Toward prescription: Testing the rhetoric of atonement's applicability in the athletic arena

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Abstract

For over 30 years, scholars have been studying the intricacies of apologia. Over the years, understanding this line of research has become essential for scholars of public relations. Recently, Koesten and Rowland [Koesten, J., & Rowland, R. C. (2004). The rhetoric of atonement. Communication Studies, 55, 68–87] proposed the rhetoric of atonement, a prescriptive typology of apologia designed to guide rhetors facing the need to atone for sins that cannot be denied, justified, or transcended. Newly proposed, however, their typology has yet to be tested outside of the political realm. The current study applies the typology to the image repair campaign run by Tony Stewart, the 2002 NASCAR (National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing) Winston Cup Champion, after he physically attacked Indianapolis Star photographer, Gary Mook, following a disappointing finish in the Brickyard 400 in August of 2002.

Section snippets

Case background and rhetorical situation

On August 4, 2002, NASCAR driver Tony Stewart committed an act that had the ability to tarnish his public image as well at the public image of NASCAR, Joe Gibbs Racing (his team), and Home Depot (his primary sponsor). Following a disappointing finish in the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Stewart exited his car and allegedly struck Indianapolis Star photographer Gary Mook in the chest as Mook was trying to take a picture of him (Gould, 2002, Montgomery, 2002a, Montgomery, 2002b).

Literature review

As noted above, a plethora of research regarding apologia exists. In the interest of brevity, I will use the summaries of Coombs (2006) and Hearit (2001) to illuminate where and how the current study fits within the realm of apologia studies.

Coombs (2006) argued that studies of crisis response may be divided into two categories: form and content. He defines form as “what should be done” (p. 171), noting that three form elements have risen to the top as necessities for effective crisis response:

Stewart's campaign

Stewart faced a number of audiences. To avoid possible litigation, Stewart had to satisfy Mook with his response. The way NASCAR is structured, any of the following enabling publics/stakeholders/audiences (Grunig & Hunt, 1984; Hopwood, 2007; Koesten & Rowland, 2004) had the potential to effect Stewart's employment: NASCAR (the sanctioning body), Home Depot (his primary sponsor), and Joe Gibbs Racing (his car owner).5

Discussion

As indicated above, Stewart's campaign was successful among all of his key audiences. Stewart repeatedly used messages that met the second and third requirements of the rhetoric of atonement and most of his statements were made as public confessionals (criterion five). Further, the high level of support received from his key audiences indicates they perceived Stewart as offering adequate evidence of mortification (criterion four).

However, his apologetic campaign offers insight into the criteria

Limitations

Studies such as this are continually plagued by three limitations. First, as Coombs (2006) noted, case studies are limited in the amount of generalizability they offer and the amount of prescription that can be argued from them. Consequently, this study supports a great deal of the findings reported by Koesten and Rowland (2004) and expanded the testing of their typology from the political realm to the sports realm, offering rigor for their prescriptions through multiple case study testing.

Areas for future research

It is clear from this and other studies that prescriptive typologies offer added value to the study of apologia. Furthermore, the development of prescriptive typologies undoubtedly provides invaluable resources for public relations practitioners. Thus, it is imperative that scholars continue to develop and refine such typologies. However, with typologies in their infancy, such as the rhetoric of atonement, more case studies and empirical tests should be done to test their utility and validity.

Conclusion

The apologetic campaign offered by Tony Stewart undoubtedly supported the assertions of Koesten and Rowland (2004) concerning the prescriptive nature of the rhetoric of atonement. This case also offered insights into the ways in which the unique ethical and rhetorical intricacies of the sports arena impact an apologetic campaign. Given that this is only the third study to apply principles of apologia to sports rhetoric, this area is clearly ripe for further study.

Acknowledgements

The author would like to thanks Drs. Jeffrey L. Courtright and William R. Cupach, Illinois State University and Dr. Robert C. Rowland, University of Kansas for comments on earlier drafts of this paper. The author would also like to thanks the editor and reviewers of this special issue for their helpful comments on earlier versions of this paper.

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    An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 2003 Central States Communication Association Convention in Omaha, Nebraska.

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