Thursday, August 2, 2012
Culture war lessons
Corporate social responsibility 101: Corporations should not take a stand on moral issues unless it's a really cool cause that all reasonable and properly formed consumers will likewise support, such as environmentalism or GLBT rights.
Journalism 101: Reporters should be careful to avoid any hint that political bias may influence their work unless it's bias against a position that all reasonable and properly formed readers will likewise reject, such as support for traditional marriage.
UPDATE: Given the concern that I wielded the irony sword clumsily here, let me be more specific. The LA Times columnist sees no problem with Patagonia touting environmentalism, but sees big problems with Chick Fil A, Target, and other companies that have taken conservative political positions or made conservative political donations. More broadly, much of the media coverage that I've read over the years of companies like the Body Shop and Ben & Jerry's has been more laudatory of their courageous stands, rather than condemnatory for their controversial posturing. It's been a much different story with Chick Fil A.
On the second point, I find the tenor of the reporter's social media comments to be troubling. I would think the same of a reporter making quasi-public outrageous comments from the anti-GLBT rights perspective as well.
https://mirrorofjustice.blogs.com/mirrorofjustice/2012/08/culture-war-lessons.html
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Sometimes irony impedes meaning. I'm guessing that Rob disagrees with the LA Times columnists, though he doesn't specify why. Rob seems to suggest that the columnist says that, as a general rule, only corporate outspokenness on liberal issues is ok. If that is what Rob means, however, he must have read a different article, since the one I read clearly said that companies should be careful about offending their customers, which sounds like good advice.
Rob's journalism 101 point is even more obscure. Is he criticizing the Get Religion reporter or the guy who apparently didn't write an article? And why?