Going Global, Going Transparent: MNE Internationalization and ESG Disclosure on Social Media

ABSTRACT

This study seeks to advance understanding of the relationship between firms' level of internationalization and corporate ESG disclosure through social media—specifically Twitter/X. Drawing on a sample of 132 publicly listed firms across diverse countries and industries, comprising 445 firm‐year observations, the analysis employs a panel regression model with fixed effects, with standard errors clustered at the company level. Automated content analysis of over 275,000 corporate tweets was conducted to capture ESG‐related digital communication. The findings show that greater internationalization—measured as the ratio of foreign to total sales—is positively associated with ESG‐related disclosure on Twitter/X. In addition, internationalization is associated with systematic thematic shifts in ESG disclosure, with relatively less emphasis on environmental content and greater emphasis on social and governance themes. This relationship remains robust after addressing potential reverse‐causality concerns, using alternative variable specifications, and conducting subsample analyses.