Susan G Komen Foundation Case Study

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The Susan G. Komen Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to eliminating breast cancer, suffered a PR disaster four years ago and has yet to recover from the bad press of this unpopular decision. In 2012, the Susan G. Komen Foundation decided to end their financial support of Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest provider of family reproductive services (including abortion). This action resulted in an immediate public backlash and ignited a fierce political debate. In the middle of this controversy, the New York Times published an article in which women who had previously participated in the Susan G. Komen cancer walk were asked their opinion of the decision to cut Planned Parenthood funding. Sarah Robertson, who completed the 39.3-mile walk last year stated “I personally wouldn’t walk for Komen,” citing the …show more content…

The removal of the Komen grant triggered a wave of uproar on social media. According to the PEJ research, three days after the announcement, almost two-thirds of the statements on Twitter—64%—were negative toward Komen and its decision, while 19% were neutral and just 17% were positive. The Komen Foundation reversed its decision within 48 hours, but the damage had already been done to the image of the foundation. The Komen Foundation also decided to cut ties with their Vice President Karen Handel, the official behind the decision to remove Planned Parenthood as a Komen partner. Handel, a former Republican candidate who ran for governor of Georgia in 2010 on a staunch pro-life platform, tried to push her conservative political agenda onto the Komen Foundation and both the Foundation and Handel paid the price. Although Handel did not win the bid, her stance on abortion was well known. Hence, Komen Foundation knew the impact of hiring a conservative as the VP of Public Policy, but did so

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