Branding the protest with integrated marketing communication: tech rhetoric across paid, earned, shared and owned (PESO)

Purpose – This study examines the communication tactics of a protest movement, with particular attention to marketing-related media channels and their role in shaping the public image of the movement. Design/methodology/approach – This study employs an in-depth case study using digital ethnography to analyze communication tactics during Israel's “high-tech protest” against judicial reform. Focusing on paid, earned, shared and owned channels, it examines how information was distributed. Findings – The content and narratives of the “high-tech protest” were distributed across multiple channels, including advertising, public relations, social media, online-digital platforms and offline activities, using a corporate-style marketing approach and a tech-driven branding motif. Originality/value – This work proposes a framework for understanding how civic movements adopt an integrated marketing communication approach and leverage “tech” narratives to influence public opinion and reshape the communication of political protest.