Celebrity advertising in the case of negative associations: discourse analysis of weblogs

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine celebrity advertising in the case of negative associations. Design/methodology/approach – In total, 451 posts were captured permanently from randomly selected weblogs, and analyzed by discourse analysis. The basic emerging themes therein have been isolated and interpreted, and a model of celebrity endorsement in the case of negative information has been developed. Findings – When a celebrity becomes involved in an undesirable event, the consumers' perceptions of the celebrity may or may not change. This study argues that this situation is influenced by “the level of negativity”, “the level of blameworthiness”, “admiration” and the “message content”. In addition, it was found that the admiration affects the perceived image of the celebrity and it is also affected by “the level of negativity” and “the level of blameworthiness”. Furthermore, the message given is directly associated with the “negativity”, “blameworthiness”, “perception of the celebrity”, and “the perception of the brand”. Research limitations/implications – The present study examined only one case of celebrity advertising. Practical implications – The expectations and attitudes of the identified segments should be taken into consideration when firms develop marketing programs. Originality/value – This study, unlike others, analyzes the case of the continuance of the endorsement relationship between the company and the negatively publicized celebrity.