Assistant professor of public relations Joon Kyoung Kim studies how companies respond to social movements. Photo contributed by Joon Kyoung Kim.
As social issues such as systemic racism gain prominence across the country, one University of Rhode Island professor is studying how corporations choose to take stances on such issues.
In recent years, companies have voiced support for certain social issues such as LGBTQ+ equality and the Black Lives Matter movement via marketing campaigns and social media. Joon Kyoung Kim, an assistant professor of public relations, thinks that companies should keep some factors in mind when they are promoting support of social issues and organizations as part of corporate social responsibility.
“The few things actually companies should be aware [of] and incorporated into their [corporate social responsibility] and corporate social responsibility practices is that there is like [a] concept or fit,” Kim said. “I mean, fit between the codes and the company’s core business, and core values.”
In 2020, Kim believes organizations do not need to hide their motives for taking a stance on a social issue as generally public approval is high of corporate social advocacy for social benefits.
The interest from Millennials and Gen Z to support social issues may have an influence on how companies utilize their corporate social responsibility or advocacy, according to Kim.
“I mean, those young people are more interested in organizations, like social responsibility, and they expect more companies or brands [to] take a stand on a social issue,” Kim said. “That’s why we can see lateral companies started supporting Black Lives Matter this year and like donating money to [a] certain organization.”
Kim arrived at URI in September 2020. He has previously studied the Instagram accounts of 30 major MLB teams and how they utilize social media while at the University of South Carolina (USC). But in September 2018, Kim shifted his focus to the partnership between Colin Kaepernick, former quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers, and Nike.
Kaepernick is known for kickstarting a series of protests across the NFL against police brutality affecting Black Americans, in which players kneeled during the national anthem. The protests were controversial among fans, and Kaepernick subsequently became a free agent in the NFL. In September 2018, after becoming a free agent, Nike selected Kaepernick to be the new face of their “Just Do It” 30-year anniversary campaign.
Kim’s research motive was to find out whether the public thought Nike’s campaign was a genuine demonstration of support for Kaepernick’s cause, or just a way to attract more customers. He acknowledged that the Nike campaign brought a message of inclusiveness while supporting Kaepernick’s national anthem protest. While the campaign eventually found success, Kim started his study based on the public’s initial negative thoughts on Nike’s choice.
“Eventually Nike’s campaign featuring Colin Kaepernick was successful, but [the] initial response was very mixed,” Kim said. “Some people were very mad about Nike’s choice of Colin Kaepernick as the face of the new campaign.”
Based on the mixed reaction of the Kapernick and Nike partnership, Kim viewed the marketing campaign as an example of an organizational crisis. This allowed him to analyze and answer questions pertaining to this in his crisis communications course at USC in September 2018. A few students felt that politics and sports should not be combined, while others were concerned with whether Nike was promoting Kaepernick’s campaign genuinely or to help broaden their brand appeal.
Kim collaborated with USC public relations and strategic communications professor Holly Overton on this study, as they have worked together since 2016 when Kim was a graduate assistant in Overton’s program. Their similar interests in corporate social advocacy and responsibility have led to a number of collaborations that interact with colleagues and students across universities.
Kim and Overton found that public opinion of the Nike campaign swayed positive. This positive reaction initiated from how the public viewed that Nike effectively delivered the message of increasing inclusiveness to benefit society.
As the Black Lives Matter movement has gained traction in recent years, Overton has seen companies show their support to the movement with some public feedback.
“It’s at the point where companies, left and right, you know, were issuing statements championing diversity and inclusion, and that’s fantastic,” Overton said. “But a lot of consumers are saying that’s not enough, you know, [they need to] back it up with action.”
In his research, Kim found that companies should carefully develop their messages over social media as sports teams continue to donate to nonprofit organizations currently.
“I would like to do more research on what makes people [support] or approve or disapprove a company’s stance on a political or social issue,” Kim said.