Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Availability

Open Access Thesis

Abstract

In March of 2025, the environmental group Greenpeace was found liable for nearly $667 million to Energy Transfer, the oil company behind the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL). The lawsuit was widely regarded as a SLAPP, or Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation, because it weaponized civic torts to infringe upon Greenpeace’s First Amendment rights. The $667 million verdict is an unprecedented figure in SLAPP litigation–it’s enough to bankrupt Greenpeace in the United States and “chill” democratic participation. This thesis used a hybrid blame-renewal crisis narrative framework to analyze Greenpeace’s public response to lawsuits against a backdrop of cultural and political economic constraints. Findings from this study lay bare the need for new understandings of SLAPPs, not only from a legal perspective but a communication one. Staggering monetary damages aside, SLAPPs “legalize” political disputes, meaning targets of SLAPPs must navigate responding to the lawsuit in a way that redirects attention back toward the political issue at hand.

Year of Submission

2026

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Department

Department of Communication and Media

First Advisor

Tom Hall

Date Original

2026

Object Description

1 PDF file (viii, 101 pages)

Language

en

File Format

application/pdf

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