Picture This and Take That: Strategic Crisis Visuals and Visual Social Media (VSM) in Crisis Communication
Picture This and Take That: Strategic Crisis Visuals and Visual Social Media (VSM) in Crisis Communication
Abstract: Taking a content-form integrated approach to visuals in crisis communication, we argue that visuals play a dual-role in crisis information or crisis message design: Visuals can be both form and content. In this presentation we review communication literature on visuals and their effects; identify types of visuals in crisis communication and how these types influence cognitive, affective, and behavioral levels; and propose how visual social media (VSM) (in both form and content) might shape or even revolutionize how organizations communicate with publics in times of crises.
Related Research
-
Humor in Risk Communication: Theory & ApplicationsHye Jin Yoon, “Humor in Risk Communication: Theory & Applications,” invited talk at the Georgia Resiliency Conference, Jekyll Island, GA, October 21, 2025.
-
Navigating News-triggered Business Communication Challenges: Strategic Management of Media-Driven Brand RiskNaYoung Song and Jim Pierpoint (Grady MA alum), “Navigating News-triggered Business Communication Challenges: Strategic Management of Media-Driven Brand Risk”, presented at 2025 Association for Business Communication (ABC) Annual International Conference […]