Mediatization of corporate conflict in the context of digitalization

Gurushkin Pavel Yurievich PhD in Politics Associate Professor, Department of Mass Communications Management, St. Petersburg State University 199034, Russia, Saint Petersburg region, Saint Petersburg, Universitetskaya str., 7-9 gurupavel@ya.ru Other publications by this author

Druzhkova Valeriya Igorevna Graduate student; 'Higher School of Journalism and Mass Communications'; St. Petersburg State University 199034, Russia, Saint Petersburg, Universitetskaya nab., 7-9, room 709 st110165@student.spbu.ru

In the modern information society, the concept of mediatization occupies a special place, since the media are becoming one of the key tools for influencing public opinion and shaping public discourse. For the first time, the term "mediatization" was used by the English sociologist and researcher J. B. Thompson in his work "Media and modernity" ^[2] to describe the role of media as organized institutional structures that not only transmit information, but also form cultural patterns that have influenced modern society over the past centuries.

Mediatization is a key process of modern culture. As S. Hjarward notes, mediatization "should be considered as a two-way process of developed modernity, in which the media, on the one hand, stand out as an independent institution with its own logic, to which other social institutions must adapt. On the other hand, media simultaneously become an integral part of other institutions, such as politics, work, family, and religion. That is, "mediatization is a two–way social process through which society is saturated with the media to such an extent that the media can only be considered in the context of public institutions. Media technologies themselves are not the cause of socio-cultural dynamics, however, human immersion in the information flow, provided that certain social, political, economic, and cultural realities are formed with the help of new technologies, gives a powerful impetus to influence public consciousness" ^[1].

It is worth noting that mediatization is not only the process of transferring conflicts into the media space, but also the interpenetration of media logic into the very course of conflict unfolding. This phenomenon reflects the influence of media technologies, values and norms on the dynamics and form of a conflict situation, as well as on the methods and principles of conflict management.

Research in the field of mediatization of conflicts and the influence of media logic is increasingly attracting the attention of researchers and practitioners in the modern information society. Media plays a key role in shaping public opinion, intertwining real events with their visualization and interpretation. The process of mediatization of conflicts is accompanied by the active influence of media logic factors that have a significant impact on the perception of events and participants in the conflict. Conflicts covered in the media are becoming global and accessible to a huge audience. Media logic influences which conflicts and events become most relevant and how they are interpreted. The powerful influence of the media is aimed at forming a certain image of events and participants in conflicts, increasing attention to certain problems and behaviors. However, there is a danger of distorting reality and increasing the tension of the situation through manipulation and misleading a wide audience.

In the context of this study, the term "corporate conflict" is interpreted not as a clash of interests between two large corporations, but as a contradiction arising between corporations and their target groups. Target groups in this context include various social actors such as consumers, employees, shareholders, government agencies and other stakeholders whose interests may conflict with the interests of the corporation. This paper focuses on the study of this type of corporate conflicts and the impact of mediatization on them.

E. I. Kovalenko ^[3] understands corporate conflict as a kind of disagreement that arises in an organization between shareholders, investors and the company itself. Such a conflict is a conscious action committed by participants in corporate relations and involving a struggle for power in the company.

The conflict between corporations and their target groups is a special phenomenon in modern business that requires closer attention not only from the participants, but also from the objective scientific community. This phenomenon manifests itself in the contradictions between the benefits of corporations and the expectations of their customers, employees, investors and other stakeholders. Conflicts can arise due to a variety of reasons, such as non-compliance of the quality of products or services with the declared standards, problems with customer service, ineffective management or insufficient transparency in the company's activities.

To effectively manage conflicts with target groups, companies can apply various strategies, such as improving communication, adapting products and services to customer needs, and stakeholder participation in the decision-making process. It is also important to provide stakeholders with the opportunity to express their opinions and suggestions, as well as actively interact with them to build mutually beneficial relationships.

The mechanisms of corporate conflicts can be diverse. These can be disagreements in making strategic decisions, competition for power and resources, misunderstanding of the goals and objectives of the company, as well as insufficiently productive conflict management. Unresolved problems between employees or structural units can lead to an accumulation of tension and aggravation of the situation. To prevent corporate conflicts, it is necessary to carry out systematic work to improve "horizontal" and "vertical" communication within the company, establish clear rules of interaction and solve emerging problems at early stages. It is also important to create mechanisms for conflict resolution and encourage constructive behavior by the organization's participants.

Analyzing the social consequences of mediatization and its impact on the outcome of conflict is an important task that requires a special research strategy. The mediatization of the conflict, that is, the active coverage of the conflict in the media, has a significant impact on the general public, forms the perception of the parties to the conflict and can influence its outcome. The social consequences of the mediatization of conflicts can be expressed in changing public opinion about the company, its reputation and trust on the part of consumers, partners and other stakeholders. Transparency of communications, adequate response to information in the media and the ability to work effectively with the public - all this plays an important role in shaping the company's position in the conflict and mitigating its negative consequences.

For a more complete and accurate determination of the consequences of the corporate conflict, a survey of customers and buyers of Wildberries, the largest marketplace representative in Russia, was conducted. According to the Association of Online Trading Companies (AKIT), Wildberries' turnover in the Russian online sales market by 2023 exceeded 2.5 trillion rubles, which is 38% of the entire Russian market in this segment. The survey took into account not only the actual changes in the attitude of customers towards the company, but also their views on the causes and nature of the conflict, their expectations from the company in the future and the actual impact of the incident on their decision to purchase products or services provided.

