book

The researcher provided a codebook for the press releases (Appendix A) and the news stories (Appendix C), along with a press release codesheet (Appendix B) and a news story codesheet (Appendix D). The press release codebook (Appendix A) and news story codebook (Appendix C) were similar and were divided into five main sections. The first section was General Information, which was where the coder put the information of the press release such as the number, date, headline, word count, and their coder ID number. The next section provided definitions of the four crisis communication response strategies, or postures, that were adapted from Coombs (2009) and asked coders to assign one posture to each paragraph. Next, there is a section for Quotes, where the coders analyzed direct quotes and coded two primary areas – Potential Sources of Information and Topic Areas. Potential Sources of Information consisted of six different sources that could have been represented in any of the content. The Potential Topic Areas section had nine different topic areas that the sources listed in the previous section could have been quoted talking about. The only difference the news story codebook possessed was in the

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General Information section, where coders were also asked to code if Blue Bell was mentioned in the headline of the news story, and if so, what the tone was of the headline

– tones could be negative, neutral, or positive.

The codesheets were used so the coders could collect data and write it down if they wanted to do so. The codesheets were also similar and contained an area for coders to write down their Coder ID Number, press release/news story number, press release/newspaper name, headline, date it was published, and if the document contained any of the four postures, and then a general information section for remaining paragraphs.

The news story codesheet had an additional section where coders were asked to code the tone of the headline and if it was positive, negative, or neutral.

The researcher collected press releases that were strictly published by Blue Bell.

For descriptive purposes, the date, word count, headline of the press release, and the total number of paragraphs were recorded for each press release. Press releases and newspaper articles that discussed the Blue Bell recall were both individually coded to identify crisis response postures, sources used to depict the crisis, and the topic areas of discussion. For each newspaper, the title of the newspaper, date, length of each article (word count), headline, headline tone, and total number of paragraphs of each news article was recorded.

Below are the specific variables for both the press releases and news stories that coders were coding for throughout the study.

Crisis response postures. To determine how the Blue Bell recall was framed, the researcher used Coombs’ (2015) four crisis response strategies, or postures: deny, diminishment, rebuild, and bolster. The deny posture involved Blue Bell trying to remove

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 any connections it had with the crisis and included: attacking the accuser (ex: crisis manager confronting the person or group claiming something is wrong with the organization), denial (ex: crisis manager asserting that there is no crisis), and scapegoating (ex: crisis manager blaming some person or group outside the organization for the crisis) (Coombs, 2015). The diminish posture attempts to reduce attributions of organizational control and reduce the negative effects of the crisis and includes excusing

(ex: crisis manager minimizing organizational responsibility by denying intent to do harm and/or claiming inability to control the events that triggered the crisis) and justification

(ex: crisis manager minimizing the perceived damage caused by the crisis). The rebuild posture’s goal is to improve the organization’s reputation through taking some responsibility and includes compensation (ex: crisis manager offering money or other gifts to victims) and apology (ex: crisis manager indicating the organization takes full responsibility for the crisis and asks stakeholders for forgiveness) (Coombs, 2015). The bolstering posture aims to build a positive connection between the organization and their publics by showing support from the organization for its stakeholders and includes reminding (ex: tell stakeholders about the past good works of the organization), integration (ex: crisis manager praising stakeholders and/or reminding them of past good works by the organization), and victimage (ex: crisis managers reminding stakeholders that the organization is a victim of the crisis too) (Coombs, 2015).

The coders coded each paragraph into one of these postures, which served as a way to frame the information. For paragraphs that did not fit one of the four postures, coders had the option to code the variable as general information.

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Sources. To identify which sources the press releases and news stories relied on for information, the total number of quotes and paragraphs from each source was counted. A Blue Bell Creameries representative, U.S. Government representative, Expert,

Ice Cream Consumer source, Ice Cream Retailer source, and Other source were all options available to be coded as sources. The coders were asked to identify who the source was for each quote. The sources were adapted and modified to fit into this study from Worawongs, Schejter, & Connolly-Ahern (2009).

Table53.2. Press Release and News Story Source Examples Blue Bell Sources identified as a Blue Bell representative are representative employed, representing, or owns Blue Bell Creameries. This may include the CEO, spokespersons, stockholders, or employees of the company. U.S. Government Sources identified as a U.S. Government representative are representative individuals that are part federal, state, or local in the U.S. These may include elected officials, appointees, and spokespersons that are employed by the U.S. Government. Expert Sources identified as an expert source are individuals representing an academic institution, policy institute, or the health sector. This may include professors, attorneys, and public relations specialists. Ice Cream Consumer Sources identified as an ice cream consumer source are individuals that purchase ice cream. These sources may have been directly affected by purchasing the recalled ice cream, or they may just have concern for the other consumers who were directly affected by the crisis. Ice Cream Retailer Sources identified an ice cream retailer source are individuals employed, representing, or owning a retailer that supplied ice cream for consumers to purchase. These sources may include retailers such as H-E-B, United Supermarkets, and Wal-Mart. Other Sources identified as other source include corporations or organizations that were not listed above.

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Topic areas. To identify what the source was explaining in the press releases and news stories, the coders were given potential topic areas: General Comments, Plans and

Predictions, Food Safety Regulation, Apologetic Tone, Supportive Tone, General

Scientific Finding, Instructions for Ice Cream Consumers, Discussion of Past Food

Recalls, Deaths and Injuries (associated with the product recall), and Other. The topic areas were adapted from Worawongs, Schejter, and Connolly-Ahern (2009). The coders were asked to assign the topic to one of these topic areas for every paragraph that contained a quote from a source. There could only be one topic area for each source quote.

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Table63.3. Press Release and News Story Topic Area Examples General comments This topic describes the ice cream recall without providing specific details of the crisis. Plans and predictions This topic describes the company’s plan for addressing the recall, or predicting the outcome or consequences of the unfolding crisis situation. Food safety and regulation This topic addresses the current status or changes in food safety regulation. Quotes can also discuss how food safety regulations may have caused the recall or how the crisis will alter the current regulations. Apologetic tone This topic addresses the recall with words that convey the source is sorry. Supportive tone This topic addresses the recall with words that convey the source is supportive of Blue Bell. General scientific finding This topic discusses the scientific findings associated with the ice cream recall. It could include lab or test results. Instructions for ice cream This topic focuses on providing instructions for ice consumers cream consumers that may or may not have been affected by the recall. Instructions may consist of informing consumers on which types of ice cream were affected, creating awareness of the potential symptoms, or what to do with the tainted products. Discussion of past food This topic focuses on describing past food recalls, recalls which may include past recalls that involved Blue Bell Creameries, or other companies and products. Deaths and injuries associated This topic focuses on the people that died or became with the product recall sick as a result of the ice cream recall.

Data Collection

The coding process was completed over a two-week period. Coders could either record data onto individual codesheets or they could enter the data directly into the relevant Microsoft Excel document – one for press releases and another for news stories.

Table 3.4 provides a summary of how many press releases and news articles were included in the study over the timeframe of March 2015 to January 2016.

