The influence of CEO and CFO media visibility on the market value of the firm

Purpose This study aims to investigate the role of chief executive officer (CEO) and chief financial officer (CFO) media visibility as antecedents of firms’ market value. Design/methodology/approach This study uses a sample of 1,589 observations of European non-financial listed firms for the period 2013–2022. The empirical analysis is based on the value-relevance model. Findings The results show that CEO and CFO media visibility increases the firm’s market value and moderates the relationship between bad news and the firm’s market value. Additional analyses also reveal that CFO co-option exacerbates the negative relationship between bad news and the firm’s market value. Practical implications The results of this study may be of interest to regulators and policymakers wishing to understand the drivers of firms’ market value, especially in the case of top executives’ media status. Originality/value This study sheds light on the role of CEO and CFO media visibility as one of the key drivers of investors’ decision-making. Moreover, the results of this study offer novel insights into the moderating effects of CEO and CFO media visibility on the relationship between bad news and a firm’s market value.