Major Companies and Major Issues
By Sophia Denopra | March 31, 2021
In this age of social media, news spreads fast. This means that a lot of the injustices that happen to marginalized communities become front-page news, trending Twitter topics, and viral Instagram posts...quickly. Due to this new collective awareness we have, a lot of consumers have become much more selective with the brands to which they give their money.
We are now at a point where companies, especially major ones, are expected to share their stance on the things that affect BIPOC, the LGBTQ+ community, the disabled community, and other marginalized groups. The positions they take on major issues now have a large effect on the health of their businesses. For example, during the Black Lives Matter protests that took place in the summer of 2020, many people (including myself) boycotted companies that displayed a stance on the murder of George Floyd and other innocent Black people, or a stance siding with the police. Most recently, I have seen many companies show solidarity with the AAPI community in the wake of the anti-Asian hate crimes that have skyrocketed lately, most notably the Atlanta massage parlor shootings.
There have been a plethora of public relations nightmares throughout the years in regards to major issues such as race, sexuality, and so on. One example is Starbucks during the BLM protests in the summer. Employees were sharing on social media that the company was not allowing them to wear anything on their uniforms showing solidarity with the BLM movement. After that, many people, including myself and many of my close friends, boycotted Starbucks and gave their business to black-owned coffee shops. Another more recent example is Burger King’s tweet on International Women’s Day. Their verified Twitter account sent out a tweet that read “Women belong in the kitchen.” They claim that they meant it in the sense that women should be able to work in the culinary industry, but it obviously does not read that way to the Public.
In my opinion, public relations professionals are more important now than ever for major companies. In a culture where it has become important to be sensitive and inclusive of all groups, there is a need for a person that knows how to effectively communicate an organization’s solidarity, and to avoid mistakes like the Burger King tweet. Consumers are beginning to increase their consciousness, and consequently, businesses must also increase their involvement in and consideration of the topics that matter most to these consumers. Public relations workers can assure that companies stay connected to their client base, and play a major role in maintaining the health of these organizations.
Bio: Sophia Denopra is a third-year Public Relations major at California State University, Northridge. Her passions are hip hop and hip hop culture, and music. In the future, she hopes to do music PR and work for a major record label and/or artist.
Photo by: Ravi Sharma