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Table73.4. Number of Press Releases and News Stories Included in the Study for Each Month in the Timeframe Press Releases (N = 23) News Stories (N = 68) March 2015 4 2 April 2015 4 22 May 2015 3 9 June 2015 1 4 July 2015 2 6 August 2015 2 5 September 2015 0 6 October 2015 0 3 November 2015 0 6 December 2015 2 3 January 2016 5 2

Data Analysis

Once the coders were finished recording data into Excel, the lead researcher combined the files for press releases and news stories. A visual inspection of the data indicated some inconsistency in the data recording process so the lead researcher examined the notes each coder had left on physical copies of the content to resolve any concerns. The data were then imported into SPSS 22. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data in research questions one, two, three, and four. Specifically, frequencies were run on the four postures plus general information, the sources, and the topic areas.

Research question five provides a comparison of previously calculated data.

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CHAPTER IV

RESULTS

The purpose of this study was to determine how the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall was presented in company press releases and news media coverage to determine what crisis communication Blue Bell was implementing and how the media presented that information. To accomplish this purpose, the researcher conducted a comparative quantitative content analysis of 23 Blue Bell press releases and 68 news stories. With the defined variables, the researcher used SPSS to calculate frequencies. The results are organized with the following research questions:

1. What crisis communication response strategy postures are present in Blue

Bell press releases regarding the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

2. What sources and topic areas are present in Blue Bell press releases

regarding the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

3. What crisis communication response strategy postures are present in news

stories about the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

4. What sources and topic areas are present in news stories about the 2015

Blue Bell ice cream recall?

5. What is the difference in presence of postures and sources between press

releases and news stories regarding the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

Research Question One

Research Question One sought to identify what crisis communication response strategy postures were present in Blue Bell press releases. To answer this, the coders read

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 each paragraph of the Blue Bell press releases and assigned them to a distinct posture or the category of “general information.”

An analysis of the postures indicated that out of 23 press releases sampled, the deny posture was present in four (17.39%) press releases. However, the deny posture was not discovered in 19 (82.60%) of the press releases (see Table 4.1).

Table84.1. Frequency of Deny Posture in Press Releases (N = 23) Times Identified Frequency Percent (%) 0 19 82.6 1 3 13.0 4 1 4.3

The diminish posture was identified in six (26.08%) out of the 23 press releases and was actually found in three paragraphs within two of the press releases (see Table

4.2). The diminish posture was not found in 17 (69.60%) of the press releases.

Table94.2. Frequency of Diminish Posture in Press Releases (N = 23) Times Identified Frequency Percent (%) 0 17 69.60 1 4 17.39 3 2 8.70

The rebuild posture was found in 78% (n = 18) of the 23 press releases. Rebuild appeared in eight paragraphs within one press release, but it was not located in five

(21.70%) of the 23 press releases (see Table 4.3).

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

Table104.3. Frequency of Rebuild Posture in Press Releases (N = 23)

Times Identified Frequency Percent (%)

0 5 21.70 2 6 26.09

3 6 26.09

4 4 17.40 5 1 4.30 8 1 4.30

Although the bolster posture was not identified in 13 (56.52%) of the 23 press releases, it was found in 10 (43.47%) press releases. This posture appeared once within eight press releases. (See Table 4.4)

Table114.4. Frequency of Bolster Posture in Press Releases (N = 23)

Times Identified Frequency Percent (%)

0 13 56.52 1 8 34.78 2 1 4.30

3 1 4.30

The remaining paragraphs that were not identified as any of the four postures were coded General Information. General Information was identified in 20 (86.96%) of the 23 press releases. Seven (30.43%) press releases had two paragraphs of General

Information coded (see Table 4.5).

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Table124.5. Frequency of General Information in Press Releases (N = 23)

Times Identified Frequency Percent (%)

0 3 13.0 1 4 17.39

2 7 30.43

3 3 13.0 4 3 13.0 5 2 8.70

6 1 4.30

Table 4.6 provides a summary of the presence and absence of postures found in the press release paragraphs (n = 144). The most predominant posture was rebuild, which was identified in 59 (40.97%) paragraphs. The least used posture was deny found in seven (4.86%) of the paragraphs. Paragraphs that provided General Information were the second most common with 38.19% (n = 55) of the paragraphs.

Table134.6. Posture Frequency in Press Release Paragraphs (N = 144) Frequency Percent (%) Rebuild 59 40.97 General Information 55 38.19 Bolster 13 9.02 Diminish 10 6.94 Deny 7 4.86

Research Question Two

Research Question Two addressed the sources and topic areas that occurred in press releases. The coders read and analyzed each paragraph of the Blue Bell press releases and determined who the source was and what topic area the source was talking about. Table 4.7 represents the direct quote sources in press releases. Blue Bell officials

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 were quoted the most in 16 (69.56%) of the 23 press releases. Ice Cream Consumers and

Ice Cream Retails were not quoted at all in the press releases.

Table144.7. Direct Quote Source Frequency in Blue Bell Press Releases (N = 23) Source Frequency Percent (%) Blue Bell 16 69.56 U.S. Government 1 4.34 Experts 1 4.34 Others 1 4.34 Ice Cream Consumers 0 0.0 Ice Cream Retailers 0 0.0 Note: Multiple sources could be identified in each news story. Total does not equal 100%

Table 4.8 shows the direct quote sources in press release paragraphs. Out of 144 paragraphs, 31 (21.53%) had quotes from Blue Bell officials. U.S. Government, Experts, and Others were quoted one time each.

Table154.8. Number of Direct Quotes from Source Types in Blue Bell Press Release Paragraphs (N = 144) Source Frequency Percent (%) No Quote 112 77.78 Blue Bell 31 21.53 U.S. Government 1 0.69 Experts 1 0.69 Others 1 0.69 Ice Cream Consumers 0 0.00 Ice Cream Retailers 0 0.00

The topic areas that are represented in quotes from Blue Bell sources in press releases are shown below in Table 4.9. The topic Plans and Predictions was recorded in

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20 (64.51%) of the 31 paragraphs that contained quotes from Blue Bell. Quotes that addressed “Apologetic Tone” were found in seven (22.58%) paragraphs, and “Food

Safety Regulation” quotes were identified in two (6.45%) paragraphs.

Table164.9. Topic Areas Represented in Quotes from Blue Bell Sources in Press Releases (N = 31) Topic Area Frequency Percent (%) Plans & Predictions 20 64.51 Apologetic Tone 7 22.58 Food Safety Regulation 2 6.45 Deaths & Injuries 1 3.22 General Comments 1 3.22 Supportive Tone 0 0.0 General Scientific Finding 0 0.0 Instructions for Ice Cream Consumers 0 0.0 Discussion of Past Food Recalls 0 0.0

Research Question Three

Research Question Three sought to recognize which crisis communication response strategy postures were present in news stories. To address this research question, the coders read each paragraph of the news stories and assigned them to a distinct posture or the category of “general information.”

An evaluation of the postures used in the news stories found that out of 68 news stories sampled, the deny posture was not present in 64 (94.10%) of the news stories. The deny posture was found in four (5.90%) of the 68 news stories (see Table 4.10).

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Table174.10. Frequency of Deny Posture in News Stories (N = 68)

Occurrence Frequency Percent (%)

0 64 94.1 1 4 5.9

The diminish posture was identified in 10 (14.71%) of the news stories and was found in five paragraphs within two of the news stories (see Table 4.11). The diminish posture was not found in 85.3% (n = 58) of the news stories.