The total number of respondents (sample population) was 357 people, which in turn allows us to assess the statistical significance of the survey results. The sample for the survey is random, mechanical. The survey was conducted between June and August 2023. The survey results show that before the conflict over Wildberries, the majority of respondents (57.1%) rated their attitude as "rather positive", 28.6% as "positive" and only 14.3% as "rather neutral". However, after receiving information about the conflict within the company, 85.7% of the survey participants said that their opinion had changed.

Obviously, the reputation of the seller is of great importance to the buyer, but not every conflict within the company entails an inevitable decrease in trust. A mediatized conflict can attract the attention of the audience, return interest and thus be reflected in the growth of sales or partner offers. Interestingly, after the conflict with Wildberry's PVZ arose in March 2023, the absolute majority of respondents (85.7%) expressed a desire to learn more about its causes and circumstances, which indicates an increased interest in the event and its impact on the company's reputation. However, according to the survey results, most participants would not recommend the company's products and services to their friends and family after the conflict. The mediatization of the conflict led to the fact that the company's position was widely discussed on social networks, news articles and TV shows, and the information quickly went beyond the target audience. 18% of the respondents are not customers of this marketplace, half of them felt that they were not ready to use the services of this company at the moment.

It is important to note that Wildberries LLC needed to actively interact with journalists, express their point of view on events and inform the public about their actions and plans, which they, in turn, did not do.

The growing awareness of the population about the conflict and the ill-considered actions of the management led to the formation of a negative public image of the company. As a result, the employees aligned themselves with the management and began to use common communication channels to discuss the changes taking place in the company. Communicating with colleagues became a way of expressing dissatisfaction and seeking support, which could lead to new conflicts within the company. It is important to emphasize the importance of mediatization in this context, as it attracted the attention of the state regulator, which took the company under special supervision. Government intervention may affect the further development of the company, limiting its autonomy and requiring additional transparency.

The increased attention of the public and officials to conflict situations underlines the importance of competent conflict management, the ability to listen to employees and actively interact with stakeholders. Thus, analyzing the social consequences of mediatization and their impact on the outcome of a conflict is an important task for any commercial company, requiring an integrated approach that includes strategic planning, reputation management, effective communication and monitoring of public opinion.

The release of a conflict situation, in the center of which a major player in the Internet sales market into the public information space, allows us to draw a number of conclusions about its possible consequences. Firstly, the process of mediatization of corporate conflicts can be considered as a multidimensional phenomenon, which includes not only the use of media resources to highlight conflict situations in organizations, but also the transformation of the nature of the conflict itself under the influence of the media. This entails changes in management and conflict resolution strategies and requires companies to develop new skills and techniques in corporate communications and public relations.

Secondly, the mediatization of corporate conflicts has a significant impact on corporate reputation. The coverage of conflicts in the media and social networks can both negatively affect the image of an organization and serve as a tool for restoring public trust and loyalty, provided that information flows and communication strategies are properly managed.

The third key conclusion is that the mediatization of corporate conflicts emphasizes the need for transparency and openness of companies. Open and honest communication with stakeholders, including employees, customers, partners and the public, is becoming a key factor in successfully managing conflicts and preventing their escalation.

Consistent implementation of recommendations on the inclusion of crisis communications in the management system, maintaining business relations with journalists, transparency and openness in the communication process play a key role in creating a favorable reputation of the company. Following these principles and recommendations will not only ensure stable incomes and effective conflict management, but also strengthen your reputation as a reliable and responsible participant in the business environment. With a good reputation, the company can attract more customers, retain a loyal audience, attract investments and hire highly qualified specialists. In the context of global digitalization, compliance with the recommendations on managing the mediatization of corporate conflicts becomes an important strategic step for any commercial organization, which not only contributes to improving its financial stability, but also ensures sustainable development and improvement of its business reputation in the modern information environment.

The information noise created by mediatization attracts a wide audience and provokes the parties to the conflict to reconsider the strategy and tactics of relations. Criticism and discussions on social networks, articles in online publications, and video blogs put pressure on the parties to the conflict, exposing their weaknesses. In the case of the Wildberry marketplace, the mediatization of the conflict led to the fact that the management was forced to publicly respond to the accusations and claims of the owners of the pick-up points and use the media as a platform for communication. At the same time, understanding the reaction of the public and taking measures to resolve the conflict have become important for a successful way out of a problematic situation. The media coverage of this conflict not only worsened the situation for the company, but also demonstrated the importance of effective management of public communications in the context of digitalization. Such situations highlighted the importance of transparency, readiness for dialogue and responsible corporate behavior in the context of mediation conflicts. Mediation in conflict resolution has attracted the attention of various media platforms, from traditional media to social networks and blogs. This process contributed to the rapid dissemination of information and the formation of public opinion about the conflict.

Thus, the mediatization of the conflict not only affected the interests of its participants, but also raised important questions about the influence of the media on business processes, the need for careful planning of public communications and the importance of transparency in relations between companies and their partners. The mediatization of conflict has become an integral part of the modern business process, in which public communications can play a crucial role.

In conclusion, it should be noted that the mediatization of corporate conflicts is a complex process that requires companies to adapt to a changing media landscape, develop digital literacy and critical thinking skills, as well as apply innovative approaches to corporate communications and reputation management. In this context, future research should be aimed at developing effective methods and tools for diagnosing, preventing and resolving mediatized corporate conflicts, taking into account the constantly changing media environment and the dynamics of socio-economic processes.