Dear Greg,

Thanks for sharing the Coca Cola post with the list.   I'm writing to you
from the State, Georgia,  that was the birthplace of Coca Cola, and the City
that Coke built, Atlanta.   A sociologist friend often likens Atlanta itself
to Coca Cola --  lots of cool hype (our boosterism) and no nutritional value
(we are still not really an international city)!   However, we Southerners
also use Coca Cola as a folk medicine and as the breakfast of champions!
(Hey kids, don't try this at home.)

This is a great article to reflect upon and to use for discussion with
students and museum boards.    Corporate sponsorships are most successful
when the two value systems  --- viz, that of  (a) the not-for-profit entity
and (b) the corporate, for-profit entity -- share very important and
essential elements.  Obviously, that is not the case with Coca Cola and the
Library of Congress, whose value systems on many levels pose a conflict of
interest.    Also, it is important when corporate sponsorships are formulated
and public relations events (hey, in the real world, strategic PR and  target
marketing are what sell products and get visitors into your facility) that
clear boundaries are present to protect the  not-for-profit from selling
short or selling out its own mission, as well as from the not-for-profit
giving up too much and not getting much in return -- e.g., $20,000 a year for
5 years is nothing for a corporate giant like Coca Cola, if that's all the
LIbrary got from the deal.   Maybe, they got other contributions, too?

Anyway, the public trust and  mission are paramount and there has to be a
fine and delicate balance in these corporate / non-profit relationships.
Government-sponsored entities are in a different category, too, from private
non-profits.   After all,
they belong to all of us based upon our taxes, a forced system of
contributions, and  these government-based activities should have the PUBLIC
GOOD as their first concern.

Situations like the one described in your article don't negate the corporate
sponsorship opportunity for non-profits, but they should make us and our
boards carefully consider the implications, manifest and implied, of the
potential relationship.

pamela sezgin

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