The influence of national societal contexts on the media reputation of multinational corporations: A comparison between Switzerland and the US

This comparative study looks at how media reputation of multinational corporations (MNCs) is shaped by national societal contexts. Swiss and US MNCs from the banking and pharmaceutical industry were analyzed. As main predictors media system (Swiss vs. US) and the country of origin of the MNCs (home vs. abroad) were defined. Results show that the overall media reputation of MNCs is predominantly negative in Swiss and US media. However, reputation in US media is significantly more negative than in Swiss media. Independent of the media system reputation of MNCs in home media is more favorable than in abroad media.