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• Case | HBS Case Collection | 2013 (Revised from original 2009 version)

  Barack Obama: Organizing for America 2.0

  Mikolaj Jan Piskorski, Laura Winig and Aaron Smith

  Less than a week before Barack Obama was due to be sworn in as the 44th president of the United States, Obama for America (OFA), the president-elect's official campaign organization, announced the formation of a post-election organization, Organizing for America. The new organization would keep the campaign field team offices open after Obama took charge of the country for the express purpose of influencing supporters to back his administration's agenda. The case describes the activities of the Obama for America campaign and asks whether the new president should use social media tools to activate the grassroots, or whether he should abandon these unconventional tools in order not to upset politicians in Washington.

  Keywords: Advertising Campaigns; Political Elections; Marketing Communications; Power and Influence; Social and Collaborative Networks; Internet;

  Citation:

  Piskorski, Mikolaj Jan, Laura Winig, and Aaron Smith. "Barack Obama: Organizing for America 2.0." Harvard Business School Case 709-493, April 2013. (Revised from original April 2009 version.)

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• Module Note | 2013

  Business and Government: Campaign Contributions and Lobbying in the United States

  Karthik Ramanna, Sandra J. Sucher and Ian McKowan Cornell

  This module note on business-government relations introduces students to the state of campaign contributions and lobbying by corporations in the United States. The note develops two hypotheses as to the impact of corporate political engagement: (i) a vehicle to facilitate good government; and (ii) an instrument of special-interest capture. The note can be used to generate a discussion on the following issues: (1) In a democratic capitalist society, what is the appropriate role of business in government? (2) When it comes to political contributions, should corporations have the same rights and responsibilities as individuals? The note also describes the various practical choices businesses face on political engagement, including disclosure options and options to engage through trade or ideological associations. This description can be used to encourage business students to develop an aspiration for their companies' political engagement strategies.

  Keywords: political economy; Business and Government Relations; Business and Government Relations; Government and Politics; Public Administration Industry; United States;

  Citation:

  Ramanna, Karthik, Sandra J. Sucher, and Ian McKowan Cornell. "Business and Government: Campaign Contributions and Lobbying in the United States." Harvard Business School Module Note 113-037, March 2013.

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• Background Note | HBS Case Collection | 2013 (Revised from original 2012 version)

  A Brief History of the U.S. Tobacco Industry Controversy

  Sandra J. Sucher and Henry McGee

  This history of the U.S. tobacco controversy is a reading for a class on "The Insider," a film about whistleblowing in the U.S. tobacco industry, taught in the course, The Moral Leader.

  Keywords: leadership; ethics; United States;

  Citation:

  Sucher, Sandra J., and Henry McGee. "A Brief History of the U.S. Tobacco Industry Controversy." Harvard Business School Background Note 613-044, March 2013. (Revised from original September 2012 version.)

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