William S. Laufer’s ariticle, ” Social Accountability and Cooperate Greenwashing” discusses the complexities regarding the rhetoric used surrounding large, globalized cooperations and the maintenance of their public image. He eludes to “greenwashing” and “bluewashing,” two terms that describe the methods used by large companies to preserve a certain image and manage their reputations by deflecting claims made by critics of their operations. Monsanto could highly be regarded as the poster child of such technique. Not only does Monsanto encounter criticism in their genetically modified products, but the company has undergone major scrutiny over reported foul working conditions. In addition, the distribution of Monsanto’s genetically modified seeds has spread at an exponential pace has proven detrimental to other cultures. Nevertheless, the company continues to expand is influence in the agricultural scope of the global economy in both in desired and undesired manners. When addressing concerns, however, Monsanto’s power and monetary wealth enable the company to protect itself. Monsanto’s wealth, scope, and influence is so large that the company can constantly reconstruct its image through af self-advertising and address and solve settlements relatively quietly without losing large amounts of capitol, while also having the ability to expand its scope through the purchasing of smaller companies all across the globe.
Moreover, this phenomenon of “greenwashing” can be concerning. If larger companies be so adept in hiding their skeletons while being able to control more assets, stopping their negative influence on the world at large through the process of globalization can be nearly impossible. More specifically to Monsanto, their control of much of the globalized agricultural realm nearly allows them to continue their operations of self-proclaimed “good intentions,” without truly having to worry about outside forces challenging their scope affectively enough to take them down. It appears that companies like Monsanto epitomize why the growth of globalization at an rapid pace is frightening to its critics.
