A Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis of Corporate Apologies by Starbucks CEO from the Perspective of Crisis Management

Abstract

From the perspective of crisis management, this research examines how Starbucks chief executive officer (CEO) extended corporate apologies to the stakeholders via an interview video and a monologue video under the framework of multimodal critical discourse analysis (MCDA). The apologies offered by Starbucks CEO in an interview with ABC News and a monologue were analyzed to illustrate textual, and visual characteristics. The analysis of text, discourse practice and social practice was conducted to explore apology discourse strategies employed by Starbucks CEO. The results indicated that corporate apology discourse contributes to crisis management and revealed the interplay of corporate apology discourse, crisis management, and social background.