RT Article
T1 The Emergence, Variation, and Evolution of Corporate Social Responsibility in the Public Sphere, 1980–2004: The Exposure of Firms to Public Debate
JF Journal of business ethics
VO 104
IS 1
SP 115
OP 131
A1 Lee, Sun Young
A1 Carroll, Craig E.
LA English
PB Springer Science + Business Media B. V
YR 2011
UL https://ixtheo.de/Record/1785643398
AB This study examined the emergence of corporate social responsibility (CSR) as a public issue over 25 years using a content analysis of two national news- papers and seven regional, geographically-dispersed newspapers in the U.S. The present study adopted a comprehensive definition encompassing all four CSR dimensions: economic, ethical, legal, and philanthropic. This study examined newspaper editorials, letters to the editor, op-ed columns, news analyses, and guest columns for three aspects: media attention, media prominence, and media valence. Results showed an increase in the number of opinion pieces covering CSR issues over the 25-year period. The prominence of each of the four CSR dimensions varied over time. Each of the four CSR dimensions had its moment of media prominence when it was more important than the other dimensions. The most prevalent valence of the opinion pieces was negative; the volume of negative pieces increased over the 25 years, whereas the number of opinions with positive, neutral, and mixed tones showed little change over time. The study concludes by tracing the implications of the role of the news media for business ethics research.
K1 Public Opinion
K1 Newspaper
K1 Media valence
K1 Media prominence
K1 Media Attention
K1 Media
K1 LETTERS to the editor
K1 Editorials
K1 Corporate Social Responsibility
K1 Columns
DO 10.1007/s10551-011-0893-y