Fair and balanced? Um ... no

[Riot]

Originally Posted by Rupert Pupkin

I don't know if it truly makes a difference whether a guy donates from his personal funds or his company..

Are you aware of what is happening to Target and Best Buy right now? The corporation donated to support a blatently anti-gay candidate. The consumer and shareholder (read: bosses, owners of the companies) backlash is solid, strong, and increasing daily.

[Rupert Pupkin]

Originally Posted by Riot

Are you aware of what is happening to Target and Best Buy right now? The corporation donated to support a blatently anti-gay candidate. The consumer and shareholder (read: bosses, owners of the companies) backlash is solid, strong, and increasing daily.

I'm sure that's going to kill their business. You should short those two stocks.

[Riot]

You don't want nothing but bad Facebook press during such stagnant times. http://www.ontopmag.com/article.aspx...=1&Category=26

The internet can cause millions of dollars in damage and everlasting bad PR, and it doesn't much matter if something is true or false (for false, see Proctor & Gamble having to spend a couple million to "prove" Febreze Kills Dogs was a false internet rumour, from a few years back)

Shareholders Demand Changes As Target Boycott Rolls On
Published: August 21, 2010
http://www.ontopmag.com/article.aspx...=1&Category=26

Institutional shareholders are demanding Target overhaul its campaign donation policies as a boycott over an anti-gay donation gains steam, the Los Angeles Times reported.

On Thursday, three management firms announced they have sponsored a resolution demanding the retail giant rethink its donation policies to avoid future potential political hot button issues.

The action comes just days after the progressive group MoveOn.org launched a new ad urging shoppers to boycott the retail giant for contributing $150,000 to MN Forward, an independent political fund supporting Tom Emmer, the anti-gay Republican nominee for Minnesota governor. The Minnesota-based business apologized for the donation but rejected a request from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation's largest gay rights advocate, to give an equal amount of money to a pro-gay candidate.

Tim Smith, a senior vice president at Walden Asset Management, which is sponsoring the resolution along with Calvert Asset Management and Trillium Asset Management, cautioned that “imprudent donations can potentially have a major negative impact on company reputations and businesses if they don't carefully and fully assess a candidate's positions.”

While together the firms hold $57.5 million of Target stock, it's only a small fraction of the company's outstanding shares. However, other institutional shareholders are considering signing on to the resolution.