June 17, 2023

It’s hard being a company these days. But harder being a corporate cause or reporting on it. Two letters this week showed why:

The first was about fair-weather friends. It seems lots of big supporters of Pride and the LGBTQ movement are turning tail because some of their stakeholders view this as “wokism gone mad.” So Phil Haid, the CEO of social marketing agency Public Inc. wrote to his clients and friends: “The discomfort that many brands and businesses are experiencing right now is because for a time Pride felt like a party that everyone wanted to be a part of. But please remember that Pride is a protest and has always been. It stands as a constant reminder of the work society needs to continue to do to become equal, equitable, and just.”

The second example was about money. The Logic reports in-depth on Canada’s innovation economy. It does this independently and very well. Each June, the gigantic Collision Conference comes to Toronto (helped along by millions in public subsidies), and this year its date follows a conference The Logic is organizing. When The Logic applied for media credentials to cover Collision, it was denied: Why? “Running other events that piggyback on our own is not something we support.” Now Collision is a Goliath; The Logic is a David, as is its editor-in-chief David Skok. So David wrote about it. After his column appeared, Collision caved and let The Logic in.

Meanwhile…