The role of media in addressing humanitarian food crisis and the reputational pressure during the Northern Ethiopian War

The purpose of this study was to examine the disparities in the use of Benoit’s image repair strategies within government media outlets during the Northern Ethiopia war from 2020 to 2022, specifically in reporting on the humanitarian food crisis, using a sample of 384 proportional random media items. The quantitative content analysis research method with descriptive analysis was employed. The results showed that the government primarily used defensive strategies marked with denial, evasion of responsibility, and reduction of offensiveness. Corrective action was also performed at moderate levels, indicating some efforts toward problem-solving, while mortification was used carefully. Moreover, cross-tabulated results revealed alterations among outlets. The Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation (EBC) most frequently used denial and evasion of responsibility, followed by the Amhara Media Corporation (AMC), while the Tigray Mass Media Agency (TMMA) considered these strategies the least. The findings indicate that all outlets commonly use reducing-offensiveness strategies to soften or reframe the crisis narrative. Besides, corrective action and mortification are presented but generally applied at moderate intensity. In conclusion, government media implemented a largely defensive communication approach designed to preserve administrative legitimacy during the humanitarian food crisis. Thus, we suggest that government media should take a proactive role in transmitting information about the humanitarian food crisis and looting, rather than merely defending the facts about the humanitarian crisis to gain public trust.