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Corporate social responsibility, media freedom, and firm value

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  • Chang, Kiyoung
  • Shim, Hyeongsop
  • Yi, Taihyeup David

Abstract

We examine whether the media freedom level of a country plays a mediating role in the interaction between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and B2C industries or between CSR and advertising intensity, and influences firm value. Using the 19,130 firm-year data covering 40 countries over the 2002–2014 period, we find the interaction terms are positively associated with financial performance in countries with full media freedom, while being negatively or insignificantly associated in countries with partial or no media freedom. These empirical findings indicate that CSR activities enhance the value of firms located only in countries where media freedom is fully guaranteed.

Suggested Citation

  • Chang, Kiyoung & Shim, Hyeongsop & Yi, Taihyeup David, 2019. "Corporate social responsibility, media freedom, and firm value," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 1-7.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:finlet:v:30:y:2019:i:c:p:1-7
    DOI: 10.1016/j.frl.2019.03.019
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    Cited by:

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    2. Ye, Xu & Hou, Rong & Wang, Shihan & Omar, Nor Asiah Binti, 2024. "Social media, relationship marketing and corporate ESG performance," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    3. WANG, Yang & Liu, Jun & Sui, Xiuping & Liu, Libing, 2020. "Does corporate social responsibility improve financial performance? -evidence from pure green side✰," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 36(C).
    4. D’Hondt, Catherine & Merli, Maxime & Roger, Tristan, 2022. "What drives retail portfolio exposure to ESG factors?," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 46(PB).
    5. Rafael Villa & Andrés Monzón, 2021. "Mobility Restrictions and E-Commerce: Holistic Balance in Madrid Centre during COVID-19 Lockdown," Economies, MDPI, vol. 9(2), pages 1-19, April.
    6. Luis Manuel Cerdá Suárez & Jesús Perán López & Belén Cambronero Saiz, 2020. "The Influence of Heuristic judgments in Social Media on Corporate Reputation: A Study in Spanish Leader Companies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-17, February.
    7. Catherine D’hondt & Maxime Merli & Tristan Roger, 2021. "What drives retail portfolio exposure to ESG factors?," Post-Print hal-03373287, HAL.
    8. Dumitrescu, Ariadna & El Hefnawy, Menatalla & Zakriya, Mohammed, 2020. "Golden geese or black sheep: Are stakeholders the saviors or saboteurs of financial distress?," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 37(C).
    9. Shahid, Ahmad Usman & Patel, Chris & Pan, Peipei, 2022. "Corporate social responsibility, intrinsic religiosity, and investment decisions," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 34(C).
    10. M. Chabachib & Tyana Ulfa Fitriana & Hersugondo Hersugondo & Imang Dapit Pamungkas & Udin Udin, 2019. "Firm Value Improvement Strategy, Corporate Social Responsibility, and Institutional Ownership," International Journal of Financial Research, International Journal of Financial Research, Sciedu Press, vol. 10(4), pages 152-163, July.
    11. Sana Noor & Abubakr Saeed & Muhammad Saad Baloch & Muhammad Awais, 2020. "CSR permanency, family ownership, and firm value: Evidence from emerging economies," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(5), pages 2135-2149, September.
    12. Niu, Zhiyong & Zhou, Xiaoyan & Pei, Hongzhou, 2021. "Effect of perceived status of entrepreneur on firm's CSR behavior: Evidence from Chinese private enterprises survey," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 39(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Corporate social responsibility; Media freedom; Firm value; Business-to-consumer industries; Advertising intensity;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill
    • G38 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Government Policy and Regulation
    • M14 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - Corporate Culture; Diversity; Social Responsibility

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