Introduction
President Barack Obama’s election to office in 2009 represented a seminal change in the history of America because he was the first African-American to attain the highest seat of power in the US. There was a lot of hype about the changes that his presidency was supposed to bring on in the area of corporate racism, including the racial composition of corporate America. This essay examines the impact of the Obama presidency on Black/White race relations in corporate America by analyzing the responses of three major companies: Coca-Cola, Walmart, and Google.
Support for Obama’s Election Campaigns
Coca-Cola, Walmart, and Google were among the companies endorsing President Obama in his two election campaign bids. Coca-Cola had endorsed Obama, because he shared Coca-Cola’s values of diversity, and inclusion. Coca-Cola was thinking that Obama could promote the policies that would wholly foster their businesses. Walmart endorsed Obama assuming the revival of the consumer spending would have a favorable impact on the economic climate that in turn would help the company retail operations. Google made a serious decision to back up Obama as he supported issues like net neutrality and immigration reform, which directly affected their tech operations and diversity in their managers. These companies invested in securing the support of the presidential office (commonly the powerful Democratic Party) on different aspects that included labor economics, health reforms, illegal immigration regulations, and the initiatives that focused on diversity and inclusivity in the workforce.
Marketing and Advertising Strategies Post-Election
After Obama’s election, all three companies, Coca—Cola, Walmart and Google changed their marketing and advertising approaches for a more accepted market. Though numerous, Coca-Cola, a symbol of iconic advertisement, came forth with deeds relating to diversity and solidarity, addressing different backgrounds of people with the same experiences that most people have in common (Lin, 2022). Apart from the price slash, as a major strategy of Walmart, its commitment to affordability and accessibility is highlighted for all demographic groups through the use of a variety of customers and products in the ads. Google presented diversity and inclusion in its advertising campaigns, talking about its colorful staff and giving examples of customized products made for various reasons.
As a result of improved marketing approaches mostly those strategies were efficient in the attraction of an audience representing a broader spectrum of society. The values of Coca-Cola campaigns were perfectly in line with consumers going for brands that express progressive views that led to strengthening the bond of consumers with the brand and created a positive public opinion on the brand name. Walmart’s emphasis on affordability drew people of all kinds, but especially those of lower income and homogenous cultural backgrounds, which in turn escalated sales and the share of the market. Furthermore, Google’s walk-in diversity in its advertisements conveyed the picture of an innovative and welcoming society that saw customers and employees from mixed backgrounds gain an interest to see more of what the company had to offer.
Support in the 2016 Presidential Election
In 2016, Coca-Cola and Google remained solid Democratic supporters, and their standard-bearer was Hillary Clinton. Instead, they supported Clinton due to the perception that she would continue the policies that successfully encouraged diverse and innovative societies, which greatly contributes to the country’s social progress and is equally appreciated by the business world and the society. On the other hand, Walmart gave its support to Donald Trump because of his pledge to weaken regulatory restrictions and enact tax cuts, which were expected to improve the company’s operation (Agnihotri & Bhattacharya, 2024). This decision proved the dominance of the economic factor in Walmart’s political endorsements and put in the center the different conception of the social and ecological values during the hard-fought election.
In conclusion, Obama’s presidency can be seen as having a great impact on corporate America’s racial situation by generating a new perception in which transcription hard had to be done in relation to firms’ evaluation of their policy bit & marketing strategy alongside their values. Whilst some parties were more accepting of diversity and inclusion, others looked to make the economy prosper. Moving into the future, the legacy of the Obama presidency emphasizes the continuous need for companies to navigate with a high-degree of complexity eclectic dynamics of race, leadership, and politics for creation of fair and inclusive work spaces and markets.
References
Agnihotri, A., & Bhattacharya, S. (2024). Walmart: Supporting or Protesting Antiabortion Policy?.
Lin, T. C. (2022). The Capitalist and the Activist: Corporate Social Activism and the New Business of Change. Berrett-Koehler Publishers.
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