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This paper explores the constitutive power relations and representational politics produced through the advent of a dress-code policy instituted by the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 2005. Using the methodology of contextual cultural studies this analysis suggests that far from a simple policy that requires a particular style of dress, narratives and practices surrounding the policy are embedded in an economic rationale frequently embraced in corporate cultures that also reproduce whiteness. In recontextualizing the dress code this paper maps out and makes visible the complex processes which both venerate and demonize the athleticism and entertainment value of the league's black masculine bodies, and simultaneously deny the salience of political, social and economic processes that produce discourses of a commercialized white normativity. The ultimate aim of this analysis is to generate broader public pedagogical interest in these contexts in order to promote new understandings of the dress code in the quest for social justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: By contrast with the U.S., where oral history is valued by corporate bodies and where oral historians actively engage with business history, British oral historians continue to regard elite oral history with deep suspicion. And for their part, U.K. business historians and archivists remain skeptical about the value of oral testimony. Few British oral historians venture beyond a well-worn focus on working-class experience, the marginalized and the voiceless. While advocacy-led oral history should remain a key focus for oral historians, so must we also use our methodology to document our society more widely and to step outside our comfort zones and engage with interview subjects which challenge our radical credentials. This paper explores reasons for the marked contrast of attitude to elite oral history between Britain and the U.S., arguing that it is rooted in the rather different origins of oral history in the two countries. It draws on corporate oral history project work at the British Library—such as oral histories of the British publishing industry, the Tesco supermarket chain, Royal Mail, branding consultancy Wolff Olins, and the financial center of the City of London including Barings Bank—to argue the case for oral history's contribution to the public understanding of business history and corporate culture. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

University efforts to galvanize work that is often siloed and disconnected across departments is supported by collaborative and creative initiatives. Campbell University's mission to support community engagement at multiple levels of university life, while also emphasizing faith and vocation, is an example of how one university is modeling this work. This case study on a specific program at Campbell University, the Campbell Youth Theological Institute, demonstrates how remembering the mission and how it connects it to the larger university and is implemented can reenergize faculty and students towards a deeper understanding of faith and vocation, as well as transformational community engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advocacy advertising has become an often-used means for corporations to express their viewpoints on a variety of controversial issues. Recent events make it unclear whether advocacy advertising may be viewed as political (editorial) speech and, therefore, outside the regulatory controls of the Federal Trade Commission. This article discusses the current state of advocacy advertising by reviewing the criteria proposed (and/or used) by the courts, regulatory agencies, and advertising/marketing scholars in determining the regulatory boundaries of this form of advertising. In addition, the article proposes additional criteria that may be helpful in making such a determination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research showing inconsistent effects of corrective advertising on company image is described. Examination of four waves of national telephone surveys over the course of the Listerine corrective campaign shows a small but significant drop in company image. Suggestions for future research are offered along with policy implications of the Listerine results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this research study is to investigate how different levels of corporate social responsibility are visually framed through corporate publications used in marketing communications. Photographs used as visual marketing communication tools in the annual and sustainability reports of top American multinational companies that practice and promote measures of corporate social responsibility were analyzed. Findings indicate the corporations overall emphasize environmental sustainability efforts and visually communicate their practices through depictions of employees while other social responsibility efforts are often communicated through depictions of consumers. A discussion on the patterns of visual frames that communicate corporate social responsibility and the impact of visuals on organizational identity, brand image, and reputation are offered. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

