Corporate Social Responsibility

Mayors Ignore DuPont's Dirty Past

by Laura Miller — June 17, 2002 - 10:00pm

During the recent meeting of the US Conference of Mayors, DuPont received special attention as a partner with the mayors in Cities United for Science Progress (CUSP).

Main Source: 
Madison Independent Media Center, June 18, 2002

Stations Won't Run Ad Exposing Ford's Greenwashing

by John Stauber — June 12, 2002 - 10:00pm

Radio stations won't let environmentalists at the Sierra Club run a radio ad urging the US car industry to build more fuel efficient cars. The ad spot specifically names Bill Ford Jr. of Ford Motor Company, an executive who excels at greenwashing his company with rhetoric, while failing to 'walk the walk.' Ford gives lip service to fuel efficiency, but staunchly opposes laws that would require it. Radio stations doing business with Ford and running its car ads are refusing to run the Sierra Club's radio spot.

Main Source: 
The New York Times, June 13, 2002

Greed On the Rise, And So Is Ethical Puffery

by Sheldon Rampton — June 11, 2002 - 10:00pm

"Greed and corruption have always lingered at the edges of Corporate America, from Civil War profiteers to inside-trading scandals of the '80s," observes Gary Strauss in USA Today. "Yet the new millennium has ushered in a wave of fraud, corporate malfeasance, investment scams, ethical lapses and conflicts of interest unprecedented in scope." Not coincidentally, more and more corporations are issuing feel-good reports about their achievements in the field of corporate social responsibility (CSR). According to the KPMG accounting firm, the number of U.S.

Main Source: 
USA Today, June 12, 2002

McDonald's Socially Responsible? Give Us a Break!

by John Stauber — June 1, 2002 - 10:00pm

Paul Hawken writes that McDonald's recent 'Report on Corporate Social Responsibility' is "a low- water mark for the concept of sustainability and the promise of corporate social responsibility. ... This is ... a report about how a corporation that's been severely stung by bad publicity, poor service and declining earnings now wants to plead its case to its critics. ...

Main Source: 
San Francisco Chronicle, June 2, 2002

PR's Conscientious Objectives

by Laura Miller — May 26, 2002 - 10:00pm

More and more corporations are catching the corporate social responsibility (CSR) wave, promoting themselves as good global corporate citizens. The PR industry has taken note observes PR Week. "Many [PR firms] have identified CSR as a major growth area for their business, and an opportunity to operate at the highest levels, counseling board members and even CEOs, rather than just focusing on more junior employees," PR Week writes. "All these agencies see CSR and PR not only as a natural fit for one another, but almost as one and the same.

Main Source: 
PR Week, May 20, 2002; Public Relations Strategist, Spring 2002

Jamming Citigroup's PR Message

by Sheldon Rampton — May 10, 2002 - 11:22am

In mid-April, Citigroup launched a $100 million global ad campaign titled "This is Citigroup." Using images of elderly people, and people from Hong Kong to Brazil, the ads portray a caring bank, committed to local communities. But the Rainforest Action Network (RAN), which has waged a boycott against Citigroup for the past two years, says the bank completely ignores environmental and social concerns and is one of the biggest contributors to global warming.

Main Source: 
http://www.tompaine.com/feature.cfm/ID/5613

Social Responsibility Meets Ronald McDonald

by Sheldon Rampton — April 30, 2002 - 1:32am

On April 14, McDonalds issued a self-congratulatory Report on Corporate Social Responsibility, boasting that it is "working with experts" such as The Natural Step to address concerns about "globalization, nutrition, and the environment." But according to author and leading Natural Step advocate Paul Hawken, the report is "a low water mark for the concept of sustainability and the promise of corporate social responsibility.

Main Source: 
http://www.foodfirst.org/media/press/2002/mcdresponsibility.html

The Marlboro Man Goes Under The PR Knife

by Laura Miller — March 14, 2002 - 12:00am

Tobacco behemoth Philip Morris executives announced late last year that it was time for a full-scale corporate makeover centering on changing the company's name to Altria. "After spending the quarter billion dollars ceaselessly touting their philanthropic efforts, the tobacco giant still ranked second to last -- beating only exploding tire maker Bridgestone Firestone -- in a survey of corporate reputations, conducted by The Reputation Institute and Harris Interactive.

Main Source: 
CorpWatch, March 14, 2002

Corporate Responsibility, NGOs, and The WEF

by Laura Miller — February 4, 2002 - 12:00am

With the words "corporate responsibility" finding their way into the mouths of more and more business leaders, PR giant Ketchum has launched a new corporate responsibility unit, promoting what Ketchum's Raymond Kotcher calls a "21st century management philosophy that advances commercial and financial success by demonstrating respect for ethical values, people, communities, and the physical and social environment." Richard Edelman, president and CEO of Edelman PR Worldwide, is also leaping on th

Main Source: 
The Holmes Report, January 31, 2002; O'Dwyer's PR Daily, February 4, 2002

When Corporations Want to Cuddle

by Sheldon Rampton — January 24, 2002 - 3:04am

Peter Sandman's advice to corporations on "outrage management" was first detailed in PR Watch by Australian writer Bob Burton. Now Bob has contributed a chapter to a new book, Moving Mountains: Communities Confront Mining and Globalization, published by Contemporary Oxford Press/Mineral Policy Institute.

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