Essay
Jamie Dillion
November 25, 2004
Marketing II
To what extent should society hold corporations accountable for the impact they have on society, schools, and families?
When it comes to corporate ethics, it is unrealistic and naive to think that large corporations are in business to help people. In truth, companies like McDonalds, Microsoft, and Disney are in it for the money. However, society should have the mental capacity to realize that the juicy, freshly barbequed burger they see on television is not the one they will receive that the drive through window of their local McDonalds. After a certain period of time, people really should realize what they see on TV and what they hear about certain products is not the truth. How can we blame corporations for misleading us when we are the ones who time and time again return to their products, begging for more? At some point, I believe it is society that should be held accountable, not corporations.
On the other hand, the situation in our schools is inexcusable. I would love to see any of our administrators eat the school hamburgers or grilled plastic, I mean, cheese sandwiches every day for a school year. They provide us with sickening food and then are shocked and appalled that children eat lunches of Funyuns and candy bars. The students of our nation should not be pressured into eating junk food because the government and big businesses have given them no better option.
When it comes to the family, corporations are should not shoulder all the responsibility for corruption of children. Although they control what goes into the food they market, the shows they create, and the toys they claim will help children learn, it is also the parent’s responsibility to know weather or not something is helpful or harmful to their child. At the same time, a corporation should at least have the morals to keep the violence out of cartoons, harmful chemicals out of foods, and dangerous parts out of popular toys. It should be a moral expectation. Nevertheless, parents should not only be educated about what they are exposing their children to, make sure their children know why deep-fried sugar puffs aren’t a part of your nutritious breakfast. The well being of the family should be the primary responsibility of the parents, but corporations should at least have the ethics to try to keep the well-being of children a higher priority than the billion-dollar figure that is their earnings.
The impact of big business on society, schools, and families, should rest with both the companies and the consumers; both parties should think logically and courteously in order to make buying and selling a well thought out transaction. The reality of the matter is that corporations will always take advantage of consumer ignorance, and consumers will always be too lazy or too gullible to put research in what they buy. It is a sad and simple truth, but both parties are responsible for this never-ending cycle.
November 25, 2004
Marketing II
To what extent should society hold corporations accountable for the impact they have on society, schools, and families?
When it comes to corporate ethics, it is unrealistic and naive to think that large corporations are in business to help people. In truth, companies like McDonalds, Microsoft, and Disney are in it for the money. However, society should have the mental capacity to realize that the juicy, freshly barbequed burger they see on television is not the one they will receive that the drive through window of their local McDonalds. After a certain period of time, people really should realize what they see on TV and what they hear about certain products is not the truth. How can we blame corporations for misleading us when we are the ones who time and time again return to their products, begging for more? At some point, I believe it is society that should be held accountable, not corporations.
On the other hand, the situation in our schools is inexcusable. I would love to see any of our administrators eat the school hamburgers or grilled plastic, I mean, cheese sandwiches every day for a school year. They provide us with sickening food and then are shocked and appalled that children eat lunches of Funyuns and candy bars. The students of our nation should not be pressured into eating junk food because the government and big businesses have given them no better option.
When it comes to the family, corporations are should not shoulder all the responsibility for corruption of children. Although they control what goes into the food they market, the shows they create, and the toys they claim will help children learn, it is also the parent’s responsibility to know weather or not something is helpful or harmful to their child. At the same time, a corporation should at least have the morals to keep the violence out of cartoons, harmful chemicals out of foods, and dangerous parts out of popular toys. It should be a moral expectation. Nevertheless, parents should not only be educated about what they are exposing their children to, make sure their children know why deep-fried sugar puffs aren’t a part of your nutritious breakfast. The well being of the family should be the primary responsibility of the parents, but corporations should at least have the ethics to try to keep the well-being of children a higher priority than the billion-dollar figure that is their earnings.
The impact of big business on society, schools, and families, should rest with both the companies and the consumers; both parties should think logically and courteously in order to make buying and selling a well thought out transaction. The reality of the matter is that corporations will always take advantage of consumer ignorance, and consumers will always be too lazy or too gullible to put research in what they buy. It is a sad and simple truth, but both parties are responsible for this never-ending cycle.