Despite the increasing research into stigma management, little work has been done on how stigma emerges and reaches the necessary critical mass. We study the online stigmatization of Monte Paschi di Siena (MPS), one of Italy’s biggest banks, over 5 years. We coin the term stigma formation and present a model of stigma formation integrated by three discursive mechanisms: borrowing, ascribing, and normalizing. We show how these mechanisms vilify the organization through the strategic use of cultural resources, moral statements, and emotions. We discuss the role played by different emotions in stigma formation. We contribute to stigma studies by identifying the micro-mechanisms of stigma formation and how these relate to the macro processes of stigma, the role of emotions in stigma formation, and the dynamics of stigma formation online.
