This paper aims to measure the quality of all Romanian cities’ websites in 2019 and 2022, before and after the disruptive event of COVID-19. Since the official websites are the core instrument of e-governance, the changes in the quality of Romanian cities’ websites reflect the changes in the development of urban e-governance in Romania. The COVID-19 lockdowns and contact restrictions and the moving of most activities into the online environment had the potential to impact the performance of Romanian cities’ websites significantly and catalyze the progress of local e-governance. The quality of Romanian cities’ official websites was measured using an adapted survey instrument proposed by Holzer and Kim and Manoharan, Melitski, and Holzer. The tool covers five critical criteria of website quality or performance: personal data security, usability, content, services, and citizen participation. The research results may seem contrary to expectations: the improvements of websites have been incremental rather than transformational. Although our research provides only a case study, we may assert that the reform of traditional administration remains a step-by-step process. Our study’s main contribution consists in showing that the progress of e-governance is an incremental process even in a situation of emergency that requires the moving of most activities into the online environment.

Reactive Public Relations Strategies for Managing Fake News in the Online Environment

Russia's invasion of Ukraine had a negative impact worldwide, causing a severe energy crisis that also affected EU countries, which are now involved in combating the growing energy prices while also speeding up the deployment of renewable energy sources. This armed conflict impacted the electronic components supply chain, causing high prices and disruption for different raw materials, resulting in material shortages for electronic components and affecting electronic product (EP) manufacturing. Since the start of the geopolitical crisis due to the Russo-Ukrainian War, (dis)information has been disseminated via social media, affecting users' cognition, attitudes, and behavioral intentions.

Purpose: This research explores the impact of trust in online information, parasocial interaction, online flow experience, sharing fake news and corporate credibility on companies’ resilience to negative information. Design/methodology/approach: A conceptual research model was developed, employing the flow theory to fill gaps in the literature. A cross-sectional national online survey was conducted among 1,550 respondents aged 16–74 in an emerging market, utilizing a quantitative-based approach; the data were then analyzed using structural equation modeling. Findings: Trust in online information and parasocial interactions was found to impact the online flow experience, with parasocial interaction positively affecting it optimally. The sharing of fake news is affected by parasocial interaction and the online flow experience, which in turn affects corporate credibility. Originality/value: Corporate credibility is shown to be an antecedent of resilience to negative information and word-of-mouth communication in companies, the former having a direct influence on the latter. The study hence has significant theoretical and managerial implications for communication and marketing.