Shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on gay marriage, Chick-fil-A president Dan Cathy tweeted, “Sad day for our nation; founding fathers would be ashamed of our gen. to abandon wisdom of the ages re: cornerstone of strong societies.” The tweet was later retracted because Chick-fil-A said the views were the personal views of Dan Cathy, and not an official stance of the restaurant.

While the personal views of a CEO may border on an official corporate stance, many other corporate stances are more overt. For example, Goldman Sachs tweeted, “We strongly support the Court’s affirmation today of marriage equality.” That was an official company stance. Additionally, Apple actually got into the legal battle by signing a joint filing supporting gay marriage. Which begs the question, should a company engage in social, political speech or is their activism always reducible to increasing profits?

 

Podcast – Corporate Activism – The Adam Goldfein Show – Hour 1

Podcast – Corporate Activism – The Adam Goldfein Show – Hour 2

 

 

Additional Resources

ABC News, Chick-fil-A President Deletes Gay Remark: http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/chick-fil-president-deletes-gay-marriage-remark-19517240#.Uc3SCpyQsrM

Business Insider, These Major Brands Actively Support Gay Marriage: http://www.businessinsider.com/these-major-brands-support-gay-marriage-2013-6?op=1

Policy Mic, Chick-fil-A and the Anti-Gay Companies You Would Never Believe You Support With Your Money: http://www.policymic.com/articles/10810/you-would-never-believe-which-anti-gay-companies-you-support-with-your-money

Facebook Bans Ad Criticizing Mark Zuckerberg’s Pro-Keystone XL Stance: http://ecowatch.com/2013/facebook-bans-ad-criticising-zuckerbergs-pro-kxl-stance/

Business First, Delta CEO Speaks Out Against TSA knife Policy: http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/morning_call/2013/03/delta-ceo-speaks-out-against-tsa-knife.html

Macworld, Apple ‘Applauds U.S. Supreme Court Decision on Gay Marriage’: http://www.macworld.co.uk/digitallifestyle/news/?newsid=3455268&pagtype=allchandate

Bloomberg, Apple’s Backing Puts Gay-Marriage Focus on Obama at Court: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-02-26/apple-joins-morgan-stanley-to-back-gay-marriage-at-supreme-court.html

The Guardian, Microsoft Joins Google in Demanding to Disclose FISA Requests: http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2013/jun/28/microsoft-google-fisa-united-states-government

Pepsico, Climate Change: http://www.pepsico.com/purpose/environmental-sustainability/climate-change.html

Bloomberg Businessweek, The Blurry Line Between Chick-fil-A and Chatty Cathy: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-06-28/the-blurry-line-between-chick-fil-a-and-chatty-cathy