newspaper coverage of corporate Social responsibility in Ghana a content analysis of the Daily Graphic

Abstract

The study investigated the coverage of CSR in two Ghanaian newspapers – the Daily Graphic and the Business & Financial Times (B&FT). In particular, the study examined the CSR issues the newspapers covered; assessed the nature of stakeholders addressed in the newspapers; and finally, examined the tone used in the CSR coverage in the newspapers. The study employed the qualitative content analysis method, and used 398 CSR stories from both the Daily Graphic and the B&FT. Guided by the agenda-setting, stakeholder, and agenda-building theories, the study revealed that CSR issues covered in the newspapers were predominantly on health, development, and education. The study also revealed that the stakeholders in both newspapers either served as beneficiaries of CSR activities or as sources used in the coverage of CSR. While stakeholders including community members, customers, shareholders, employees, and suppliers were found to be stakeholders considered as beneficiaries of CSR, company representatives, the media, and academics emerged as the stakeholders used as sources in CSR coverage. In addition, the findings suggest that the two newspapers predominantly employed positive tone in their CSR stories. The study recommends that journalists source their CSR stories from a variety of stakeholders such as CSR activists, environmentalists, government representatives, and policymakers among others to get a better understanding of the true nature of CSR in Ghana.