Table184.11. Frequency of Diminish Posture in News Stories (N = 68)

Occurrence Frequency Percent (%)

0 58 85.3 1 3 4.4

2 2 2.9

3 3 4.4 5 2 2.9

Table 4.12 shows the rebuild posture was found in 89.71% (n = 61) of the 68 news stories. Rebuild appeared in 20 paragraphs within one news story, but it was not located in seven (10.30%) of the 68 news stories.

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Table194.12. Frequency of Rebuild Posture in News Stories (N = 68)

Occurrence Frequency Percent (%)

0 7 10.3 1 7 10.3

2 12 17.6

3 5 7.4 4 10 14.7 5 11 16.2

6 2 2.9 7 3 4.4 8 6 8.8 9 2 2.9 10 1 1.5 11 1 1.5 20 1 1.5

The bolster posture was not identified in 36 (52.90%) of the 68 news stories, but it was found in 32 (47.06%) news stories. This posture appeared once within 18 (26.50%) news stories, and 10 times within one (1.50%) news story (see Table 4.13).

Table204.13. Frequency of Bolster Posture in News Stories (N = 68)

Occurrence Frequency Percent (%)

0 36 52.9 1 18 26.5 2 4 5.9 3 4 5.9 4 2 2.9 5 1 1.5 8 1 1.5 9 1 1.5 10 1 1.5

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The paragraphs that were not identified as any of the four postures were coded as

General Information. Of the 68 news stories, General Information was present 65

(95.59%) times. There were two (2.90%) news stories that had 26 paragraphs of General

Information coded. (See Table 4.14)

Table214.14. Frequency of General Information Posture in News Stories (N = 68) Occurrence Frequency Percent (%) 0 3 4.4 1 3 4.4 2 4 5.9 3 6 8.8 4 3 4.4 5 3 4.4 6 4 5.9 7 4 5.9 8 5 7.4 9 2 2.9 10 2 2.9 11 4 5.9 12 1 1.4 13 2 2.9 14 3 4.4 15 6 8.8 16 2 2.9 18 1 1.5 19 3 4.4 20 1 1.5 21 1 1.5 25 3 4.4 26 2 2.9

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Table 4.15 provides a summary of the presence and absence of postures found in the news stories paragraphs. The most predominant posture was General Information, which was identified in 675 (63.44) of the 1,064 news story paragraphs. The least used posture was deny, found in only four (0.38%) of the paragraphs. Paragraphs that were coded rebuild were the second most common with 26.41% (n = 281) of the paragraphs.

Table224.15. Posture Frequency in News Story Paragraphs (N = 1,064) Present Posture n % General Information 675 63.44 Rebuild 281 26.41 Bolster 78 7.33 Diminish 26 2.44 Deny 4 0.38

Research Question Four

Research question four addressed the sources and topic areas that occurred in news stories about the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall. The coders read and analyzed each paragraph of the 68 news stories and determined who the source was and what topic area the source was quoted talking about. There were a total of 1,064 news story paragraphs.

Table 4.16 shows the direct quote sources present in the news stories. Blue Bell officials were quoted the most often in 48 (70.59%) of the 68 news stories. U.S.

Government sources were quoted the second most frequently with 30.88% (n = 21). The least common source quoted was Others with only three (4.41%) of the 68 news stories.

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Table234.16. Direct Quote Source Frequency in News Stories (N = 68)

Source Frequency Percent (%)

Blue Bell 48 70.59 U.S. Government 21 30.88

Experts 20 29.41

Ice Cream Retailers 17 25.0 Ice Cream Consumers 8 11.76 Others 3 4.41

Note: Multiple sources could be identified in each news story. Total does not equal 100%

Table 4.17 shows the direct quote sources in news story paragraphs. Out of 1,064 paragraphs, 720 (67.68%) of them contained no quotes. Blue Bell officials were the most commonly quoted source found in 96 (9.02%) of the 1,064 paragraphs. “Others” were quoted the least with 1.69% (n = 18) of the paragraphs.

Table244.17. Number of Direct Quotes from Source Types in News Story Paragraphs (N = 1,064) Source Frequency Percent (%) No Quote 720 67.68 Blue Bell 96 9.02 Experts 73 6.86 U.S. Gov. 56 5.26 Ice Cream Retailers 52 4.89 Ice Cream Consumers 49 4.61 Others 18 1.69

The topic areas are represented in quotes from Blue Bell sources in news stories are shown below in Table 4.18. The topic “Plans and Predictions” was found in 34

(35.42%) of the 96 paragraphs where a Blue Bell source was quoted. “Discussion of Past

Food Recalls” and “Deaths and Injuries” were not quoted by any Blue Bell sources.

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Table254.18. Topic Areas Represented in Quotes from Blue Bell Sources in News Stories (N = 96) Topic Areas Frequency Percent (%) Plans & Predictions 34 35.42 Supportive Tone 17 17.71 General Comments 16 16.67 General Scientific Finding 11 11.46 Apologetic Tone 10 10.42 Food Safety Regulation 7 7.29 Instructions for Ice Cream Consumers 1 1.04 Discussion of Past Food Recalls 0 0 Deaths & Injuries 0 0

Table 4.19 shows “General Scientific Finding” was the topic quoted the most from U.S. Government sources with 18 (32.14%) of the 56 paragraphs. “Apologetic

Tone” was not quoted at all, and “Food Safety and Regulation” was the second most common topic quoted with 13 (23.21%) paragraphs.

Table264.19. Topic Areas Represented in Quotes from U.S. Government Sources in News Stories (N = 56) Topic Areas Frequency Percent (%) General Scientific Finding 18 32.14 Food Safety Regulation 13 23.21 General Comments 8 14.29 Deaths & Injuries 7 12.50 Supportive Tone 4 7.14 Instructions for Ice Cream Consumers 3 5.36 Plans & Predictions 2 3.58 Discussion of Past Food Recalls 1 1.79 Apologetic Tone 0 0.0

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The topic areas represented in quotes from expert sources in news stories are shown in Table 4.20. General Comments were the most quoted with 28 (38.36%) out of

73 paragraphs.

Table274.20. Topic Areas Represented in Quotes from Expert Sources in News Stories (N = 73) Topic Areas Frequency Percent (%) General Comments 28 38.36 Food Safety Regulation 18 24.66 Plans & Predictions 9 12.33 Supportive Tone 6 8.22 Discussion of Past Food Recalls 6 8.22 General Scientific Finding 4 5.48 Apologetic Tone 1 1.37 Deaths & Injuries 1 1.37 Instructions for Ice Cream Consumers 0 0.0

Table 4.21 shows the topic areas represented in quotes from Ice Cream

Consumers sources in news stories. The “Supportive Tone” was quoted the most with

70% (n = 21) of the quotes, followed by “General Comments” with 30% (n = 9). All other topic areas were not quoted at all by Ice Cream Consumers.

