Thursday, January 9

BUSINESS

A New Face Of Corporate Political Power – Big Tech’s Swift Reaction To Capitol Rioters And A Threat To American Democracy
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BUSINESS

A New Face Of Corporate Political Power – Big Tech’s Swift Reaction To Capitol Rioters And A Threat To American Democracy

Big Business and Big Tech both reacted swiftly to the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, punishing and condemning those they deemed responsible for the riot or for creating the conditions that led to it. But there was a big difference in how each group acted. Dozens of U.S. companies as diverse as Walmart, General Motors, McDonald’s and Nike at least temporarily shut off the cash spigot to politicians who voted against certifying the results of the presidential election. While the reaction was unprecedented, the next congressional election is almost two years away, leaving erstwhile donors the option to change their minds. Big Tech, however, responded more directly and consequentially. Twitter and Facebook banned former President Donald Trump, Apple and Google removed Parler – the prefer...
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An Economist Explains, Can A Future Ban On Gas-Powered Cars Work?
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BUSINESS

An Economist Explains, Can A Future Ban On Gas-Powered Cars Work?

The U.S. transportation sector is one of the largest contributors of carbon dioxide, the potent driver of climate change. A ‘green’ symbol for electric vehicle charging stations. Photo by Michael Marais for Unsplash, CC BY-ND Transportation accounts for about 28% of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions and, since 1990, emissions in this sector have increased more than in any other area. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions by encouraging the use of electric vehicles promises to be an effective strategy to address climate change. That’s because the electric grid is powered by diverse sources, including an increasing amount of renewable energy such as wind and solar. But with more than 270 million motor vehicles registered in the U.S. and a long tradition of powering cars and trucks with foss...
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Here’s How Instagram’s Redesign Shifts Toward Shopping Can Be Harmful
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BUSINESS, SOCIAL MEDIA

Here’s How Instagram’s Redesign Shifts Toward Shopping Can Be Harmful

Recently, when I opened Instagram, I noticed that the usual spot for checking notifications is now a Shop tab. The Instagram blog post announcing the redesign said that the change will support small businesses and connect people with their favorite brands and creators. This made me pause. As a researcher who studies social media, people and society, I’m concerned about the effects of surveillance capitalism. This includes social media companies profiting from collecting user data, making algorithmic inferences about people’s preferences and using this information to target people with advertising. Features like Instagram’s Shop tab facilitate surveillance capitalism, so it’s important to look at their consequences. Many people use Instagram to share their lives with other people, but the...
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The Facebook Antitrust Case Relies So Heavily On Mark Zuckerberg’s Emails
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BUSINESS

The Facebook Antitrust Case Relies So Heavily On Mark Zuckerberg’s Emails

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s own words play a starring role in the government’s case to break up his social network. “It is better to buy than compete,” he allegedly wrote in an email in 2008, according to the lawsuit. Four years later, after Facebook purchased what he had called a “very disruptive” photo-sharing app, he celebrated by explaining to a colleague in another email: “Instagram was our threat. … One thing about startups though is you can often acquire them.” As an antitrust professor preparing a new spring course called “Antitrust for Big Tech,” I read the FTC’s Dec. 9 complaint with great interest. I have taught my students for years that internal documents can come back to haunt antitrust defendants. But I have never seen a plaintiff’s case rely so heavily on a CEO’s own w...
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MacKenzie Scott’s $5.8 Billion Commitment To Social And Economic Justice Is A Model For Other Donors
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BUSINESS, IN OTHER NEWS

MacKenzie Scott’s $5.8 Billion Commitment To Social And Economic Justice Is A Model For Other Donors

The author and philanthropist MacKenzie Scott announced on Dec. 15 that she had given almost US$4.2 billion to hundreds of nonprofits. It was her second announcement of this kind since she first publicly discussed her giving intentions in May of 2019. In July 2020, Scott revealed that she’d already given away nearly $1.7 billion to 116 organizations, many of which focused on racial justice, women’s rights, LGBTQ equality, democracy and climate change. All told, her 2020 philanthropy totals more than $5.8 billion. Scott directed her latest round of giving to 384 organizations to support people disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. She made dozens of gifts to food banks, United Way chapters, YMCAs and YWCAs – organizations that have seen increased demand for services and, in...
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Inequalities In The Global Financial System Exposed By COVID-19
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BUSINESS, COVID-19

