Disinformation Tops Index as Trade War Driving Dramatically Different Reputation Risks Across the Atlantic
WASHINGTON – At a time of unprecedented transatlantic trade tensions, a new Global Risk Advisory Council survey reveals a growing gap in the reputational risks companies are facing on either side of the Atlantic. The Q2 Reputation Risk Index shows the top threat confronting companies is disinformation, driven in many cases by polarized political agendas that are increasingly ensnaring the private sector. Yet, the Council of over 100 preeminent public affairs leaders finds European firms are more vulnerable to perceived deviation from social responsibilities like climate and anticompetitiveness. In the United States, political issues like association with Elon Musk and DEI backtracking continued to top the Index.
“The Index shows organizations operating globally are being put in a difficult spot navigating an expanding divide between Europe and the United States,” said the former Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration and Chair of the Global Risk Advisory Council Isabel Casillas Guzman. “Trade impacts are tough. But, what is getting less attention is how consumers, media, and leaders in each market are also diverging dramatically in their views.”
European risks primarily center around concerns about corporate behavior, perceptions of anti-competitive actions, and CEO actions top the Index. Even as the American administration pushes companies to ease climate commitments, Brussels and stakeholders across the Atlantic are keeping pressure on the private sector, as it comes in as the third top issue in the market. Disinformation is the one major risk shared with Americans and leads overall this quarter.
This latest Index saw some other important shifts. Technology-related concerns in our Q1 report were driven by the irresponsible or misleading use of AI and the visibility of figures like Elon Musk. This quarter, while Musk remains on radars, disinformation has taken the spotlight, reflecting continued anxieties around how technology is shaping public discourse. While artificial intelligence (AI) remains central to reputational risk across sectors as the European Commission stepped up enforcement of the Digital Services Act (DSA), targeting countries and companies that fail to meet standards for transparency and content moderation, it was pushed out of the top ten risks, as other threats garnered more attention.
“Toxic politics are starting to pollute the waters for brands as disinformation is coming through in the Index as a major danger,” said Global Situation Room President Brett Bruen. “This is an alarm sounding and organizations need to double down on messaging that can overcome congested, chaotic communications contexts. They need to create the capability to push back against false narratives that can rapidly damage reputations.”
On Tuesday, April 15, 2025, at 11:30 AM EST, former Irish Finance Minister Michael D’Arcy will join Guzman and Bruen for a discussion on the full Q2 findings, moderated by Financial Times Washington Correspondent Joe Miller. Registration for the event and all Index reports are available at www.ReputationRisk.org.
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