Do Corporations Bear a Societal Burden?

I was listening to a podcast by Rebecca MacKinnon last night.  You can watch the video here.  Rebecca is an activist campaigning to retake the internet, which by her definition means lessening the influence and power of large corporations.  There were a couple of points in the talk that raised some interesting questions.

Is modern-day censorship the same as previous corporate ills such as waste dumping and child labor?

In the talk, MacKinnon makes the comparison between the careless dumping of environmental waste and child labor with the censorship practiced by Apple and Facebook in countries such as China and Tunisia.  It was only after years of concerted lobbying and activism that these ills were removed, not because the leaders of these corporations woke up one day and realized what they were doing was wrong.

I agree with MacKinnon on this point, but don’t think I can join her on the rest of the journey.  Here is why I think it’s different:  The people being harmed by the dumping of waste did not have the choice of doing something different.  They were (many times unknowingly) being poisoned without their knowledge.  You don’t have to support / use Facebook or Apple products.

Do modern corporations have a larger societal responsibility beyond maximizing shareholder return?

I believe that corporations are no different than individuals in this regard.  They do bear a burden to operate in alignment not only with the business charter but also their own moral compass.  However, corporations are just a collection of people.  At some point, the leadership’s personal convictions will come into play.

When is it proper / OK for a corporation to censor or act in line with the leadership’s personal beliefs?

Apple in particular has been the target of many people’s ire for their censorship of apps in the iPhone App Store.  From the “Gay Cure” app to porn apps to pro-Palestinian apps Apple has managed to offend just about everyone.  The fact of the matter is that Apple can do what it wants.  We may not like it, or their decisions.  We do, however, have a choice to buy another phone from another company.

I think MacKinnon raises some great points in her talk.  There is no doubt that corporations have more ability to track our activities and behaviors than at any other time in human history.  To the extent that they are using that information for nefarious purposes they should be held accountable.

Question: What are your thoughts on the above topics?