When a Reputation Meets a Crisis: Lessons from PR Failures
- annayoung74
- Sep 15, 2025
- 3 min read
Public Trust, Balancing Brand, and Values
When Ye had a partnership with Adidas, there was a decision that was the core truth of public relations: the reputation of a brand is more important than any partnership. Adidas was under pressure and had to act quickly after Ye make antisemitic remarks. The Associated Press said “Adidas does not tolerate any antisemitism" and the collaboration has been terminated (Associated Press, 2022). It needed to protect stakeholder trust while cutting ties financial with Ye.
The Susan G. Komen foundation has faced a similar backlash when it was found that it was politicizing funding decisions based on Planned Parenthood. They were viewed as a champion for the health of women, but the organization suffered credibility when stakeholders viewed the mission was being sacrificed for politics. Komen and Adidas and have showed that when it comes to brand loyalty, it’s fragile and it must be reinforced by actions to uphold there values.
A Crisis as a Failure of Communication
There are other cases that show that crises can essentially escalate because of poor communication strategies. The Flint water crisis is a perfect example of institutional failures, and the ability for leaders to show and act on conflicting information, which erodes public trust. Scholars Nowling and Seeger (2020) had argued that leaders were failing to voice and engage with the community, and instead relied on bureaucratic reassurances that were proven to be false. Not only was the water contaminated, but there credibility was too.
Likewise to the Karen Tracy (2007) study, the school’s district multimillion dollar error became an unfolded crisis publicly in meetings where transparency and determination of stakeholders judged the institution. There was an inability to explain mistakes and with the corrective steps began to intensify the outrage in leadership. Both of these cases show that crisis was worsened by how poorly the leaders communicated to one another.
Common Thread: Credibility as Currency
What is uniting these cases is the role of credibility within an organizations most important currency. Whether it’s a public institution or a non profit, credibility is what determines whether stakeholders will extend some grace during a crisis or leave altogether. The Pew Research Center data shows that public trust in intuitions is at a historic low, with only 20% of Americans saying they trust the federal government to make the right decision (Pew Research Center, 2022). In environments such as these, any missteps can lead to greater risks.
The lesson for communicators is simple, crises are not only reputational and operational challenges, but they are moments where credibility is tested in the public. Transparency and authentic engagement with stakeholders is crucial, and not negotiable. When these elements are missing, there is nothing that can save an organization.
Conclusion
When it comes to crisis communication, it’s less about damage and more about demonstrating accountability, From Flint to Adidas, these cases have shown how stakeholders judge an organization not by what simply went wrong, but how they responded when the spotlight turns dark and harsh. In today’s world of low trusting climate, credibility is always fragile, but it’s the foundation of renewal depend and recovery.
Keywords/Tags: Accountability, brand reputation, public relations, crisis communication, stakeholder trust
References:
Associated Press. (2022, October 25). Adidas ends partnership with Ye over antisemitic remarks. AP News. https://apnews.com/article/adidas-ends-kanye-west-partnership-7425f65ea39f7bbdd02d0e033d9be4b8?utm_source
Pew Research Center. (2022, June 6). Public trust in government: 1958–2022. https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2024/06/24/public-trust-in-government-1958-2024/?utm_source
Tracy, K. (2007). The discourse of crisis in public meetings: Case study of a school district’s multimillion-dollar error. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 35(4), 418–441. https://doi.org/10.1080/00909880701617133
William D. Nowling & Matthew W. Seeger (2020) Sensemaking and crisis revisited: the failure of sensemaking during the Flint water crisis, Journal of Applied Communication Research, 48:2, 270-289, https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00909882.2020.1734224
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