Sorry is not Enough: Apology as a crisis management tactic

Abstract

Public admissions of personal or professional misdeeds, followed by apologies by high profile individuals and organizations are strategies and tactics of image restoration when a reputation is damaged. Although the ritual of an apology is an expected societal norm sometimes, they can make matters worse. Apology is effective depending on the offense, the place, time, language, tone of apology and if the recipient of the apology is willing to accept it. Another important element is the cultural factor. Apology that does not adhere to perceived cultural norms may not be received positively; thereby worsening the crisis situation. In 2018 and 2019, three incidents, the arrest of two young black men in a Philadelphia Starbucks, the off-duty police killing of Dallas resident Botham Jean and the police killing of Atatiana Jefferson of Fort Worth, captured national and international attention and had all the elements of the use of apology rhetoric. This essay examines, based on media reports, why the rhetoric of apology was acceptable in one case, somewhat acceptable in another and not at all acceptable in the other.