Save the Whales - Don't Cry for Them! How the Social Movement Brand ‘Sea Shepherd Conservation Society’ Eludes Compassion Fatigue through Branding

Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)

• A. Introductory Section
  • 1. Introduction
  • 2. Motivation of the thesis
  • 3. Academic Approaches to Social Movement Branding
  • 4. Research Aim and Questions
• B. Contextual Framework
  • 5. Disambiguation: Non-Profit Non-Governmental Organisations
  • 6. Communicating and Performing in Neoliberal Environments
    • 6.1 Living in a Marketised World
    • 6.2 A Networked Society - Communication via New Media
    • 6.3 The Branding of Everything
  • 7. Altered Requirements – NPNGOs facing the Neoliberal Reality
    • 7.1 Presenting Suffering is so 1990's - The Danger of Compassion Fatigue
    • 7.2 Changing Donors' Generations - Changing Communication?
• C. Theories
  • 8. How to Sell the Good Conscience?
    • 8.1 Branding - the Universal Marketing Weapon?
    • 8.2 Reputation Management - Branding 2.0
    • 8.3 The communicative Social Movement Brand
      • 8.3.1 Why Social Movement Brands
      • 8.3.2 How to Manage a Social Movement Brand
• D. Material and Methods
  • 9. The Information Ocean of Sea Shepherd
    • 9.1 Conservation Pirates
    • 9.2 Sea Shepherd in the Online World
      • 9.2.1 Sea Shepherd on YouTube
      • 9.2.2 Sea Shepherd's Home Port - The Website
      • 9.2.3 Sea Shepherd's Online Shop
• E. Analysis Section
  • 10. How Sea Shepherd Communicates via the Internet
    • 10.1 YouTube: Blockbuster Pirates
    • 10.2 Official Website
      • 10.2.1 Structural Analysis
      • 10.2.2 Content Analysis
    • 10.3 Official Online Shop
      • 10.3.1 Structural Analysis
      • 10.3.2 Content Analysis
    • 10.4 Sea Shepherd's logos
• F. Discussion and Conclusion
  • 11. Selling the Image
    • 11.1 Sea Shepherd's Merchandise
    • 11.2 Sea Shepherd's Business Co-operations
  • 12. Sea Shepherd and Compassion Fatigue
  • 13. Sea Shepherd's Reputation Management as Branding Effort

Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)

This thesis examines how non-profit non-governmental organisations (NPNGOs) operate in a marketised world, focusing on the use of branding to build their reputation. It explores the challenges faced by NPNGOs in a neoliberal environment, particularly the issues of Compassion Fatigue and changing donor demographics. The thesis investigates the branding strategies employed by Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, a radical environmental protection organisation, as an exemplary case study. The research aims to understand how Sea Shepherd effectively leverages its brand to connect with audiences and address these challenges.

• Branding and Reputation Management in the context of NPNGOs
• Compassion Fatigue and its implications for social movement organisations
• The impact of neoliberalism and marketization on NPNGO communication
• Sea Shepherd's strategic use of branding for social change
• The role of new media and online platforms in NPNGO branding

Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)

The thesis begins by introducing the concept of social movement branding and outlining the motivation and research questions guiding the study. It then provides a contextual framework, explaining the disambiguation of NPNGOs and exploring the influence of neoliberalism on their communication practices. The discussion focuses on the challenges posed by Compassion Fatigue and the changing demographics of donors. Subsequently, the thesis delves into theoretical frameworks of branding and reputation management, exploring their application to social movement organisations. The study then examines Sea Shepherd's online communication, focusing on its YouTube presence, website, online shop, and logo use. Finally, the thesis analyzes Sea Shepherd's efforts in combating Compassion Fatigue and leveraging reputation management for branding purposes.

Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)

The key terms and concepts explored in this thesis include branding, conservation, Compassion Fatigue, marketization, neoliberalism, NGO, non-profit, Paul Watson, Reputation Management, Sea Shepherd, social movements. These terms represent the central focus areas of the study, highlighting the interplay between social movements, branding strategies, and the impact of neoliberalism on environmental conservation organizations.