The article in the url below demonstrates the extent to which the revolution in communications technology, twinned with the increasingly wired, online world, is empowering individual stakeholders (Chapter 1: Globalization and the Free Flow of Information, p20; Issues: Stakeholder Relations, p138):
“Filling that void is the Hub (hub.witness.org), a video-sharing Web site launched by ex -- rock star Peter Gabriel to empower people to document and publicize unseen atrocities. Now in beta, the Hub allows anyone around the world to submit clips to a central site where its target audience of activists can connect and take action. … Since launching in December, roughly 12,500 videos have been posted on the Hub.”
Although still most evident in terms of political issues, it is easy to imagine how this technology can extrapolate to every-increasing vigilance of corporate activities in a way that drives CSR further up the agendas of corporate executives:
“"Once everyone has a camera inside a mobile phone, the issue is about creating a place where people can upload footage safely and make connections with people who might further their cause and their campaigns," … The site also lets users comment on the content and eventually will host discussion groups, online petitions, and interactive maps.”
What is important is the education of individual stakeholders (in particular, consumers) so that firms are fully incentivized to change. This message is apparent in the article in the second url below:
“For some reason, though, retailers haven't figured out how to inspire customers to buy, say, organic cotton. It's bad marketing. If consumers knew how many chemicals it takes to grow and manufacture conventional cotton goods -- how it affects our water, food, air, and our risk of cancer -- maybe that would change. In a crowded marketplace, it is an unexploited competitive advantage.”
Take care
Dave
Bill Werther & David Chandler
Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility
© Sage Publications, 2006
In Your Eyes
Peter Gabriel's human-rights group embraces social media. A YouTube for unseen atrocities.
From: Issue 130
November 2008
Pages 80-82
By: David Kushner
http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/130/in-your-eyes.html
The Sad Life of the Eco-Shopper
Why rhetoric is more plentiful than products at America's largest retailers.
From: Issue 130
November 2008
Page 92
By: Melanie Warner
http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/130/green-business-the-sad-life-of-the-eco-shopper.html
