By Dorottya Sallai, Marcus Gomes, Magnus Feldmann, Glenn Morgan, & Andrew Spicer
Populism is a buzzword of the 21st century. In the last decade, we witnessed the rise of populist movements and parties and saw populist leaders gain prominence in democratically elected parliaments and influence policies all over the world.
Populism exploits the tension between ‘the people’ versus ‘the elites’. Research shows that Donald Trump won the 2016 elections in the United States by relying on the populist political rhetoric of simplicity, anti-elitism, and collectivism. Populists claim that inequalities are the result of ‘the elites’ ruling the world, leaving the mass of the people economically disadvantaged, undermined culturally, and with less opportunities. Populist leaders, therefore, often pose as those who are able to take the people’s demand forward. For instance, Viktor Orbán, Hungary’s prime minister, often refers to EU institutions and, more broadly, Brussels bureaucrats as elites that have ‘lost touch with reality’, while Slovenia’s prime minister Janez Janša has started a war against the country’s mainstream media for ‘spreading lies’ during the pandemic.
Most populist parties and movements in Europe are linked to nationalism, defined by the exclusion and/or marginalization of outsiders (on grounds such as ethnicity, race, caste, or religion). Besides its implications for minority groups, populist rhetoric is also often gendered and dangerous to women as they are represented by populist leaders as having a ‘special duty to reproduce the nation’. However, the impact of populism goes beyond culture wars, parliamentary elections, and political rhetoric – it has a lasting impact on business and society even when populists are not in power.
Business, society and populism
A recent Twitter report showed that the tweets from right-leaning political parties, politicians, and news outlets receive more amplification from the company’s algorithm than those from the left. Yet, when Twitter and Facebook decided to ban Donald Trump from its platforms after the Capitol riots in January 2021, the former president responded by planning on launching his own invitation-only social media platform. Although only time will tell how successful this new venture will be, it nevertheless raises significant questions about the role of business in supporting or censoring free speech. However, the impact of populism on businesses and their practices is not restricted only to the tech giants. An Indian fashion retailer recently withdrew a Diwali-related commercial due to a campaign from the incumbent Hindu right-wing, raising the question of how business organisations relate to the increasing political pressure of populism.
Populist movements and parties threaten the liberal consensus in which business practices regarding diversity and inclusion, immigration, the natural environment, corporate social responsibility (CSR) and broad social issues became institutionalised. Over the last decade, many large businesses gradually attempted to align with what they perceived as the growing social consensus on the need for businesses to act responsibly. Businesses have, therefore, developed CSR programs across a wide range of internal and external activities. However, firms and business organisations may find themselves targeted by populist regimes if they do not fit the government’s political agenda of economic nationalism or are seen as potentially undermining the economic, military and cyber security of the county. In extreme cases, these tendencies can lead to the development of authoritarian capitalism or legislation to silence the critical voice of civil society.
Despite the exponential increase of scholarly articles on the subject in recent years, especially in political science, we know little about the social challenges that populism poses for businesses. Hence the question arises: how does populism impact business organisations? How do firms adapt to populist regimes and more generally to populist ideas and leaders? Should business leaders challenge populist discourses? Our forthcoming Special Issue seeks answers to these questions.
Call for papers on “Social Challenges for Business in the Age of Populism”
We welcome contributions on the broad impact of populism on the interface of business and society and on a range of CSR issues and initiatives that this movement has increasingly come to challenge. More specific themes of interest include the implications for Diversity and Inclusion, Race and Immigration, Anti-science Attitudes and Beliefs, Climate Change and Big Tech. We particularly welcome submissions that address the topic from a comparative perspective, and we invite contributions from all parts of the world spanning the Global South and Global North.
The deadline for submissions is January 31, 2022. Find out more about the Call for Papers here. We look forward to reading your submissions!