greedwashing

An attempt disguise corporate greed by promoting a company's charitable contributions, said especially of large financial corporations; a public relations strategy aimed at defusing public anger over wanton corporate greed by putting a superficial positive or redeeming social face on the corporation through advertisement of the corporation's charitable contributions.

Goldman Sachs, who accepted $12.9 billion in taxpayer bailout funds in 2008-2009, was getting ready to give its employees bonuses estimated to be worth around $595,000 per employee, but first the company's press team considered a greedwashing program to defray public anger at the firm over the massive bonuses: requiring its top employees to donate a small percentage of their pay to charity each year. Can you feel the love?

greedwashing by afoxland January 11, 2010

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greenwashing

when companies pretend to be environmentally friendly when in fact they are not.

Both are examples of "greenwashing".

- planting a tree to clear your conscience of your new carbon emitting SUV purchase.

- Kyoto accord, the theory of emissions credits, where a country may go over their limit, but instead of dealing with the issue they just buy the unused credits off of a country that has not used all of theirs.

greenwashing by Pete @ Humber October 2, 2007

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Related Words

greedwashing • greenwashing • Greywashing

Greenwashing

Taking superficial, PR actions to make your company or organization appealing to people concerned about the environment.

BP's greenwashing campaign to appeal to the climate change crowd has caught up with them.

Greenwashing by TartanMarine June 26, 2010

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greenwashing

The act of corporations using public relations propaganda to distract from corporate malfeasance in their environmental policy, in order to give the impression that the degraders are benign, beneficial, or caring about the environment.

Instead of addressing environmental concerns, all Exxon Incorporated did after their last oiltanker spill was a greenwashing of the issue by printing up lots of glossy advertising posters with happy children playing in the ocean, talking about the 100 birds they scrapped oil off of out of the kindness of their hearts--while completely ignoring they destroyed hundreds of square miles of oceanfront.

greenwashing by mdw January 20, 2004