The Anatomy of Backlash: Why Some Crises Spread — and Others Don’t
Understand what drives online backlash, how it spreads across audiences, and why some controversies escalate while others fade.
Online backlash can escalate quickly, but the size of a spike in online conversation rarely tells the full story. What begins as criticism of a single decision, campaign, or event can remain contained within one community, take on new meaning as others join the conversation, or expand into a broader reputational issue.
In this webinar, Graphika experts draw on recent real-world controversies to examine the Anatomy of Backlash: six interconnected parts that help explain how backlash develops and changes — the Spark, the Carriers, the Narrative, the Crossover, the Turn, and the Afterlife.
Using Graphika’s research and analysis, our experts will unpack the signals they look for and how they interpret them, exploring what caused a moment to ignite, who gave it momentum, how its meaning evolved, where it traveled, what changed its trajectory, and what persisted after attention began to fade.
The goal isn’t a one-size-fits-all crisis playbook. It’s a clearer way to understand the reputational situation taking shape and the context communications teams need to make more informed decisions.
What You'll Learn
What turns a moment into backlash
Why the event that triggers attention isn’t always the underlying issue driving it.
How backlash gains momentum and meaning
How communities, influential voices, and evolving narratives can carry a controversy beyond its original context.
Why the trajectory can change
How crossover into new audiences, organizational action or inaction, and outside developments can reshape what happens next.
What remains after the spike
Why declining volume doesn’t necessarily mean reputational risk has disappeared and what to watch as attention fades.
Who Should Attend
- Crisis, strategic and corporate communications teams
- PR, media relations and public affairs professionals
- Brand and reputation leaders
- Social and digital communications teams
- Communications and reputation agencies
Jennifer Vaziralli is Chief Revenue Officer at Graphika, where she leads go-to-market strategy and revenue execution. She has held senior leadership roles at multiple high-growth technology companies and serves on the board of 757 Angels, while also coaching early-stage business founders. She holds an MBA from The Wharton School and degrees from Virginia Tech.
Alexandra Matheny is a product marketing leader with more than a decade of experience bringing products to market and helping startups scale, with a focus on AI, data and analytics platforms. She specializes in translating complex technologies and data-driven insights into compelling market strategies, positioning and customer experiences. At Graphika, she applies that experience to understanding how online narratives shape brand perception, reputation and business decisions — bringing a marketer’s lens to narrative intelligence and the broader field of decision intelligence.
Reserve Your Spot
Join us for The Anatomy of Backlash to explore what drives online backlash, how it spreads across audiences, and what communications teams can learn from the signals behind it.
- Recent real-world cases — See how backlash developed and changed across recent controversies.
- Expert discussion — Hear how Graphika’s experts interpret the signals behind escalation, crossover, response and decline.
- Live Q&A — Bring your questions and explore what these patterns could mean for your organization.
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