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

Table284.21. Topic Areas Represented in Quotes from Ice Cream Consumers Sources in News Stories (N = 30) Topic Areas Frequency Percent (%) Supportive Tone 21 70.0 General Comments 9 30.0 General Scientific Finding 0 0.0 Plans & Predictions 0 0.0 Food Safety Regulation 0 0.0 Apologetic Tone 0 0.0 Instructions for Ice Cream Consumers 0 0.0 Discussion of Past Food Recalls 0 0.0 Deaths & Injuries 0 0.0

Table 4.22 shows the topic areas represented in quotes from Ice Cream Retailers in news stories, “General Comments” was the most common with 28 (57.14%) of the 49 quotes from this source. “Apologetic Tone”, “Discussion of Past Food Recalls,” and

“Deaths and Injuries” were not present in any quotes from Ice Cream Retailer sources in news stories.

Table294.22. Topic Areas Represented in Quotes from Ice Cream Retailers Sources in News Stories (N = 49) Topic Areas Frequency Percent (%) General Comments 28 57.14 Supportive Tone 11 22.45 Plans & Predictions 6 12.24 Instructions for Ice Cream Consumers 2 4.08 General Scientific Finding 1 2.04 Food Safety Regulation 1 2.04 Apologetic Tone 0 0.0 Discussion of Past Food Recalls 0 0.0 Deaths & Injuries 0 0.0

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

Table 4.23 shows the source category of “Others” was quoted 18 times in the news stories and 11 (61.11%) of those included “General Comments”. “Discussion of

Past Food Recalls” was the second most quoted topic from “other” sources within three

(16.67%) paragraphs.

Table304.23. Topic Areas Represented in Quotes from Other Sources in News Stories (N = 18) Topic Areas Frequency Percent (%) General Comments 11 61.11 Discussion of Past Food Recalls 3 16.67 Plans & Predictions 2 11.11 Food Safety Regulation 1 5.56 Supportive Tone 1 5.56 Deaths & Injuries 0 0.0 General Scientific Finding 0 0.0 Apologetic Tone 0 0.0 Instructions for Ice Cream Consumers 0 0.0

Research Question Five

Research Question Five sought to determine the differences in the postures and sources between press releases and news stories. Table 4.24 shows the comparison of postures between press releases and news stories. Rebuild was found the most common in

18 (78.26%) press releases, and 61 (89.71%) news stories. The deny posture was found the fewest amount of times in only four (17.39%) press releases and four (5.88%) news stories.

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Table314.24. Posture Comparison between Blue Bell Press Releases and News Stories PR (N = 23) NS (N = 68) Posture Frequency Percent (%) Frequency Percent (%) Rebuild 18 78.26 61 89.71 Bolster 9 39.13 32 47.06 Diminish 7 30.43 10 14.71 Deny 4 17.39 4 5.88 Note: Multiple sources could be identified in each news story. Total does not equal 100%

Table 4.25 represents the comparison by paragraph between the press releases and news stories. Within the press releases, a Blue Bell official was quoted 31 (21.52%) times out of 144 paragraphs. A Blue Bell official was also the most commonly quoted source in news stories with 96 (9.02%) paragraphs out of 1,064 total paragraphs. Ice Cream

Consumers were not quoted in any press releases; however, they were quoted in 30

(2.82%) news story paragraphs, but this was the most infrequently used source.

Table324.25. Source Comparison by Paragraph between Blue Bell Press Releases and News Stories PR (N = 144) NS (N = 1,064) Source Frequency Percent (%) Frequency Percent (%) No Quote 54 37.24 742 69.74 Blue Bell 31 21.52 96 9.02 Experts 1 0.69 73 6.86 U.S. Government 1 0.69 56 5.26 Others 1 0.69 18 1.69 Ice Cream Retailers 0 0.0 49 4.61 Ice Cream Consumers 0 0.0 30 2.82

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CHAPTER V

CONCLUSIONS, DISCUSSION, AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The purpose of this study was to determine how the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall was presented in company press releases and news media coverage to determine what crisis communication Blue Bell was implementing and how the media presented that information. After gathering official Blue Bell press releases online and searching the LexisNexis Academic Source database to collect a sample of news stories that were published during the Blue Bell recall timeline, 23 press releases and 68 news stories were examined using a quantitative content analysis. This chapter provides conclusions for the results reported in Chapter IV and additional discussion, implications and recommendations for research and practice.

The following research questions were used to guide the study:

1. What crisis communication response strategy postures are present in Blue Bell

press releases regarding the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

2. What sources and topic areas are present in Blue Bell press releases regarding

the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

3. What crisis communication response strategy postures are present in news

stories about the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

4. What sources and topic areas are present in news stories about the 2015 Blue

Bell ice cream recall?

5. What is the difference in presence of postures and sources between press

releases and news stories regarding the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall?

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Conclusions & Discussion

Research Question One

Research Question One sought to determine the crisis communication response strategy postures present in the Blue Bell press releases. These postures, or crisis communication strategies, range on a scale from “defensive” to “accommodative”

(Coombs, 2006a). Defensive responses indicate that there is not a problem, aims to reassure stakeholders that the organization is fine, and takes action to restore normal day- to-day operations. Accommodative responses are when the organization takes full responsibility, admits there is a problem, and attempts to take corrective action (Coombs,

2006a). The defensive postures are deny and diminish. This data shows that Blue Bell’s press releases did indicate the deny and diminish postures; however, they were not common. The more accommodative postures of rebuild and bolster were more commonly used by Blue Bell.

Out of the 23 press releases, the rebuild posture was present in 18 (78.26%) of the press releases. Bolster was found in nine (39.13%) press releases, diminish was found in seven (30.43%) press releases, and lastly deny was found in four (17.39%) press releases.

Content identified as “General Information” was found in 20 (86.96%) press releases.

The crisis type for the Blue Bell recall would be considered a human-error preventable accident, indicating that the crisis situation was Blue Bell’s fault (Coombs,

2015). The data support that Blue Bell did not focus its time denying it had anything to do with the Listeria outbreak. Instead, the company focused on the Rebuild posture to help improve its reputation by taking some responsibility for the crisis.

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

Not denying the Listeria outbreak could have benefitted Blue Bell’s reputation; however, the company’s brand loyalty and positive prior reputation also encouraged consumers to forgive the company more quickly.

The bolster posture, found in nine of the 23 press releases, represented Blue Bell’s efforts to try to make a positive connection between the company and the public by showing support for the stakeholders involved in the crisis. Blue Bell was most likely trying to keep its stakeholders from losing trust in the organization and wanted to build positive connections by showing support for them (Coombs, 2015). Because Blue Bell has been operating for more than 100 years, the company could have been trying to remind their stakeholders of past good doings and prior positive reputation. The diminish posture most likely occurred as Blue Bell tried to reduce the negative impact from the crisis; however, this involves not taking full responsibility of the crisis.

Not only were the postures reported as being present or absent in each press release, the coders also assigned each paragraph to a posture or the “general information” category. The 23 press releases had a total of 144 paragraphs. Of those total paragraphs,

40.28% of them were rebuild, 8.33% were bolster, 7.64% were diminish, and only 4.86% were deny. The paragraphs that did not fit into the four posture categories were coded as

General Information. These results indicate that Blue Bell was focused on providing content with the rebuild posture followed by General Information that did not have a persuasive purpose. The general information category could contain information that is purely factual, no direct quotes, and demonstrate the press releases had general information for consumers about what to do with their ice cream, if they become ill, and more basic information.

