Corporate Social Responsibility

Will 'Dolphin-Safe' Tuna Really Mean 'Dolphin-Dead'?

by John Stauber — January 9, 2003 - 12:00am

"Two former government scientists who
spent years investigating stress in dolphin populations
charged this week that superiors at their federally
financed laboratory shut down their research because it
clashed with policy goals of the Clinton and Bush
administrations. The scientists ... said their research indicated that the practice of chasing and encircling dolphins to catch tuna exposed the
dolphins to dangerous amounts of stress. The accusations, by Dr. Albert Myrick, a wildlife
biologist, and Dr.

Main Source: 
New York Times, January 9, 2003

BAT Kills Millions, But in a Socially Responsible Manner

by John Stauber — January 8, 2003 - 12:19pm

Bob Burton and Andy Rowell deconstruct the "social responsibility report" of British American Tobacco, the world's second largest tobacco company, in the latest PR Watch. Among their findings, "BAT's social report disclosed that three of its employees had been killed and 37 involved in serious accidents during 2001, but omitted any estimate of the number of people who had been killed or seriously affected by consuming its products. ...

Main Source: 
http://www.prwatch.org/prwissues/2002Q4/bat.html

Managing those Pesky Activists

by Sheldon Rampton — January 6, 2003 - 12:00am

PR Week continues the industry's preoccupation with managing activism with a variety of articles examining the strategies activists use to advance their causes, "the proactive approach to averting protests," and an article on corporate social responsibility titled "CSR: Beyond Lip Service."

Main Source: 
PR Week, January 6, 2003

BP Oil's $200 Million Greenwashing Campaign

by John Stauber — December 8, 2002 - 12:00am

The New York Times examines BP/Amoco, the world's second largest oil company, and its $200 million PR and advertising campaign to greenwash its image. It is an "enormous corporate rebranding exercise, shortening its name from British Petroleum to BP, coining the slogan "Beyond Petroleum" and redesigning its corporate insignia. ... in came a green, yellow and white sunburst that seemed to suggest a warm and fuzzy feeling about the earth. ... But ...

Main Source: 
New York Times, December 8, 2002

PR Groups On Wrong Side

by Laura Miller — November 6, 2002 - 12:00am

"The Public Relations Society of America, the Arthur Page Society, the Institute for PR, the Council of PR Firms and the PA Council are on the wrong side of the Nike 'commercial speech' lawsuit," writes Jack O'Dwyer, publisher of the O'Dwyer's PR trade publications. "Instead of siding with Nike, which refuses to defend the truthfulness of its statements about labor practices abroad (see No Logo for labor conditions in 18 foreign countries), the PR groups should be demanding that accuracy be served.

Main Source: 
Jack O'Dwyer's Newsletter, November 6, 2002

Nike Case Should Boost PR

by Sheldon Rampton — November 5, 2002 - 12:00am

Jeff Seideman, president of the Boston chapter of the Public Relations Society of America, is publicly disagreeing with the PRSA's stance on the Nike vs. Kasky lawsuit, in which Nike is being sued for allegedly making false statements about its overseas labor practices. "Actually, PRSA shouldn't be on either side of the issue," Seideman writes. It should have taken a position in support of ethical practices by PR professionals." Nike and the PRSA claim the First Amendment protects their right to make false statements about corporate social responsibility.

Main Source: 
O'Dwyer's PR Daily, November 5, 2002

Website Lists Social Report Card On Corporations

by Sheldon Rampton — November 1, 2002 - 1:02am

A new website ranks big corporations according to such issues as whether they treat women fairly, how they impact the environment, and if they make nuclear arms. Created by Dan Porter, of Portland, ME, www.idealswork.com six gathers the information from a the Investor Responsibility Research Center.

Main Source: 
http://www.idealswork.com

California Wineries Go Green

by Sheldon Rampton — October 28, 2002 - 3:59pm

Under fire from environmentalists, California's wine industry plans to announce a code of "sustainable" environmental practices. Critics charge the industry with contributing to soil erosion, watershed loss and pollution and say its proposed "voluntary code" is an attempt to head off binding state regulation.

Main Source: 
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/18340/story.htm

Nike Files Supreme Court Brief

by Laura Miller — October 20, 2002 - 11:00pm

Nike has asked the US Supreme Court to review a California Supreme Court ruling that Nike's public statements on the work conditions of its overseas factories be considered commercial speech and be subject to truth-in-advertising laws. Nike argues that the ruling is "profoundly destructive of free speech." The ruling applies to statements made by Nike in op-eds, letters to the editor, and comments made to reporters. PR trade publication The Holmes Report wrote that as a result of the ruling, Nike would not be releasing its annual corporate responsibility report.

Main Source: 
The Holmes Report, October 21, 2002; PR Week, October 21, 2002

"Pinkwashing" = Businesses Exploiting Breast Cancer

by John Stauber — October 15, 2002 - 11:00pm

Breast Cancer Action of San Francisco is one of the few cancer prevention groups willing to tackle the corporate connection to the causes and prevention of breast cancer, which has risen alarmingly. BCA has placed a "think before you pink" ad in today's New York Times asking "Who's really cleaning up here?

Main Source: 
New York Times, October 16, 2002
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