Inequalities In The Global Financial System Exposed By COVID-19

To stem the economic fallout from COVID-19, developed countries have injected an unprecedented US$9 trillion into their economies. The International Monetary Fund has recommended sustained fiscal support, emphasizing greater spending on health care and environmental protection projects. Meanwhile, countries in the “global south” – broadly, low- and middle-income countries in Latin America, Asia and Africa – face more dire circumstances. They don’t have the ability to inject that level of cash into their economies. And it’s not only because their economies are poorer. As an economics professor, I focus on the systemic inequalities in the global financial system that block such access in developing economies. With a greater public awareness of soaring inequality within countries, it is ...
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Under New Trump Policy Companies Accused Of Crimes Get More Digital Privacy Rights Than People
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BUSINESS

Under New Trump Policy Companies Accused Of Crimes Get More Digital Privacy Rights Than People

Corporations increasingly receive the same rights as people. Now, it seems, they have privileges even people don’t. Case in point: The Labor Department recently urged regulators to stop issuing press releases about companies that may have violated laws on discrimination, worker safety or minimum wage requirements. The concern is that doing so could cause reputational damage from mere accusations, even if the case is eventually dismissed. In a nutshell, the Labor Department’s action guarantees privacy rights to corporations under investigation. Unfortunately, this reasonable precaution is not afforded regular Americans. And as we know from our work on criminal justice and surveillance, an arrest without a conviction or an allegation of wrongdoing can become a scarlet letter that scares o...
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Any Map Is Better Than No Map – Workers Are Looking For Direction From Management
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BUSINESS

Any Map Is Better Than No Map – Workers Are Looking For Direction From Management

Over eight months ago, with haste and necessity, workers and organizations across the globe were thrown into “the great remote work experiment.” What was arguably an adequate short-term solution is now showing signs of wear and tear: Remote workers are burning out, organizational cultures are under threat, and leaders are fretting about the loss of creativity and collaboration. While some companies are beginning to forge ahead with longer-term plans – like proclaiming that remote work will go on indefinitely or bringing at least some employees back to the office in a COVID-19-safe way – most organizations remain in a holding pattern: intent on returning to the physical office in some capacity, but repeatedly kicking the can down the road. This is understandable, given the amount of unce...
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Why Does The US Benefit From A Dollar That Isn’t Tied To The Value Of A Glittery Hunk Of Metal?
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BUSINESS

Why Does The US Benefit From A Dollar That Isn’t Tied To The Value Of A Glittery Hunk Of Metal?

The phrase “the gold standard” means, in common parlance, the best available benchmark – as in double-blind randomized trials are the gold standard for determining the efficacy of a vaccine. Its meaning likely comes from my world of economics and refers to what was once the centerpiece of the international monetary system, when the value of most major currencies, including the U.S. dollar, was based on the price of gold. Some economists and others, including President Donald Trump and his Federal Reserve Board of Governors nominee Judy Shelton, favor a return to the gold standard because it would impose new rules and “discipline” on a central bank they view as too powerful and whose actions they consider flawed. This is among several reasons Shelton’s nomination is controversial in the ...
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Sustainability Crisis In The Fashion Industry May Be Solved By The Boom In Secondhand Clothing Sales
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BUSINESS, IN OTHER NEWS

Sustainability Crisis In The Fashion Industry May Be Solved By The Boom In Secondhand Clothing Sales

A massive force is reshaping the fashion industry: secondhand clothing. According to a new report, the U.S. secondhand clothing market is projected to more than triple in value in the next 10 years – from US$28 billion in 2019 to US$80 billion in 2029 – in a U.S. market currently worth $379 billion. In 2019, secondhand clothing expanded 21 times faster than conventional apparel retail did. Even more transformative is secondhand clothing’s potential to dramatically alter the prominence of fast fashion – a business model characterized by cheap and disposable clothing that emerged in the early 2000s, epitomized by brands like H&M and Zara. Fast fashion grew exponentially over the next two decades, significantly altering the fashion landscape by producing more clothing, distributing it fa...
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