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According to SCCT literature, crisis response strategies can improve positive behavior intentions toward an organization (Coombs & Holladay, 2007, 2008; Laufer &

Jung, 2010) and restore a company’s image and reputation (Coombs & Holladay, 2002).

Overall, Blue Bell’s press releases indicated that the company followed Coombs’ (2006a,

2006b, 2007c, 2015) SCCT crisis communication strategies that suggested what organizations should do in times of a crisis. Among the four postures, rebuild was dominant, which can be used to convey Blue Bell was immediately trying to improve and restore the company’s reputation by taking some responsibility of the crisis and by apologizing to consumers for the outbreak.

Research Question Two

Research Question Two was to discover what sources were present in Blue Bell press releases and what topic areas those sources discussed. The findings indicated a Blue

Bell official was quoted in 29 (79.31%) paragraphs out of the 144 total paragraphs. The source categories of U.S. Government, Experts, and Other were also present, but only had one occurrence each. A Blue Bell official was quoted discussing the “Plans and

Predictions” topic 18 times, which indicates that Blue Bell could have been trying to move forward out of the crisis by addressing the crisis situation and attempting to get back into the market (Coombs, 2015). Blue Bell officials were also quoted with an

“Apologetic Tone” seven times (24.14%), which is a strategy Coombs (2015) said should be taken because the recall is a human-error and a preventable crisis situation. Because the main posture found for the Blue Bell press releases was rebuild, it is not surprising that apology tone was found within the topic areas being discussed. The rebuild posture is

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 about an organization trying to restore its reputation by taking some responsibility of the crisis, and also apologizing to consumers.

Because the Blue Bell press releases were the only unit of analysis being studied for this question, it was not surprising that the sources were predominantly Blue Bell officials. However, because Blue Bell was the main source for the press releases, they were probably taking part in the framing process. Entman (1993) suggested that organizations needed to participate in the framing process because public perceptions can be affected by the way information is framed in news reports. In a five-year study of crisis situations, Taylor and Perry (2005) found specific internal sources appeared in press releases, which included statements made by organizational leaders. Blue Bell was built on a foundation of trust and a homegrown feel, and the company has even been in the Kruse family for decades. CEO, Paul Kruse, was the primary spokesperson for the company during the crisis, and due to his longtime ties to Blue Bell, consumers could have viewed him as a trustworthy source. Studies have also found that all comments made by a source could help frame the crisis story (Caldiero et al, 2012). With Mr. Kruse as the spokesperson for Blue Bell and the CEO for 13 years (Pulsinelli, 2017) plus a lifetime of service to Blue Bell, he could be considered a sought-after, reliable source.

Research Question Three

Research Question Three sought to determine which crisis communication response strategy postures were present in news stories. Rebuild was found in 61

(89.71%) of the 68 total news stories. Bolster was identified in 32 of the news stories

(47.06%), diminish was found in 10 (14.71%) news stories, and deny was the least used with only four (5.88%) news stories containing the posture. The remaining paragraphs

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 coded “General Information” were found in 65 (95.59%) of the news stories. These findings suggest the crisis response strategies in the press releases followed a similar pattern to the prevalence of the postures in the news stories. This implies the news media were predominately framing the crisis the same as Blue Bell did in its press releases.

Throughout the 1,064 news story paragraphs, 26.41% were coded as the rebuild posture, 7.33% were bolster, 2.44% were diminish and only 0.38% was deny. The remaining 63.44% were coded as General Information paragraphs. If journalists are being accurate with their reporting and not slanting the truth, it would require them to quote people directly and communicate facts from the sources (Beder, 2004). “Facts,” in this data, would follow under the General Information category. The media can use frames to present information to the public, in which they can also use their own frames. If organizations are actively communicating to the public their stories and using their specific frames, then the media can also employ the same frames. The most predominant posture in this study was “rebuild”, which shows Blue Bell was immediately trying to improve and restore the company’s reputation by taking some responsibility of the crisis and by apologizing to consumers for the outbreak. This could suggest that is why Blue

Bell’s reputation is still positive, despite the outbreak.

Research Question Four

Research Question Four sought to discover which sources were present in news stories about the 2015 Blue Bell ice cream recall. This research question also identified which topic areas these sources were quoted as discussing. The media could influence the public through external sources because any comment made by a source can help frame the crisis story (Caldiero et al., 2012). However, the media also need to use the

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 organization’s crisis message in order to share the organization’s side of the story (Paine,

2011). Entman (1993) said public perceptions can be affected by the way information is framed in news reports, and that is why it is crucial for organizations to participate in the framing process. If the organizations do not participate in getting their crisis messages from their press releases to the news media, the media can frame the message themselves and provide false information (Coombs, 2009).

Therefore, in order to get the organization’s message across, the organization must also be a source. Typically, the dominant source of information in media reports is the organization. Regardless of who the sources are, the organization always wants the media to release accurate information about the crisis (Coombs, 2015).

Blue Bell officials were the most quoted source throughout news stories with at least one quote in 48 (70.59%) of the 68 news stories. This finding indicates journalists typically sought to provide an opportunity for the organization’s perspective to be shared.

U.S. Government sources were the second most quoted, appearing in 21 news articles

(30.88%) followed by Experts (n = 20, 29.41%).

Out of the 96 times a Blue Bell representative was quoted, 34 (35.42%) of those quotes were about the “Plans and Predictions” topic. An example can be found below.

“We are committed to doing the 100 percent right thing, and the best way to do that is to take all of our products off the market until we can be confident that they are all safe.” (News story 67).

U.S. Government representatives were quoted 56 times, and nearly a third of these (n = 18, 32.14%) were quoted about the “General Scientific Finding” topic. An example can be found below:

“[Listeria] is one of those organisms that can survive or even grow in refrigerator temperatures.” (News story 45).

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Experts were quoted 73 times, and 28 of those quotes (38.36%) were “General

Comments” such as the example below:

“When there’s a recall and somebody does something quickly and when they handle it properly, we forgive it. When it’s the entire product line or the entire company, people are very concerned.” (News story 29).

Out of the 30 times Ice Cream Consumers were quoted, 70% (n = 21) indicated a

“Supportive Tone”. An example is provided below:

“There is no other ice cream but Blue Bell. I am a firm believer that they have cleaned up their act and taking it very seriously, and I think its going to be fine. I will be in line.” (News story 61).

Ice Cream Retailers gave “General Comments” 28 (57.14%) times out of the 49 paragraphs in which they were cited such as the example below:

“We’ve been very busy the past few days. I don’t know if that’s because of the recall, but it may be.” (News story 10).

Finally, sources categorized as “Other” were cited in 18 paragraphs and 11

(61.11%) of those provided “General Comments”. An example is provided below:

“I said if you guys want to go, you are going to have to write a proposal letter to Mrs. (Susan) Cryer (principal), stating why we should go to Blue Bell for a field trip.” (News story number 18).

All comments made by a source could help frame the crisis story (Caldiero et al,

2012). These findings show the sources used in the news stories and the topics those sources were most predominantly discussing. Blue Bell was the primary source in these news stories and the quotes appeared to be attempting to restore their reputation. Quotes from Ice Cream Consumer sources indicated a supportive tone, which can be beneficial to

Blue Bell maintaining a positive reputation.

