From the category archives:

Concepts & Definitions

Corporations as Persons: Steven Colbert explains this bad idea

by cv harquail on January 22, 2010

[Jan 21: In light of yesterday's Supreme Court Decision, I'm re-posting this serious & pop-culture critique of the anti-democratic argument that Corporations Are People. Scott Klinger writing over at Alternet, sets out what it would/should mean for corporations really to be treated as "persons" and thus have the same responsibilities as people too. Me, I'd like these corporate persons to be held to the same contribution limits as the next person-- so that I and Exxon would both be limited to $2,400 per candidate per election.]

If we were to list the top five or so Supreme (Court) mistakes of the last 200+ years, on that list would be the mistake in 1886 to treat a Justice’s unofficial remark about corporations’ hypothetical legal status as though it were part of the Court’s actual decision. This offhand suggestion that corporations could be considered ‘persons’ in the eyes of the law is a mistake that’s compounded over the years, to the point where it has fundamentally distorted democracy and capitalism as we “know” them.

The ThreatDown Generator.jpg

Okay, so now you know my feelings about the issue.

But did you know that Stephen Colbert feels the same way? [click to continue…]

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Reputation, Beyond Authenticity

by Mignon van Halderen on February 1, 2009

mignon van halderen reputation expert We’re delighted to feature a guest post from Mignon van Halderen, an expert on Organizational Reputation Management. Mignon is Assistant Professor at the Rotterdam School of Management (RSM), Erasmus University. At RSM, Mignon works in the Corporate Communication Centre where she combines teaching and applied research projects within the fields of Reputation Management and Corporate Communication.

We talk a lot about authenticity…

I overheard a conversation between two communication experts during a ‘diner en pensant’ . One said to the other: “Authenticity is one of the most important things in our field”. The other firmly agreed, taking a sip of his wine and leaning back in his chair. I waited for his reply, but I was disappointed. He added nothing more to the conversation.

“Is that it?” I thought. “Aren’t you going to probe how difficult it is to be authentic? "Or tell us how you think organizations can build authenticity, apart from just saying ‘we try to practice what we preach in everything we do’?”

"Can’t you give me just one clue why authenticity is important in your specific organizational context and how you cope with it ?” [click to continue…]

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What Makes an Organization Authentically "Mormon"?

November 19, 2008

Some supporters of GLBT rights are calling for consumers who support marriage equality to boycott "Mormon Organizations". These supporters want to punish the Mormon Church (Church of the Latter-Day Saints, or LDS) as well as Mormon individuals for supporting California’s Proposition 8 banning same-sex marriage.
(Note: The Mormon Church officially opposes same-sex marriage. However, not [...]

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What’s Collateral Reputation Damage®?

November 17, 2008

Collateral Reputation Damage® is damage done to an organization’s reputation when advocacy by individuals or groups who may or may not be associated with the organization is interpreted by stakeholders as being actions by the organization itself.
Image of Collateral Damage from Chet Provorse
Hurting the Organization isn’t the focus, but …
Using [...]

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