ABSTRACT
This chapter seeks to examine one crisis case and the use of social media, including its ethics, in order to help fill that void in the literature. Clearly the use of social media is changing the core communication channels that public relations practitioners use to reach their stakeholders. The chapter focuses on the discussion on factors in situational crisis communication theory (SCCT) for understanding the importance of applying ethical principles in handling crises. A nonconsequentialist approach is based purely on moral principle, meaning that consequences of a decision are no longer the driving factor—universalism, reversibility, and good intention are. Due to the rapidity of information dissemination in a digital environment, ethical guidelines for crisis communication in the digital realm are an urgent consideration. The chapter examines the case of Dolce & Gabbana's photo ban crisis that was escalated by corporate arrogance and lack of respect for stakeholders and the information shared online and offline in various forms of communication channels.
