A commentary on: corporate social responsibility reporting and reputation risk management

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide a critical commentary on Bebbington, Larrinaga‐Gonzales and Moneva, published in Accounting Auditing & Accountability Journal , Vol. 21 No. 3. Design/methodology/approach The paper provides an analysis and critique of Bebbington et al. , with particular reference to the position it takes on where the literature in the field is at, where it is going, where it should go and the contribution their paper makes. Findings The paper finds that the approach taken by Bebbington et al. may hinder the contribution that reporting researchers can make to improving social and environmental performance. Research limitations/implications The paper suggests that rather than follow the approach of Bebbington et al. , future research seeking to understand the role of reporting in a reputation risk management strategy might take a holistic approach to that strategy and engage with organisational participants. Originality/value The authors paper gives a different perspective on the contribution of Bebbington et al. .