Communication hijacking: strategic communication gone dark

Hautala, M., Luoma-aho, V., & Brown, J. C. (2026).

As the polarized information environment and technological advancements, such as artificial intelligence, enable the creation and spread of malicious content online, strategic communication can be misused in unpredictable ways. This paper addresses an emerging, urgent challenge to organizational legitimacy by analyzing the phenomenon of communication hijacking as a technique of dark strategic communication and providing three illustrative examples of severe communication hijacking in Finland.

Hautala, M., Luoma-aho, V., & Brown, J. C. (2026). Communication hijacking: strategic communication gone dark. Journal of Communication Management, 30(1), 143-163.