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Jim Conran of the California Department of Consumer Affairs accused Sears' auto repair centers of overcharging their customers. This accusation raised serious questions about whether Sears' customers could really "Count On Sears" as its advertisements had assured us for years. I analyze this persuasive attack and apply the theory of image restoration discourse to Sears' attempt to restore is tarnished reputation. I argue that the accusations were persuasive, while Sears' response--especially its initial response--was weak.
There's a saying, "You can count on Sears." I'm here to tell you in auto repair, you cannot. (Jim Conran, Director of the California Department of Consumer Affairs, 1992, p. A3)
Sears is a large national chain, whose 850 auto-repair centers nationwide generate "9% of Sears' merchandise group's revenues, which totaled $19.4. billion last year, and has been among its fastest-growing and most profitable business units in recent years" (Yin, 1992). In 1991 Sears serviced 20 million cars (Patterson, 1992b, p. B1), but in 1992 Sears' auto shops were accused of performing unneeded repairs. This accusation of fraud posed a significant threat to Sears' credibility and its business.
Image, or reputation, is very important. Brown and Levinson (1978) observe that "people can be expected to defend their faces if threatened" (p. 66). The natural tendency to assume a defensive stance when one's image is threatened is just as evident in the behavior of organizations as it is in the behavior of individuals. For example, after CBS charged Mobil Oil with "creative bookkeeping" in reporting corporate profits, Mobil Oil accused CBS of biased journalism (Dionisopoulos & Vibbert, 1988). Similarly, after the Tylenol poisonings, Johnson and Johnson took pains to restore Tylenol's image (Benoit & Lindsey, 1987). Clearly, image repair for both individuals and organizations is an important and pervasive phenomenon.(1)
This essay analyzes Sears' discursive attempts to restore its image after being charged with fraud. First, an overview of image restoration strategies is presented. Second, the attack(2) on Sears is described and Sears' defense is analyzed according to Benoit's (1995) typology of image restoration strategies. Finally, this defense is evaluated and implications of this analysis are discussed.
IMAGE RESTORATION STRATEGIES
Several approaches to the analysis of verbal self-defense have been taken, some in rhetoric and some in sociology (see especially Burke,...