Help for Heroes: From organizational discourse to a new orthodoxy

Abstract

This article offers an account of the institutional entrepreneurship behind the formation of the UK charity for military veterans, Help for Heroes, along with an analysis of the symbols, narratives and rhetoric that made up its organizational discourse. Tracing the development of the charity since its launch in 2007, the inquiry considers the means of transmission used by Help for Heroes to diffuse its organizational discourse, arguing that a dualistic promotional approach across elite and mass media – narrative through a network of support from mass media outlets as well as individual actors, such as members of the Royal Family, politicians and celebrities – helped to propagate a new national orthodoxy of veterans as heroes. The conclusion is that 10 years after its foundation, Help for Heroes’ discursive legacy has reinvigorated the veteran charity sector in a way not seen since the end of World War I and established a wide and deep level of support among civic society for veterans as a social cause, regardless of the level of support for the underlying military operations

Misrecognising the victim of state violence: denial, ‘deep’ imperialism and defending ‘our boys’

“…This nexus between the 'imagined community', military heroism overseas and racial supremacy over an alien 'other' cultivated a form of nationalistic identity politics that remains prevalent today. This jingoistic fervour has seen veteran culture and nationalistic culture overlapping in the election campaigns of the United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) and in the Brexit campaign [87], with the Armed Forces being one of the main institutions that make the 'imagined community' 'proud to be British' [42]. Whereas the British Army, according to its own doctrine at least, possesses a 'warrior spirit' ([92]: 97), the 'other', by contrast, is foreign, dangerous and lacking in the British moral code [6].…”

“…At the same time, veteran charities were beginning to emerge in the public eye. Indeed, Help for Heroes emerged at a time when Tony Blair had become universally unpopular for waging what was increasingly seen as a wasteful war in Iraq [87]. What transpired from the 'Militarisation Offensive', as Hines et al [42] note, was the oddity of the 'imagined community' strongly supporting the Armed Forces Covenant despite knowing little about it and, perhaps more bizarrely, of them continuing to strongly support 'our boys' despite being profoundly opposed to the war in Iraq.…”

“…What transpired from the 'Militarisation Offensive', as Hines et al [42] note, was the oddity of the 'imagined community' strongly supporting the Armed Forces Covenant despite knowing little about it and, perhaps more bizarrely, of them continuing to strongly support 'our boys' despite being profoundly opposed to the war in Iraq. The cumulative impact of initiatives like the Armed Forces Covenant and organisations like Help for Heroes has been to leverage support for the notion that 'our boys' are heroes deserving of support from members of the British Royal family, celebrities and the mainstream media [87].…”

The articulation of ‘agency’: How can public relations scholarship and institutional theory enrich each other?

“…Limited PR research has thoroughly engaged with the vibrant development of institution theory foregrounding agency and creativity. Exceptions are few empirical case studies that applied segments of institutional theory to understand the various agency of PR enacted in such ways as navigating institutional complexity (Frandsen et al, 2016), translating reputation management in hospitals (Wæraas and Sataoen, 2014) and promoting a new orthodoxy of veterans as heroes (Thompson, 2018). Built on existing findings, there needs a timely and comprehensive inquiry into the conceptual relevance and potential of institutional agency theory to PR.…”