CORPORATE RHETORIC OF THE ATOMIC POWER INDUSTRY AFTER THREE MILE ISLAND (MASS MEDIA, IMAGE, PUBLIC RELATIONS)

GEORGE N DIONISOPOULOS, Purdue University

Abstract

The accident at Three Mile Island altered dramatically the operating environment of the nuclear power industry. Realizing that public opinion would play a major role in determining the future of atomic power in this country, the industry embarked on a unified effort to "resell" the idea of nuclear energy. This study investigated the industry's post-Three Mile Island advocacy campaign by examining the industry's "media environment" from March 1979 to November 1980. These data indicated public relations damage caused by the accident, and how the industry reacted. The six research questions addressed in this study focused upon elements of how, and in what way the accident damaged the "image" of the nuclear power industry; how the industry responded; and what audiences were targeted during this campaign. This study found that the atomic power industry responded as a "political actor" after Three Mile Island. The industry's rhetoric was designed to exert "definitional control" over the rhetorical situation by offering industry definitions of the events at Three Mile Island, and of the "need" for atomic power. The rhetorical strategies of purification and transcendence were used to illumine this rhetoric. This study examined the industry's use of the specific tactics of newspaper advertisements, spokespersons, and pseudo events.

Degree

Ph.D.

Subject Area

Communication

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