abusesaffiliationarrow-downarrow-leftarrow-rightarrow-upattack-typeburgerchevron-downchevron-leftchevron-rightchevron-upClock iconclosedeletedevelopment-povertydiscriminationdollardownloademailenvironmentexternal-linkfacebookfiltergenderglobegroupshealthC4067174-3DD9-4B9E-AD64-284FDAAE6338@1xinformation-outlineinformationinstagraminvestment-trade-globalisationissueslabourlanguagesShapeCombined Shapeline, chart, up, arrow, graphLinkedInlocationmap-pinminusnewsorganisationotheroverviewpluspreviewArtboard 185profilerefreshIconnewssearchsecurityPathStock downStock steadyStock uptagticktooltiptwitteruniversalityweb
Article

11 Apr 2010

Author:
Stephanie Clifford, New York Times

Magazine to Publish a Corporate ‘Black List’

After 11 years of publishing a list of the best corporate citizens, Corporate Responsibility Magazine plans to introduce in its April-May issue, out this week, its first-ever “black list” of the worst companies, or those that are the least transparent...To compile both its “best” and its “worst” list, the magazine scored companies from the Russell 1000 index of large-capitalization stocks on 349 data points in categories like financial, governance and human rights...“We decided to ask ourselves what the bottom of that list would look like, never dreaming for a minute that we would uncover a full 30 corporations where no relevant data at all could be turned up,” he said. The list includes well-known companies like Abercrombie & Fitch, Lorillard, Scripps Networks Interactive and Weight Watchers, along with more obscure ones like Central European Media Enterprises, which owns television stations like Pop TV of Slovenia. Mr. Olin said the magazine had tried to contact all the worst companies for comment, but got no response, which left him “somewhere between stupefied and flabbergasted.”...The best corporate citizens list, which includes Hewlett-Packard, Intel, General Mills, I.B.M. and Kimberly-Clark, had a total return on shareholder value of 2.37 percent over three years. But the 30 worst had a negative 7.38 percent return.