Legitimating reputation/the reputation of legitimacy theory

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to respond to commentaries on Bebbington, Larrinaga-Gonzales and Moneva, by Unerman and by Adams, published in Accounting Auditing & Accountability Journal, Vol. 21 No. 3. Design/methodology/approach – The paper reviews and discusses the points suggested/contested by the commentary papers. Findings – That given the current state of our understanding of corporate social responsibility reporting in stand alone (and other) formats, openness to a multitude of theoretical perspectives is appropriate. Further, that concepts of legitimacy and reputation can and should be distinguished from one another. Originality/value – The authors put forward their views, beliefs and reservations.