CSR Through Signs: Semiotic Study of Unilever’s Advertisements and Sustainability Reporting Reality

DOI

10.2991/978-94-6239-709-5_53How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Corporate Social Responsibility; Digital Advertising; Sustainability Report; Roland Barthes’ Semiotics

Abstract

This study aims to analyze how CSR Unilever Indonesia is represented through signs and symbols in digital advertisements, as well as to what extent that representation aligns with the actual implementation reported in the sustainability report. The research employs a qualitative approach using Roland Barthes’ semiotic analysis method, which interprets signs at two levels: denotation and connotation. Data is obtained through documentation of Unilever’s CSR digital advertisements and the company’s sustainability report. The findings show that Unilever’s CSR digital advertisements display visual symbols that represent social concern, including attention to the environment, educational and training activities for the community, as well as collaboration with various stakeholders. At the denotative level, these symbols depict social concern, while at the connotative level, they build the company’s image as an entity that cares for the environment and society. Furthermore, this study found a correspondence between most of the messages in the advertisements and the programs documented in the sustainability reporting, such as health education, plastic waste management, local economic empowerment, and Unilever’s collaboration with community and government organizations. This alignment proves to strengthen legitimacy and public trust, while also demonstrating that advertising and sustainability reporting serve as important indicators reflecting the company’s genuine intentions and commitment to CSR implementation.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Nur Afni Bungaeja
AU  - Syarifuddin Syarifuddin
AU  - Darwis Said
AU  - Nadhirah Nagu
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/06/20
TI  - CSR Through Signs: Semiotic Study of Unilever’s Advertisements and Sustainability Reporting Reality
BT  - Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Accounting, Management, and Economics (10th ICAME 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 773
EP  - 786
SN  - 2352-5428
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6239-709-5_53
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6239-709-5_53
ID  - Bungaeja2026
ER  -