Profit with a purpose: The role of media in promoting corporate social responsibility

This thesis focuses on the emerging field of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and examines its evolution from the late 18th century to the present day. An original piece of primary research comprises the majority of this thesis: a media content analysis of 179 articles found in 10 leading U.S. publications within the period from 1995 to 2005.; Results indicate that the recurrent coverage of corporate philanthropy inhibits the growth of the CSR movement. Moreover, environmental responsibility emerges as the most frequently covered issue in the latter half of the period. A strong correlation is found between the frequency of CSR coverage in business magazines and the number of CSR reports published by Fortune 100 companies; this implies that agenda-setting effects on corporate behavior may exist. Finally, the author presents a solution to the limited coverage of CSR through the creation of a Center for CSR in the Media.