NÄR LEGITIMITETEN HOTAS. En kvalitativ textanalys av Folkhälsomyndighetens kriskommunikation under förtroendekrisen efter Magnus Gissléns kritik 2025

Sammanfattning

In August 2025, the Public Health Agency of Sweden (Folkhälsomyndigheten) found itself in adifficult position after facing extensive criticism regarding its fundamental medical knowledge andexpertise. The criticism was raised by the former State Epidemiologist, Magnus Gisslén, who publiclyquestioned the agency’s ability to fulfill its responsibility of protecting Swedish public health. Afterresigning from his post due to disagreements with the agency’s management, Gisslén expressed onsocial media that the agency lacked sufficial medical knowledge and that he no longer trusted itscapabilities to manage major health threats such as a future pandemic. The criticism quickly made theheadlines of mainstream media, and directly challenged the core legitimacy of the agency as Gisslénsuggested that the establishment of a new public authority is necessary. Consequently, the PublicHealth Agency entered an institutional crisis triggered by Gisslén’s whistleblowing, and had to engagein crisis communication to protect its credibility and legitimacy, not only among the public but alsoamong other stakeholders.This thesis examines how the Public Health Agency responded to the criticism through its crisiscommunication in press releases and public statements during the period of August to late November2025. The purpose of the study is to identify and analyze the communication strategies the agencyused to defend its reputation and legitimacy following Gisslén’s whistleblowing. The study does notseek to evaluate the effectiveness of the communication, but rather to describe and interpret itsdevelopment.The analysis is grounded in a theoretical framework consisting of three complementary perspectives:Image Repair Theory, legitimacy theory, and the theory of apologia (defense) and kategoria(accusation). Together, these theories provide a comprehensive understanding of how crisiscommunication is constructed and negotiated in complex institutional crises. The theory of apologiaand kategoria explains and conceptualizes crisis communication as a dynamic interaction betweenaccusations and defensive responses. Image Repair Theory offers a typology of communicationstrategies used in reputation management, while legitimacy theory explains how organizations seek todefend and restore different types of legitimacy through crisis communication.The study employs a qualitative text analysis of twelve texts published by the Public Health Agencyand in mainstream media. The material consists of official press releases, opinion pieces, emailresponses, and appearances in nationally broadcast television programs. The results demonstrate thatthe agency employed several different communication strategies to defend multiple forms oflegitimacy throughout the crisis. Initially, the agency’s response was highly confrontational, relyingprimarily on strategies such as bolstering, denial, and minimization, focusing on defending pragmaticand moral legitimacy. In the later stage of the crisis, the agency shifted toward the use of correctiveactions and adopted a more neutral, institutional approach, primarily focusing on defending cognitivelegitimacy.Overall, the findings show how crises of credibility are dynamic processes in which accusations anddefensive responses continuously develop in relation to each other and to the actions of various actorsand stakeholders. The results further show a tension in the agency’s crisis communication betweenrepairing a damaged reputation through confrontative strategies and protecting its institutional role asa public health authority in a more neutral approach. This tension raises broader questions concerningthe communicative challenges public authorities face in a time of increasingly contested legitimacyand intensified media scrutiny. Future research should therefore examine how public organizationsdesign, construct and operate their crisis communication strategies and how such strategies influencepublic trust and credibility. Future studies should also include larger samples of cases, texts and publicorganizations to provide valuable insights into broader patterns of crisis communication within thepublic sector.