Multi-National Corporations (MNCs) are having a problem with protests because of their sponsorship of the Olympics in Sochi. Coke, McDonald's and other corporations are not boycotting Sochi because they know it will bring in lots of profits. Russia's anti-gay laws have created a lot of protests and backlash.
Some Americans would like MNCs to highlight this homophobic problem because it could make a difference and shine a light on the problem but they have decided not to. What is surprising is that Coca-Cola, the oldest Olympic sponsor usually has a good record on gay rights in the U.S. Yet they are going against their values for the Olympics.
The Olympics gets thousands of international viewers that can bring in profits yet this human rights debate has put 10 major corporate sponsors in an awkward position. This has changed the focus of the games, and has reflected poorly on the companies willing to participate. But what are the incentives?
http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/1/31/olympics-sponsorsfaultedforgoingtosochi.html
Some Americans would like MNCs to highlight this homophobic problem because it could make a difference and shine a light on the problem but they have decided not to. What is surprising is that Coca-Cola, the oldest Olympic sponsor usually has a good record on gay rights in the U.S. Yet they are going against their values for the Olympics.
The Olympics gets thousands of international viewers that can bring in profits yet this human rights debate has put 10 major corporate sponsors in an awkward position. This has changed the focus of the games, and has reflected poorly on the companies willing to participate. But what are the incentives?
http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/1/31/olympics-sponsorsfaultedforgoingtosochi.html
5 comments:
Does changing a company's values work for or against its profits? Will staying with your values no matter what create more loyal customers? Or should companies come up with whatever is the "trend" to bring in new customers? In the end companies just want to make money, so does it matter what their views are? If the baker is making the bread for his own good, and these companies are producing their product for their own good the only incentive to agree with customers is to get more money. Are there other incentives to agree or disagree with people? No matter what some will agree and some will not.
I agree, McDonald's and Coca-Cola are businesses and they are acting like businesses in this scenario. It is one thing for politicians or other influential people to boycott the Olympics on human rights grounds, but is unfair to suggest that businesses should do the same thing. The Olympics are a world tradition of sport and cooperation. McDonald's and Coca-Cola are making a calculated decision to be a part of that tradition. Also, by suggesting that these companies boycott the Olympics in Russia, isn't the next step to boycott the Russian market entirely? I think it is a good decision on behalf of the companies to continue their sponsorship for the Sochi Olympics.
Considerations for corporate sponsorship ought to be wholly independent of the host country. States will always disagree with one another on some level, and using an international sports event as a platform for political snubbing is not only unfair to the sponsors, as Kevin mentioned, but to athletes and spectators the world over. Further, I think corporations have an obligation to remain uninvolved in geopolitics. That would constitute a true display of corporate ethics.
Business is business. Company's like Chick-fil-a get flack for converse, but similar reasons to this. Because they are private firms they can choose to operate in whichever way they want, according to their own rules. It has nothing to do with politics. And "creating a good business environment" really has nothing to do with where they invest your money. That has more to do with institutionalized norms like no cheating or those good business practices. They should remain outside the realms of geopolitics and politics in general. Business is business!
Obviously this issue is very controversial, but when we look back at previous boycotts, they often seem justified. Although many boycotts have to do with athletes and not sponsoring companies, I wonder what this controversy will look like in 20 years. I personally that think the major actors in the world need to step up and be the example for the rest of the world. I know that business is important but there were probably other ways that Coke could have made up the loss from the olympics. I believe that this issue is above profits, just as other social issues are. I would have liked to see these companies boycott as well. But saying that, do people feel like America should have boycotted as well?
Post a Comment