Abstract

This study examines crisis communication in elite sports through the case of Paul Pogba’s doping scandal. The study addressed the existing crisis communication frameworks, which primarily focus on strategic messaging and reputation management while giving limited attention to identity and audience interpretation. As a Black Muslim athlete and global sports celebrity, Pogba’s case provides an opportunity to explore how crisis communication, identity, and audience responses interact in contemporary digital media environments.

A qualitative case study design was employed. Data consisted of public statements, interviews, media reports, and audience responses on X/Twitter collected across different stages of the crisis. Public texts were analyzed using Image Repair Theory, the Discourse of Renewal, and an intersectional framework focusing on race, religion, and the commodification of self. Audience responses were examined through Stuart Hall’s encoding/decoding model using dominant, negotiated, and oppositional readings. VADER sentiment analysis was also used to identify broader emotional patterns in audience reactions.

The findings indicate that Pogba relied on multiple image repair strategies, especially denial, defeasibility, bolstering, and corrective action, while also employing future-oriented communication associated with the Discourse of Renewal. His communication emphasized hope, personal growth, and a return to football. Religion emerged as an important source of resilience and identity reconstruction, while athlete branding highlighted the need to protect his public image. Audience responses reflected dominant, negotiated, and oppositional readings, demonstrating that crisis outcomes depend not only on communication strategies but also on how audiences interpret messages. Overall, the study concludes that crisis communication in elite sport is a socially situated process shaped by identity, discourse, public visibility, and audience meaning-making.

Advisor

Deepa Oommen

Committee Member

Farah Azhar

Committee Member

Enamul Kabir

Date of Degree

2026

Language

english

Document Type

Thesis

Degree

Master of Arts (MA)

Program of Study

Communication and Media Studies

Department

Communication and Media

College

Humanities and Social Sciences

Recommended Citation

Karikari, E. (2026). Doping and the discourse of crisis: A communication case study of Paul Pogba [Master’s thesis, Minnesota State University, Mankato]. Cornerstone: A Collection of Scholarly and Creative Works for Minnesota State University, Mankato. https://cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu/etds/1635/