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Naming and Shaming

Summary

Naming and shaming is an information tactic: a campaign publicly identifies a target, links that target to a documented harm, and tries to make reputation, regulation, or stakeholder pressure costly enough that the target changes course [source: daubanes-ngo-activism].

Body

The clearest source in this wiki’s corpus is Daubanes and Jean-Marie’s Theory of NGO Activism, which treats information work — including public reporting and naming-and-shaming — as one of four strategic choices available to NGOs, alongside legal, market, and political strategies [source: daubanes-ngo-activism]. In that model, naming and shaming works best when the target is reputation-sensitive, when the public or a regulator can plausibly respond, and when the information is credible enough to alter the target’s expected cost of inaction [source: daubanes-ngo-activism].

A naming-and-shaming action therefore starts with evidence, not insult. The campaign names the behaviour, names the actor responsible, shows why the behaviour breaches a public norm, and gives the target a clear path to repair. It can be a report, scorecard, public letter, hearing, social-media launch, shareholder intervention, or coalition statement. The method is weaker when the target has little reputational exposure or when the evidence is thin; in those cases the same source suggests campaigns may shift toward legal complaints, market pressure, or political advocacy instead [source: daubanes-ngo-activism].

Use it with care: false or exaggerated claims can create legal risk, erode trust with allies, and make later negotiation harder. Strong naming-and-shaming combines a narrow factual claim, a specific demand, and a plan for escalation if the target ignores the exposure.

Use it for

Corporate accountability work; human-rights advocacy; regulatory campaigns where public reporting can move a target; coalition moments where a shared evidence base needs to become public pressure.

FAQ

What is naming and shaming?

Naming and shaming is an information tactic: a campaign publicly identifies a target, links that target to a documented harm, and tries to make reputation, regulation, or stakeholder pressure costly enough that the target changes course [source: daubanes-ngo-activism]. Daubanes and Jean-Marie’s Theory of NGO Activism treats information work — including public reporting and naming-and-shaming — as one of four strategic choices available to NGOs, alongside legal, market, and political strategies.

When does naming and shaming work best?

Naming and shaming works best when the target is reputation-sensitive, when the public or a regulator can plausibly respond, and when the information is credible enough to alter the target’s expected cost of inaction [source: daubanes-ngo-activism]. The method is weaker when the target has little reputational exposure or when the evidence is thin; in those cases the same source suggests campaigns may shift toward legal complaints, market pressure, or political advocacy instead.

What does a strong naming-and-shaming action look like?

A naming-and-shaming action starts with evidence, not insult. The campaign names the behaviour, names the actor responsible, shows why the behaviour breaches a public norm, and gives the target a clear path to repair — it can be a report, scorecard, public letter, hearing, social-media launch, shareholder intervention, or coalition statement [source: daubanes-ngo-activism]. Strong naming-and-shaming combines a narrow factual claim, a specific demand, and a plan for escalation if the target ignores the exposure.

What are the risks of naming and shaming?

Use it with care: false or exaggerated claims can create legal risk, erode trust with allies, and make later negotiation harder [source: daubanes-ngo-activism]. A campaign that names without the evidence to back it up loses the credibility the tactic requires, which is why naming-and-shaming is closely tied to media-advocacy and corporate-campaigning rather than treated as a stand-alone lever.

Sources & verification