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Research Question Five

Research Question Five sought to compare the presence of crisis communication postures and sources between press releases and news stories. Both the press releases and news stories followed similar data patterns in regard to the frequency of postures. Both press releases and news stories had the majority of content coded as rebuild, followed by bolster, diminish, and deny. Unlike the study Bowen and Zheng (2015) conducted about the Toyota recall where Toyota’s press releases and news stories did not correlate with the same response strategies or messages, the current study did find similarities between the communication materials. That could indicate that either the news media were on the same side as Blue Bell due to journalists consuming Blue Bell ice cream and being favorable of the company. This result could also indicate Blue Bell effectively used

SCCT crisis communication strategies proposed by Coombs (2006a, 2006b, 2007c, 2015) because the company utilized the accommodative crisis response strategies of bolster and rebuild. Another implication for this for this result could be Blue Bell’s positive prior reputation served as a halo effect (Coombs & Holladay, 2006; Kim, 2016; Helm &

Tolsdorf, 2013; Tucker & Melewar, 2005, Lassar, Mittal, & Sharma, 1995). The halo effect can shape how we perceive a company regardless of its performance. The halo effect might also encourage stakeholders to give the organization the benefit of the doubt during a crisis (Coombs & Holladay, 2006), which is what this study’s results imply.

When Coombs and Holladay (2006) attempted to clarify what the halo effect is and to determine if it helps protect an organization during a crisis, they discovered the halo effect can actually protect a reputation but only from certain threats. In human-error situations, halo as a shield occurs only in a limited crisis domain; however, it only works

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 for organizations with a very favorable prior reputation, such as Johnson & Johnson and now potentially Blue Bell.

There were no quotes found in 54 (37.24%) of the press releases and 742

(69.74%) in the news stories. Press releases quoted a Blue Bell source the most often with 88 (60.69%) paragraphs out of 145 total paragraphs. In the news stories, there were only 322 (30.26%) paragraphs that had sources quoted out of the 1,064 total paragraphs.

Of those, a Blue Bell source was cited in 96 paragraphs, which was the most occurring source. News stories can consist of more than one source that discusses a range of topic areas because they are trying to evaluate the crisis situation and even frame the crisis a particular way. Journalists select sources to interview for news stories and this selection of sources could influence audience members.

These results differ than those in Holladay’s (2009) study where she found crisis managers were not a part of the crisis news coverage. The data in this study about the

2015 Blue Bell recall has shown Blue Bell was taking an active role in being a part of the crisis news coverage because the sources in the news coverage primarily consisted of

Blue Bell officials. Their active role in the crisis news coverage is what could have potentially influenced consumers and the public to view Blue Bell in a positive light.

Organizations that do not participate in getting their crisis message across to the public may not be heard, allowing the news media to inform the public of what they think is happening.

What organizations that experience a crisis situation could learn from this finding is to actively communicate the crisis message through internal communication and external communication. Traditional media outlets are still being actively used and

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 organizations should be communicating through them to the news media. Also, organizations should be utilizing the appropriate crisis response strategies in order to successfully restore their reputation and brand trust.

As previously stated, food safety is a concern for consumers. The findings related to the types of sources used in news articles about this crisis indicated few food scientists were interviewed. These individuals could be uncomfortable being interviewed for reporters because they have not had adequate spokesperson training (Anderson, 2000).

However, this presents a missed opportunity to properly inform consumers about the food safety aspects of the crisis. The agricultural industry needs to be aware of this, so efforts can be made to better prepare food scientists to share key messages with media outlets.

This study found that organizations with strong brand loyalty and a positive prior reputation have a better chance of overcoming a crisis situation. For the agricultural industry, this should be an incentive to focus on brand reputation management even in non-crisis times.

Recommendations

Research

This study provided an examination of crisis communication strategies and reputation management for organizations related to one specific food recall, which should encourage additional studies of these strategies in food and agricultural industries. As social media becomes more popular as a news source, it would be interesting to see what content is shared via online communication outlets in the event of a crisis. Additional research could examine how Blue Bell communicated through social media about the crisis and how that could impact audience perceptions and subsequent news coverage.

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

Because this study focused solely on press releases published by Blue Bell

Creameries, future researchers could also examine press releases that were disseminated from the FDA, CDC, USDA, and ice cream retailers about this recall. Additional research could also be conducted with television broadcast content to identify patterns in this coverage. An additional study could further explore the use of quotes from Blue Bell sources in news coverage to identify how often official statements are used, which could influence how the news stories are framed.

At the time of this study, Blue Bell officials could not be reached due to how recent the recall was. It would be interesting to gather insight from Blue Bell officials about their evaluation of crisis communication efforts during the recall. Another area of research would be to examine and compare the effects of a positive prior reputation in crisis situations to organizations that do not have a positive prior reputation. The conclusions could encourage organizations to create and maintain a healthy relationship with their stakeholders.

Research could also be conducted from the consumer’s viewpoint regarding the crisis situation. With such strong brand loyalty and positive prior reputation, consumers’ thoughts and feelings about the recall would be interesting to research. Findings from this type of study would benefit companies by providing insight as to what actual consumers are thinking and feeling during a recall and how that could affect an organization’s reputation, image, and recovery.

Although this study looked a variety of frames in the form of crisis response strategy postures, it did not examine if each frame was positive or negative. This type of

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 study may demonstrate the proper use of crisis response strategy postures, which could aid an organization during a time of crisis.

Blue Bell’s outbreak originated within their own facilities, and the dairy industry was not involved in this crisis, directly. However, the Southwest area of the Dairy

Farmers of America has 261 dairy farm members who provide milk to a variety of companies, including Blue Bell creameries (Dairy Farmers of America, n.d.). A further look into where the milk went and how badly the dairy industry was affected while Blue

Bell’s operations were suspended would provide more insights for agricultural companies.

Practice

The findings in this study have a few implications for future practice. First, as this study shows, it is still important for organizations to use traditional media outlets during a recall. Although social media is becoming increasingly popular, consumers still look to traditional media outlets for news and consider them to be reliable sources (Taylor &

Perry, 2005).

Also, having spokespeople available for comments throughout the time of the recall would also be beneficial. Coombs (2015) noted that sometimes an organization may not have all of the answers immediately; however, if an organization waits too long respond then the public can get misleading information from the media.

Organizations and companies can learn from this study how important it is to have a consistent message in their press releases to encourage accommodative postures.

If the organization is not prepared with an accurate response message, they could skew

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017 what they are trying to say and confuse the public, causing more damage to their reputation.

Prior to a crisis, Coombs (2015) recommended organizations perform an evaluation of crisis management efforts in two ways – how the organization dealt with the crisis and the crisis impact. It would be recommended for Blue Bell to follow through with these evaluations, regardless if they survived the crisis situation. Other companies and organizations can follow Blue Bell’s crisis communication efforts and learn how to effectively be present in news releases, be represented in news stories, as well as how important it is to have a positive prior reputation.

If this recall would have been linked directly to a dairy producer, the producer would need to be prepared with a crisis communications plan. A previous study (Palmer, et al., 2013) found seven out of nine agricultural organizations did have a crisis communications plan ready to use. Agricultural organizations that do not have a crisis communications plan could experience detrimental effects to the company and the agriculture industry.

