Social Media and Crisis Communication

Social Media and Crisis Communication provides a unique and timely contribution to the field of crisis communication by addressing how social media are influencing the practice of crisis communication. The book, with a collection of chapters contributed by leading communication researchers, covers the current and emerging interplay of social media and crisis communication, recent theories and frameworks, overviews of dominant research streams, applications in specific crisis areas, and future directions.

Both the theoretical and the practical are discussed, providing a volume that appeals to both academic-minded readers as well as professionals at the managerial, decision-making level. The audience includes public relations and corporate communication scholars, graduate students studying social media and crisis communication, researchers, crisis managers working in communication departments, and business leaders who make strategic business communication planning. No other volume has provided the overarching synthesis of information regarding the field of crisis communication and social media that this book contains. Incorporated in this volume is the recent Social-mediated Crisis Communication Model developed by the editors and their co-authors, which serves as a framework for crisis and issues management in a rapidly evolving media landscape.

Lucinda Austin is an assistant professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she researches social media, health and crisis communication, and publics’ perspectives in CSR and relationship-building. Austin has published in journals including Communication Research, the Journal of Applied Communication Research, Health Communication, the Journal of Public Relations Research, and PR Review. She has been awarded AEJMC's Promising Professors and SuPRstar Awards, Arthur Page Center's Legacy Educator and Scholar Awards, and NCA's PRIDE Award.

Yan Jin is an associate professor at the University of Georgia. Her research focuses on crisis communication, social media, and the role of emotions in strategic conflict management. She has authored over 50 journal articles and 20 book chapters. She has presented over 100 research papers and received 14 top paper awards at national and international research conferences. Jin has been awarded AEJMC’s Krieghbaum Under-40 Award and is a member of the Arthur W. Page Society.