"There is nothing inherently undemocratic in corporate speech, unless corporations themselves are undemocratic."

"As the governance of corporations begins to take account of the interests of their stakeholders, the public voice of corporations would reflect the voices of those myriad stakeholders. Corporate involvement in the political process would be less of a concern, because it would be more reflective of the range of stakeholders contributing to company success. It would be less “them” and more “us.” There is nothing inherently undemocratic in corporate speech, unless corporations themselves are undemocratic. Citizens United recognized the corporate right to speak in the American public square. Currently, that poses a major problem for our democracy because corporations amplify the voices of a tiny number of the financial and managerial elite—the notorious 1 percent. If companies gave voice to a more diverse and pluralistic set of interests, the fact that corporations speak would not undermine democracy. On the contrary, corporate speech would reflect it."

theoretical


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