Forget political corporate social responsibility

Abstract

We argue that political corporate social responsibility (PCSR), while hailed by many as a solution to societal problems not dealt with by government, reflects both a triumph of neoliberal corporate power and a harbinger of democracy’s demise. Drawing on the remarkably PCSR-like – declarations of BlackRock CEO and billionaire Larry Fink, we demonstrate how scholarly PCSR is suspiciously compatible with corporate deregulation and privatisation of the public sphere. Our article recommends scholars abandon PCSR when critically evaluating corporate domination and democratic alternatives to it in the neoliberal era.