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.