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Episode 224: Corporate Self-Regulation and the Fine Art of 'Preempting" Public Outrage

Added 2025-07-16 15:52:28 +0000 UTC

"Facebook’s Zuckerberg backs online political ad regulations forwarded by Sen. Amy Klobuchar," reported the Associated Press in 2018. "CEO S

"Facebook’s Zuckerberg backs online political ad regulations forwarded by Sen. Amy Klobuchar," reported the Associated Press in 2018. "CEO Sam Bankman-Fried says crypto needs to embrace regulation," announced Business Insider in 2021. "AI leaders: Please regulate us," read an Axios headline in 2023.

In recent years, major U.S. companies, especially in the tech industry, have given new life to a longstanding corporate PR strategy: self-regulation. It's a common tactic. After a scandal — say, revelations about pollution, rampant scams, or large-scale invasions of privacy — corporations rebrand as repentant and disciplined, ready to pay their debts to society and embrace the public good. "No need for oppressive and overly burdensome regulation, they insist, we can handle it ourselves."

This, of course, isn't the real intention. Historically, this corporate voluntarism has generated little more than a few cosmetic reforms, if that, and allowed the continuation of business as usual in every industry from slavery to oil to tobacco to crypto, save for the occasional sacrificial lamb. So why, and how, do media keep assuring their audiences that, This Time, It's Different? That this time corporate America has learned its lesson and can be trusted to regulate itself?

On this episode, we examine the centuries-old damage-control strategy of industry self-regulation, looking at how corporate claims of self-policing, aided by news media, buy time and goodwill while concealing an agenda of weakening pre-existing regulations, manipulating new laws to the benefit of the private sector, or, often, preventing regulation altogether.

Our guest is the Revolving Door Project's assistant director Timi Iwayemi.

Guest

Timi Iwayemi is assistant director at the Revolving Door Project. His analysis has appeared in outlets such as The American Prospect, The Intercept, The Nation, The New Republic and Washington Monthly.

Show Notes

Dems’ Crypto Schemers Have Entered The Chat

Freddy Brewster and Luke Goldstein | June 16, 2025 | The Lever

Red Tape Isn’t the Only Reason America Can’t Build

Asad Ramzanali and Benjamin Dinovelli | June 10, 2025 | The Atlantic

We Can’t Count on Trump’s SEC to Tell Us If He Is Manipulating the Market

Kenny Stancil and Timi Iwayemi | May 9, 2025 | The American Prospect

AI execs used to beg for regulation. Not anymore.

Gerrit De Vynck and Nitasha Tiku | May 8, 2025 | The Washington Post

How Sam Altman Stormed Washington to Set the A.I. Agenda

Cecilia Kang | June 7, 2023 | The New York Times

OpenAI may leave the EU if regulations bite - CEO

May 24, 2023 | Reuters

Letter signed by Elon Musk demanding AI research pause sparks controversy

Kari Paul and agencies | April 1, 2023 | The Guardian

Don’t Fall for FTX’s Final Con

Dylan Gyauch-Lewis and Timi Iwayemi | November 23, 2022 | The New Republic

Crypto’s Political Megadonor Has Shut His Wallet

Will Gottsegen | October 21, 2022 | The Atlantic

Facebook’s quiet battle to kill the first transparency law for online political ads

Heather Timmons, Heather Timmons, Hanna Kozlowska, and Hanna Kozlowska | July 20, 2022 | Quartz

FTX boss Sam Bankman-Fried says the crypto world must act more responsibly to show it doesn't need strict regulation, as he hits out at scammers

Harry Robertson | August 29, 2021 | Business insider

Confuse, Then Blame the Public: Facebook Dodges Regulation With Wall Street’s Tactics

Max Moran | September 12, 2019 | Counterpunch

Beverage Companies Embrace Recycling, Until It Costs Them

Michael Corkery | July 4, 2019 | The New York Times

Big Tobacco’s surprising new campaign to raise the smoking age

Liz Essley Whyte, Dianna M. Náñez and Dianna Náñez | May 23, 2019 | Center for Public Integrity

Rachel Carson’s Critics Called Her a Witch

Livia Gershon | February 21, 2019 | JStor Daily

Does Self-Regulation Reduce Pollution? Responsible Care in the Chemicals Industry

Shanti Gamper-Rabindran and Stephen R. Finger | February 12, 2010 | University of Pittsburgh

'Woman vs. Man vs. Bugs': Gender and Popular Ecology in Early Reactions to Silent Spring

Maril Hazlett | October 2004 | Environmental History

Against All Odds

Adam Hochschild | January/February 2004 | Mother Jones

Chemical Makers Identify A New Hazard: Their Image

Josh Holusha | August 12, 1991 | The New York Times

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Transcript

For a full transcript of this News Brief, go here. You can also find transcripts of past episodes, live shows, Beg-a-Thons, Interviews and News Briefs here.

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