While it is important for an organization to have a crisis communications plan in place, that plan needs to be effective and have appropriate crisis response strategies. The current study found Blue Bell and the news media presented similar crisis response strategy postures, demonstrating the company was successful in extending its key messages to a broader audience. This study provides support for why it is important to have a positive brand reputation before a crisis and how the use of accommodative crisis response strategy postures can help communication efforts during a crisis.

Texas Tech University, Brandyl Brooks, August 2017

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Robinson-Jacobs, K. (2016, June 15). Freezer wars: Summer sales will test strength of Blue Bell's comeback. Retrieved from http://www.dallasnews.com/business/retail/20160615-freezer-wars-summer-sales- will-test-strength-of-blue-bell-s-comeback.ece

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APPENDICES

APPENDIX A

GLOSSARY OF TERMS

The following terms are important to the topic under investigation in this study. For the purposes of this study, each of the following terms was operationally defined as listed below to best fit the needs of this study.

CDC - The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provides information to the public pertaining to health related issues. The CDC also researches such events as a foodborne illness outbreak in order to protect the public from possible harm.

Crisis - A crisis is a specific, unexpected and non-routine event that creates high levels of uncertainty and can threaten to tarnish an organization’s reputation, brand trust, and can financially drain an organization (Coombs, 2015).

FDA - In the event of a foodborne illness outbreak, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) works closely with the CDC to determine the origins of the outbreak. The FDA is also involved in all recall efforts of the affected products.

Foodborne illness - A disease that is carried or transmitted to humans by food containing harmful substances.

Listeria - According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2016e), Listeria monocytogenes is a pathogen that can be contracted by consuming improperly prepared foods that have been contaminated with the bacteria. Consumption of such foods can result in a serious infection that can be deadly. Pregnant women, older adults, newborns, and adults with weakened immune systems are the most susceptible. Listeria risks can be reduced or eliminated through safe food preparation, consumption, and storage (CDC, 2016e).

Outbreak - An incident in which two or more people experience the same illness after eating the same food (Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, n.d.).

Stakeholder(s) - Stakeholders are any group of people internal or external to an organization who have a stake in the actions of the organization. Such groups might include employees, consumers, government regulatory agencies, the media, competitors, or even community members (Ulmer, Sellnow, & Seeger, 2014).

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APPENDIX B

PRESS RELEASE CODEBOOK

General Instructions: This press release codebook is aimed at assessing the press releases published during the Blue Bell recall.

1. Coder ID: Each coder will be assigned a coder identification number prior to coding the press releases. Indicate your given coder identification number on each codesheet. (Or I saw some codesheets use the coder’s initials. Not sure which one we should do.)

2. Press release number: Indicate the number assigned to the press release.

3. Date: Enter the date of the press release including the month, date, and year. If there is a single digit date, precede with a zero. For example: March 5, 2015 is 03/05/2015.

4. Company/Organization: Identify the company/organization that issued the press release. Identify by looking at the source. If a source is not listed, refer to the contact information.

a. Blue Bell: Code as Blue Bell if the press release clearly states it was issued by Blue Bell or by Blue Bell Creameries.

5. Headline: Copy the headline of the press release, usually located at the top of the page.

6. Word Count: Identify the number of words for each coded press release. Count the number of words in each article. This word count will only include the body of the article and excludes the headline.

Crisis Response Strategies/Postures Assign one posture per paragraph

7. Number of paragraphs with Deny posture: Note the number of paragraphs in the news story that reflected Blue Bell’s use of the deny posture. Deny will involve Blue Bell trying to remove any connections it has with the crisis and includes: attacking the accuser (ex: crisis manager confronts the person or group claiming something is wrong with the organization), denial (ex: crisis manager asserts that there is no crisis), and scapegoating (ex: crisis manager blames some person or group outside the organization for the crisis).

8. Number of paragraphs with Diminish posture: Note the number of paragraphs in the news story that reflected Blue Bell’s use of the diminish posture. The diminish posture attempts to reduce attributions of organizational control and reduce the negative of the crisis and includes: excusing (ex: crisis manager minimizes organizational responsibility by denying intent to do harm and/or claiming inability to

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control the events that triggered the crisis) and justification (ex: crisis manager minimizes the perceived damage caused by the crisis).

9. Number of paragraphs with Rebuild posture: Note the number of paragraphs in the news story that reflected Blue Bell’s use of the rebuild posture. The rebuild posture’s goal is to improve the organization’s reputation through taking some responsibility and includes: compensation (ex: crisis manager offers money or other gifts to victims) and apology (ex: crisis manager indicates the organization takes full responsibility for the crisis and asks stakeholders for forgiveness).

10. Number of paragraphs with Bolstering posture: Note the number of paragraphs in the news story that reflected Blue Bell’s use of the bolstering posture. The bolstering posture aims to build a positive connection between the organization and their publics by showing support from the organization for its stakeholders and includes: reminding (ex: tell stakeholders about the past good works of the organization), integration (ex: crisis manager praises stakeholders and/or reminds them of past good works by the organization), and victimage (ex: crisis managers remind stakeholders that the organization is a victim of the crisis too).

Remaining Paragraphs For paragraphs that do not have postures

11. Number of paragraphs with General Information: Note the number of paragraphs in the news story that reflected General Information.

Quotes A source in the press release will be identified by an associated quote. If there is a quote in the release, identify the group the specific individual represents and circle (1) yes. If the sources listed in the codesheet were not quoted in the press release, circle (0) no. The following list of sources may be included in the press release:

Note to the coders. Each Quote will need to be coded in regard to the source of the quote:

12. How many direct quotes are in the press release? Record the number: ______

Potential Sources of Information:

A Blue Bell Creameries Official Quotes: Sources identified as Blue Bell officials are employed, representing, or owning Blue Bell Creameries. This may include the CEO, spokespersons, stockholders, or employees of the company. Count the number of direct quotes from Blue Bell officials.

U.S. Government Official Quotes: Sources identified as U.S. Government officials are individuals that are part federal, state, or local in the United States. These may

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include elected officials, appointees, and spokespersons that are employed by the U.S. government. Count the number of direct quotes from U.S. Government officials.

Expert Quotes: Sources identified as Experts are individuals representing an academic institution, policy institute, or the health sector. For example, sources may include professors, attorneys and public relations specialists. Count the number of direct quotes from experts.

Ice Cream Consumer Quotes: Sources identified as Ice Cream Consumer are individuals that purchase ice cream. These sources may have been directly affected by purchasing the recalled ice cream, or they may just have concern for the other consumers who were directly affected by the recalled ice cream. Count the number of direct quotes from ice cream consumers.

Ice Cream Retailer Quotes: Sources identified as Ice Cream Retailers are individuals employed, representing, or owning a retailer that supplied the ice cream for consumers to purchase. These sources may include retailers such as H-E-B, United Supermarkets, and Wal-Mart. Count the number of direct quotes from ice cream retailers.

Other Quotes: Sources identified as Other include corporations or organizations that were not listed above. Count the number of direct quotes from other sources not identified in the codebook. List what those sources were.

