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The importance of being Earnest in social media: juxtaposing Oscar Wilde’s script with an empirical case study to examine digital deceit from the blogger’s perspective

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  • Andrea L. Micheaux

    (RIME-Lab - Recherche Interdisciplinaire en Management et Économie Lab - ULR 7396 - UA - Université d'Artois - Université de Lille, IAE Lille - IAE Lille University School of Management - Lille - Université de Lille)

  • Dominique Crié

    (LEM - Lille économie management - UMR 9221 - UA - Université d'Artois - UCL - Université catholique de Lille - Université de Lille - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, IAE Lille - IAE Lille University School of Management - Lille - Université de Lille)

  • Annabel Martin-Salerno

    (IAE Lille - IAE Lille University School of Management - Lille - Université de Lille, LEM - Lille économie management - UMR 9221 - UA - Université d'Artois - UCL - Université catholique de Lille - Université de Lille - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)

  • Daphné Salerno

    (ILIS - Faculté d'Ingénierie et Management de la Santé)

Abstract

Deceit in social media by independent bloggers is a topic of concern for brand managers and for consumers. Empirical research has focussed on the consumer or the brand rather than on the perspective of the online source. This paper elucidates the blogger's motivations for and the contexts in which she is most likely to publish deceitful content. The methodology is an analogical problem-solving process juxtaposing Oscar Wilde's "The Importance of Being Earnest" with an empirical case study. We use the analogy to reverse the perspective of the revisited study from the consumer to the blogger. The results support direct, differentiated, brand management of bloggers according to their level of expertise and to the adopted social or trade norm. A model is proposed.

Suggested Citation

  • Andrea L. Micheaux & Dominique Crié & Annabel Martin-Salerno & Daphné Salerno, 2018. "The importance of being Earnest in social media: juxtaposing Oscar Wilde’s script with an empirical case study to examine digital deceit from the blogger’s perspective," Post-Print hal-01828584, HAL.
  • Handle: RePEc:hal:journl:hal-01828584
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://hal.science/hal-01828584
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Disclosure; Self-Presentation; Social Media; Stealth Marketing; Lying and Deception;
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