In-N-Out Burger: The Perils of Political Contribution

Author
Muldoon, M. Youdale, R. O’Rourke, J. S. (editor)
Region
North America
Topic
Strategy & General Management
Marketing & Sales
Length
11 pages
Keywords
tweet
politics
PR
Public Relations
strategy
Student Price
$4.00
Target Audience
Graduate Students
Undergraduate Students

On August 29, 2018 Eric Bauman, Chairman of the Democratic Party of California sent out a midnight tweet exposing In-N-Out Burger’s donation of $25,000 to the Republican party and called for a nationwide boycott. How In-N-Out responds to the viral sensation could affect their reputation in their home state of California and alter their corporate political donation policy.

Learning Outcomes
  • To highlight the complicated political climate companies must navigate in 2018 as they try to balance their own political views with a split general public.
  • To provide an example of an attempted political boycott of a corporation and how social media plays a role its communication.
  • To encourage a discussion about impact of corporations making political contributions & what corporations should consider when making such donations.
  • To provide an example of a corporation being forced to address a social media fuelled scandal.