Potential Topic Areas

General comments: Code general comments if the quotes just describe the ice cream recall without providing specific details of the crisis.

Plans and predictions: Code plans and predictions if the quotes describe the company’s plan for addressing the ice cream recall or predicting the outcome or consequences of the unfolding crisis situation.

Food safety regulation: Code food safety regulation if the quotes address the current status or changes in food safety regulation. Quotes can also discuss how food safety regulations may have caused the ice cream recall or how the crisis will alter the current food safety regulations.

Apologetic tone: Code apologetic tone if the quotes address the recall with words that convey the source is sorry.

Supportive tone: Code supportive tone if the quotes address the recall with words that convey the source is supportive of Blue Bell.

General scientific finding: Code general scientific finding if the quotes discuss the scientific findings associated with the ice cream recall (test/lab results).

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Instructions for ice cream consumers: Code instructions for ice cream consumers if the quotes focus on providing instructions for ice cream consumers that may or may not have been affected by the ice cream recall. Instructions may consist of informing ice cream consumers on which types of ice cream were impacted by the recall, creating awareness of the potential symptoms, or what to do with the tainted products.

Discussion of past food recalls: Code discussion of past food recalls if the quote describes past food recalls, which may include past recalls that involved Blue Bell Creameries, or other companies and products.

Deaths and injuries associated with the product recall: Code deaths and injuries associated with the product recall if the quote focuses on the people that died or became sick as a result of the ice cream recall.

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APPENDIX C

PRESS RELEASE CODESHEET

1. Coder ID: ______

2. Press Release Number ______

3. Date (MM/DD/YY): _____/______/_____

4. Company/Organization: ______

5. Headline: ______

6. Word Count: ______

Crisis Response Strategies/Postures Record the number of paragraphs in the document that contain each of the following postures. If there is none, put zero (0), if yes put how many.

Deny posture: ______

Diminish posture: ______

Rebuild posture: ______

Bolstering posture: ______

Remaining Paragraphs Record the number of paragraphs in the document that contain general information. If there is none, put zero (0), if yes put how many.

General Information: ______

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APPENDIX D

NEWS STORY CODEBOOK

General Instructions: This news story codebook is aimed at assessing the coverage of the Blue Bell recall by newspapers located in the United States.

1. Coder ID: Each coder will be assigned a coder identification number prior to coding the news stories. Indicate your given coder identification number on each codesheet.

2. News story number: Indicate the number assigned to the news story.

3. Newspaper: Copy the headline of the news story, usually located at the top of the page.

4. Headline: Document the headline of the news story including the subheads. Generally, the headline will be at the top of the article.

5. Date: Enter the date of the news story including the month, date, and year. If there is a single digit date, precede with a zero. Example: March 5, 2015 is 03/05/2015.

6. Word Count: Identify the number of words in each coded news story. For articles received from LexisNexis, this will be located at the top. For articles that do not provide a word count, count the number of words in each news story. This word count will only include the body of the article and excludes the headline.

7. Blue Bell and Headline: If Blue Bell or Blue Bell Creameries is clearly mentioned by name in the article’s headline, mark (1) yes. However, if the company is not mentioned by name, mark (0) no.

8. Headline’s Tone: Identify the tone of the article’s headline. Mark (-1) negative if the article describes Blue Bell in a negative manner. This may include placing blame on the company for the crisis or accusing them of being irresponsible. Mark (0) neutral if the article describes Blue Bell in a neutral manner. For example, headlines that state that Blue Bell issued a recall would be identified as being neutral. Mark (1) positive if the article describes Blue Bell in a positive light. This may include headlines that highlight the steps the company is taking to address the recall.

Crisis Response Strategies/Postures Assign one posture per paragraph

9. Number of paragraphs with Deny posture: Note the number of paragraphs in the news story that reflected Blue Bell’s use of the deny posture. Deny will involve Blue Bell trying to remove any connections it has with the crisis and includes: attacking the accuser (ex: crisis manager confronts the person or group claiming something is wrong with the organization), denial (ex: crisis manager asserts that there is no crisis),

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and scapegoating (ex: crisis manager blames some person or group outside the organization for the crisis).

10. Number of paragraphs with Diminish posture: Note the number of paragraphs in the news story that reflected Blue Bell’s use of the diminish posture. The diminish posture attempts to reduce attributions of organizational control and reduce the negative of the crisis and includes: excusing (ex: crisis manager minimizes organizational responsibility by denying intent to do harm and/or claiming inability to control the events that triggered the crisis) and justification (ex: crisis manager minimizes the perceived damage caused by the crisis).

11. Number of paragraphs with Rebuild posture: Note the number of paragraphs in the news story that reflected Blue Bell’s use of the rebuild posture. The rebuild posture’s goal is to improve the organization’s reputation through taking some responsibility and includes: compensation (ex: crisis manager offers money or other gifts to victims) and apology (ex: crisis manager indicates the organization takes full responsibility for the crisis and asks stakeholders for forgiveness).

12. Number of paragraphs with Bolstering posture: Note the number of paragraphs in the news story that reflected Blue Bell’s use of the bolstering posture. The bolstering posture aims to build a positive connection between the organization and their publics by showing support from the organization for its stakeholders and includes: reminding (ex: tell stakeholders about the past good works of the organization), integration (ex: crisis manager praises stakeholders and/or reminds them of past good works by the organization), and victimage (ex: crisis managers remind stakeholders that the organization is a victim of the crisis too).

Remaining Paragraphs For paragraphs that do not have postures

13. Number of paragraphs with General Information: Note the number of paragraphs in the news story that reflected General Information.

Note to the coders. Each Quote will need to be coded in regard to the source of the quote:

How many direct quotes are in the press release? Record the number: ______

Potential Sources of Information

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U.S. Government Official Quotes: Sources identified as U.S. Government officials are individuals that are part federal, state, or local in the United States. These may include elected officials, appointees, and spokespersons that are employed by the U.S. government. Count the number of direct quotes from U.S. Government officials.

Potential Topic Areas

General comments: Code general comments if the quotes just describe the ice cream recall without providing specific details of the crisis.

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Apologetic tone: Code apologetic tone if the quotes address the recall with words that convey the source is sorry.

Supportive tone: Code supportive tone if the tone addresses the recall with words that convey the source is supportive of Blue Bell.

General scientific finding: Code general scientific finding if the quotes discuss the scientific findings associated with the ice cream recall (test/lab results).

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APPENDIX E

NEWS STORY CODESHEET

1. Coder ID: ______

2. News Story Number: ______

3. Newspaper Name: ______

4. Headline: ______

5. Date (MM/DD/YY): _____/______/_____

6. Word Count: ______

7. Is Blue Bell or Blue Bell Creameries mentioned by name in the article’s headline?

No (0) Yes (1)

8. If yes, what is the tone of the headline?

Negative (-1) Neutral (0) Positive (1)

Crisis Response Strategies/Postures Record the number of paragraphs in the document that contain each of the following postures. If there is none, put zero (0), if yes put how many.

Deny posture: ______

Diminish posture: ______

Rebuild posture: ______

Bolstering posture: ______

Remaining Paragraphs Record the number of paragraphs in the document that contain general information. If there is none, put zero (0), if yes put how many.

General Information: ______

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