As corporations seek to appeal to environmentally conscious stakeholders, advertisements containing environmental claims have become increasingly prominent. A corporation's desire for an enhanced corporate reputation, combined with lenient environmental advertising regulation, has created the perfect environment for corporations to use—and misuse—environmental claims, resulting in “greenwashing.” Defined as the act of disseminating disinformation to consumers regarding the environmental practices of a company or the environmental benefits of a product or service, greenwashing occurs around the world. This study is a cross-national content analysis of 247 print ads from 84 issues of mainstream magazines from the United States and United Kingdom. Three-fourths (75%) of the ads analyzed contained one or more aspects of greenwashing. Firms advertising in US magazines were significantly more likely to employ misleading/deceptive environmental claims than UK firms and magazines. These findings suggest that without increased environmental advertisement regulation, greenwashing will persist as a disingenuous means for corporate reputation enhancement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An essay is presented on the representational logic and action of The Yes Men to correct corporate identities. It explores the Yes Men's use of its trademarks for a hoax press conference and their stunts that demonstrate immediate relevance to twenty-first-century corporate culture. The author cites the allegation that the Yes Men faces as part of the framing narrative of a lawsuit brought by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in response to anti-corporate protest under the conditions of capitalism.

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During the 1970s, Mobil Oil Corporation launched a public relations effort that set off a clash of titans—with the oil company on one side and the nation's media on the other—over who would set the agenda for public debate on energy policy. Although the campaign's purposes fell within the traditional schema of public relations, the way the company carried it out set a new benchmark for corporate communications. By taking on media giants such as the New York Times and CBS via contentious issue advertising, the corporation broke away from traditional and more diplomatic media relations efforts and pioneered a public relations approach involving an aggressive attempt to influence media coverage and public opinion. The company tried to tell journalists and the public how to think about energy issues by establishing itself as an expert and editorial commentator and then aggressively refuting what it perceived to be unfair or inaccurate news media coverage. This article examines Mobil's uncompromising engagement with the media as a means of "encouraging public debate" and controlling that debate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a case study analysis on the history and development of the transnational media corporation (TNMC) Viacom Inc. in the U.S. It examines the company's strategies and corporate culture, as well as the important role played by its chief executive officer (CEO) Sumner Redstone, who has shown to be an aggressive leader and deeply involved in all aspects of the business' operations. However, it also mentions the company's apparent lack of succession plan to prepare for Redstone's future retirement, which is also part of his unwillingness to share power at the top.

Chief executive officers (CEOs) help define an organization's image with internal and external stakeholders. The importance of the CEO in communications and image making with external stakeholders has long been acknowledged by practitioners and academics. In line with this, a study was conducted to examine the media coverage of CEOs in four leading U.S. newspapers from 1990 to 2000 to assess trends in the salience and valence of CEO coverage, topics of coverage and dimensions of CEO images presented in the press coverage. Newspapers were selected for the study because they are important sources of CEO-related information and public affairs news and information for people in the U.S., despite declining readership. This research documented a steady increase in the number of news stories about CEOs in the four newspapers during the 1990s, perhaps due to increased public attention to business, the personalization of CEOs, and practitioner reputation-building activities. The dominant topic of coverage in all four newspapers was the reporting of changes in the CEO office. Researchers have also suggested that media portrayals of CEOs prior to the 1990s were frequently critical. The study suggests some tactical considerations and strategic role implications for practitioners. Such is the need for practitioners to be less concerned with increasing the volume of coverage and more concerned with what CEO image dimensions are highlighted in interviews, news releases, features and other channels.

Firms in turbulent or fast-changing environments must continually innovate to remain competitive. This study examined how a firm's strategic management practices influence its entrepreneurial behaviour as compared to an international competitor. Four firms in the Netherlands were each matched with a key competitor in the USA. Several survey measures related to the strategic management process were used along with an instrument related to corporate entrepreneurship practices. Both managers and employees participated in the study. Results revealed significant differences between the Netherlands firms and the US competitors in entrepreneurial orientation. Results also supported these comparative differences along three key dimensions of strategic management as they relate to corporate entrepreneurship. The final set of data revealed a relationship between corporate entrepreneurship and three measures of firm performance. The implications focus upon the key role that culture may play in facilitating corporate entrepreneurship and adaptable organizational practices. Suggestions for further research are also made. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]