Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the proposition that corporate social responsibilityreporting could be viewed as both an outcome of, and part of reputation risk management processes. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws heavily on management research. In addition, an image restoration framework is introduced. Findings – The concept of reputation risk management could assist in the understanding of corporate social responsibility reporting practice. Originality/value – This paper explores the link between reputation risk management and existing theorising in social accounting.